Sanctuary’s “King and Country” orgasm-inducing hotness

OK, what do you do when all you can write are splendiferous adjectives? This week’s cinematic episode incorporated flashbacks with the five, Magnus’ continental explorations for Druitt, an opening referencing last week’s episode, and a continuation of the ongoing “hollow earth” theme. SyFy’s episodic increase has catalyzed another in quality. If I had known about the heights of this season’s awesomeness, I would’ve sold my cat’s spleen to travel to Florida to attend SyFy’s press tour.

Since around episode three, I’ve seen commercials and read articles that stated/implied Helen had a dark secret which included murder. If the secret is the government tasked Magnus to apprehend a criminal who attempted genocide on a major metropolitan area causing her to give him a shoulder warning shot (in defense) and watched him commit suicide, that doesn’t really seem that bad. I know he’s a schizophrenic, but, Jekyll Adam couldn’t get far without Hyde Adam’s engineering complicity. I hope Adam sticks around. He’s the crazy engineer that even the mad scientists won’t talk to. Seriously, if people who willingly experiment on themselves with vampire blood won’t hang out with you, how crazy are you? I love Ian Tracey and he did a better job slipping into Jekyll mode this week.

Other things I enjoyed included the shippy moments from Helen and Tesla to Tesla and Hank. There were sooo many that the fan-girl in me swooned. Did all the guys just up their crushable hotness? Because of this episode, I want to have Damian Kindler’s love child and name him/her Sanctuary. I loved Tesla’s concern for Helen’s injury. And, if they continue to tame/mature him, I’ll definitely see him as a viable love interest. Then again, I liked Will’s concern and Magnus’ retort: “I’m 159 years old and you’ve only known me for three.” Who didn’t giggle when Jekyll Adam called Will a “male concubine” or squee when Hyde Adam sensed “love” in Will? I loooved when Helen crawled into Druitt’s arms, but I’m surprised she put herself into such a vulnerable position. Even if drugged, I would’ve hugged him from the back. And I enjoyed Druitt’s historic line: “When this is over you and I will begin our dance anew.” And, of course, whenever Tesla and “Heinrich” team up for their tech bits (including the mini Tesla, Henry, and Will trio) I do a little dance.

On the individual character level, I like seeing seeing Magnus back in full badass mode. Taking on a room of Druitt’s armed protectors? Kickbutt. For awhile, she just seemed like the ‘girl’ this season, but perhaps Kindler deliberately muted her. I also liked the exploration into the five. At the end of season one, Magnus’ relationship to the five (despite her source blood discovery) seemed like the pretty Victorian girl who atypically liked science, so, of course, the guys gathered around her. But, in this episode they show her as the group’s de-facto leader and driving force. I like Tesla’s continuing maturation and engineering development, as his performativity never did it for me. And, I like the nod to Tesla’s Serbian background. For awhile I thought the writers had forgotten. Although I didn’t expect Tesla’s concluding move, I like how he consulted with Will throughout the episode and seeing Will step up as deputy director.

This episode featured strong writing and directing. The sepia toned  flashbacks, the connected stories within stories alongside the re-telling of stories, and the Asiatic search gave the show a cinematic feel. P.S. I’m glad Helen called BS on the scifi “moving through time and space” line.

However, there were rough parts. The amount of guys felt like a sausage fest, but, I don’t care. James Thorpe did an awesome job writing. And, this week we just didn’t need Kate’s personality. Although the final five minutes felt disjointed (going from darkly-lit scenes with two-three characters to a well-lit scene with the entire cast), I still liked it.

What did other people think? Am I just too enthusiastic or is the show totally bringing it? I hope they can maintain the same level of quality throughout.

Quotations (paraphrased):

“Moving through dimensions of time and space. It sounds ridiculous when I say it out loud” -Helen

“That is so James Bond. Except it’s before James Bond, so it’s cooler” – Henry

Clacked by An Nicholson
on Dec 05, 2010 @ 21:15 EST5EDT