Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 11: Love Lasts Forever

[GuardianAngel]

The new vamps were very human-seeming in a lot of ways: Logan, the geek in the basement; Leo the pedophile; Anders the plastic surgeon; the vamp teen paparazzi; Emma and Jackson the sports managers; Lisa the cheerleader. They could've been humans who claimed to be vampires, for all we knew.

See...I thought that was the point. That vampires live among us without us realizing it because, in many ways, they are just like humans. Many of the same highs and lows. But because Mick was never given a choice he resists seeing it. He makes things more difficult than they need to be.

I agree about losing the news and detective aspects of the show. They never should have done away with Buzzwire or Mo. That was an integral part of Beth.

[GuardianAngel]

Mick and Josh talk while Beth makes up the bed (and peeks in on the guys. Can you say ‘awkward’?”)


Josh is not sure he’s doing the right thing but says that Beth keeps insisting. Mick can sympathize and says so - Beth has a tendency to do that. Josh makes a face (But holds his tongue, bless him) and agrees.


But Mick thinks Beth is right - Josh shouldn’t step down.


Josh asks Mick to keep an eye on Beth until the Tact squad gets into place. And you know Mick agrees. He won’t let anything happen to her.




Beth takes another peek at them. Josh says he knows Mick won’t let Beth get hurt but he warns Mick to keep his eyes open; Tejada is ruthless. Mick says ‘okay’. (Kinda like telling the vulture to watch out for the crow)






Josh says thanks and leaves Mick standing there. From Mick’s expression he’s probably thinking how screwed up this all is. This day is definitely NOT going as expected. *sigh*



Suddenly it’s night and we’re taken to a Sweet Sixteen party (It would have been more authentic if it was a Quinceañera - most Latin Americans celebrate the fifteenth year). The party is for Nicole, Tejada’s daughter.


And isn’t he just the proud Papa.


As he’s watching his daughter dance, one of his men comes to whisper something in his ear.


Looks like it’s the cops and they have a warrant for Tejada’s arrest.


The daughter is shocked and confused, she fights the police, telling them to leave her father alone. (I really did feel bad for the girl. She probably has no idea what her father is. And, damn, they ruined her party!)




ADA Lindsey is waiting for the criminal at the door and tells the thug not to ever threaten her (Beth) again. GO Josh!


Tejada replies that he won’t forget this.


Looks like this is war.

[darkstarrising]

OK, this part of the story (breaking into the party to arrest Tejada) always bothered me....fine, arrest the guy, he's slime and deserves to be in jail, but arresting him at the party was like poking a stick in Tejada's eyes. It embarassed and humiliated him in front of his daughter and her friends, angering him and wanting revenge for such humiliation....and he's already let you know he's willing to kill your girlfriend.

In short, it was almost like Josh was asking for trouble. He should have known better

[GuardianAngel]

True, it was reckless to do it that way. But I can see why they did. In law enforcement, especially with people like Tejada, you have to show them power, be the Alpha Dog. Realistically, even had they not done it that way, Tejada would have gone after Beth. And Josh.

[cassysj]

Suddenly it’s night and we’re taken to a Sweet Sixteen party (It would have been more authentic if it was a Quinceañera - most Latin Americans celebrate the fifteenth year). The party is for Nicole, Tejada’s daughter.

I am so glad you mentioned it would have been more authentic as a Quinceanera. That always drove me crazy about this episode. I realize that Sweet Sixteen is an American right of passage but the Quincanera in the Hispanic community is so much more than just a party. It is a huge event which often starts at a church for a blessing and then party time.


I never liked that they arrested him during the party. It was waving a red flag in front of a bull. I know Josh was mad because they threatened Beth but there were other ways to do it. Before the party, after, notify his lawyer of his impending arrest. That behavior made it less of a surprise Josh's death.

[wpgrace]

I actually liked that Josh did this, be a Sweet Sixteen Party-Pooper. I think he was showing Tejada his cojones...
And given that Beth has recently stayed WITH him with him, after several months of her leaving the cooked-chicken-party to go to the morgue and chasing the sulky, handsome guy off to NY, he is finally feeling his own cojones again.
He's even felt confidant and cocky enough to actually put Mick the Fox in charge of Beth the Henhouse for the day.


I think it makes the shooting and the death even more poignant... this was a man who had come back into himself... until he bled out all over Griffith Park...

