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The wonders that I've seen....
The first season of Penny Dreadful is out on dvd in my part of the world, and I'm currently rewatching with glee.
Rewatch thoughts on the first two episodes, spoilers for the entire first season:
As much as the shocks are part of the program - see title - the show doesn't depend on them in the sense of being all about this, because even knowing what's coming in every scene, it's still captivating, and you catch second and third layers to a lot of things.
Vanessa praying in the second scene of the pilot (complete with spiders): characters who are very religious in a horror movie or tv show usually are coded as hypocrites, fanatics or both, or if they're good guys they start out religious but quickly lose their religion, but Vanessa isn't any of this. (Also the show's free of that not just horror trope, the evil priest. The guy later called for the exorcism isn't brave, but he's not evil, and the one Vanessa goes to in her last scene of the season is kind and open minded. At the same time, Vanessa's Catholicism is something that sets her apart from childhood onwards - as she'll note in the grand flashback episode, it's the one thing the Murrays and the Ives didn't share - and it probably contributes to her overall sense of guilt - but perhaps also to her hope, since absolution through remorse and good works is pretty much essential.
In retrospect, they're making the werewolf thing re: Ethan really obvious from the get go, with the "damm him that did it" from the woman observing the corpses of the mother and daughter killed in the first scene, and the camera showing us Ethan's reaction. One thing that didn't occur to me during first watch because I didn't know Ethan's personality then but is a puzzle to me now: Ethan clearly knows he's a werewolf at this point. He's probably the type of werewolf who can't remember what happens during the wolf stage, but he knows this keeps happening once a month, and he knows the consequences for people who have the bad luck to be around him at that point. So why doesn't he take the precautions Being Human werewolves George and Tom do and either locks himself in a cellar during full moon or tries to find a nearby forest instead of hanging out in a city with a million people? Ethan later becomes the conscience of the group, and is anything but callous with people's lives, so I do hope the show gives us an explanation for this contradition in s2.
It's so fitting that Ethan gets recruited by Vanessa while Victor gets recruited by Malcolm, and in both cases after their special skills have been on display. Malcolm recognizes a fellow obsessive seeker when he sees one. And in both cases, the recruitment target gets just a bit flirted with. John Logan is doing a bit self-homaging here, with Vanessa giving Ethan the Sherlock Holmes scan the same way Vesper Lynd (played also by Eva Green) does to James Bond in Casino Royale (which Logan co wrote). Otoh it's Victor who gets given the dinner jacket (by Malcolm, who apparantly can guess sizes as well as Vesper Lynd can). Victor's intrigued (and in need of cash) but isn't sold on working for Malcolm until Malcolm mentions he's looking for his daughter. Which happens after, not before Victor gives his passionate speech that science has to be FOR something, not for its own sake, and puts his own research in contrast to Malcolm's exploring (as an ego project). Not that Malcolm isn't really desperately looking for Mina (and needs a scientist), but I think that reveal at that point was a deliberate response to Victor's speech, to get him hooked.
The big seance; introduces Madame Kali/Evelyn, but barely; the only hint we get she's a genuine medium is that she senses Vanessa is one before Vanessa starts channelling entities. In retrospect, I had the impression she may have prompted her Egptologist to invite Malcolm & Vanessa to begin with, or rather, told him that if someone ever presents that particular set of hieroglyphs he'd better bring them to her for inspection.
The first time around, I mostly was struck by Eva Green's powerhouse performance during the seance but understood only snatches of what she said - and those fragments didn't make too much sense yet, because we didn't know the backstory then. Upon rewatch, it's actually clearly structured: Vanessa channels first Peter, then Mina, than Amunet, though of course it's also possible it's Amunet the whole time pretending to be Peter and Mina. Anyway, the entire thing is directed at Malcolm which is why I wondered originally whether Vanessa had some control over it and did it deliberately, but now I don't think so, not yet. She may learn how to control it in s2, of course. Anyway, Malcolm listening doesn't seem to have any doubts this is real, not a mindgame, and it's remarkable that he doesn't attempt to stop it since it reveals his worst secrets (Peter, neglecting and then letting him die and not naming the bloody mountain after him) as well as some less awful but embarassing ones (having sex with Vanessa's mother and being observed by Vanessa). Reminds me that a part of the fascinating mess that is the Vanessa/Malcolm relationship is to use each other for mutual self punishment.
