Conference ljsrv1::tv_chatter

    
    It's called "Princes of The Universe" and can be found on "A Kind of
    Magic" or one of the recently issued greatest hits collections -- I'm
    not sure which.
    
    DFW

    Thank you for responding so quickly!!!!
    
    Cindi

    It is on "A Kind Of Magic" which is a whole collection of Queen songs
    from HIGHLANDER... well worth what I spent for the CD...
    
    :) Michael

    Is there a synopsis of the 1st and 2nd season episodes around anywhere?
    A friend of mine is a real fan and would like an episode listing.
    
    thanks in advance,
    
    Jeff
    

    re.47
    
    I had to go looking because I knew I remembered one somewhere...
    
    try NOTED::SF    note 1140.19
    
    That's all I could find.
    
    Michael
    

    
    Anyone know when the season premier will be?
    

    
    While channel surfacing last Saturday afternoon I ran across the final
    half-hour of a Highlander episode.  At the end, the voiceover said be
    sure to catch Highlander Sat. night too.  This episode was with Ritchie
    deciding whether or not to include a woman with her child in his life. 
    
    Did they switch nights?  Since I'm not a big channel 56 viewer that's
    no surprise.
    

So, what do you think of Duncan's new love interest? It's nice that she's 
protrayed as more that just beautiful. Her competance as a physician adds
a lot to her character. And her not knowing about immortals add a tension
to thier relationship that makes for interesting situations. I think she
has picked up the show somewhat. Not that it really needed it, this has
become my favorite series lately.


Randy

                                                   
    Possible spoiler:
    
    It looks like they may have decided she isn't working out.  Maybe
    someone forgot to write a "Duncan tells Ann" script.  The writing on
    this is slipping.  I think it needs a nice involved "arc" type of
    story.
    
    DFW

I agree about the writing slipping. They just had an episode about an immortal
who was supposedly burned at the stake but is now fine (physically anyway).
Yet we've seen that there's no major regeneration (ne Xavier St Cloud's 
mechanical hand after MacCloud severed his hand). This seems to be a very
obvious nit. I know this is fantasy but even fantasy has to maintain it's
internal consistancy or it becomes impossible to accept at all.

I would suspect that Ann will continue to be around since she's in the title
credits. If she were to be around for only a few episodes she'd never have
been there.


Randy

    
    re :.53
    
    Unless you want to accept the notion that given enough time an immortal
    will grow things back -- the time being measured in centuries.
    
    Still, your point is taken.
    
    DFW

> They just had an episode about an immortal
> who was supposedly burned at the stake but is now fine (physically anyway).
> Yet we've seen that there's no major regeneration (ne Xavier St Cloud's 
> mechanical hand after MacCloud severed his hand).

It seems that immortals recover from all injuries other than
amputations. They clearly recover from gunshot wounds, stab wounds,
falls from great heights, drowning, poisoning, etc. So it's not hard
to accept that they can recover from extremely severe burns.

There was a question raised somewhere else about whether they can
survive explosions. I suppose it depends on whether the damage is
equivalent to amputation.

Barry

I would think it would depend on the burns. If it's just a matter of burned
skin (enough of which will kill you) I would think there would be no problem
with an immortal surviving intact. But with a fairly hot or long burning 
flame the body would be partially or fully reduced to ash. How could an
immortal survive that? This would also apply to other methods of destroying
the body. 

There does seem to be at least some minor regeneration occuring. For instance,
Duncan (and most other mortals) would be a mass of scars with the "normal"
healing process of mortals. And there's nothing slow about this, apparently
no scar is ever formed. 

BTW, I can think of at least one feasible explanation of how in the previous
example he would have survived being burned at the stake. The fire would 
have burned his bindings before he actually died. He would then have been
able to escape (as the villagers watched in shock and fear), leaving him
with very painful memories but able to recover physically from the experiance.


Randy

Apologies in advance to anyone offended by the gruesome nature of this
discussion.

> But with a fairly hot or long burning 
> flame the body would be partially or fully reduced to ash. How could an
> immortal survive that?

I think the quickening resides in or is strongly related to the body's
skeletal structure. That would explain why permanent damage occurs
only when part of the body is severed or when bones are completely
destroyed. Burns would cause permanent damage only if the bones were
reduced to ash and would be fatal only if the damage to the skull
and upper spinal column were equivalent to a beheading.

An interesting question is whether Xavier's severed hand would have
reattached itself had he been able to place it back on his wrist.

> The fire would 
> have burned his bindings before he actually died.

That's another reasonable explanation for his survival. I think it
takes more than a bonfire to reduce a skeleton to ash. That's why
cremations are done in furnaces. So he surely appeared to be quite
dead by the time the bonfire was out.

