The Samurai (94301)

Remember in Season One how DM tells Felicia Martins that he got his katana from a teacher… a clansman? Well now the truth can at last be told!

In the present, a young woman sees her lover killed by her husband. Angry, she kills her husband and flees to the dojo of Duncan MacLeod. DM is just returning to Seacouver from his vacation in Paris and is saying hello to a healed Charlie deSalvo who tells him someone is waiting in the office.

When DM sees the young woman he recalls his sojourn in Japan in 1778. Drowned, he washed up on the shores of the ancient land… a land where gaijin are forbidden and came to the aid of a samurai. Because he had helped the man, DM was taken to his home where he met the man's daughter. The young woman in his office is a dead ringer for her. She is the descendant of Hideo Koto, the samurai and she has come to redeem a pledge made to her family by DM's "ancestor." She seeks his help… in resolving her difficulties with having killed her husband.

DM agrees, only they learn her husband is not dead… he is… immortal.

This episode is one of the very best of the series. It features an amazing flashback, several truly great fight sequences, and some fabulous actors. F. Braun McAsh takes over the duties of swordmaster on the series with this episode, which features a katana on katana duel.

Robert Ito, who had played a villain in last year's Revenge of the Sword, plays Hideo Koto with an amazing depth of characterization. We can truly understand DM's awe and reverence of this man.

Koto's daughter Maia, as well as her modern descendant Midori are played by the delightful Tamlyn Tomita who later appeared on the short-lived series Strange World which also featured Peter Wingfield. 

Stephen McHattie, a familiar guest star on many series, plays Michael Kent. McHattie and Wingfield also worked together on the series Cold Squad.

This episode is one not to be missed!

Line of Fire (94302)

You know that question that keeps popping up? The one about "can pre-immortals have children?" Well it is addressed in this episode.

"We've been Watching for centuries," says Joe, "and it's never happened… ever."

But Richie wants to believe that maybe, just maybe, it has happened… at least to him.

Richie meets up with an old girlfriend, Donna, who has a baby. "He's yours!" she tells him. And no matter what DM or Joe tell him, RR wants to believe the fiction… if only for a little while.

Charlie comes down on Duncan for not supporting RR's decision to do right by the girl and acknowledge the boy as his and to provide for him. DM only glowers, unwilling to explain to Charlie just why it is wrong for RR to do this.

Meanwhile DM sees an old enemy in Seacouver, one who brings out darkness and anger of immortal proportions in our usually levelheaded hero. He sees Kern, whom he knows is responsible for the death of Little Deer, his Indian intended and her tribe one hundred twenty some years before. Kern had led the soldiers to the encampment. Kern took scalps. Kern must die!

DM attacks Kern on the street and pursues him, fighting all the way, into a church where witnesses and holy ground force them to withdraw… for the moment. DM knows that no immortal can completely protect the mortals he cares for and that mortals are an Achilles heel that makes immortals vulnerable.

Consider the following: Rebecca Horne offered Luther her head, rather than let him harm her current husband if she chose to fight. DM knows all too well the pain of losing the mortals he loves. He wishes to save Richie that pain. (This plays much like Ramirez' attempt to save Connor from Heather's eventual death in the first film.) But love is a part of life, and its loss is what gives us strength to move on with our lives.

Richie insists on caring for Donna and her baby, but they are now in the line of fire and tempting targets for the evil Kern. One way or another, Richie must face the loss of the only family he might ever have.

Randall "Tex" Cobb portrays Kern with maniacal glee.

Chandra West plays Donna.

The Revolutionary (94303)

In the early 1990's, the war in the Balkans and its effects on the world were very much a part of our culture. Already the Highlander series had addressed this with the episode Warmonger. It will visit it again with this one.

When a peace negotiator, Father Stefan, is wounded in an assassination attempt that Duncan is able to only partially foil, our hero comes face to face with an old friend, Paul Karros, a former gladiator who fought beside Spartacus in ancient Rome and who has been a warrior leading others to freedom ever since. During the Mexican Revolution of 1867, he and DM had fought along side one another. Although DM came to believe that Karros exerted his followers to fight for reasons other than those in their best interests, he still greets Karros as a friend.

At the hospital where Karros speaks to the press about Father Stefan's sacrifice, DM happens to meet an emergency room doctor who interests him greatly. Yes gentle readers, Dr. Anne joins the cast! DM is impressed by her "take-charge" attitude as she calls for security to empty the hospital of the press and those who would turn Father Stefan's fight for life into a media event.

Among Karros' entourage is the beautiful Mara, a woman who interests Charlie de Salvo. She encourages him to find his own path and to make a difference in the world. Meanwhile DM is growing suspicious of Karros and just what he might be doing to achieve his own desires.

Philip Akin will leave the series with this episode so it's "Goodbye Charlie" until he re-appears in Season Four in the episode Brothers in Arms. Joining the show, however is Lisa Howard, whose Dr. Anne is the producers' attempt to move DM into the next phase of his life by allowing him to try once more a steady relationship with a mortal woman. Have fun watching this relationship develop and evolve over Season Three! Whether you like the character of Anne Lindsey or not she is fun to watch!

