S02.E01: This Is War

[kimberella]

I didn't see him as disrespecting Abbie in that moment. I saw it as him finally letting out what he'd been holding in. (Even though it turns out the whole thing wasn't real) she kept trying to get him to talk about it and he refused, trying to be all stalwart, but in that moment he finally exploded with this terrible thing that had been torturing him. The way I saw the moment, Crane looked surprised at himself, like he'd never raised his voice in such a way (and certainly not to a woman) about anything like that, it's not dignified. He seemed surprised at the depth of emotion that had come out of himself, like he'd never tapped into expressing his most gut-wrenching pain before. I thought it was fascinating.

This is the third time he has yelled at her, so I don't think he was surprised at himself, because that seems to be a habit of his, when it comes to Abbie. I think he feels justified in being an asshole to Abbie in particular for some reason, while he is a perfect gentleman to everybody else. I wonder what in Abbie awakens in him the right to be so inconsiderate to her.

 

I wish Jenny had been the one to enter purgatory to save Abbie and that she hadn't been so blasé and accepting of Ichabod's betrayal and the swap for his wife. That was really disappointing. Although the episode was fun, it was also a cheap way to let Crane off the hook for last season's finale. I'd probably die if I held my breath waiting for Abbie to express her feelings about his betrayal or, why not?, yell at his face. He certainly deserves it.

 

I agree that Abbie got Crane's age wrong, but it looks like the episode was riddled with continuity mistakes and plot holes, like how Abbie was trapped in a dollhouse last season, only to appear out and about in purgatory. Did they forget about the dollhouse too? How did she get out?

[Julia]

Is it Abbie who brings out the jerk in Ichabod, though? It seems to me that so far, with the exception of the few people he hero worships (Washington, Jefferson, Katrina) he's been kind of short-tempered and superior to just about everybody. And really, if you look at the people he hero worships, it's two of the most morally dodgy founding fathers and the woman who invited him to court her while she was engaged to and taking expensive presents from his best friend.

 

I'm not bashing the character. I just think while he believes in acting nobly and doing the right thing, he's also an elitist man of his time and an aristocrat and prone to making excuses for himself and people like him.

[Indi]

Ichabod is essentially the same surly, grumpy, annoyed, smart, funny, and not-really-the-nicest-guy-the-room-Ichabod as he ever was.

I agree with surly, grumpy and basically a jerk. Mison said once we excuse Ichabod being a dick, because he doesn't belong in this world or something like that. The show does the same, he is not held accountable for his actions, because he is special. I see it as special pleading and it makes him less likable to me, because that's not really a good reason.

 

But according to Goffman et. al, Katrina's less that forthcoming ways will be an issue for him in upcoming episodes.

Damn, I don't want more useless boring manpain! :( It's not going to lead anywhere, but status quo.

 

Is it Abbie who brings out the jerk in Ichabod, though? It seems to me that so far, with the exception of the few people he hero worships (Washington, Jefferson, Katrina) he's been kind of short-tempered and superior to just about everybody. And really, if you look at the people he hero worships, it's two of the most morally dodgy founding fathers and the woman who invited him to court her while she was engaged to and taking expensive presents from his best friend.

Yes, this! He only cares about 2 or 3 people and only one of them is still alive. He doesn't value Abbie's honesty (or anything about her character probably). He looks down on her, but that doesn't mean she has to accept his disrespect for her. She used to call him out on his dickishness at the beginning of S1. I miss that Abbie.

[HalcyonDays]

Loved the episode... Got delayed in posting this one minor nitpick... At top of episode Abby says Crane is 251 years old.... Hmm that math don't computer... I am a Bicentennial baby therefore always know the age of the US, and it is currently 238 years? So if

Crane is 251 it means he would have been 13 when the Revolution started in 1776( and yes I know some will say the war started in 1775) and then 20 when the war ended. Furthermore, it has already been stated he organized the Boston Tea Party which took place in 1773.. So then he would have been 10. So basically Crane has to be at least 261 years old! :)

 

Yeah, the 251 years old is incorrect for sure - didn't really think of it at the time. Crane died in 1781, and since it's 2014, that makes it 233 years since he woke up. As for his age, I just use Mison's age (32), so technically, Ichabod should be 265 years old. He would have been born 1749 (give or take a year or two).