Barry

I still love the show but I agree that the writing is getting rather
lame. A couple of points:

1. Why would Duncan become romantically involved with a medical doctor
   who could never share his secret because she would see him as the
   single greatest scientific discovery in the history of mankind?
   (Even better than Bigfoot or the Loch Ness Monster.)

2. If a sleazy lawyer accidently caught a beheading on videotape,
   complete with fireworks, why wouldn't he run to the nearest TV
   station with it? (After editing out the scene with his girlfriend,
   of course.)

   After seeing a deadly swordfight with an outcome so spectacularly
   paranormal, the last thing in the world he would do is try to
   blackmail one of the participants. I think any rational person
   would run in the other direction as fast as they could.

Barry

re .58   Rational person? I thought he was a lawyer. :^)


Now that we've examined the regeneration question as closely as it's wise
to do so, how about another one of the great mysteries of the show? Where
do they keep those swords? On a previous show Duncan was shown pulling his
sword in greater detail than usual (it didn't just appear in his hand by
magic (or editing)). It looked like he had a it in some kind of break away
loop about chest height. This would allow him to simply pull it instead of
having to draw it. I studied Iaido (Japanese katana with no edge) for about
a year, one thing we practiced constantly was the draw. Like the cinematic
version of gunfighters often the survivor would be he who cleared leather
(or in this case, lacquered wood) first. Duncan's rig allows him to carry
the sword without a sheath which gets it out faster. Of course carrying
around an unsheathed sword under his coat could cause any number of every
day problems but I can easily ignore that, artistic license and all.



Randy

    
    Can somebody explain to me what happends to the headless bodies?
    Do they disappear? It just seems that the police should become just a
    tad suspicious when one Duncan McCloud is always in the viscinity of yet
    another body no longer needing a hat.
    
    When he moved from Paris back to America they even had the American
    police commenting on him being linked to some `un-solved' killings.
    

    It has been speculated in the rec.arts.sf.tv newsgroup that the swords
    are somehow 'kept' in some other-dimensional 'place' from which it can
    be extracted by the owner at will. The last episode I saw was the one
    with the immortal who had the appearance of about a 12-year old. He's
    knocking off immies left and right by appearing to be helpless and
    scared. When the 'adult' immie takes him in for protection, he beheads
    them. Apparently he's been doing this for about 1200 years (if I recall
    correctly).
    
    In the climax of the episode, he's all alone in an alley with
    just a shirt and jeans on and the next thing you know, he's got a
    full-sized sword and goes after Duncan's head. There's no way he could
    have hidden a sword that size in what he was wearing.
    
    Just one of those things that keeps us guessing, I suppose.

re .61

My impression was that he had hidden the sword previously, given that this
was a planned ambush. In other instances he had the sword in a duffel bag.

I find the inter-dimensional stash too far-fetched, it seems just too much
of a reach, it's never been even hinted at in the series or films. 


BTW, the third film _Highlander 3: The Magician_ has been released in Europe.
I haven't seen a firm release date in the U.S., hopefully in the next month
or two. Word is it's better than the second film (how could it not be?) and
pretty much ignores the second film.


Randy

    Yeah, I also think that the inter-dimensional thing is a little too
    much. On the other hand, that was a pretty big sword that the kid was
    using to just stuff in a bag. Oh well, that's all part of the mystique
    of this show.

Same opinion re: the interdimensional sword thing. I always thought
Duncan carried his in some sort of sheath on his back. I wonder how
big a sword you really can conceal if you never sit down.

What I find most unbelievable about the whole concept is that so many
immortals actually fight with swords. I may be a cynic, but I would
expect more of them to be like Xavier, the immortal who killed other
immortals by gassing them or by attacking them with a platoon of
mercenaries before beheading them, or like the kid who sucked in other
immortals by pretending to be helpless.

Gigantic ego doesn't explain it. Even if most immortals truly believed 
themselves to be the best sword fighters in the world, they would have 
some sort of backup weapon, like a gun, just in case they got beaten.

The only explanation that holds water is that most immortals actually
have a genuine death wish and enjoy risking their lives. That's more
or less consistent with the concept of the "prize" being, among other
things, mortality.

Barry

re .64

> The only explanation that holds water is that most immortals actually
> have a genuine death wish and enjoy risking their lives. That's more
> or less consistent with the concept of the "prize" being, among other
> things, mortality. 


I agree, possibly many immortals are simply tired of living and subconciously
welcome death. I've noticed that in many cases when disarmed they will offer
thier necks for easy cutting instead of desperatly trying to avoid it. Not
all do this, Duncan for instance has done a good bit of scrambling to avoid
it.

