Episode: 2.07 "A Marriage of Inconvenience" & Episode 2.08 "The Prodigal Father"
Directed by: (2.07 & 2.08) Edward Bennett
Written by: (2.07) Steve Bailie & (2.08) Susie Conklin and Adrian Hodges
Air date: (2.07) 27 February 2015 & (2.08) 6 March 2015
Reviews so far:
Episode 2.01 "Keep Your Friends Close"
Episode 2.02 "An Ordinary Man"
Episode 2.03 "The Good Traitor"
Episode 2.04 "Emilie"
Episode 2.05 "The Return"
Episode 2.06 "Through a Glass Darkly"
Treville - Poor Captain. The last two episodes weren't easy for him. He got shot, had to go through incredibly painful (and experimental) surgery and slowly recovered from his physical wound but finally revealed his darkest secret and almost lost his close friend. Hovewer, he did get a chance to interact more with his Musketeers once again. And in the end, got back Porthos' trust after confronting his father, so there were good things happening to him too. Also, even though he doesn't have his title, he's still very much the Captain. For his people and the Queen, for sure. Despite Rochefort continuously trying to humiliate him, it takes far more than his tricks to break Treville's spirit. The Captain stands proudly and I hope we'll see him on a more successful path at the end of the season.
Porthos - "No man has ever worn the uniform with more dignity and courage than you." It's impossible not to agree with Treville. Porthos has always been everything the Musketeer should be and his struggles with feeling like he didn't earn his position were a truly sad view. I'm glad that the secret is finally revealed and Porthos and Treville are on good terms once again. I'm sure we all wanted that to happen, but I still wish that things with Porthos' father didn't go so badly. It must be horrible to discover you're related to such terrible people. And they really were... evil, cruel and pretty much heartless family. It's a good thing Porthos had a wonderful mother and great new family ("All for one"). It was such a heartwarming, bonding moment for all the Musketeers. And exactly what we needed after the painful operation scene in "A Marriage of Inconvenience". Despite their conflict, I loved how Porthos still cared about the Captain and wanted to find the person responsible for shooting him, even more than all the others. There's a great father-son, mentor-student dynamic between them and it might be one of the best on the show. Great to see two episodes in the row with a little more focus on Porthos, especially since it often seems like there's not enough of his character on the show. And last but not least, I'm glad we got more of his scenes with Aramis, they were my favorite duo in season one, so I'm always happy to see their friendship and support for each other.
- Finally, we got Aramis ending his relationship with Marguerite, I thought it was pretty clear when he suggested she should focus on finding a suitable husband for her back in "Emilie", but things quickly got complicated on the way. And since this couple has been one of the weakest plots of this great season, it's good we can (mostly) move past it. "Mostly", because Marguerite's jealousy ends up making things much, much worse with Rochefort, as she helps him confirm the link between Aramis and the Queen when she brings him the Musketeer's jewelled cross. Ironically, the cross never actually had anything to so with the affair between the two, as it was a thank-you gift from Anne after Aramis saved her life at the beginning of the show. Maybe it won't be used as an effective proof of their treason, then. It's really a shame our Musketeer didn't notice anything suspicious in Marguerite's behavior. She's probably the least interesting character of the story for me at this point, but I felt pretty bad for her, she clearly didn't mean to cause anyone harm and I have a bad feeling she might become Rochefort's victim in the end. Changing subject, I loved Aramis and Porthos going together to meet the father of the latter. The two having each other's back is always great to see. And now I'm very interested to find out how things will change once the truth about Aramis and the Queen will come to light (probably next episode). Looks like, it's Aramis who might need his friends "all for one" support in the upcoming hour.
- Rochefort started the season as a very interesting, intriguing villain, then it became clear he's absolutely insane and brutal, now I don't think his level of creepiness could be any higher after the events of last episode. His suspicions and threatening Marguerite in "A Marriage of Inconvenience" made him more dangerous than ever. But I would never imagine it could end like this. After his success in the previous episode, he had a painful realization in the following hour and even though I've heard the spoilers about this last scene, I was still truly shocked to see it all happening. And the way he changed so much, so quickly, from the crying, desperate man, looking for a confirmation of love to the monster who brutally attacks the woman he's obsessed with, was disturbing and hard to watch. But, a shout-out to Mark Warren for making such a powerful impression on the viewers, amazing work! The threat directed towards the Queen in the final seconds of "The Prodigal Father" was probably the biggest cliffhanger the show has done so far. And with Rochefort gaining the King's complete trust (and possibly some damning documents in his possession signed by Louis), things are not looking good for Queen Anne, Constance and the Musketeers.
- There's not a lot to say about the King in the last two episodes. The events that took place in "Through a Glass Darkly" cost him his sense of security and he isolated himself from everyone other than Rochefort. He remains completely blind to the actions of his "trusted" man. He's paranoid that everyone is trying to kill him and only trusts the one person who's actively working against him (and apparently poisons him in the next episode if we're to believe the promo) to protect him. Hopefully, he hasn't completely lost it and will come to his senses in the end.
Queen Anne - Since the Cardinal's death, the Queen, instead of becoming more of the King's trusted advisor, has been losing her influence over Louis. The distance between them is one of the reasons why Rochefort managed to gain the King's trust so effectively. I was hoping things might have changed a little after "Through a Glass Darkly", where Louis did show some concern not just for "his" son but also for the Queen's safety and finished the episode in need of her support but it looks like Rochefort took advantage of the situation and isolated the King from everyone, including Anne, which now makes things drastically worse when it comes to the question "who would King believe with the two being at odds?". It doesn't look good for the Queen. Or Aramis. Anne and Constance's friendship remains one of the best things about season two for me and I think their conversation, where the Queen reveals the truth about her child's father and how she really feels about her position was probably my favorite moment of the episode. Queen rooting for at least Constance to be free to find her happiness was both a beautiful and a sad sentiment. Despite the awfulness of the last scene in "The Prodigal Father " it was good to see Anne finally finding out the truth about Rochefort and fighting back. Nothing will be the same after that.
