Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

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francis
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by francis »

I never saw that, alle!!! I guess it was some internal joke of the prop people. Good on your husband for seeing that!
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by MoonMarg »

One of my favourite ML episodes. Even though there were very few MickBeth moments in this one - it was just a brilliant episode.

The scene when Coraline gave Mick the cure was just... :heart: Cora was really sweet there - I could totally see them as a loving couple - something that really wasn't depicted at other times. Cause there had to be nice, sweet times - they did stay married for 30 years or so.

I had so many favourite scenes in this episode - the look of pain in Mick's eyes at the start when Beth was still angry with him and fobbed him off at police headquarters, when Coraline sacrificied herself for Mick in the big fight, the cemetry scene, but my favourite had to be Mick returning to his apartment after being beaten to a pulp. The voiceover, the music, and knowing Mick had finally gotten the one thing he craved for the most in this world - his humanity back. They could have ended ML there and I would have been happy!

On a totally shallow note - I loved the brown coat Mick wore in this episode - made him look so handsome. And I really wanted to know what he was about to say to Beth when Coraline so rudely interrupted them.
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by GuardianAngel »

One of the saddest scenes for me is after Beth leaves Mick's place and goes to Buzzwire, looking through the old emails. I know a lot of people didn't like Beth at this point but I felt for her. She's really alone here. She had a good boyfriend and was blowing it with him over something she's not even sure is real. Just as she's realizing that, he dies. Leaving her a ton of guilt. The person who has become her source of comfort (which she's struggling with) is preoccupied with someone she can't even begin to compete with. At least, that's probably how she feels at the moment.

A close girlfriend would be great but a good deal of Beth's confusion/struggle is Mick and that's not something she can discuss with anyone.
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by allegrita »

I'm with you, GA. I know Beth does some awful things in this episode (and the one before, too), but I absolutely ache for her. She's completely lost and she has no one to turn to. :bmoon:
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by jen »

How true.

The barrier with Mick was so high in many ways--she had had twenty six years at this point to evaluate and form her judgments about the world and reality as she knows it. She and Josh shared this, as well, but for all the attraction and chemistry with Mick, this was a very real gap she worked with.

In this episode, Coraline just exuded sincerity. My first realtion when I saw this episode last year was to believe that she was just a superb actress who had perfected her craft over centuries, but now I'm not so sure. I gathered that was what Mick believed, too, to be able to dismiss the entire business with Lance so easily. Had he believed there was a shred of genuineness to her actions, the Mick I love could never have acted that way. [I'm just hearing about some of the drama behind the scenes of the show now.]

I am really surprised that there was no more organization to the vampire community than we saw. Maybe we would have seen more, had the series given us additional seasons.

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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by PNWgal »

This is one of my favorite episodes, mostly because I thought Mick was WONDERFUL.

And Lance. Best. Bad Guy. Ever. Even Josef takes a step back from getting involved with the European vamps (which cracks me up cuz...he would have been originally from there).

Beth's struggling with so many conflicting emotions here. She's mourning her boyfriend, and finding out he maybe cheated on her, THEN finds out he was going to propose to her. How many roller coasters can one woman ride before she breaks? And...I find it interesting that when it all becomes to much for her, she goes to Mick.

Do I think the things Coraline did in this episode were selfless? Yes and no. I don't believe for a minute she gave Mick the cure out of the goodness of her heart - I see it as a way to keep Mick bound to her, no matter how good her intentions were. I DO believe giving herself up to Lance to save Mick was completely selfless, and honorable. She loved him, and couldn't bear to see him die - and I completely agree that CBS did us a GREAT disservice by taking her out of the equation entirely.

And human Mick - how cute was he, eating all that food? :happysigh: Although - and this is so completely stupid - I just cry every time I watch him lay down on that couch because he doesn't have a bed. He's all beat up, and looks so lost and it just breaks my heart when he pulls that afghan over himself.

Watching him limp over to Beth at the cemetery also squeezes my heart, but his utter delight in enjoying the sun makes me smile. He gotten what he wanted - his humanity back, even if it is temporary.
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by wpgrace »

I enjoy watching him eat too... that is CLEARLY just about the thing he misses most about being human. When Beth asks him in BC, the first thing he talks about is the damn prime rib. When he confronts Coraline in THIS ep, he tells her he knows she was human, HE SAW HER EAT FOOD! And he says it with such wistfulness.

And then the first thing he does, after drawing his own blood, is get food. A lot of food.

Now THERE"S a guy I can relate to. :snicker:
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by PNWgal »

wpgrace wrote:
Now THERE"S a guy I can relate to. :snicker:
A guy with a good appetite? You better believe it. ;)
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by wpgrace »

PNWgal wrote:
wpgrace wrote:
Now THERE"S a guy I can relate to. :snicker:
A guy with a good appetite? You better believe it. ;)

Kinda more a food obsession... :giggle:
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by r1015bill »

PNWgal wrote:And Lance. Best. Bad Guy. Ever.
I'd like to advance a theory if for no other reason than to keep us entertained and to watch the episode again.