What Xavier did was "against all the rules". Nothing has ever been said
about the consequences of breaking the rules though. Possibly there could
actually be some concerted action among immortals to band together and
hunt down a rule breaker. There's no "rules committee" that I know of or
any enforcement branch. Just how are the rules enforced? After all many
immortals don't strike me as the type to just accept them without some
penalty (which would have to be beheading) for not doing so.


Randy

    I've missed seeing this show for over a month, can anyone tell me what
    has happened for the last 5 or 6 episodes?
    
    Thanks
    
    Michael
    

    repeats..
    
    

    They did the one with the 10 yr old boy  and they did one with a new
    girl finding out she is immortal, she was only about 18.  Last week
    they did one with an immortal who got way too possessive with his girl
    friends and was stalking one of them.  Those are the last ones I
    remember.  If you would like me to elaborate let me know.  (I didn't
    get to see the whole show with the 10yr old.)
    
    Renee

    the only one mentioned that I remember seeing is the one with the girl,
    was she the one that had the major crush on Duncan, who hated her
    father? Everything else mentioned I missed...
    
    Michael

    Yep, that's the one.
    
    Renee

Another episode, another nit. I don't know if the writers (or whoever is 
responsible for continuity) are sloppy or just don't care. These sort of
things are important in sf/fantasy to retain suspension of disbeleif.

In "Methos" an immortal has a large scar and ruined voice due to Duncan
slashing his throat during a fight when they were both immortals. These
sort of injuries are supposed to completly heal. Only scars present before
his first "death" should be present and he should still be singing opera.



Randy

    re .71
    
    	Throat injuries to an immortal don't heal.
    	Example..original movie scene, sean connery
    	slices evil immortal's throat in castle fight
    	and 400 years later it is still unhealed.
    
                              Roger

    I guess it's so there's no chance of the head growing back....

I suppose there is some internal consistency there but it's really stretching
believability. You want to invent some sort of natural explanation but all
these little exceptions and inconsistencies make it seem more like some sort
of supernatural phenomenom.


Randy

    re .74
    
    
    	If you want to see some really supernatural phenomenom/
    	inconsistencies in action, go see Highlander III.
    	They pulled all the stops out on that one.
    
    
    					Roger

Can or can't immortals sense other immortals before they have "died"? This
last episode indicates they can but in other episodes it's seemed the
opposite. 

I hope the title of the upcoming last two episodes of this season doesn't
indicate anything past this season, The Finale, parts 1 and 2.


Randy

    Anyone see the finale?  Why was Mac hanging all over Amanda?  What
    happened to Anne?
    
    I thought the finale was pretty good.  I'm glad they got rid of Kalas.
    He was killing off too many of my favorite characters.  It brought
    up a good question of what if us mere mortals found out about the
    immortals.  Things would certainly never be the same.
    
    RS

    Re: .77
    
    >What happened to Anne?
    
    Anne got dragged into the middle of a fight with another immortal; she
    saw the bad guy shoot someone, and he almost made her lose the baby. 
    Her position was, she couldn't start wanting Duncan to kill people;
    she's a doctor, and she couldn't live that way.  So she walked.

    I must have completely missed this episode....what baby???  wAs she
    delievering one?   The last one I saw with Mac and Anne was when 
    he told her the truth.  She said she was going to try and deal with
    it.  That didn't last long.  She is still in the credits so I wonder
    if this is temporary.  I like her.  I thought she was a good match
    for Mac.  I guess Amanda is ok too but I like Anne better.
    
    RS

    When she thought Duncan was dead, she became involved with an old
    friend, who has since departed the scene.  She became pregnant during
    that affair.  The bad guy shoved her around a bit, which put her
    pregnancy at risk, and between that and seeing him shoot someone, she
    was all for Duncan lopping his head off.

    Oh wow!!  Thanks for the update.  I bet Ducan was thrilled
    she was pregnant since he likes kids so much but can't have them.
    
    Thanks,
    RS

    He was thrilled but she left him because she couldn't deal with him
    killing people.  I do hope she'll be back I really like her.  Anne that
    is.
    
    Barbara

    Anyone know when this is starting up again?  It hasn't been on during
    its regular time and I can't find any info on it in TV Guide.
    
    Thanks,
    REnee

    
    Renee,
    	It's bouncing around. It was on yesterday at 6 p.m.,
    	they are showing the two-parter season finale. Part
    	1 was last night. 
    
    
    				Roger

Well I've seen a number of season premieres in the past couple of weeks but none 
of them even comes close to this one. This will probably be one of my favorite
Highlander episodes. Well written, beautifully photographed, lots of emotion,
lots on background information on Duncan. The first episode directed by Adrian
Paul and he did a good job. If you missed this episode beg, borrow, or steal
a tape.

What did you think about the new intro? They've had a new intro every season
which isn't a bad idea. This is another good one, I'm not sure yet how much
I like it compared with the other two.