 

re: Katrina/Katia:  Katrina's character is an underwritten mess.  She is elevated to importance in the overall scheme of things because of who she is (Ichabod's wife) not because of anything she has done.  Frankly, she has not earned my liking either from a character standpoint or an acting standpoint.  She's just there.  In a very real way, Katrina is the very thing Nicole Beharie said that she is glad Abbie isn't --- a woman character largely defined by her romantic entanglement.  Because truly, up to this point the only reason to actually care about Katrina is in her role as Ichabod's wife. 

 

I've seen this comment a lot actually. Right now, Katrina is not her own person. She is defined by a man - whether it be Headless, Abe or Ichabod, but isn't that how woman in the 18th century were defined? Woman were not considered people, just property is father's or husband's.

 

For me, the flaw is two-fold. Complete lack of chemistry with Ichabod. So when the show tells us about this Grand Romantic Perfect love, I see nothing. There is nothing that I've seen about Katrina that makes me go "Ah, I see why Ichabod loves her." The only rude thought in my head is she must be good in bed, because there is nothing else that seems out of worldly or special or different than others.

 

To me it's the epitome of the stereotypical romantic notion of love that one reads in romance novels - like the marriage idea of a perfect husband, perfect wife, 2.5 kids (one boy, one girl), the perfect house with white picket fence. It's a desire - a fantasy - but not realistic. This relationship has no substance at all (so far).

 

Second problem is the lack of power from Katrina. She's supposed to be a powerful witch, and they couldn't give her the necklace and have her enchant it. I can only think that the house someone dulls/kills her power. But then, she isn't that much of a powerful witch, now is she?

 

If we assume Ichabod has no powers, then why is Jeremy more powerful than his mother. He would have only inherited half of the strength, so where did he get his crazy powers from (grandparents? Who knows).

 

Anyway, I totally agree - insert Katrina into the dynamic and it loses something. And you don't get that when Jenny is in the dynamic - she slots in there perfectly. So we will see.

 

 

Re the necklace:  I agree with @HalcyonDays, think it is a duplicate that Abraham had re-done for her.  Which begs the question?  Why did Ichabod have it still?  I mean, it was a gift from Abraham (yeah, Ichy picked it out, but still it was bought by Abe), why would Katrina hold onto it after she kicked Ol' Abe to the curb?

 

I think it goes like this. Abe gave Katrina the neckace. That evening, she broke it off with him, handed it back. Abe, pining for Katrina, kept it on his person. So when he became Headless, he still had it. When Ichabod was interrogating Headless, Ichabod pulled out the necklace from Headless's neck area. Now Ichabod has it. We see the same necklace later when Ichabod redraws the map. So Ichabod has it somewhere in the cabin. Which is why I think the enchanted necklace is a second one, that Headless or Moloch or whoever made to allow Katrina to see Abraham as a human.

[green]

Regards the accents:

 

Loved the mention of the old PBS mini-series on the English language too.  "The Story of English" island visit mentioned above was on an island in Chesapeake Bay.  The accent was originally from Cornwall which they explained was the "soup base" of the various English accents of the day and so became the default one over the years.  The reason was most of the early settler ships sailed from Cornwall and thus contained Cornwall crew members. 

 

A lot of the Cornwall sailors coming over on all these early ships as crew began to see the possibilities of America too and either chose to stay themselves (many a ship returned short-handed) or go back first and get their families and return to the New World.   They also showed modern day speakers from Cornwall on the show and they do sound closer to American accents then what we consider English accents to this day.