Is Lance really a bad guy? For the most part, he comes across to me as a big brother who's looking for his little sister who has done something really wrong.

There's lots of gossip about him and speculation because of how he looks and his regeneration, but what does he do that makes him so completely out of line with what a VAMPIRE big brother would do? Most of what we know about him comes from Coraline - so it's suspect. Josef's comments don't necessarily indicate he's a bad guy.

He didn't kill Mick at the lab but could have. The whole potential killing Mick at the end might have been to get Coraline to go along quietly.

We need more episodes with him to know for sure. (sigh)
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by PNWgal »

Interesting theory, and not without merit. However, I find myself disagreeing.

Lance didn't just come and gather up Coraline to take her home for a scolding. Cutting the head off a vampire scientist, beating the crap out of Mick and almost killing him, and shoving a stake into his sister's chest qualifies as a bad guy in my book.

Josef tells Mick not to interfere with Lance's business and he looks pretty wary when he does it. Lance may not be what we'd consider a typical bad guy, but he's definitely dangerous.
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by wpgrace »

PNWgal wrote:Interesting theory, and not without merit. However, I find myself disagreeing.

Lance didn't just come and gather up Coraline to take her home for a scolding. Cutting the head off a vampire scientist, beating the crap out of Mick and almost killing him, and shoving a stake into his sister's chest qualifies as a bad guy in my book.

Josef tells Mick not to interfere with Lance's business and he looks pretty wary when he does it. Lance may not be what we'd consider a typical bad guy, but he's definitely dangerous.

Lance is no common thug. He's a haughty aristocrat, and he has a gentlemanly quality about himself, as a result.
And I don't think he's all bad... certainly he would not see HIMSELF as a villain at all.
He's just protecting his family. He's a bad ass, tho, and he's powerful and dangerous. Cos his primary concern IS his family and, in keeping with the Ancien Regime, the lives of the little people are not his concern.

But I agree, rbill, he could have been far more destructive than he was. He wants to accomplish his mission... not just create carnage. Like Josef, he knows that to be unnecessary and a waste of his time. He's not a psychopath. His "welcome to the family" is chilling tho. Altho the writers dropped this whole story, it promised that Lance and the DuValls were about to take an interest in their commoner in-law and that COULD have been so fun to see!

And... if I may, I think Phee did an amazing job capturing this guy in her fic, Family Reunion (which I badgered her to write): viewtopic.php?f=624&t=3602
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by allegrita »

I absolutely agree with your characterization of Lance, grace (and I heartily second your recommendation of Phee's wonderful story!). He wouldn't see himself as a bad guy at all--no more than Josef does. He's acting as the representative of his family, watching out for their interests, and bringing a black sheep back to the fold, for some kind of major, um, "reeducation," vampire style. :gasp: But it's not wanton or even particularly harsh, in his view, especially considering the egregiousness of Coraline's offense. She's taken their ONLY supply of a crucial safeguard, and squandered it (in the family's view), chasing after some ungrateful commoner who doesn't even appreciate the gift she gave him. :mdrama:

And yeah, I totally think that Chip had it in mind to pursue the Duvall family's ties to Mick in future episodes. :sigh:
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by GuardianAngel »

I apologize that this is so tardy. I haven't been able to do the screencaps for a few days. But I can now. So, without further ado......


Beth goes to the police station to give her statement.
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As she walks in she sees the paramedic that pronounced Josh dead. She’s assaulted with flashbacks.
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He passes her as he leaves and tells her he’s sorry for her loss. Beth’s like a deer in headlights as the flashbacks keep coming.
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The officer asks her if she’s alright and then tells her that they just need signed statements from all the witnesses.
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He understands that Mick St. John’s took some really heroic steps in trying to save Mr. Lindsey’s life. Beth has another flashback of her pleading with Mick to Turn Josh.
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Beth leaves. Mick is just coming in. She passes him without saying anything. Mick calls to her. She keeps going. He follows, grabs her arm and stops her.
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He tries to reason with her, saying this is ridiculous, he did everything possible to try and save Josh. She responds that he did everything ‘humanly’ possible.
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Mick gets serious, moving closer and telling her that he lives ever day regretting what he is. He’s not about to subject Josh or any else to that fate.
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Beth tells him that she’s trying really hard to understand. She walks away.
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Mick calls to her again. She stops and turns back.
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Mick says he’ll see her, “Okay?” Beth nods.
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He watches her leaves and bits his lip before going into the station.
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Re: Moonlight Episode Discussion - Ep 12: The Mortal Cure

Post by redwinter101 »

I loved this scene - I thought it worked really well in terms of picking up from the end of LLF - something ML did NOT always do. The awkwardness is there, the struggle to connect in spite of everything they've been through. It makes you wonder how on earth they can get past this.

The question of how Beth deals with Mick's refusal to turn Josh was so fascinating - and they handled it brilliantly in THIS episode (not gonna say a word about FtP...).

And being totally shallow, they both looked amazing... :happysigh: :happysigh:

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