[allegrita]

I remember reading somewhere, long ago on a (dead) board far away, that the party was originally intended to be a Quinceanera but (maybe because of notes from CBS?) they changed it to a Sweet 16 party. But I have no proof that this happened.

[PNWgal]

Granted, the only thing I know about the law and cops has been learned from 20 years of Law and Order, but it seems to be pretty standard practice to arrest the bad guys in public. Still, Josh might as well have handed Tejada a gun and told him to shoot right there - he had to have known Tejada would come after him.

And I'm not sure who I feel more sorry for - Josh, for having to ask Mick to protect Beth, or Mick for agreeing to it. Asking Mick to protect his girlfriend had to burn like a fire inside Josh's gut...guys don't usually like to admit they can't protect the women they love. I'm wondering if Josh doesn't really see Mick as a threat now because he ummm, reconnected with Beth on a very intimate level.

BTW, I think that was Bustos that was whispering to Tejada there.

[Luxe de Luxe]

Yeah, I always hated the arrest at the party. I was thinking more about why couldn't they wait so that Tejada's entirely innocent daughter wouldn't be affected by this. Otherwise, from a practical point of view, an arrest there makes total sense because Tejada's guard would have been down. There weren't going to be M16 carrying bodyguards at his daughter's S16 party. I'm pretty sure when law enforcement is planning an arrest they think about minimising casualties to everyone.

Ok, now to the caps..... I think it's very telling that in the opening credits we see Beth in the background making up the bed. She looks worried as she peers through the half open doorway to where her two universes are colliding (and remembering BC and SB, the last few times that happened, it hadn't gone well.) I think that the making up of the bed was, in a way, a symbolic erasure of what had happened in there with Josh.



Edited to fix typo... because I'm asceered.

[PNWgal]

Ok, now to the caps..... I think it's very telling that in the opening credits we see Beth in the background making up the bed. She looks worried as she peers through the half open doorway to where her two universes are colliding (and remembering BC and SB, the last few times that happened, it hadn't gone well.) I think that the making up of the bed was, in a way, a symbolic erasure of what had happened in their with Josh.

That's a great analogy, Luxe, and something I'd not thought of before.

[allegrita]

Oooh, that's a great point, Luxe! I bet that's exactly what she's doing. (Poor Josh...)

[Luxe de Luxe]

... and she looks kind of guilty while she's doing it. By this stage, any woman worth her salt would have acknowledged to herself that something was going on between her and her 'work colleague'. In a way, her worried face almost looks almost the way it might if she were concerned that Mick might feel she'd been 'cheating' on him.

[PNWgal]

... and she looks kind of guilty while she's doing it. By this stage, any woman worth her salt would have acknowledged to herself that something was going on between her and her 'work colleague'. In a way, her worried face almost looks almost the way it might if she were concerned that Mick might feel she'd been 'cheating' on him.

I have to agree here - I'm a big Beth girl, but this is where she really needs to take a step back and decide what she's going to do, because her inaction is hurting two good men. She's with one guy who's safe, but who she's really not giving her all to, and she has to know the other one has feelings for her - a blind man could see it written all over Mick's face when he looks at her - but is afraid to take the plunge.

[Luxe de Luxe]

... and she looks kind of guilty while she's doing it. By this stage, any woman worth her salt would have acknowledged to herself that something was going on between her and her 'work colleague'. In a way, her worried face almost looks almost the way it might if she were concerned that Mick might feel she'd been 'cheating' on him.

I have to agree here - I'm a big Beth girl, but this is where she really needs to take a step back and decide what she's going to do, because her inaction is hurting two good men. She's with one guy who's safe, but who she's really not giving her all to, and she has to know the other one has feelings for her - a blind man could see it written all over Mick's face when he looks at her - but is afraid to take the plunge.

You know, you're right, P-gal. If they hadn't killed Josh off in this episode, I think this would have been the turning point for her and she would have broken up with him.

[GuardianAngel]

BTW, I think that was Bustos that was whispering to Tejada there.

LOL. Shush you. Yeah, it is. But when I was typing the scene I couldn't remember what the heck his name was.

I think that the making up of the bed was, in a way, a symbolic erasure of what had happened in there with Josh.

I totally agree. Nice metaphor. It was also a convenient place for her to be so she could keep an eye on the both of them. I know that I would have.


I'm also thinking that this was the place where Beth has to make up her mind. I don't think she was feeling good about stringing Josh along. She gave it a good try but, it seems to me, that she knows it's not going to work.