Mercy Street - General Discussion

[Milz]

According to that book, he developed an "organic" illness (probably cancer), had surgery, then died a few weeks later.

[wellread]

Milz's message above is a wonderful, hilarious listing of some of the obvious borrowings used by the creators of Mercy Street.  (I'll just add Gone With the Wind to the list.)   When you visit the  PBS website, you can see how self-satisfied the creators are with their work, not realizing at all the lost opportunity to bring a fresh look at some aspects of the Civil War.  They have embraced just about every tired stereotype you can think of.  Too bad!

[Milz]

When Emma went on about disloyalty, I thought "Cool! They read about Olivia Floyd  and will base Emma on her." Nope. Nothing wrong with nurses or doctors (I work with them), but a lady spy would be different.

 

Another point of accented contention....Dr. Foster is a Marylander: he should have a Southern accent too.

[HoodlumSheep]

It took me a couple of days, but I figured out what this series reminds me of - and not in a good way. Anyone remember the mini series "North & South"? It was based on the John Jakes books and Patrick Swayze was in it. It was so OTT 80's soap opera acting. In fact Genie Francis from "General Hospital" was in it. She played a simpering Southern blonde sister who ends up marrying a Union soldier. That's who the simpering Southern blonde sister in "Mercy Street" reminded me of & triggered the "North & South" comparison.

Fun fact: I was named after one of those North & South characters. Ashton. Which only led to me being called "Ashley" by a ton of people for most to my life, which was extremely aggravating.

A+ to Milz for that post!

Edited January 28, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[HoodlumSheep]

^ thanks for the info!

Didn't one of the nurses (Hastings?) mention Mary looked after nephews too? During the nursing staff meeting? Or did I totally mishear that?

I wonder what family she has left and if it'll ever be explored.

[Milz]

I think that nephews and husband comment is a dig that Mary isn't qualified to be a nurse, much less the director of nursing (or whatever her title is) at that hospital.

[GirlvsTV]

I tried, but I only made it about 15 mins before I realized I didn't like any of the characters enough to keep watching. Especially Emma. Ugh.

I just have no patience any longer for seeing the elite white 'southern' side of the Civil War as it is portrayed in popular fiction. At the end of the day, these people were supporting a society and way of life that could not have existed without the continuation of slavery. I understand these people existed, but I have no sympathy for them nor do I care to watch yet another dramatic depiction of their stories. This series really brings nothing new to the table as far as it's depiction of the war and those who fought in it, which is a shame.

I know I'm probably being overly harsh, but I've lived nearly my entire life in the South and now work as an interpreter at a local historic site. There are so many other viewpoints into this time and so many untold stories that I find it extremely frustrating they spent a bunch of money making something so . . . meh.

[Hero]

The amputation scene was intense. I could never imagine how hard it was to be a doctor in those days, even a patient.

What was with that "dentist" storyline? Can someone please explain it to me? Why did he kill the Colonel?

[Greta]

The amputation scene was intense. I could never imagine how hard it was to be a doctor in those days, even a patient.

What was with that "dentist" storyline? Can someone please explain it to me? Why did he kill the Colonel?

Emma's beau Frank is some sort of Confederate guerrilla infiltrator/spy. He used the dentist story as a cover to get access to the hospital and then to the colonel and his papers.  Emma's brother (whose name I don't remember or never got) mentioned something about Frank Stringfellow being involved with an underground subversion.  

 

Who played Dr. Foster's mother?  She looks so familiar to me.

 

I continue to love Miss Hastings and Dr. Hale.  Once you accept that this is a soap (with a lot of time and effort put into making certain aspects historically accurate (dialogue not being one of those aspects)), they're the obvious soap troublemakers to root for. I bet Miss Hastings never even worked for Florence Nightingale!

[Hero]

Emma's beau Frank is some sort of Confederate guerrilla infiltrator/spy. He used the dentist story as a cover to get access to the hospital and then to the colonel and his papers. Emma's brother (whose name I don't remember or never got) mentioned something about Frank Stringfellow being involved with an underground subversion.