Also watch for John Novack (immortal Howard Crowley in the Season One  episode An Innocent Man) to make a brief cameo appearance as a member of the press! This will be his second of three appearances on the series.

NOTE: Did you know Congress meets in Seacouver?

Yes… The Revolutionary is the episode where we learn that, Washington DC is evidently the home of a shadow government. All real decisions are made on the West Coast in Seacouver! Father Stefan was shot as he left from addressing Congress. At the time the episode first aired, I'd never heard the name Seacouver. I knew the series was filmed in Vancouver, but the name of the fictional city until that time had not really been mentioned. At the time, I recall wondering if the series was supposed to be set in Washington somehow! Just a random thought!

Guest Cast: Miguel Fernandes as Karros; Liliana Komorowska as Mara; Lisa Vultaggio (who appears in various bit parts throughout the series run) as Elda.

The Cross of St. Antoine (94304)

All you Joe Dawson fans out there: this is one that finally features our favorite Watcher front and center.

When Duncan and a visiting Amanda note that Joe Dawson is an unusually happy man one night at his new club, Amanda smiles, "Can't you see… the man is in love!"

He is, but unfortunately viewers will never meet her. When Joe arrives at the home of Lauren Gale, he is just in time to watch helplessly outside while an intruder murders her and gets away.

The next day a despondent Joe begs Mac to help him find Lauren's killer. The police think it was a random intruder, but Joe is suspicious and mentions how Lauren was an art historian and had been doing some work at the estate of mysterious millionaire Armand Thorne.

DM agrees to check things out in his guise as an antiques dealer, and he takes expert thief Amanda along with him to size up the collection. Once there, DM sees an artifact he'd never thought he'd see again--the jeweled and gold cross of St. Antoine. He recalls the first time he ever saw it in 1817 and the immortal who stole it: John Durgan.

When DM later asks Joe about Durgan, the Watcher indicates later that Durgan pretty much vanished long ago and that the Watchers had thought he was dead. But DM thinks Thorne might have the answers to Lauren's death.

But first a little second story work is needed as he and Amanda attempt to steal the cross and draw out Thorne.

Look for Joe's grief at Lauren's death to be shown as Jim Byrnes sings Love is a Gamble. This is the first episode that features him actually playing on film, although his music was used a few times in Season Two, most notably in the episode Run for Your Life.

It is this episode, perhaps more than any other, that changes the relationship between Joe and DM to one of friends who are there for one another, whether they agree with each other or not.

The late sci-fi character actor Brion James is featured as Armand Thorne and John Durgan. His swordsmanship is sub-par, but that is explained within the episode as the result of his character's having stayed away from challenges for so long and by having employees and personal security about him to protect him.

A very emotional episode! This one is well worth watching!

Rite of Passage (94305)

While visiting the Websters, some old and dear friends, DM watches as their adopted teen-aged daughter Michelle, pulls one of her rebellious teen acts and drives off in a huff.

Michelle is angry that her foster parents won't tell her who she really i,s and has been experimenting with several dangerous life-style choices. While fumbling with her radio/cd player, she drifts into the path of an oncoming vehicle and crashes.

At the hospital, DM meets for the second time Dr. Anne Lindsey whom he first met in The Revolutionary. Dr. Anne gives the family the bad news. DM insists he will handle the arrangements and paperwork, and puts the Websters in a cab. Then he heads for the deserted morgue.

Michelle Webster is an immortal and her death has created a number of problems for DM, not the least of which is getting the girl out of the hospital without anyone being the wiser, especially the luscious Dr. Anne who happens upon him (he thrusts MW into a deserted room when he meets Anne). Sparks, or at least interest in one another begins to grow.

Back at the dojo DM begins to explain things to MW but is interrupted when her father calls. Michelle's body is missing from the morgue; can DM deal with it? He leaves after making her promise to stay inside until he gets back.

But in true teen-aged fashion MW does the one thing he asks her not to. She leaves the dojo and immediately encounters charming Axel Whittaker who promises that her life is about to change, and that he can take her places and show her things that DM never will.

Will Michelle listen to Axel and leave with him? Will DM return in time and be able to teach the girl what she needs to know to survive? What would it be like to be totally unprepared for the immortality of this series? What would it be like to be eternally eighteen? Elizabeth Gracen's Amanda has a cameo in this episode.

Have fun!

Courage (94306)

What would it be like to be the best swordsman in the world? What would happen if over the centuries challengers kept coming… and coming… and coming? As with westerns which dealt with gun-fighters having this happen to them, Highlander deals with an immortal so good with a sword that not only immortals but mortals come to challenge him. Over the centuries the challenges mount up, as does the fear and the desperation of one man to escape his fate.