Dorian Gray: still the least interesting cast member.
Rewatch thoughts on the first two episodes, spoilers for the entire first season:
As much as the shocks are part of the program - see title - the show doesn't depend on them in the sense of being all about this, because even knowing what's coming in every scene, it's still captivating, and you catch second and third layers to a lot of things.
Vanessa praying in the second scene of the pilot (complete with spiders): characters who are very religious in a horror movie or tv show usually are coded as hypocrites, fanatics or both, or if they're good guys they start out religious but quickly lose their religion, but Vanessa isn't any of this. (Also the show's free of that not just horror trope, the evil priest. The guy later called for the exorcism isn't brave, but he's not evil, and the one Vanessa goes to in her last scene of the season is kind and open minded. At the same time, Vanessa's Catholicism is something that sets her apart from childhood onwards - as she'll note in the grand flashback episode, it's the one thing the Murrays and the Ives didn't share - and it probably contributes to her overall sense of guilt - but perhaps also to her hope, since absolution through remorse and good works is pretty much essential.
In retrospect, they're making the werewolf thing re: Ethan really obvious from the get go, with the "damm him that did it" from the woman observing the corpses of the mother and daughter killed in the first scene, and the camera showing us Ethan's reaction. One thing that didn't occur to me during first watch because I didn't know Ethan's personality then but is a puzzle to me now: Ethan clearly knows he's a werewolf at this point. He's probably the type of werewolf who can't remember what happens during the wolf stage, but he knows this keeps happening once a month, and he knows the consequences for people who have the bad luck to be around him at that point. So why doesn't he take the precautions Being Human werewolves George and Tom do and either locks himself in a cellar during full moon or tries to find a nearby forest instead of hanging out in a city with a million people? Ethan later becomes the conscience of the group, and is anything but callous with people's lives, so I do hope the show gives us an explanation for this contradition in s2.
It's so fitting that Ethan gets recruited by Vanessa while Victor gets recruited by Malcolm, and in both cases after their special skills have been on display. Malcolm recognizes a fellow obsessive seeker when he sees one. And in both cases, the recruitment target gets just a bit flirted with. John Logan is doing a bit self-homaging here, with Vanessa giving Ethan the Sherlock Holmes scan the same way Vesper Lynd (played also by Eva Green) does to James Bond in Casino Royale (which Logan co wrote). Otoh it's Victor who gets given the dinner jacket (by Malcolm, who apparantly can guess sizes as well as Vesper Lynd can). Victor's intrigued (and in need of cash) but isn't sold on working for Malcolm until Malcolm mentions he's looking for his daughter. Which happens after, not before Victor gives his passionate speech that science has to be FOR something, not for its own sake, and puts his own research in contrast to Malcolm's exploring (as an ego project). Not that Malcolm isn't really desperately looking for Mina (and needs a scientist), but I think that reveal at that point was a deliberate response to Victor's speech, to get him hooked.
The big seance; introduces Madame Kali/Evelyn, but barely; the only hint we get she's a genuine medium is that she senses Vanessa is one before Vanessa starts channelling entities. In retrospect, I had the impression she may have prompted her Egptologist to invite Malcolm & Vanessa to begin with, or rather, told him that if someone ever presents that particular set of hieroglyphs he'd better bring them to her for inspection.
The first time around, I mostly was struck by Eva Green's powerhouse performance during the seance but understood only snatches of what she said - and those fragments didn't make too much sense yet, because we didn't know the backstory then. Upon rewatch, it's actually clearly structured: Vanessa channels first Peter, then Mina, than Amunet, though of course it's also possible it's Amunet the whole time pretending to be Peter and Mina. Anyway, the entire thing is directed at Malcolm which is why I wondered originally whether Vanessa had some control over it and did it deliberately, but now I don't think so, not yet. She may learn how to control it in s2, of course. Anyway, Malcolm listening doesn't seem to have any doubts this is real, not a mindgame, and it's remarkable that he doesn't attempt to stop it since it reveals his worst secrets (Peter, neglecting and then letting him die and not naming the bloody mountain after him) as well as some less awful but embarassing ones (having sex with Vanessa's mother and being observed by Vanessa). Reminds me that a part of the fascinating mess that is the Vanessa/Malcolm relationship is to use each other for mutual self punishment.