Who played Dr. Foster's mother? She looks so familiar to me.

I continue to love Miss Hastings and Dr. Hale. Once you accept that this is a soap (with a lot of time and effort put into making certain aspects historically accurate (dialogue not being one of those aspects)), they're the obvious soap troublemakers to root for. I bet Miss Hastings never even worked for Florence Nightingale!

Thank you!

[HoodlumSheep]

I feel like this episode sets up an impending doom for the rest of the season.

I'm now expecting half of the characters to be either murdered or die somehow.

-is Jed's brother really okay? Either way, his wound gets infected and he dies or he's a prisoner of war.

-Aurelia :'(. Girl, that poison isn't just going to stop at harming that baby. You'll be lucky if you don't end up dying too.

-There's a fake dentist running around, who's not afraid of killing the officers/higher-ups.

-i didn't expect that pastor fellow to make it out of that room alive or uninjured. Tom is going to crack completely at some point. He's already completely unhinged, but I'm expecting him to cause more trouble.

-Doc Foster is a drug addict. and is completely loopy when he's using the stuff.

-I feel like something bad is going to happen to the new kid. That "happy" scene of him running free into the streets was rather ominous. What was his name again?

-ms. Hastings is putting her "wolf" plan into action.

-Dr. hale is a crazy knife thrower. he's got skills.

-the soldier boys still aren't being fed properly.

I feel like everything is about to blow up in everyone's faces.

Edited February 1, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[formerlyfreedom]

During a Union ball at their house, the Green girls and Frank initiate a daring plan to help Tom escape. Mary releases Dr. Foster, still shaky from his detox, from his “quarantine” so he can guide Samuel through a delicate operation.

[jschoolgirl]

Was that Belinda giving Aurelia (love the name!) the pennyroyal?

[Hamatron]

Yep. Then Aurelia apologized to Belinda for earlier and basically restated her stance that she should be getting paid. So Belinda went home and asked for $1.50 a week or something like that from Mr. Green.

[jschoolgirl]

So that means that Mr. Green had his way with the girls Belinda gave it to after they were "dragged up to the mansion"?

Or maybe it was Mrs. Green's father or brothers, since Belinda had been with her "since she was a little girl."

Edited to change "mother" to "father or brothers."

Edited February 1, 2016 by jschoolgirl

[HoodlumSheep]

That kid's name is Miles!!! Hopefully I can remember that. Still worried about him. Mama Foster is going to throw a fit. She's so witchy.

What happened to Mr. Squivers? Is he still occupying a bed after his fainting spell from last week? Emma showed him up by sticking through the amputation.

Also, Jed managed to get a bed (and an entire room) for himself while I assume Countess (will they ever get her title right, or just call her Nurse? Ms.? Mrs.?) Mary is still sleeping on the floor. I guess you could say the doctors are more important, but still. Poor Nurse Mary.

Edited February 1, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[Dirtybubble]

 

I am beginning to like this show.  It's not the greatest thing ever but it's a fun way to pass an hour.  I too am enjoying Dr. Hale & Miss Hastings a lot more than I thought I would.  They both make good soap opera evils.  Love to hate both of them.

 

Dr. Foster is becoming more and more attractive with each episode which is nice as well.  Yeah the story line between he and Mary seems already set but I don't mind; I'm a sucker for forbidden passion and heated romance

[Blergh]

OK, I KNOW amputations were (and are) of many a horror of war and I also know that GOING through one has to be FAR worse than seeing it. However; I have to admit I had to keep turning away until it was over because it looked so revolting. I have to give them cred for showing how awful these things can be as much as I would have preferred to have not seen it.