Brian Cullen and Duncan MacLeod were once the best of friends. They partied in early 19th century Europe where Brian taught Duncan and faced challenge after challenge. Re-meeting in San Francisco in the 1850's, DM is startled that Brian runs from a minor irritant of a challenge and flees to the blessed oblivion of an opium den. DM attempts to help his friend, but will his intervention in his friend's self-destructive spiral be enough to save him?

In the present, Richie runs afoul of an immortal strung-out on dope who later dies, taking a busload of people with him. At the hospital to see Dr. Anne (any excuse) DM finds her working to save the victims, and also finds his friend Brain Cullen reviving and in need of help to get away. DM helps.

Once Brian and RR see one another, the truth of Brian's overblown drug addictions and alcoholism becomes clear; and DM must decide whether continuing to intercede and help Brian is in his friend's best interest. Can he help someone who does not want to be helped?

A thought-provoking episode which reflects real-life situations of dealing with loved ones and friends who are intent on destroying themselves, and what we can and cannot do.

John Pyper Ferguson guest stars as Brian Cullen.

The Lamb (94307)

This is the first of two episodes in the series (one will air as part of Season Four) featuring that immortal problem child we all sooo love to hate: Kenny!

While on the docks, Duncan and Richie find a small boy of about ten years of age: blonde, blue-eyed, cherubic, hiding away in fear of them.

"Mac?" asks RR. "He's?"

DM nods. Even children can become immortal if they meet a death before reaching adulthood.

"I've never seen one before," remarks RR.

"That's because they don't last very long," sighs DM.

The two immortals reassure the boy, who does seem to be aware of the game, that they are not after his head, and they take him into their home while DM recalls one other immortal child he once met during the Civil War and what happened to the boy, Sean Zale.

Meanwhile, Kenny tells DM and RR how he was killed in a car crash four years ago with his parents, but how he awoke and learned he had died. Feeling sorry for the boy, DM plans a fishing expedition with Kenny who likes to fish. DM and Kenny take off fishing. Unbeknownst to DM, the boy moves behind him while the Highlander is occupied so that Kenny can take DM's head. Suddenly, Dr. Anne Lindsey, with whom DM is pursuing a relationship, shows up with a picnic basket. The boy covers his tracks and acts innocent, but we wonder how innocent he can be.

In a discussion with Joe Dawson, with whom RR has become fairly close since taking a bullet for the Watcher last season, Joe mentions that Kenny is likely not ten nor even fourteen… but closer to 814 years old!

When told how Kenny usually operates, DM defends him. "He's playing the game the only way he can. Like all of us.  He does what he has to… to survive."

Will DM change his mind about the Kenny? What do you think?

Kenny is played by the late Myles Ferguson who died tragically a few years later in a car crash.

One of the best visuals of this series occurs when Kenny absorbs the quickening of one of his victims. His face ages and twists, almost becoming an overlay of another's face before the quickening is finished, and he is himself once more. But in that moment, viewers see the true face of the eight hundred year old immortal trapped in the body of a child. He is old… old and evil. It is that image which inspired me to use his character in fan fiction.

Obsession (94308)

Did you ever stop to think how unusual it was that Duncan once mentioned to Tessa that she was the "most wonderful woman in the world" that he had ever met. How very special she was? Consider this: the man you love tells you he is immortal and will never grow older than he is now and he can never give you children. What do you do? (a) Laugh and decide he is a little bit mad and is teasing you. (b) Call for the men in the white coats. (c) Decide he is not the man of your dreams and run as fast as you can. (d) Feel sorrow that he has seen everyone he has ever loved die. Most of us would never get to (d).

A young woman wants to see DM and talk to him about his immortal friend, David Keogh, an artist whose hands make wood into functional objects of great beauty. David has told her he is immortal and that MacLeod is also. Jill, the young woman, is bewildered and wants DM to convince David to leave her in peace. She wants a real life, a man who will grow old with her, and she wants children.

But David is obsessed with Jill.

DM recalls two separate incidents that amplify and enrich this story. In 1825, he manages to befriend young immortal David Keogh who, now being immortal, and told by DM that he is as good as any man, wants to marry a young woman that he has been seeing. Unfortunately the young woman's family look down on David as a man with no family, no past, and no future. They reject him as a suitor for their daughter and, dutiful daughter that she is, she rejects him sadly as well. David is crushed.

DM then recalls an incident in 1882, shortly after his self-imposed exile from the world on holy ground ended (the one dealing with the death of Little Deer) and his re-emergence into the world of men. It is then that DM falls in love with the beautiful Sarah and begins a passionate affair with her, only to learn that she is married and will, in fact, return to her humdrum life as a frontier wife despite his love. Obsessed with her, he follows her and dies in front of her, only to have her reject him a second time when he revives.

DM understands clearly David's desperation and obsession with the woman he loves and his despair at ever finding a woman who will love him for who he is. The world has changed and Dr. Anne, seeing David's obsession with Jill, and not knowing of immortals, attempts to intervene and get Jill to safety.

Will DM have to kill another friend? Will Jill learn to love David? Will Anne learn of immortality? Watch and see.