- It only took two episodes to completely change Constance's position. First, she bravely admitted to her husband it's over between them with painful consequences, only for him to be killed a few scenes later. She then tried to give herself time to adjust to new circumstances, before officially staying with D'Artagnan and it didn't take long for someone else to notice her unconventional charm and offer her the safety and love in marriage. It was actually quite predictable for Lemay to have feelings for Constance but still, his sudden confession took both her and me (with many other viewers) by surprise. My favorite thing about her in the last two hours of the show, is probably "I'm only just getting started" line. It worked so well for her in the scene and I really hope it is a great new beginning for Constance's role in the story. Despite so many (obvious) signs that seem to predict her death, most recently, her husband's blood literally on her hands, I choose to believe it's all just a way to make things more intense (with high stakes for the characters) in the finale. If you know me, you know I'm always rooting for a happy ending and Constance definitely deserves one.
- Oh, D'Artagnan, I was really hoping we're past the whole "one step forward, two steps back" development phase of the character. Sadly, his conversation with Constance next to the Bonacieux' grave made a truly bad impression on me. Sure, the guy wasn't great, but it doesn't mean I find it okay to express how happy one is he's dead and want to officially get together with his wife, right after he died,
at the graveyard. Of course, things will definitely get better for both D'Artagnan's character and his relationship with Constance, but still, I wish we could avoid the moments like this one. Other than that, I liked his scenes with the Fake Princess Louise, who was a pretty interesting character and quite a scene-stealer. And his support for his friends is always great to watch. There were many great fighting scenes for the Musketeers in these two episodes and it's good to see how easily they all manage to fight off their opponents when they work as a team. And Athos with D'Artagnan continue to be a great duo.
Athos - Athos' angry reaction at the truth about young girls being sold off in an auction was spot-on. It was hard not to share his feelings regarding this distubring discovery. In that single moment, my appreciation for his character only went higher. It's also always great to see him being there for his friends and his growing bond with D'Artagnan. Him still caring so deeply about Milady is getting more and more obvious, with him offering her all of his savings in "A Marriage of Inconvenience". At the same time, he doesn't believe that she can change and refuses her offer to help. There's still so many contradictions in their story. This week Athos showed his vulnerable side when he admitted "he gave her everything" but still there's the simple fact, he
didn't actually give her a chance in the events after Thomas' death. I'm glad it seems we're getting closer to the confrontation with Catherine and maybe we'll finally get to know the full story soon.
Milady de Winter - Milady continues to be quite a scene-stealer, despite not having a lot to do in the last two episodes. Her interactions with Athos are always great to see, as they reveal a more emotional side of both characters and their complicated history. I'm very interested to find out what's Milady's plan against Rochefort, it does seem like she already has one, after confronting fake princess/assassin she went straight to Rochefort, almost admitting she knows about his Spanish connections. Clearly she's not on his side in the fight against the Musketeers and I can't wait to see her team up with our heroes in the next episode once again. She's a strong ally and her sarcastic remarks are a perfect match to Athos' usual comments. Entertaining scenes are pretty much guaranteed, then. Though I remain both excited and worried about Catherine's arrival to confront Milady. There's just so much potential in this plot!
Notes, thoughts and quotes:
Best Character: Porthos
Best Duo: Porthos and Aramis & Anne and Constance
Most Intense Scene: Rochefort attacks the Queen
Most Painful Scene: Treville's operation
Favorite Scene: Anne encourages Constance to fight for her happiness
Best Reaction: Athos' anger when he discovers what Eleanor and Levesque are doing
Most Helpful/Most Sympathetic: Doctor Lemay
Most Disturbing: Young girls being sold off to men in an auction
Most Creepy: Rochefort
Best Cliffhanger: Anne stabs Rochefort after he attacks her and he screams there's treason in the castle
Memorable quotes:
1. Porthos "
For a while there, you almost had me believing you. God knows, I wanted to. But you had to overplay your hand. This picture? It's not my mother. You thought I was too young to remember her, but one thing you never forget is your mother's face. You probably bought this in some junk shop somewhere, thinking I wouldn't know the difference between one black woman and another."
2. D'Artagnan: "
I've never killed a woman before but for you I'd be willing to make an exception."
3. Aramis: "
All for one." Porthos: "
Yeah, I know."
4. Louise "
I haven't seen the King since we were children." Athos "
He's barely changed."
5. Milady: "
I'm not finished yet. Not by any measure."
Favorite to Least Favorite Season 2 Episodes Ranking:
1. Through a Glass Darkly
2. Emilie
3. An Ordinary Man
4. The Return
5. The Prodigal Father - Great episode with great character moments and very important hour for the season's main plots.
6. Keep Your Friends Close
7. A Marriage of Inconvenience - It was a very good episode, but not one of the most memorable ones for me. Though the ranking sure needs a re-watch to be sure of this order.
8. The Good Traitor
In case you haven't read it yet, you can find Sandi's preview for the next episode here. Don't miss all new The Musketeers which airs on Saturday March 14 at 9pm on BBC America and Friday 20th March at 9pm on BBC 1 in the UK!
And now, what did you think about "A Marriage of Inconvenience" & "The Prodigal Father"? Any favorite scenes/quotes in the episode?