 

  I also got rather furious at Dr. Foster for shooting up morphine BEFORE he operated on a patient (and his OWN BROTHER to boot). He knew the effects this would have  on him yet he was fixated on numbing himself to what was going on that he put his  patient's very life at needless risk while he (barely) performed the ghastly amputation. Ironically, though, it was through the high number of US Civil War soldiers becoming addicted to morphine that medical science recognized that the body had a PHYSICAL reaction to being deprived of the drug as opposed to a mere moral choice whether to not use it. 

   

  As odd as it sounds, I actually felt a bit sorry for Mrs. Foster (the doctor's mother) for believing one son a traitor, the other one was being needlessly crippled (instead of having very life saved) AND got abandoned by her purser the ONE person she'd relied on. No, I'm not saying her purser should have stayed a slave or felt he could do no better. However; even though Mrs. Foster's beliefs weren't right, they WERE being trampled on and that can't have been easy for her to have endured.

 

   As for the purser? Well, at least he has a suit to start out with so MAYBE he can aspired to be part of something besides being in a theft ring (which will likely soon get busted and not so gently prosecuted).

 

    Somewhat brave of Belinda (why did it take THREE EPISODES before anyone said her name?) to insist on being PAID but I wonder if the wages she's insisting on will prove comparable if the Greens have their house taken away and she's forced to find a new employer/home altogether? Also, interesting that she mentioned having used this 'remedy' to keep women who'd been dragged to the manor from bearing children. Good question re whether this pertained to Mr. Green himself or Mrs. Green's father/ brothers/ male relatives? It could be that, as the Civil War diarist Mary Chestnut put it, Mrs. Green likely knows the paternity of every biracial child in a ten mile radius except in her own household whom she considers to have dropped from the sky or pretends to.

     

    OK, good luck for the Greens to KEEP their house if Mr. Green refuses to sign the Loyalty Oath. 

  

 Now, will Emma play with fire re that spy/assassin (and could she have KNOWN about the Matron's toothache to give him the means to do his deed)?

  

    I somehow think Miss Hastings and Dr. Hale will wind up burning themselves trying to oust those they think have what they've convinced themselves they deserve. Moreover, Miss Hasting seems to be attracted to power so if Dr. Hale gets burned taking down Dr. Foster, she won't be adverse to go after the latter despite her protests last night.

 

  I liked how Mary at least momentarily outmaneuvered Miss Hastings re throwing out 'what would Miss Nightingale have done for the wounded' in terms of the supplies. Yes, I think it would be wise if someone would check a roster of names of Miss Nightingale's nurses to see if Miss Hastings was REALLY on it (or if Miss Hastings is truly her name)  but, as tough as it would have been to verify credentials re transatlantic sources back then in peacetime, it would have been even more sporadic in wartime.

 

   Wonder if we'll ever find out of Dr. Foster's wife made it all the way to California.

[Milz]

Frank Burns and Margaret Hoolihan were the "evil" couple on MASH, but they were funny. Hale and Hastings are the "evil" couple (even have some Frank and Margaret exchanges like the "why does the Army treat us like crap?" scene), but they seem more pathetic.

 

And Phoney Dentist? I wonder if the actor was ever in a production of Little Shop of Horrors because he got that crazed dentist look on his face every time he touched or looked at the dental instruments.

 

Foster is giving himself high enough doses of morphine that he's having visual disturbances---mebbe Frank Burns is right about him not being a good doctor. BTW, he was wrong about where his brother would be sent. His bro would most likely end up at Point Look Out in Maryland and would probably be dead within a year due to the conditions there.

[HoodlumSheep]

I'm sure jed's wife will reappear, having realized she was too harsh on him, and wanting to try to fix their broken relationship the exact moment Jed and Mary decide to get together (if/when that ever happens). For the drama.

I want Mary to stop being so diplomatic. I suppose it's a smart and level-headed thing to do, but I want her to step on some toes (purposefully) soon.

WWMND?

What Would Ms. Nightingale Do? Is that the new motto? :D

Edited February 1, 2016 by HoodlumSheep

[RachelKM]

 

Who played Dr. Foster's mother?  She looks so familiar to me.

