1:14 For Evil’s Sake – And since we’re now shooting in Paris, we’re going to open this episode with the Frenchest thing we can think of:
Mimes.
No, really. Murderous mimes, even. (Also baguettes.)
There’s an Immortal assassin named Kuyler operating out of France who likes to use mime disguises, party magic, etc. to win close access to his targets (the French apparently haven’t discovered the sensible revulsion to clowns that has made America impervious to such a stratagem). MacLeod just so happens to run into one of Kuyler’s mime-ified henchmen and has encountered Kuyler before (cue the flashback with powdered periwigs), so he takes it upon himself to rid the world, using clues the the police don’t have access to, like Kuyler’s predilection for absinthe.
Speaking of police, in contrast to the succession of American (cough cough) police detectives who have viewed Duncan with suspicion, we now have a FRENCH police inspector who starts viewing Duncan with suspicion. Totally different! (At least Nosy Reporter Girl doesn’t have a Parisian counterpart.)
One of the two flashbacks here, from twelve years ago in Paris, is also part of the meet-cute between Duncan and Tessa, who was then working on a tourist tour boat on the Seine.
(The final battle takes place in a used mannequin warehouse — not really any good reason that Kuyler uses it for his hideout, but it makes for some cool visuals.)
Guest Immortals: 1
Flashbacks: 2
Quickenings: 1
1:15 For Tomorrow We Die – You want a rock star? Fine! We’ve got Roland Gift, best known as the lead singer for Fine Young Cannibals, as the murderous poison-using Immortal jewel thief Xavier St. Cloud! Duncan already knows him and hates him, and Xavier has grudges against both Duncan and Darius.
Also, Inspector LeBrun knows Xavier is somehow connected to Darius, because security cams caught Xavier coming into Darius’s church to gloat in the confessional, and then when LeBrun comes to question Darius about it, there’s Duncan play chess with him. Just like back in Seacouver, every time the detective turns around, there’s MacLeod in the middle of it!
What mars the episode most is a simple fact: Roland Gift can’t act. Sure, he can recite his lines comfortably — I’m sure any musical performer accustomed to singing in front of crowds of thousands would be similarly comfortable. But that’s really all he can do: recite his lines (and smile his admittedly unsettling smile). Research into Gift’s career stunned me by alleging that he had performed the role in Romeo in a professional theatrical run of Romeo & Juliet — his thespian skills seem more appropriate for the role of, say, Second Watchman.
Guest Immortals: 2
Flashbacks: 1
Quickenings: 0