 

The show (and many a college linguist class over the years) mentioned that the "closest to George III" English isn't Appalachian but from the nearby Piedmont region of NC at slightly less elevation.  Appalachian does contain some elements of it but Billy Graham has an accent that does not sound like some stereotype Hillbilly one.  And he is the one linguists constantly use as their example of an American one closest too George III.  Still not the exact same but the "closest" we have in the modern world.

Edited September 29, 2014 by green

[DearEvette]

I've seen this comment a lot actually. Right now, Katrina is not her own person. She is defined by a man - whether it be Headless, Abe or Ichabod, but isn't that how woman in the 18th century were defined? Woman were not considered people, just property is father's or husband's.

 

 

Interestingly, I feel that by making her a Quaker Activist! (sorry that needed an Exclamation point) and a Witch Spy! (another exclamation point) that the show is trying to say she was an independent woman who was not held to those traditional gender role standards.  But weirdly is still managing to fail at convincing  me because her importance on a meta-level, strictly as a character in this show, feel completely tied up with her marriage.  I can't help but wonder would viewers care as much about her if she wasn't married to Ichabod?  It almost feels at times that the sphere of his charisma sweeping her along, as it were. Whereas all the other characters are carving their own place all on their own.

[Jordan27]

I enjoyed that ep. so much. But if Katrina is a witch, why can't she magic herself out of the Horseman's lair?

It's a movie and TV trope, but witches and magic are never clearly defined as to what are their limits.  It's one of my major problems with this plot as they will just make whatever fits the story.  The Witches of East End comes to mind.

[topanga]

 

It's a movie and TV trope, but witches and magic are never clearly defined as to what are their limits.

I see what you mean, but if Katrina could cast a spell to keep Ichabod alive but asleep, and she could cast another spell to stop Jeremy's heart, than why is she completely powerless to do anything magical to the Horseman? I know we've talked about this topic many times, and I want to know why none of the characters on the show have asked Katrina or each other why she's become so friggin mortal all of a sudden.

[Jordan27]

Well, if she was all powerfully magic, everything would be solved and there would be no show.   So, just like every other show with magic, they will make her powerful when needed and helpless when needed.

[millennium]

I never needed to see Timothy Busfield naked, thank you very much.

 

I was like, "Elliot?"

[sinkwriter]

 

I was like, "Elliot?"

 

As a fan of The West Wing, I was like, "Danny?"  *GRIN*

[jhlipton]

I didn't care for Abbie weeping as she searched for the amulet. Never sho the lead woman (especially one like Abbie) crying if the lead man doesn't as well.

Other than that -- welcome back, my crazy, wonderful, excellent show!

I've been on other forums today and a lot of people who watched Scorpion were really disappointed in it and won't be watching again.  I wouldn't worry about our beloved Sleepy Hollow.

Alas, forums are not indicative of ratings. We'll just have to hope for the best and see.

 

 

But they needed the "must learn to drive" line (I assume) for a future driving lesson episode, so it was all good.

They also need BAMF Jenny climbing over Crane with a "Get out of my way" look!

One thing this show does well is giving Abbie and Jenny "agency". They play the major role in their adventures and don't need a man to "save" them. Very cool!

[Danny Franks]

As a fan of The West Wing, I was like, "Danny?"  *GRIN*

 

Me too. I always remember being baffled when Ainsley described him as "cute", but I could get why CJ had a bit of a thing for him, because he was charming and persistent. Still, he's no Rob 'I made a deal with the devil and so will look like this forever' Lowe.

 

Interestingly, I feel that by making her a Quaker Activist! (sorry that needed an Exclamation point) and a Witch Spy! (another exclamation point) that the show is trying to say she was an independent woman who was not held to those traditional gender role standards.

 

 

Don't forget that she was also apparently a society lady of some means and a nurse. Katrina has many, many strings to her bow.