 

I'm pretty sure that was Debra Monk.  Tony Award winner and frequent guest star on TV.  She plays a lot of people's moms.  I think she also played George O'Mally's mom on Grey's Anatomy. :)

 

Yep. Then Aurelia apologized to Belinda for earlier and basically restated her stance that she should be getting paid. So Belinda went home and asked for $1.50 a week or something like that from Mr. Green.

 

I adored the scene with Belinda asking for pay.  Mr. Green looked utterly overwhelmed. I know it was just the last in a line of frustrations for him that day, but it was a nice cap to his day for me.  He was stunned.

 

  I also got rather furious at Dr. Foster for shooting up morphine BEFORE he operated on a patient (and his OWN BROTHER to boot). He knew the effects this would have  on him yet he was fixated on numbing himself to what was going on that he put his  patient's very life at needless risk while he (barely) performed the ghastly amputation. Ironically, though, it was through the high number of US Civil War soldiers becoming addicted to morphine that medical science recognized that the body had a PHYSICAL reaction to being deprived of the drug as opposed to a mere moral choice whether to not use it. 

   

  As odd as it sounds, I actually felt a bit sorry for Mrs. Foster (the doctor's mother) for believing one son a traitor, the other one was being needlessly crippled (instead of having very life saved) AND got abandoned by her purser the ONE person she'd relied on. No, I'm not saying her purser should have stayed a slave or felt he could do no better. However; even though Mrs. Foster's beliefs weren't right, they WERE being trampled on and that can't have been easy for her to have endured.

I agree that to some degree Dr. Foster was treating his nerves, but he's also an addict and at risk for withdrawals.  So, he may have been 10 times worse if he'd tried to get through the procedure without a dose... The problem is that he's an addict practicing at all.

 

As for Mrs. Foster, she is pitiable.   She's wrong, misguided, and kind of a crappy mother.  But from her perspective, her world is falling apart, one son is in a hospital with an amputated leg and the other son has abandoned their family and is a traitor.  

Edited February 7, 2016 by RachelKM

[MissLucas]

That was the first episode where I felt everything coming together (or falling apart depending on your POV). The amputation scene was gruesome but very well done, the shot where you could see blood circulation rushing back into the stump was terrific. I also liked the character beats during the scene. I think Mrs Phinney and Emma Green are about to become my favorite pairing of the show. There are so many nuances to their relationship both having to work through their various prejudices in order to work together.

 

I wonder if Doctor Foster's addiction can truly be healed in the remaining three episodes. Or is there a possibility for a second season? There are so many plot threads that I truly can't see how they could wrap up everything.

 

And Luke McFarlane finally got a bit more to do than just look desperate/helpless in face of another human tragedy unfolding right in front of him. But I'm not sure alcohol and a game of chess will truly help with what looks like an unnerving case of PTSD (or soldier's heart). And I could have done without rebel fake dentist - as I said we already have enough plots going on without a rebel in the closet.

[HoodlumSheep]

I wonder if Doctor Foster's addiction can truly be healed in the remaining three episodes. Or is there a possibility for a second season? There are so many plot threads that I truly can't see how they could wrap up everything.

And Luke McFarlane finally got a bit more to do than just look desperate/helpless in face of another human tragedy unfolding right in front of him. But I'm not sure alcohol and a game of chess will truly help with what looks like an unnerving case of PTSD (or soldier's heart). And I could have done without rebel fake dentist - as I said we already have enough plots going on without a rebel in the closet.

They could have Jed temporarily kick the habit, and revisit the addiction again in season 2 (if theh get it).

And yeah...I was shaking my head at Pastor Luke McGarlane giving Tom a bunch of alcohol (that he was easily chugging down). Don't give alcohol to that unstable of a kid. I was half expecting him to either get murdered or injured by Tom. Not smart.

Tom's gonna end up with an alcohol and morphine addiction at this rate.