Among this episode's many Guest Stars are Cameron Bancroft as David Keogh, Nancy Sorel as Jill Pelentay, and Sherry Miller as Sarah Carter.

Shadows (94309)

I once read (or heard) one of the producers saying that most immortals fear one of two mortal deaths because they are so hard to recover from or free themselves of. One is to be buried alive: either in the earth or in the ocean. The other is to be horribly burned. Even Ramirez tells Connor in the original film that he wouldn't recommend trying it.

As anyone who has experienced third degree burns can tell you, they are an unending source of pain while healing. The nerve endings are exposed and it is a torment. I had a friend burned in a house fire as a child who once spoke to our class on what he had endured. His comments have always been with me.

But what would happen to an immortal so badly burned that they died, but who were then reborn into the torment again and again until they finally healed. How long would it take? In Eye of the Beholder Gabriel Piton heals rather quickly; not even his hair is singed. But in today's episode, the process of burning to death and then healing finally drives mad a young friend of Duncan MacLeod, whose mental state is already precarious. John Garrick was said to have heard voices all his life and to have been a witch.

Finally healed after centuries, John Garrick has turned to art as a means of exorcising his demons, and appears to have no hard feelings for MacLeod who had once tried to save his life and failed.

DM has taken Anne Lindsey to an outdoor viewing of the sculpture of John Garrick: twisted gargoyles that seem to be demons arising from the immortal psyche. Garrick gives DM one to take home. Before they even leave, DM thinks he sees a hooded and cloaked figure with a sword coming for him. He draws his katana and begins to fight the figure, only to realize he is imagining it. Anne has seen his sword and is instantly worried. She thinks he needs help. She also wants him to trust her enough to tell her what is happening. He doesn't--not yet willing to expose her to the immortal world, nor risk losing her to it.

Joe Dawson also thinks Duncan needs help. His friend does not seem to be himself and is withdrawing. He and Richie discuss DM's mental state. RR goes to see DM and nearly loses his head as DM is once more fighting the demon he seems to be seeing and mistakes RR for the demon. He comes to himself at the last moment and apologizes. But he looks terrible, as if something is terribly wrong.

DM discusses what he has been seeing with Garrick who tells him that he too has fought this demon and there is only one way to overcome its terror: Do nothing! "We must accept the demon into ourselves so that its power becomes nothing."

Is this episode a preview of the Ahriman arc? Certain aspects of it certainly would seem so. However, that said, this is an interesting and thought-provoking episode on mental illness and on our abilities to face both our inner demons and our outer ones.

Garwin Sanford guest stars as John Garrick.

Blackmail (94310)

Duncan is defending himself from another immortal and, as expected, wins and takes his enemy's head. But just as the quickening begins to roar about him, he sees something he didn't expect: a man with a video camera.

The next day he angrily accuses Joe Dawson of the taping and wants the tape destroyed. Dawson mumbles that they don't use cameras but is ecstatic over the idea that someone has it all on tape… a tape that if they could get into the Watcher library would be a marvel.

DM later meets with the man who has the tape: a philanderer and all-around scuzzball who has taped his lovemaking with his mistress on the same tape and who now wishes the Highlander to do him a little favor. He wants him to kill his wealthy wife, or he will turn the tape over to the authorities.

DM appears to agree, but it is the tape he wants. He retrieves it, but not before the man's wife has seen it. DM does not kill her, but she does see his face.

Angry, the scuzzball overhears immortal Lyman Kurlow threaten DM so he strikes what he thinks is a "strangers on the train" deal. "I'll kill yours and you kill mine. No one will ever know!"

This episode features Anthony De Longis, the assistant swordmaster on the series, as Lyman Kurlow in two impressive swordfights with DM. It also features one of the funniest stakeout scenes I've ever seen as Joe and DM attempt to follow and learn just who this scuzzball is.

I like this one. It's not a great episode… but it has its moments.

Vendetta (94311)

Not all who become immortal are truly worthy of the gift. I'm not talking that there are evil people who become immortal, or that there are immortals who become evil (at least as far as Duncan is concerned) and who have to be stopped. Nor am I speaking of an immortal who fails to make a positive impact on the lives of mortals around him somehow. I'm talking about the truly worthless. This episode is about such an immortal.

Benny Carbassa is a two-bit hustler who likes to pretend he is on the verge of true "tough guyness" and likes to drop names about the gangsters he has known. He mooches funds and drinks from his immortal acquaintances (they cannot be called friends) and has no redeeming qualities; not even loyalty. Nor is he known to have ever carried a sword. At least no sword is ever shown in this episode. When he runs afoul of a gangster over a gambling debt, does he fight back? Does he die with dignity knowing he will return (although it might take awhile for the cement overshoes to deteriorate)? No! His solution is to implicate DM, whom he has not seen in decades, as someone gangster Simon Lang might want to meet.

