Fashion notes first . . .
Joan Bennett looked really good in black (I want those jet earrings!
) But back to her dress, wow, did she win the wardrobe stakes or what? A bit frou frou for around the house, but the black and the gold was stunning on her.
Runner up for best dressed is Angelique. I don't find Ms Parker particularly attractive or beautiful, but she looked lovely in that wedding dress. Too much rouge, but other than that, she was also a stunner--and white is a hard color to wear. I love Regency clothes, but with the exception of Millicent's and occasionally Josette's wardrobe, we seldom see them. This was really such a very pretty dress too.
Less attractive was Josette's mourning veil. Yes, she would be in black and yes, she would wear such an item
outside the house, but inside? I think not, although perhaps Happybat can enlighten me on this note.
And the loser in today's wardrobe sweepstakes continues to be Alexandra Moltke. I don't get it. What did she do to deserve being stuck in that supremely unattractive red dress with the white bib? We can't blame this on authenticity, because the
maid has better clothes than she does, for God's sakes.
Okay, on with the show.
The acting was quite good. Kudos go to Louis Edmonds (and if I do any more of these idle thoughts, they are going to continue to go to him--IMHO, he is simply the best actor in this story arc, hands down). Watching him lay down the law to Barnabas and then the scene with Bennett was wonderful. I often simply don't "get" Barnabas, but watching the interaction with his father explains quite a lot--you can see why Joshua is frustrated and likewise Barnabas. Even if we do believe the highly improbable notion that Barnabas is only 25, given the life expectancy of people in that time, that Barnabas is still ditzing around and hasn't carved out at least his career is quite telling. And how frustrating would it be to have a father who is so stern and rigid?
I also enjoyed Bennett's scene with Barnabas and Angelique. It's rather like a Greek tragedy, but then so is this whole story arc.
Some nice writing regarding the whole disinheriting thing. I think Angelique would be changing her tune PDQ when she realized all her dreams of being the society lady were gone.
Brief digression: Having gone through all of that sturm and drang to wring a proposal out of Barnabas, I would have thought that the first thing Angelique would have done was to get released from her duties as maid and yet, here she is working away, very weird.
But it was a nice scene and they both played it very well--she was oblivious to his lack of enthusiasm for the entire marriage and the cost to him of his family, fortune and future, and he was beautifully uncomfortable, but very honest with her.
Vicki. Okay.
![[bnghd]](http://www.dsboards.com/SMF/Smileys/classic/bnghd.gif "Banging Head/HELP!!!!")
She trusts Barnabas, fine. But what kind of a nut do you have to be to tell him that you're from the future? Keep your mouth shut, honey and just deal. Oy.
As for Barnabas deciding to hide Vicki. I can see why he would do it (although if I were in his shoes and had just heard the spacy governess telling me how she was from 1967, I would be rethinking that one), but having made that decision, he chooses not to confide in his future wife???
Bandage boy. So not only did the guy get thrown in a shallow grave without a coffin, a fresh change of clothes, or clean bandages (from the chest wound), but they're still bleeding! Blood, contrary to what they show on DS, does not dry bright scarlet or even deep red. It turns brown, rather quickly (Lizzie Borden was seen burning a dress with brown stains shortly after her father and stepmother were killed and claimed that she had done so because it had become stained from when the house had been painted brown and that was seen as perfectly plausible). Not very dramatic, but there you go.
Still it makes for some fun scenes to see her being tormented by her own creation as it were.
All very much, IMHO and I remain,
Luciaphil