Randy

    
    I was pleasantly surprised by this one.  Gives me hope for the new
    season.
    
    DFW

    could someone put in a synopsis.  I missed the show....
    
    Thanks,
    
    Gita

    I must have missed something I thought the last show of last season was
    the one when Calis "bought it" and the other watchers wife walked in
    the newspaper place with the disk, you know when Duncan got shot by his
    watcher.  Well my sister just tells me this isn't so.  So what happened
    with the lady and the disk and Methos?  I totaly missed this one twice
    it seems.  Anyone in the Leominster area have it on tape?
    
    	As for the new opening I like it.  The first show was pretty good.
    Loved seeing Duncan and Joe after not watching the show for three
    months.  No I didn't see any repeats.
    
    Barbara

    They have certainly slimmed down the cast.  Looks like only Duncan,
    Joe and Richie are regulars.  I liked the first show and the new
    beginning.
    
    RS

Well the second episode while not quite as good as the first was still
excellent. The Vietnam episodes were well done.





Spoiler ahead ...................




















I don't really beleive that Duncan will have no more to do with Joe as the
final scene implied. If they keep losing regulars at this rate pretty soon
there really be only one.



Randy

    Can anyone tell me when Highlander is shown in the Worcester area?  It
    used to be on Channel 56 on the weekend, but hasn't appeared in the TV
    listings for two weeks.  Was it dropped?
    
    Thanks,
    
    Gita

    My sister watches tapes it on Sunday.  Not sure what time.  It's
    usually on 56 at 11:00p.m. on Sat.  In Leominster it is also on Sat.
    at 5:00 on channel 40=68.
    
    Barbara

>    Can anyone tell me when Highlander is shown in the Worcester area?  It
>    used to be on Channel 56 on the weekend, but hasn't appeared in the TV
>    listings for two weeks.  Was it dropped?
    
You don't say whether you have cable.

Reruns are on USA at 5pm Monday-Friday and 12am Monday (Sunday night).

New episodes are on Channel 68 (or whatever cable channel it is received on)
5pm Saturday and repeated Sunday at 8 or 9 (can't remember which).

There have been 4 new episodes so far.

/eileen

I've only recently started seeing this show  - I was home sick a couple
of days and caught a couple of the reruns on USA at 5 pm. Since then I've
been taping them to watch later as I'm not normally home yet at 5. Anyway, 
I have a few questions. 

1. Can someone tell me about the watchers? I'd see the character Joe Dawson
   in a couple of small spots, but in a very recent rerun heard him be called
   a watcher for the first time (this is episode where Joe has some sort of a
   bar & a new relationship with someone named Lauren). 

2. Why are they called immortals when they actually can be killed? 

3. What does happen to the bodies & heads of dead immortals? The first few 
   times I was the show I thought they disappeared somehow, but then it didn't
   seem like that was perhaps the case.

4. How come some of them are friends? If only one can be left does that mean 
   that someday there may have to be face-off between friends? 

5. What is this quickening stuff all about besides a lot of special effects? 

6. And finally, can anyone tell me anything about the actor, Adrian Paul who 
   plays Duncan Macleod?

Leslie

Leslie,

See the faq on the web at
	ftp://mithral.iit.edu/pub/highlander/FAQ (text)
			or
	http://mithral.iit.edu:8080/highlander/FAQ/

Meanwhile, I've mailed it to you. It's too long for a mail message
and its use must be in its entirety...

/eileen

    Lets see how many of these questions I can remember!!
    
    Adrian Paul is in his late 30's I believe and grew up in London.
    He is married to one of the Uh-Huh Pepsi ladies (remember that
    commerical?  With the three woman going "uh-huh"...I don't know
    which one of the three she is).  He has been studing marshall arts
    for about 6 years and I can't remember which one he does, but it is not
    a real common one (its not like tae qon do or karate....something with
    Chen in it the name if I recall correctly.)
    
    The Watchers were introduced last season.  They are a group of highly
    networked regular people (not immortals) who have been around basically
    as long as the immortals.  They know the whole story about their being
    "only one" and so forth.  Each immortal has his own personal watcher.
    The watchers job is to keep tabs on the immortal and report who's head
    they have taken and their whereabouts.  Joe Dawson is Mac's watcher.
    They befriended each otther which is a big Watcher No-No.  There have
    been many stories revolving around the watchers.  
    
    The quickening is all the power that an immortal has taken from one
    beheading to the next.  Each time a quickening occurs, Mac gets
    stronger.  There have also been shows where a really good immortal
    kills a really bad one, and turns bad himself and vice versa.
    
