Oxy

I am as sure as I can be that this was exactly the case.

Yes, I thought this too! The audience may not have been "happy" so much as laughing in disbelief that anyone would ever wear such ugly clothes. On another note, I'm reminded of all the "real women" challenges where the designer lucky enough to score the most model-like "real" woman wins. You can almost predict who will be top and bottom in those challenges, by the size of the models, which points up for me how phony this whole season was. Plus-size women going up against slimmer women in a challenge don't normally have much of a chance.

Definitely worse than Gretchen! Stunt casting and a pre-ordained win. Whatever happened to the curse of the matronly look? Apparently the judges think it's okay for plus size women to wear old lady clothes. I'm a size 18 old lady and I wouldn't be caught dead in any of Ashley's horrible rags.

If he ever did admit he steered a designer wrong, it has not been shown on the air. He's only quick to point out when a bottom three designer *didn't* follow his advice. It's come to the point that Mr. Gunn's phoniness and simpering makes my skin crawl. And I used to like him.

The actual motives of the Raven King weren't clear to me either. I think it was mostly about returning magic to England in accordance with the prophecy in his book, which was written all over Vinculus. He changed what was written on Vinculus because that prophecy was fulfilled. Whatever he wrote to replace it isn't known because no one can read it. Childermass has made it his mission to figure it out, either with or without the help of other magicians. I don't think the Raven King cared too much one way or the other about Stephen or the fairy, and Stephen isn't a successor of the Raven King. The fairy talked about making Stephen king, but he meant for Stephen to be king of England. In the end, ironically, Stephen did become a king -- the King of Lost Hope and the rest of the fairy lands -- because he killed the fairy. Not what the fairy had in mind!

As far as i can recall... Strange is back to working on his book and he goes to the engraver's to check on the illustrations. As he's walking down the street he sees a shadow in the greenery and calls out "Childermass, is that you?" Sure enough, the shadow turns into Childermass. Strange says he's been expecting him and invites him to see what he has come for. They go in and discuss the engravings, with Childermass remarking that they are beautiful. Strange addresses him as "magician" and asks his opinion about the subject matter of the engravings, to which Childermass remarks that it must be faerie. Strange offers Childermass a job as his pupil and assistant "with none of this servant nonsense" and Childermass thanks him and declines, saying he still has more to do with Norrell (and also that he would be a very bad pupil "even worse than you.") In the end, Childermass makes a bargain that if Norrell wins against Strange, then he will leave Norrell and join Strange, so that there will still be two magicians in England. However, if Strange wins against Norrell, he will do the same against him. Strange and Childermass shake on it. On the way out, Childermass warns Strange that Norrell is going to try to destroy his book by any way possible. Enraged, Strange bounds through a mirror (with Childermass remarking "bloody idiot" after he's gone) and lands in Norrell's study. He has an altercation with Lascelles and ends up thrown into the street and arrested. He's visited in jail by one of his soldier friends, tells the friend that he has come to the conclusion that he must make himself mad to summon a fairy and talks about ways to do it. Before the friend can spring him from jail, Strange stands in a puddle in his leaky cell and vanishes. The end! I think that was the gist of it.

Gosh, it's hard to post in the episode threads if you've read the b--k! However, I will be careful to reference only the show. Segundas and Honeyfoot aren't pretending to run a madhouse -- they really are. It was Childermass's idea and it was referenced in the show when he said something about, I think, "taking care of" Lady Poole at the end of the scene where Norell is berating him. I was puzzled as to why they were so confrontational with him, but I guess it was because they didn't want to upset her anymore.

Paramitch, what model Kindle are you using? Because I read it on a Kindle Fire and the footnotes were easy to access. Click on the footnote number and it takes you to the footnote. Click on the number on the footnote page and you go back to the main text. At least on the Fire you do. My other Kindle reader is an old, non-touch type and I doubt it would work there. I do agree that some of the book events are "out of order" at least in the filmed version. Because when Childermass was shot, I was thinking -- wait a minute, shouldn't Arabella already be dead? Since Norell casually mentions it when he's berating Childermass afterward.

Oh, okay! I do remember the episode you mention under the spoiler tag, but I never knew he was related to Jean. Thanks!

You're welcome, Kat 165! It's tough for me to separate the show from the b--k (shouldn't say that word here maybe!) so I need to be careful what I say, and I do try. I think it's all right for me to say that I agree with some other posters on Childermass -- he's much my favorite character and the actor playing the part is very well-cast.

The Gentleman is the evil fairy who assisted Norrell in reviving Mrs. Pole, taking her finger and forcing her to dance all night at Lost Hope. He also managed to entangle Stephen Black, Pole's butler, in the revels, via the extra bell in the pantry that according to the book, mysteriously appeared after new bells were installed. In the book he's referred to as the Gentleman with the Thistledown Hair. He does not appreciate being summoned by mere humans. When Strange was trying a spell to summon a fairy, the Gentleman was in the room, but managed to remain invisible to Strange -- except for his voice, and he was quite surprised that Strange was a powerful enough magician to hear, if not see, him. By the way, if I hadn't read the book, I think I might find a lot of this confusing too. The book has helped me fill in the blanks.

Yes, what withanaich said! Drawlight and Lascelles, a nasty pair, made a pact (in the book at least) that they would work together to keep others out of Norrell's inner circle so they'd be top dogs. I don't remember Mrs. Strange attending the auction in the book, but maybe I missed it.

I thought this was pretty good (and thought I must be the only one watching it!) Sometimes it seemed like it was filmed in black and white, which was odd. I was a little puzzled by some of the backstory. I get the part about the missing wife and daughter, and the fact that he came back to Australia after his father died to take over the practice. The household is a little odd. I can understand the housekeeper (who obviously has a thing for him) and the district nurse. But why does the constable apparently live there too?