During the 1920's, when Benny first met DM, our hero (DM not BC) fell under the spell of singer Peggy McCall and shared a dance with her. But Peggy was the girlfriend of jealous gangster and club owner Joey Lankovski. Joey and his brother Sid made it clear to DM that he was not welcome in their club, nor were his attentions to the lovely Peggy. When Joey ended up dead, DM (who was also "killed") had to vanish.

Now Benny hopes to survive by giving Lang our gallant hero and in arranging to be certain that DM dies, but does not wear cement overshoes (a.k.a. concrete galoshes). DM feels like throttling BC, but shrugs it off and takes off with the lovely Dr. Anne to a formal black-tie hospital fundraising event to which Simon and Margaret Lang have also been invited.

A comic episode with some very serious overtones, and a killer ending.

Stella Stevens plays Margaret Lang.

They Also Serve (94312)

This is a rarity in this series: an episode that focuses not on the Highlander or his immortal friends, but on the toll that Watching takes on the mortal Watchers. This is the Upstairs, Downstairs of Highlander.

Joe Dawson lets Duncan MacLeod know that May-Ling Shen has died. In 1780, not long after leaving Japan, DM had traveled through Mongolia where he trained and was a student and lover of the gifted May-Ling Shen. DM accepts the news sadly and Joe gives him a copy of the Chronicle to let DM read for himself how his relationship with May-Ling is remembered.

After closing hours at the bar, several Watchers gather for a poker game and to discuss their immortals in a friendly banter about how some of them use or fail to use their immortality and how some seem so ordinary in their lives. Among the poker players is Joe's bartender Mike Barrett (who is Richie Ryan's Watcher), a young couple who watch a romance novelist, and Ian Bancroft, the man who first recruited Joe into the Watchers in Vietnam. Bancroft had been Darius' Watcher and most recently May-Ling's. He is detached about the loss of his immortals, as if he does not care whether they live or die. Into this group comes Rita Luce, the exact opposite of Bancroft. Rita is passionate about her Immortal, the young Michael Christian. She screams at the rest that they have no concept of what the game means. How none of them truly understand, and that they discuss their immortals and discard them as if they were cards in the poker deck.

Later we learn that Rita is intimately involved with Christian and is feeding him information about how and where to find other immortals when they will be vulnerable, as well as tips about how to succeed in the game.

I hesitate to say more but this is one of the stellar episodes of the series and offers viewers a rare behind the scenes look at the organization that now plays such an important role in the world of the Highlander.

Where does Joe fit into this? While Ian is his mentor, Joe has bent the rules to help MacLeod again and again. Are his crimes as bad as Rita's? Of course not, but a character arc for Joe begins and turns what is a growing friendship between immortal and Watcher on its ear and is the first move in stretching it to the breaking point.

The absolutely marvelous Barry Pepper (Saving Private Ryan, Battlefield Earth) appears as Michael Christian. Michael Anderson, Jr. portrays Ian Bancroft. Anderson was a Disney teen idol when younger, and gave the teen-aged Hayley Mills her first on-screen kiss in the film In Search of the Castaways.

***Spoiler Alert***

One of the original plans for this episode, and one, which was scrapped, was for Richie to be able to toss Duncan his katana to show that DM truly needed his friends. The scene was changed to show DM's ability to handle Christian alone, making RR's and JD's attempt to help Mac seem superfluous. Too bad. I rather like the idea that Mac is not an invincible warrior, but one whose friendships with mortals and immortals alike might make the difference for him in the game.

Blind Faith (94313)

Can an immortal change? Can a good immortal go bad? We've just seen this in Courage as we watched the deterioration of the noble Brian Cullen into a junkie. Conversely, can an evil immortal become good? If you recall, Darius might once have been considered evil. He led his armies across Europe in a campaign to rule the world. But when Duncan meets him, he had long ago changed. As a result of the so-called "light quickening" he is supposed to have received from the Ancient Immortal he killed at the gates of Paris, he turned aside from his path, disbanded his armies, and sought to bring peace to others. But can an immortal change without this sort of amazing intervention?

Street preacher John Kirin is killed in an auto accident as he attempts to save another person. When he "revives" in Dr. Anne's emergency room, and walks out in front of witnesses all present believe they have seen a miracle. All but Duncan MacLeod who knows that John Kirin was once an immortal arms merchant and drug smuggler known as Kage.

He confronts Kage/Kirin and is suspicious when Kage explains that he has changed; that he seeks only to teach peace to others, and live a simple, peaceful life. He apologizes for "reviving" in front of witnesses, but it was not something he could control. Duncan challenges Kage/Kirin to a duel, refusing to believe that change is possible. He believes the man is orchestrating a scam on people when he learns that massive funds have suddenly been donated to Kirin's street mission.

One of the themes of this season was the change or lack of change seen in immortals DM confronts and faces. What is real? What is not? Is change possible?

Genre favorite Richard Lynch portrays John Kirin/Kage.

Song of the Executioner (94314)

Now begins one of the most amazing and well-developed story arcs of the series. Many of the episodes this season have led to this one and to what follows.

