I think Ange had the skull sent because in the opening she said that Josette was in for many surprises that day. Originally I was thinking that maybe someone from town did it because at the beginning of this story-line it was mentioned that the Collins name was not loved by all and it has been mentioned earlier in the series that Josette was not accepted by the townsfolk, though most of what was said then can be excused away if one wishes.
I want to bitch about Jeremiah acting so authoritative because we've really only seen him be a nice & accommodating person. And it is obvious (even without seeing the story-line before) that the character is being set up to not look the least bit interested in Josette and so that she can piss & moan about him and say outright to Barn that she is indifferent to him so that when Ange casts her spell... well you get the picture. But ultimately, we haven't really seen Jeremiah in his everyday role as a Collins, and he was showing concern for his best mate Barn, so -- I won't bitch about how contrived it seemed to me, lol.
I guess I've reached my saturation point with Ben & Ange. More so Ange than Ben methinks. I had to laugh at myself, when Ben went to attack Angelique and stood there frozen, I was okay with it because it was Ben/Thayer, but had it been anyone else I probably would have groused about how stupid it looked, lol. I'm still eating up all of Thayer's scenes. I especially liked the scene with him & Frid & KLS (who is so damn beautiful in this episode and in general, IMHO) with Barn promising to keep Ben with him & Josette once they're married & the rest of the family moves into the new house. It makes you feel good for Ben but also shows us what a good person Barn is before the transformation. So Ben tries to come clean to Barn about Ange and is silenced with choking by Ange's spell. Now you would think that Barn & Josette would think to themselves that the choking can't be coincidental and at least should be regarded as suspicious. Though I am getting a bit tired of Ange, the scenes with her and Ben are still fabulous. I'm liking the writing of their scenes very much.
I got a very big (serious) kick out of Barn's romantic side. I was really impressed with how well and natural he came across in the scene by the stairway. One thing I am not getting is Josette reluctance to "be with" Barn in a romantic way. I was at first wondering if Ange's potion in the rosewater cologne was already working by making her reluctant towards Barn, But that really doesn't make sense to me but knowing that they were making out like horny teens when Ange did her voodoo act on Barn makes Josette's reluctance now seems uncharacteristic. BTW, I am impressed DarkLady, I would have never correlated Barn's pained expression to his being with Ange in Martinique (and her bedroom upstairs) as the mark of a modern man but it makes total sense.
Just a few random thoughts: Not diggin' Josette's screams. Jeremiah's dressing gown is lookin' pretty worn on the left shoulder. The color quality was pretty bad for this episode. Anyone think it odd that there is already a full-blown commissioned portrait of Josette in her room? The opening shot of the Old House is a new one on me. I absolutely love it. Ben: A woman decides, and it happens. Ange: Well, I've decided, & I'm a woman, aren't I? Well? Aren't I? Talk about a loaded question! This episode is not gonna make my favorites list but it does have a lot of great content - some really good stuff acting wise and story wise.