    Many of the immortals have histories together and have befriended each
    other, but, yes, at some point they will have to fight.  This has been
    touched on by Mac and Richie.  If I recall correctly, the person left
    in the end will become like some kind of ruler of mankind and he/she
    will earn *mortality* as opposed to immortality.
    
    I guess they are called immortal because they don't die by
    regualar methods and they can be offically dead and come back to life. 
    However, you're right...they still do die  so that's a good question!!!
    
    I think they are not very consistent on the bodies of the beheaded
    disappearing.  I think I've seen them disappear and also been left on
    the floor.  I think the idea of them disappearing makes much more sense
    because otherwise the cops would have to be IDing a lot of head less
    people, many who probably have fake information since they've been
    living for a couple 100 years.  
    
    I think I got most of your questions!
    RS

Yes, thanks for the faq & answers in the other note. So how can I get a
tape of the season 4 opener?

Leslie

  Where did the immortals come from? Where do new immortals come from (or
do they)?

  What happens if they don't all fight down to one immortal? In other words,
who says they have to?

  George

    George,
    
    So far, I haven't seen an explanation of where the immortals came from
    or why they are immortal other than the quickening. Where do they get
    it from?
    
    There is some ambiguity as to whether they are born by human parents
    normally or not. Duncan had a family but I thought he was a foundling.
    Once Duncan told Amanda, his current posslq, who is also an immortal,
    that she doesn't have a mother. I think it was mentioned that Ritchie
    never knew his parents. 
    
    Yes, new immortals appear. Ritchie wasn't found to be an immortal until 
    he was killed. Also, a young woman was killed in a car accident and
    came back.  
    
    Not sure about the compulsion to fight until there is only one. They
    seem very bound by the "Code of the Immortals". Even the worst of them
    honors the sanctity of holy ground.  
    
    Long live the "Sword-Guy" as he is known in our household. 
    
    Ed
                                         

    I believe no immortal knows who his/her real parents are.  Part of
    the mystery I guess.  In the movie-Highlander II (I didn't see this
    movie for myself) I heard they explain the immortals as being from
    another planet.  That movie apparantly went over like a lead balloon.
    I don't know how /or if / they will ever explain it the same way in the
    tv show.
    
    A person has to be killed in order to find out if they are immortal or
    not.  They are frozen at that age permanantly after that.  There is a
    story out there somewhere about a 400-yr old 10-yr old.   Before they
    are killed, I didn't think other immortals would know.  For example,
    Richie was with Duncan long before he was killed and I didn't think
    Duncan knew he would be immortal.  However when that teenage girl came
    back, he said he always knew she would be one.  I found that confusing.
    
    I don't like the new time slot at all.  It used to be on Saturday at
    900 and now its on Sunday at 600pm.  Its hard to watch anything at
    that time, I've missed a lot of these shows.
    
    RS

    The current season is also supposed to be on Saturday at 5 PM. A bit
    early maybe, but if you have a VCR you can tape it for later viewing.
    Its on 68 which turns out to be 19 on our cable company (Warner).

    I hadn't heard the bit about immortals being foundlings. I did just
    recently see the episode where the 18 year old girl dies in the car
    crash & recovers as an immortal. She was adopted, but I didn't realise
    then that this was the way of all immortals since I haven't seen
    the whole series.

    From what I have seen and heard though, it seems there is some indication
    to other immortals that a person is one even before their first "death".
    From what I've read, Duncan and Connor had some indications about Ritchie,
    but I don't think the writers/producers wanted the audiennce to catch on
    until afterwards.

    Oh, and the show about the 10 year old was on the reruns on USA last night.
    He was actually around for 800 years. I didn't care for the episode as much
    as some of the others I've seen, but it what did catch my eye was Duncan's
    explosive reaction about if the 10 year old was evil. His reaction was that
    if that were so, they were all just as evil because they all killed to 
    survive.

    Leslie

>  What happens if they don't all fight down to one immortal? In other words,
>  who says they have to?

   George, 

   Its been one of my questions too. What if the last few were friends and they
   decided they valued each other more than the prize?

   Leslie

Immortals can indeed sense "pre-immies", this has been shown on several
occasions. The Gathering seems to be a compulsion, it's pretty mysterious,
no real explanation of how it works. Presumably the "there can be only one"
provision will also be a compulsion as well when it gets down to it.


Randy

    re: Adrian Paulls wife
    
    Yes, she was an "Uh-huh" girl but she also had a prominent guest role
    on a Highlander episode.
    
    It was the two-part episode where someone springs a prisoner from
    prison, and gives her cosmetic surgery to make her look like Tessa.
    
    In the first hour, before the surgery, that character is played
    by Leilani Paull (Adrian's wife).  After the surgery, she's played
    by the actress that played Tessa.
    