Duncan MacLeod and Dr. Anne Lindsey take in a concert of Gregorian Chants performed by a monastery choir which includes DM's old friend Paul… a gentle soul and an immortal who once offered DM shelter in his monastery from the world outside.

In 1658, Duncan had been tired of the constant violence of the immortal life and had sought a time of peaceful reflection on holy ground. Paul had made him welcome and it was there that DM learned to read Shakespeare from Timon, another immortal. When Timon leaves, Duncan learned that Kalas, one of the monks, had been preying on and killing unsuspecting immortals as they left. He told an outraged Paul, who expelled Kalas to the outside world.

In the present, in the sound booth of the theatre an immortal waits, smiling as he watches his plans unfold.

The next day, while at Joe Dawson's bar, DM receives a package that lets him know that Paul is dead. Then Joe is arrested for dealing drugs, and Dr. Anne is accused of malpractice when some of her patients die under mysterious circumstances. Duncan knows someone is out to destroy him and his friends.

Kalas, portrayed by the deliciously evil David Robb, has returned. He will be featured in four of the remaining episodes of this season and makes an indelible mark on the world of Highlander.

Star-Crossed (94315)

Mid-season and time for another trip to Paris!

Following the events of Song of the Executioner Duncan MacLeod arrives in Paris and is met at the airport by his old friend Hugh Fitzcairn. In flashback we learn just how they met and how their friendship developed as they decided that they had more in common with one another than with the heads of the feuding Italian houses they served. As they drive through the countryside on their way to DM's recently re-purchased barge ("You did say money was no object!" remarks Fitz) they are run off the road and end up, upside down.

DM thinks some jealous husband or lover is after Fitz and wants to know what the banty Englishman has been up to. Well, he has decided to portray a chef, with an amazing but not so impeccable list of references. It seems his file needs updating and he needs DM to do it, as Fitz never has learned to handle the "blasted machine" himself.

Fitz is also quite in love with one of his fellow chefs, and may finally be truly ready to settle down. DM agrees to help his friend, but when the young woman's ex-boyfriend turns up dead and Fitz is on the run, Duncan can't help but wonder if something else is going on.

What begins as a light-hearted episode turns dark and deadly.

Roger Daltrey of the Who makes his second appearance on Highlander as High Fitzcairn, and secures his place as one of the most beloved characters of the series.

David Robb makes his second appearance as the evil Kalas.

Methos (94316)

He's finally here!

Yes ladies… Methos makes his debut in this episode!

Kalas notices a man following him, and captures him. Upon torturing the man, he learns that the man is his Watcher.

"And that's supposed to mean something?" he smirks as he prepares to resume the torture. The well-trained Watcher, determined to take the secret to his grave, immediately spills the beans about what Watchers are. (Note to Watcher Authorities RE: Training of Field Operatives and Use of Cyanide Tablets) And not just about the existence of Watchers, but you just know when Kalas asks about a particular old immortal named Methos, that the words will fly. No further torture will be necessary. "Yessir Mr. Kalas. Whatever you wish to know! Your desires are my command" Whatever the doomed Watcher says leads Kalas to the next link in the chain… an old Watcher named Dan Salzer whom he also kills. Duncan MacLeod happens upon the scene just before Salzer dies.

Later, DM phones Joe with the news that Kalas is in Paris and what happened to Fitz and to Salzer. Joe suggests that DM meet with a young researcher who knows more about Methos than any other Watcher… a young grad student named Adam Pierson.

DM heads to Pierson's house where he is assaulted by the most powerful old "buzz" he has ever felt. He walks into a room to see a young man wearing headphones, listening to rock music, studying a book, eating pizza, and drinking beer. The young man looks up at him and smiles.

DM, in a moment of clarity says, "Methos?"

Methos nods his head and tosses DM a beer, "Duncan MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod. Have a beer. Mi casa is su casa" and a media darling is born.

Sigh! (I still remember the glee with which I watched that scene the first time so many years ago!)

Oh yes, where were we. Methos is not what we would expect. Somehow the idea of an old and wise immortal brings up visions of a wise old man with a long white beard. Sorry, TPTB in one of those brilliant casting coups they were known for, decided to go with a young, hip everyman whose main attribute seems to be his ability to vanish in plain sight. In an interview, Peter Wingfield said he always tried to play Adam Pierson as if he were like a suit of clothes that Methos had donned and was hiding within.

Only one line delivered in this episode gives us a glimpse of the hardened and dangerous immortal we know and love. When confronted by Kalas, who complains that he couldn't read the hieroglyphics in the ancient's journal, Methos says with a hint of amusement and deadly menace, "You should have been there."

Alas, like too many other older immortals who have sought to survive by hiding from the game, our boy is a bit rusty. He cannot beat Kalas, so what does he do? He offers his head to MacLeod. "Together we can beat him." Shades of Endgame, Batman! PW in an interview states that was the first scene he filmed, and not knowing what else to do played it as if Methos was genuinely tired of life and ready to die. He now admits that just perhaps the Ancient may have had ulterior motives.

