'Shadows'

[ithildin]

Highlander Season Three

Shadows, Air Date: November 1994

MacLeod is tormented by visions of his own death, beheaded by a mysterious dark-hooded figure. Anne tries to convince him to seek medical help, but instead he turns to his old friend Garrick, who has spent centuries studying the mind. MacLeod saw Garrick in the 17th century when MacLeod barely escaped being burned as a witch. What MacLeod didn't know was that Garrick was unable to escape as well.

Garrick convinces MacLeod that the dark-hooded figure is a racial memory that haunts all Immortals and that the way to defeat it is to not fight it, to accept it for what it is. When MacLeod, haggard and exhausted, faces the specter for the last time, puts down his sword and refuses to fight it, the figure goes for MacLeod's head -- until at the last moment MacLeod realizes the figure is Garrick, seeking his revenge after all these years. In the tag, Anne, frustrated that MacLeod won't open up to her despite their intimate relationship, leaves him. ~ recap via tv.com

Next week: They Also Serve

Comments

[macgeorge1.livejournal.com]

I really like this episode for a lot of reasons. The visuals are terrific, Garrick is played by an excellent actor (Garwin Sanford), and the whole pacing of the episode, emotionally and visually (especially that first balletic dream-fight sequence, the sword kata and the shadowy fights in the dojo), is excellent. Garrick’s studio is also a study in subtle, layered visuals that add tremendously to the feel of Garrick’s madness.

In general, the whole notion that Duncan is vulnerable to manipulation, that he can doubt himself to the point where he stops functioning effectively at all, is a wonderful exploration of a character and adds tremendous depth and complexity. You just don’t see that in episodic television, and the fact that the writers, producers and actors were prepared to take that risk, to go to dark places and have the hero acting very unheroic just makes me very happy. Also, having this episode immediately follow “Obsession” is an interesting juxtaposition, where we are shown just how human Duncan really is.

I also thought Stan Kirsch was very good in this episode, although the secondary story was really relegated to back seat status. He had several excellent scenes, alternating successfully between providing a little much-needed comic relief, but also showing some real acting chops in the tension and high emotion between he and Mac. The scene where Richie insists that he couldn’t kill Duncan, even when Duncan would want him to, is creepy when you know what eventually happens between them.