    And as long as we're talking about inconsistencies: can anyone really
    imagine a SECRET international coordinated agency like the Watchers
    before the advent of modern communications?  How about before the
    advent of international travel being available to the common folk?
    
    I love this show, it's my favorite, but you definitely have to overlook
    a lot of things that just can't be.
    
    About the only explanation I've ever heard given from any official
    source about all these questions is that this all takes place in an 
    alternate universe so don't presume that anything that can't be
    explained in our universe can't be explained in the Highlander
    universe.
    
    Yes... it's lame but... for crissake... it's just a tv show!!!  ;-)
    
    	db

RE: .-1

>    And as long as we're talking about inconsistencies: can anyone really
>    imagine a SECRET international coordinated agency like the Watchers
>    before the advent of modern communications?  How about before the
>    advent of international travel being available to the common folk?

I think you are underestimating the talents of our ancestors.  I have run
into this in many time travel stories, where the people who own the time
machine travel back to a more "primitive" time, and treat the people they
meet there like children who are not as capable as the time travelers.

IMHO, and with all respect, I think that is foolish.  There were multi-
national corporations and far-flung empires back before modern communications
were invented.  It took days to travel between cities in a country, weeks
to travel between countries, and sometimes months to go real far away, but
that didn't stop Rome from controlling most of Europe, or England from
building an empire which was literally world-wide, or Spain/England/etc
from building colonies in the New World and trading in India/Japan/China/etc.

Just because they are not as technically advanced as we are, does not mean 
they are less intelligent than we are.  They react to having it take weeks
to ship stuff from one continent to another in exactly the way we react to
having it take days: acceptance, and perhaps slight puzzlement as to how
anyone can imagine it happening faster.  We use inter-continental phones
the way they use mail and (more recently) the telegraph.

Things weren't as quick as they are today, but that is not as quick as it
is going to be 100 years from now.  Does that imply that we are less
intelligent than the people 100 years from now?  I think not.

But I believe that multi-national organizations are just as reasonable 
for our ancestors whose only option was snail-mail, as it is for us who
can use Internet e-mail.  The outlying organizations were more independent
than they might be today, but for an organization whose job is strictly
data gathering, this is not a problem.

And keep in mind that the travel speeds applied to the Immortals just as 
much as the Watchers, so it's not like the Immortals could run away from
the Watchers at any great speed...

-- Ken Moreau

    Does anyone know when we are going to get a new episode?
    
    Thanks,
    RS

    Ken,
    
    Rome had a network.  Albeit, not a very fast one, but a very extensive
    one.
    
    There's a couple of things that make things a little harder for a
    "secret society"
    
    	1) The Watchers may not have had quite the funding that Rome had
    	2) The Watchers also had the difficulty of having to be secretive.
    	3) Rome expanded its network via military force.  How did the
           Watchers manage to recruit on a Worldwide basis while being
    	   secretive
    	4) Preserving records thru centuries isn't as easy as it sounds.
    	   Look at Rome, look at Athens, etc.
    
    I found your note very interesting and informative, but I still say
    its pretty far-fetched that the Watchers could be so organized for
    centuries.  
    
    You are free to differ.
    
    	db

    For anyone who's a fan of the show...
    
    There are now two novelizations based on the series:
    
    		Highlander - Element of Fire by PJ Henderson
    
    and out this week:
    
    		Highlander - Scimitar
    
    I've read "Element of Fire" and found it worth reading.  It's not
    great fiction of course, but the novel format does allow you to
    explore things you just can't do on a series.   For example, to
    "hear the thoughts" of Duncan Macleod, and go into more detail
    about history than a "flashback" allows for.
    
    	db
    
    p.s. I've heard that there's another novelization but I have yet
    	 to find it in any store nor any listing of books in print

RE: .108

>    Rome had a network.  Albeit, not a very fast one, but a very extensive
>    one.

I think that was my point... :-)  By today's standards it wasn't fast (the
speed of a galloping horse, roughly 10-15 miles/hour over the long haul), it
was fairly low bandwidth (a couple of scrolls worth of text and graphics),
it was only moderately reliable (bandits could hijack your data and you
wouldn't know for weeks), but it did deliver the functionality they needed
for hundreds of years.
    
>    There's a couple of things that make things a little harder for a
>    "secret society"
>    
>    	1) The Watchers may not have had quite the funding that Rome had

That point stands today: where the heck *are* they getting their funding?
One theory says that anytime an Immortal is killed, the Watchers go in and
clean out their house/bank account/etc.  Certainly the other Immortal does
not seem to be interested in it, and most Immortals have a fair amount of
money.  But I don't think it is any harder to get money hundreds of years
ago than it is today.

