S01.E03: Episode 3

[jjj]

If it were in a hidden trunk in *my* home, yes, I would want to know why he had a dress hidden away.  But to enjoy the pretty pretty episode and people, I'm willing to stipulate that if Demelza is okay not knowing, I'm okay with that.   

[Nidratime]

The dress wasn't hidden. It was stored. Likely, when Grace Poldark died, the dress was put away and forgotten about. Certainly, it wasn't something that would be on the top of Ross Poldark's mind.

[taanja]

I'd like to add that I think that the post coital, erotic daze Demelza was in was beautifully conveyed.  The lying amongst the flowers, the gazing at her man in the field and the heartbreakingly giddy run into the house with the cornflowers at which point the whole fantasy fell apart.  I could have cried for her.

Right! and Elizabeth eluded to the corn flowers wilting to Demelza's beauty fading after the blush of youth. Demelza most definitely picked up on that catty insult--- thus dropping the flowers on the table with careless disregard. It was quite a lovely little scene.

[jjj]

Yes, I should not have said "hidden".  I'm just projecting a little!  I would have assumed "hidden" if I had found it, but you are right, it was in storage.

 

What I'd like to see is that beautiful fabric and dress actually fitted to Demelza -- I think we all would be stunned at how beautiful it would be on her, as opposed to hanging off her shoulders.  But it still looked lovely.  I really enjoyed seeing her swish it out of the trunk and hold it up -- it was a moment of revelation for her. 

 

I think that is what I like about this Demelza -- the joy she is taking in her cooking (this episode), clothes, Ross's treasure room/library, and of course, Ross!  Some people have a sense of joy that is just waiting to find a home, and it seems like her joy has found a place to expand. 

[Llywela]

What I'd like to see is that beautiful fabric and dress actually fitted to Demelza -- I think we all would be stunned at how beautiful it would be on her, as opposed to hanging off her shoulders.  But it still looked lovely.  I really enjoyed seeing her swish it out of the trunk and hold it up -- it was a moment of revelation for her. 

Agreed, although of course it was a nice touch sense that the dress - made for another woman entirely - was not a perfect fit.

[jjj]

Right! and Elizabeth eluded to the corn flowers wilting to Demelza's beauty fading after the blush of youth. Demelza most definitely picked up on that catty insult..

I thought Elizabeth was alluding to the fading of love, even as Demelza held it in her hands.  But the insult works on several levels! 

[lucindabelle]

And green is THE color for redheads!

She was snooping,b asia ally. But she looked lovely in it.

[MostlyC]

Some of the dialogue from this episode was practically taken from the book (and in some cases, I am pretty sure it was verbatim).  I was impressed by that.

 

Obviously the show is not perfect, but as a fan of the novels, I'm enjoying this more than I thought I would.  I wasn't sold on Aidran Turner but I'm a fan now.  I'm not a fan of some of Demelza's make up this episode- she seemed so orange- what were the makeup artists thinking?

 

I wish we could see the episodes uncut.  I hope they'll release those versions in the USA, because having read about some of the deleted scenes, it seems like we're missing some crucial stuff.

[Clanstarling]

I thought it was cute how she held it up and tiptoed around in her bare feet, but in reality if the dress had been designed with E in mind, then Demelza who's so much bigger probably couldn't have stuffed herself into it.

I finally realized she was tip-toeing and holding the dress up so Ross wouldn't hear the rustle of the fabric. It's a noisy fabric (taffeta??). Her cotton dress wouldn't make that kind of noticeable sound. So she was hoping Ross wouldn't turn around and see her in the gown.  It didn't occur to me that it was his mother's dress, but then again in an old house where (presumably) multiple generations live and die, a lot of things don't get thrown away. Particularly something made with expensive fabric that could eventually be re-tailored to make a different or more modern dress.

 

Right! and Elizabeth eluded to the corn flowers wilting to Demelza's beauty fading after the blush of youth. Demelza most definitely picked up on that catty insult--- thus dropping the flowers on the table with careless disregard. It was quite a lovely little scene.

And, if it's anything like I've experienced,  Ross wouldn't have even heard it as an insult.

Edited July 7, 2015 by clanstarling

[AuntiePam]

In the uncut (non-PBS version), did Ross find out that Demelza's father intended to take her back? 

 

My favorite part of this episode was Ross admitting that his "contempt" of court didn't help his tenant.  It's always fun to watch someone speak truth to power, but it doesn't always produce a good result.