[Please NOTE: In my fan fiction, I use this as a part of the character arc for him and give a background for this most uncharacteristic behavior on our boy's part!]

We get very little of Methos in this episode, and nothing really of his past; but never fear… he'll be back!

Peter Wingfield makes such an impression as Methos that thoughts of killing his character off immediately vanish and Highlander has another semi-regular.

In a separate and completely boring "B" story Richie Ryan arrives in Paris and joins a motorcycle racing team. Scene after scene of motorcycles going around and around and around in a circle. Ho hum… can we see more of Methos now?

David Robb returns as the deadly and menacing Kalas.

Take Back the Night (94317)

Immortal Ceirdwyn and her mortal husband are shot down in senseless street violence in Paris. Ceirdwyn, who once fought at the side of Queen Boudaecia against the Romans, and where falling in battle was found (according to the Watcher Chronicles) by immortal Marcus Constantine and trained by him, has lived many lives.

Ceirdwyn is the first of the true warrior females who would play a greater role on this show later on. I don't count Amanda as a warrior at this time; she was more Duncan's occasional love interest, thief, and all-around pain in the ass.

After her husband's death, the warrior immortal repaints herself in the tradition of her people and goes in search of the killers.

Meanwhile, DM meets a young hustler/street kid (Paolo) who witnessed the killing and gets involved in playing Boy Scout. He intends to end the cycle of growing violence before too many people die and he is faced with killing a former friend and lover.

This is the episode that first shows Duncan as fighting at the side of Bonnie Prince Charlie and that he and Ceirdwyn were the ones who got the prince out of Scotland dressed as a woman. This episode also deals with DM's dark attacks on the English soldiers after the Battle of Culloden when he killed all he could find for their excesses in killing civilians. Ceirdwyn taught him that violence only begets violence, and that at some point we have to regain our humanity and charity and say "hold, enough." She knows; she went through it centuries before.

Now DM must remind her of this and help her move through her grief, and regain life.

But Ceirdwyn also reminds Duncan that if they love mortals they must trust them. "They are not children," she says. "Let them decide if we should be a part of their lives."

Kim Johnston Ulrich makes an indelible impression as Ceirdwyn. By the way, Paolo's voice was dubbed by a woman. That's why it sounds so creepy and out of place. When I first saw the episode, I thought that maybe Paolo was a girl dressing as a boy to be one of the gang. People familiar with West Side Story, may understand my reference.

Oh, and in the "B" episode Richie dies publicly in a motorcycle race and so he must leave Paris. His story also shows that violence and revenge beget only more of the same. His competitor Basil is also killed in the same crash, leaving Richie with regrets and guilt.

A very nice episode!

Testimony (94318)

As Dr. Anne arrives in Paris, a young woman collapses in the customs line. Filled with an immediate sense of "I am doctor, hear me roar!" Anne goes into full medical mode and ignores the waiting Duncan. Accompanying the young woman in the ambulance to the hospital, she is focused not on her miraculous reunion with DM, but on her patient.

Hmmmm… Anne Lindsey… You've just learned that your boyfriend, whom you thought was dead, is in Paris and wants to see you. Do you rush into his arms? Do you ignore him in favor of a patient? Do you fall into the arms of the next man you meet? Sorry… the imp made me say that.

The young woman Tasha, is a drug carrier for immortal Ivan Kristov whom DM knows from 1750 Russia. Although friendly enough to DM at the time, Duncan knows that Kristov is a ruthless son-of-a-bitch. Anne's insistence that Tasha testify against Kristov puts her in danger.

In a scene set in his "storage facility", DM finally comes clean with Anne about his immortality. Meanwhile, Kristov kidnaps Richie to force Mac to "control" his woman and stop her from messing with Tasha's head.

Can DM save Tasha, Anne, and RR? Does he even need to? Surprise ending! This episode is definitely for all the RR fans!

Mortal Sins (94319)

As morning sickness grips Dr. Anne, and Duncan tries to decide whether or not to seize this opportunity for a family or if the danger is too great, an elderly Catholic priest, Father Bernard finds his church invaded by neo-Nazi skinheads led by a man he recognizes, Major Ernst Daimler, a Nazi that Bernard, as a boy, accidentally killed during WWII. And Daimler recognizes him.

Father Bernard seeks out Duncan MacLeod, whom he once saw die during WWII and tries to tell him that Daimler has returned and that he will come for them both. Bernard also goes to see fellow Resistance fighter from WWII Georges Dalou (who appeared in the Season One episode Tomorrow We Die as the crime figure who was an old friend of DM, but who thinks DM is the grandson of the DM he knew). Bernard attempts to tell Georges the truth.

After Georges is killed and Bernard and Anne are threatened, DM places them on holy ground and seeks out Daimler for a final showdown… a showdown that will prove far more costly to Duncan than even he can imagine.

***SPOILER ALERT***

Say farewell Dr. Anne!