As for being secretive, I would say it would be *easier* to recruit and
maintain a secret society than it was for a large obvious one like Rome.
For one thing, you can carry everything you need to know in your head (ie,
Immortals exist, (s)he is one of them, watch them and write down everything
you see, and give your notes to the local Watcher organization).

As you say, we differ on this point.  Isn't this fun?

-- Ken MOreau

>>    	1) The Watchers may not have had quite the funding that Rome had

>That point stands today: where the heck *are* they getting their funding?
    
    The question isn't as compelling today.
    
    It costs a lot less to have an international secret society today
    than it did during Rome's glory days.
    
    Communicating on a worldwide basis costs me $9.95/month on CompuServe.
    It might have costs hundreds (in phone calls) 15 years ago, but
    in Roman times it would've required the resources of a powerful
    state like Rome.
    
    I don't think "Watchers" even need be "paid" these days.  Like Joe
    Dawson, most of them have "day jobs".  I get the impression its
    almost like a semi-volunteer thing.
    
    Maybe these kinds of questions will be addressed in some of the books.
    
    Debating them (of course) is like arguing about angels on pinheads
    but...  who cares?   It's fun to hypothesize.
    
    	db

    Hi!  I must say I really like this show -- can't expain it -- but I do.
    
    Has anyone heard/read for sure about renewal for Highlander?
    
    Thanks, Carel
    

    Well, I haven't heard about renewal, but I haven't heard anything
    about cancellation.
    
    I think it'll be around next season. 
    
    If you really wanna find out, you could subscribe to the
    alt.tv.highlander newsgroup.
    
    	db

    FWIW, there was some interesting info on CompuServe last night.
    
    The show is definitely going to be "around" for another season, they've
    already listed plot synopsis for the first 5 or 6 episodes.
    
    Spoilers follow form-feed:
    
    
    
    Apparantly next year the immortals and watchers will be "at war",
    with every watcher on the lookout to bring Duncan MacLeod in "dead or
    alive".
    
    One episode will cover Duncan's life as a young boy.
    
    UNCONFIRMED ULTIMATE SPOILER FOLLOWS FORM_FEED:
    
    
    
    Although it really wasn't clear from the plot synopsis, I think they
    were trying to give us the impression that Joe Dawson "comes back"
    (presumably as an immortal???).
    
    

    Thanks for posting the info, I've been trying to find out if it was 
    renewed. It is one of my favorites. I hope they do bring back Joe, he's
    the second best reason to watch the show!
    Sari

    My husband and I haven't always been able to watch HL on a regular
    basis, but we enjoy it very much.  We saw one episode during the 
    reruns where Joe is gunned down.  Was this the season finale for the
    last season?  It was a "to be continued" episode.  Does anyone know
    when the season opener for the coming season will be?

    Thanks,

    Leslie

    That was the season finale (where Joe is gunned down).
    
    I don't know when the new episodes start airing, but I suspect its
    within the next 3 weeks, but I'm pretty sure it's not this weekend.
    
    	db - who as of last month can claim to have seen ALL episodes
    	     including the elusive "Bad Day in Building A" 

    FWIW,
    
    There are 3 novelizations of the TV show:
    
    	Highlander: The Element of Fire
    	Highlander: Scimitar
    
    and to be released in September:
    
    	Highlander: Scotland the Brave
    
    All by different authors (Jason Henderson, Ashley McConnell and
    Jennifer Roberson respectively).
    
    I've read the first book (Fire) and am halfway thru the 2nd one.
    
    I found the first book a good read.  It goes into details that you
    could never explore in the format of a TV show.   The second book,
    despite its well-established author, has been a bit of a tough read
    for me.  I'm halfway thru and still am not clear what this book is
    really going to be about.
    
    	Dave Blickstein - of the clan Blickstein

    Well, I'm glad to see that Highlander is re-using a plot method that
    (as far as I'm concerned) really worked last time:
    
    	Come up with another immortal who goes beyond being just
    	another run-of-the-mill evil immortal.
    
    I thought the series of episodes with Kalas two years ago were great,
    and this new guy Kronos seems even more evil (great job by the actor).
    
    It's also about time they really started to do something interesting
    with Methos - the character had lots of potential that I think they
    hadn't been taking good advantage of.
    
    	db

Spoilers for "Comes a Horseman"


































I thought this was one of the best episodes this season, it may be even better
depending on it's follow up episode, which I'll see tonight. This gives some
depth to Methos and provides good confict for Duncan. It does seem strange
that Methos seems such a wimp now given his past. But like he said, that was
a long time ago. Some people have expressed distrust of Cassandra, I'm not
sure where that's coming from, she seems to be pretty much as she presents
herself to me. I'm still wondering about Methos' motive for delibertly pro-
voking Duncan with his past, he seemed to want to alienate him.