 

The changes in Demelza are dizzying.  She's clumsy and graceful, waif-like and womanly, and there was a hint of breasts in this episode, just for a few seconds. 

[NumberCruncher]

I wish we could see the episodes uncut.  I hope they'll release those versions in the USA, because having read about some of the deleted scenes, it seems like we're missing some crucial stuff.

I just received the Poldark Blu-ray discs today and they are indeed the uncut UK version. :)

 

 

In the uncut (non-PBS version), did Ross find out that Demelza's father intended to take her back?

Nope. 

 

The changes in Demelza are dizzying.  She's clumsy and graceful, waif-like and womanly, and there was a hint of breasts in this episode, just for a few seconds.

I think that's kind of the point though--Ross comes to the full realization that Demelza is an attractive, fully developed woman when he sees her in the blue dress, which is pretty much the same moment he realizes it in the book. We were supposed to believe that she he saw her as a mere girl up until this episode which I know was hard for some people because Eleanor Tomlinson already looked like a woman.

Edited July 8, 2015 by NumberCruncher

[Haleth]

The lighting during the scene when Ross unlaces the gown was lovely. Both actors looked especially beautiful.

[Clanstarling]

The lighting during the scene when Ross unlaces the gown was lovely. Both actors looked especially beautiful.

I thought it was a heck of a lot sexier than most tv sex scenes - little to be seen, but lots of anticipation.

[Sienna]

the production is inconsistent with class issues because it attempts to portray Ross as a "man of the people" on one finger and emphasize the class difference between Demelza and Ross on that finger's fingernail.

 

 

Yeah, I didn't care for the way they wrote that scene. I understand that he's drunk and lashing out, but it stuck me as "Your rhetoric was all well and good, until you're drunk and angry. Then your convictions kinda fly out the window, don't they?"

 

If he would have played up the invasion of privacy, or the general sense of broken trust (he gave her the run of the house, and she repaid it by combing through his things and using them without asking), he would have been completely justified, and I would have been totally on board. As it was, his rant just came off as classist.

[dubbel zout]

the production is inconsistent with class issues

 

I think that's deliberate, to show that Ross is still struggling with it himself. He's trying to buck a system that's hundreds of years old. It's not going to change just because he wants it to, and like it or not, it's inculcated into him. It makes sense to me that when he's drunk and angry, he falls back on the easy, thoughtless insults.

 

Also, when he yells at her about the snooping and the dress, he's fighting his attraction to her.

[jjj]

Also, when he yells at her about the snooping and the dress, he's fighting his attraction to her.

I learned in the "extras" that come with the iTunes download, that the dress was his mother's. 

[CTrent29]

Quote

Elizabeth eluded to the corn flowers wilting to Demelza's beauty fading after the blush of youth. Demelza most definitely picked up on that catty insult--- thus dropping the flowers on the table with careless disregard. It was quite a lovely little scene.

You're complaining about Elizabeth's "catty" insult and ignoring the fact that Demelza, a servant, had broken protocol by rushing into the house with hair standing all over her head and presenting flowers to Elizabeth without Ross' consent?  No servant from the 18th century in his or her right mind would do such a thing without considering the consequences.

And speaking of Demelza, it's a good thing Ross was feeling horny in this episode.  If it had been me, I would have fired Demelza for rummaging through things that did not belong to her or trying on my dead parent's clothes.

 

 

Quote

I think that's deliberate, to show that Ross is still struggling with it himself. He's trying to buck a system that's hundreds of years old. It's not going to change just because he wants it to, and like it or not, it's inculcated into him. 

The only thing Ross wants changed is for the elite to go out of their way to help the working class when they need it.  Otherwise, he's not that keen on people stepping out of their class.  This is really his main problem with the Warleggans.  He has complained more about them than fellow members of the upper-class.  And I find this interesting, considering that the Warleggans came from the working-class.  Marrying Demelza was Ross' way of expressing his anger at the upper-class and their unwillingness to help the working-class, in the wake of Jim Carter's incarceration.

Edited May 7, 2016 by CTrent29

[One Tough Cookie]

On 7/7/2015 at 8:08 AM, Milz said:

No, it's not. So the viewer is left to wonder WhyTF  Ross has a trunk containing a woman's dress. It could be his mother's or it could be one that Prudy stole or  it could be the one Ross dresses up in when everyone else is asleep..

You're KILLING ME.  The that of all that masculine beauty in a dress caused my tea to hit the screen!

Edited January 5, 2020 by One Tough Cookie