Reasonable Doubt (94320)

When the character of lovable lush Maurice was introduced to the Highlander world, the French producers did not like that he was a buffoon. They wanted him to have more substance, more layers, and not just be a drunk and a cook. Trouble was, Michel Modo did it so well that he became a fan favorite and we looked forward to his addition to the cast each time Mac went to Paris.

Well, Maurice gets his big episode today!

Maurice is turning his life around and actually has a job. He is beginning to get a handle on his alcoholism. He is extremely worried about his niece Simone, an art student, and asks Duncan to speak with her. Perhaps DM can help the young woman settle down and do something with her life.

Meanwhile, a Da Vinci drawing is stolen by immortal thief Lucas Kagan who was raised by immortal Richard Tarsis to be a thief and a murderer. DM had a run-in with them in Paris in 1930. He had to kill Tarsis because he murdered some by-standers, but he'd let Kagan go. Now he may regret his mercy at that time. Kagan is what he was raised to be, and is an amoral sociopath without conscience or feelings. DM learns that Simone is not only a prostitute but also Kagan's lover and partner in crime.

How much does who we are depend on genetics? How much depends on how we are raised? How much depends on us and our abilities or inabilities to rise above what we know, and reach a higher plain of development? These were social arguments at the time this episode was first written and they remain fields of discussion even today.

This is an episode about responsibility, mercy, and facing our pasts. It is also about change and our ability or inability to move on with our lives.

Finale, part 1 (94321)

Amanda shows up at Duncan's barge with smoked goose, truffles, fine wines, and hopes her friend will not kill her when he learns what she has done.

Amanda, in appreciation for all that DM has done for her over the centuries and the difference he has made in her life… has broken Antonius Kalas out of prison… so she could kill him. Unfortunately Kalas and his little buddy, psychopath Nino, prove too much for Amanda to handle and now Kalas is on the loose and out for MacLeod's head.

Duncan is understandably peeved. He is still sulking when Joe Dawson arrives accompanied by a powerful immortal buzz. Yes folks… Methos has decided not to completely vanish. In a scene that we can only imagine the Ancient One, figuring MacLeod has told Dawson who he is, has convinced the old Watcher to say nothing to any of his superiors and to keep his secret. In return, they can be drinking buddies and play poker together. Joe evidently agrees and the two visit MacLeod, but indicate they are completely on Watcher business not immortal business, and don't need his help… nope… not at all.

It seems that the widow of Don Salzer, Adam Pierson's friend and mentor whom Kalas had killed in the episode Methos, wants to tell the world about immortals. In an attempt to stop her, Adam shows her he is an immortal.

When Joe berates him for such a dumb thing Methos shrugs and says, "I was improvising. I'm just a guy!" His everyman routine is in overdrive. He seems friendly, cooperative, and endearing <sigh!>

Meanwhile, Christine Salzer finds something that might help her in her attempts to show the world that immortals exist.

Elsewhere, Kalas has Nino get him a gang of thugs. When one man overhears the term immortals and mentions it to Kalas, he gets his "reward." Kalas has his best line, "Fetch me another Nino; this one's broken!"

Duncan meanwhile considers what it means for one immortal to offer to fight in his place as Amanda has done. He recalls his first meeting with Xavier St. Cloud in North Africa and how he, DM of the CM, tried to face him in battle when the challenge was to DM's mentor Hamza al Kahir.

This is part one of an intriguing, well-plotted and well-acted season finale. We already knew the show would be back the following year as Highlander was reaching its period of greatest creativity and highest ratings.

Roland Gift returns in flashback as Xavier St. Cloud. Peter Wingfield returns as Methos/Adam Pierson, Elizabeth Gracen returns as Amanda, and David Robb returns as the deliciously evil Antonius Kalas. Any episode with Jim Byrnes as Joe Dawson is one of the better ones.

Enjoy!

Finale, part 2 (94322)

Watchers and immortals alike are poised awaiting their revelation to the outside world. In a twist of fate, Kalas now has the Watcher files and he intends to use them, not to seek out and kill other immortals, but to force Duncan MacLeod to meet him in combat and bow his head in sacrifice!

Duncan and Amanda go up the Eiffel Tower and dance a tango on the rail of the highest level. During the dance DM recalls one of the times Amanda was an especially grating pain in the ass, but how she offered to "kiss it and make it better." He realizes he does love her, and he always has. She knows, oh yes… she knows.

Meanwhile the unexpected deaths of the newspaper editor Clancy and Christine Salzer have the Watchers on full alert as they try to locate Kalas.

Note: To Field Operatives On The Use Of Cell Phones While In The Field

Once again, Amanda secretly heads off to fight Kalas, and once again fails to get the job done. This causes DM to yell at her so she leaves.

Methos considers what life would be like if DM dies at Kalas' hands. "Amanda would be free to date." Consider the possibilities for stories if that had happened!

Highlander closes Season Three with the finest of its season finales and fans looked forward to more!

Peter Wingfield, Elizabeth Gracen, David Robb, and Jim Byrnes are all on hand to assist Duncan MacLeod in the final movement of the Kalas arc.

Enjoy the light show!