Randy

    SPoilers for "Revelation 6:9" (this week's episode)
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
     Gee, I was hoping they'd squeeze a little bit more out of this Kronos,
    Horseman of the Apocalypse thing.   I was hoping they'd string it out
    for at least 4-5 episodes, maybe even longer.
    
    I think that right now, the show is in serious need of more
    "regulars" (cast members) and re-appearing characters. 
    
    Basically, the only other regular besides Joe Dawson is MacLeod!
    
    Richie seems to only pop in now and then, Anne is out of the picture,
    Tessa is (sob) dead (please bring her back, I'll ignore any plot
    inconsistencies, just bring her back magically).
    
    	db

I liked the episode(s). Am wondering where the friendship between Methos and
Duncan will head after this -- I think Duncan's new knowledge of his friend's
past may make things difficult between them where as before there was an ease
between them. I'd like to learn what it was that changed Methos so much. And
I think its time for Amanda to make a return appearance.

Leslie

    All I kept thinking about was that Darius, whom Duncan idolized,
    started off much the same as Methos - a blood-thirsty warrior.  If
    Duncan could accept the change in Darius, why not Methos?  
    
    I'd expect someone to change over the course of 3000 years.  Compared
    to Methos, Duncan is a baby.
    
    Gita

    This past weekends show ("The Ransom of Richard...") was pretty good.
    
    I'm beginning to gather that Highlander episodes generally fall into
    categories (perhaps I'll enumerate them sometime) and last nights was
    definitely in the "slapstick Highlander" category.
    
    I like those kind of eps, but only in limited doses.
    

I think that "Duende" was my favorite episode so far this season. This had some
excellent period work (in flashback). We got to see some dancing from Adrian
Paul (he was a professional dancer before he was an actor) and one of the best
duels I've ever seen on Highlander. 

One thing that puzzled me was the use of the word "duende". In the episode it
was said to be that part of the dance where you forget yourself and the spirit
of the dance enters into you. My wife (who is Puerto Rican) has never heard the
word used that way, she says it means a sort of wood elf. Has anyone heard this
word used this way in dance terms?


Randy

    My only beef with the "Duende" episode was that attempt to explain
    why Duncan would fight the guy on his own terms (his sword/style).
    
    I just didn't buy it.
    
    It said "plot contrivance" to me.

    "Duende" was a favorite word of the late Boston Globe columnist
    George Frazier. He wrote many columns about what it was and who
    had it. 
    
    It meant some admirable mixture of bravery, style and wit. Or more
    simply, as shorthand for "I approve of this person".
    
    An example might be Kevin White vs Tom Menino, or Frazier himself vs
    his successor, Mike Barnicle.     
    
    Unlike charisma and macho, duende never made it into mainstream English
    in spite of Frazier's efforts. I haven't heard the word since he
    stopped writing years ago, and vaguely remember that the word isn't
    even well known in Spanish.
    

Ok, I looked up duende in my Harrap's Concise Spanish Dictionary. Here's what
it says:

1) goblin, elf
2) gnome
3) magic, charm ("Granada is a magical city." "A flamenco singer must have a
certain magnetism.")


Randy 

    BTW, I ordered and received the "Highlander Blooper Reel" they have
    been advertising ($10 + shipping).
    
    It's kinda dissappointing.  For one thing, it's only about 10 minutes
    long. 
    
    This reel was apparantly scrapped together for some sort of post-production
    party and originally intended only for the enjoyment of people
    associated with the show.
    
    There are some funny scenes in it, but on the "Blooper Reel Meter"
    it gets only about a 3 with outtakes from "Young Frankenstein" being
    a 10 and the infamous first Star Trek bloopers being about a 7.
    
    	db 
    
    p.s. It was kinda interesting though to hear Adrian Paul's real
    	 voice/accent - a quasi-Cockney/Londoner accent as far as I can
         tell.

    Some bloopers have been on TV before, such as the one of him trying
    to jump up on the rear of a horse several times (in Indian garb?).
    

    Chris,
    
    That's what they show in the TV commercial FOR the blooper reel.
    
    	db

    For any other die-hard (no pun intended) Highlander fans, a fourth
    book in the Highlander series has been released:
    
    	Highlander - The Measure of a Man
    
    The previous books are:
    
    	Highlander - Element of Fire
    	Highlander - Scimitar
    	Highlander - Scotland the Brave
    
    I haven't read the new one, but "Element of Fire" struck me as the best
    among the previous three.  "Scotland the Brave" was decent.  "Scimitar"
    looked like it got hacked up during the editing process.
    
    They are starting to release these books more rapidly (the smell of the
    almighty dollar no doubt).  The next one is due in July.
    
    	db

    Speaking of series....HE will be back for another season but the
    ponytail won't.