Dorian Gray: still the least interesting cast member.
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Victor's speech was the first thing that really made me sit up and notice the actor, Harry Treadaway, as someone who is extremely gifted with words - though he was certainly funny in his earlier scenes and gets to be plenty dramatic later on, but this moment is just someone relishing his craft. The cast is so exceptionally good in this. Can't wait for the new season!
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(Or, you know, spill the beans to Victor or Sembene and asks for help - I understand why he wouldn't tell Malcolm at this point - but then Victor doesn't tell anyone about his Caliban problem, either, so it's not an Ethan only thing, this lack of important information sharing.)
Incidentally, I had forgotten that Malcolm goes to the police about the killings - evidently because he thinks it might be a vampire - sees the photos, hears there was no blood draining, and leaves again but not before correctly deducing that these wounds were made by a beast, not a man, and that it will happen again at which point the inspector should call him. Which makes me wonder whether MALCOLM has encountered a werewolf before. Or a were-anything, in Africa. (It's also worth noting that the fact the killed woman from the opening scene had a young daughter who also was killed does affect him and he's still interested in helping after realising this incident isn't Mina- and vampire related.)
So if not Ethan: who? Another werewolf in town?
Harry Treadaway is superb as Victor. I just watched the third episode, where he gets to do the full range between heartbroken and devasted at the start (because of Proteus) to deadpan snarking at Ethan re: scruples at torturing vampires but okayness with genociding Indians to telling Malcolm the lesson of the hour about being responsible for the people you create.
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I would buy shock and denial for the third victim, as well as the inability to leave quickly enough, since it should have been the following night (if they go by the "three nights around the full moon" werewolf rule), but for the stay at Malcolm's house I can offer nothing but the necessity to keep the wolf thing secret - well, as "secret" as it was by that time, since it probably was the non-surprise of that TV year - or plot convenience, which let him arrive just after the full moon, and leave just before the next.
I think the answer to both Ethan and Victor not telling anyone about their problems is massive guilt, as well as fear. Even though he probably wouldn't admit it, Victor seems scared to death of Caliban, and obviously of what he can do - i.e. murdering Van Helsing - and Ethan probably simply cannot abide to admit to himself what he is actually doing, and he's deadly afraid of being chained up like an animal. Ironically enough, since they both think of the other as "innocent," they can't confide in each other - and Sembene is too close to Malcolm, and Dad can't know, of course.
Malcolm having encountered a were being in Africa would make sense. I'm also reminded of the story he told about the lion - there are lots of tales about ferocious, man-eating lions (or tigers, but, wrong continent of course), and maybe he met a more supernatural variety of that.
A suspect apart from Ethan: my first thought was Mr. Hyde, but it could be something more obscure, too. Mostly, there were some details that didn't quite seem to fit with random, beastly attacks: the woman with the little girl was pregnant according to one of the neighbours, and the inspector later elaborates that her uterus was gone, without noting that the police knew she had been expecting. It's obviously a very Ripperesque detail, but it could also be seen as removing evidence of a forbidden relationship.
As for the prostitute, I kept wondering why on earth she would be waiting for a client in such a lonely spot? It's not like you'd expect many men looking for a nice evening to walk through a foggy park to find a prostitute. It seems more likely she was waiting for someone, and while she may have become a victim by chance, she also may have been called their by her murderer.
Two murders that may have happened for a purpose, and were covered up by making them look like Ripper murders. Or else my Christie-schooled mind has been playing tricks on me. *g*
The third ep certainly is a good episode for Victor. I wish I enjoyed Caliban a little more, but even though I know that a lot of his anger is justified, I mostly find him irritating. That makes the Frankenstein storyline a bit of a mixed blessing for me, and I enjoy Victor vastly more when he is with the gang.