[LiveenLetLive]

Is it just me or does the actress playing Nurse Hastings look like mayim bialik? I am enjoying the series, and I especially hope that it does well so that PBS tackles other homegrown dramas. Of course Dr Foster IRL wouldn't be able to kick morphine easily, but I guess that the plot has to hum along...

[jschoolgirl]

We learned Belinda's name in the first episode.

[mybabyaidan]

I enjoyed the Med-apprentice. I don't understand why he didn't offer Nurse-Duchess-Baroness Mary his bed though. He had only fainted from seeing the surgery/blood. He was perfectly capable of sleeping on the floor instead of Lady-Viscountess Mary.

 

 

I assumed it was because he was in a bed reserved for actual patients.  But maybe he's just an ass.  :)

[xyzzy]

 (will they ever get her title right, or just call her Nurse? Ms.? Mrs.?) 

 

They aren't trying to get her name and/or title right. They're trying to annoy her. At least, that's how I read it. Sort of like Han calling Princess Leia "Your Worship" and suchlike.

[blackwing]

Yes. Just like how when Mary complained about the lack of proper food, the old guy in charge told her to have the head nurse ask Creepy Cook. He knew perfectly well that she is head nurse. They are just needling her.

That amputation scene was one of the gorier things I've seen on network TV, and this is on PBS to boot.

I am liking this show a lot more than I did at first. But I kind of feel like there are way too many storylines for a 6 episode series. I am wondering if everything is going to be neatly resolved by season's end or if they were already hoping for multiple seasons.

[LittleIggy]

Wow, projectile blood spewing on DA, then a play by play amputation on MS! :-O

How could Dr. Hottie's wife travel to CA safely during a war?

[tennisgurl]

There are so many plotlines and characters, I really do not know how they are going to wrap all this up in such a limited series. 

 

Miss Hastings is just insufferable. However, she does make me like Mary a lot more, or least have more sympathy for her, for having to deal with her Mean Girls of the Civil War bullshit. I loved when she turned her "Oh have I mentioned in the last 3 minutes that I knew Florence Nightingale" line back on her. Her expression was priceless.

 

Still think Tom is heading for a major breakdown. He clearly has severe PTSD, and while he might be feeling a little better, he is probably going to backslide at the worst possible time.

 

I found the stuff with the Doctor and his family to be quite interesting. Its really the most interesting part of the show distilled, how the Civil War lead to all these issues of family and loyalty and conflicting ideology, and how family's and communities were split down the middle. The show is most interesting when it plays with ideas like that, plus its location as a sort of southern/union ground where everyone was kind of stuck together.  

 

The amputation was grisly. Damn PBS. No wonder they put up the warning. 

[RachelKM]

I think that nephews and husband comment is a dig that Mary isn't qualified to be a nurse, much less the director of nursing (or whatever her title is) at that hospital.

I don't think there were formal qualifications at that point.  The repeated references to Florence Nightingale as a recent contemporary highlights this. Florence Nightingale is credited with the modern concept of nursing as a profession.   There wouldn't be nursing schools or formal training programs in the US.   

 

I guess they could resent her limited experience.  But I get the impression it's as much a class thing.  She's a baroness. And, of course, Ms. Hastings resents someone, anyone, usurping her.  She is perceived (true or exaggerated) as a disciple of Florence Nightingale. Someone being set above her, a person without her connection to the mother of nursing, is galling. Plus, she's apparently a jealous and petty sort.

[Milz]

There was no formal training, but her training was limited to taking care of her dying husband. As opposed to Miss Hastings whose training was in Crimea taking care of the wounded soldiers.

 

The US didn't become royal/aristocratic title obsessed until about the 1870s when the "Dollar Princesses" started the  trans-Atlantic "dollars for titles" trade. The last "European" war the US was involved with was the War of 1812, which was 46 years prior to the American Civil War. Some of the older members of the US population (North and South) were either veterans of that war or children during that time.

[Haleth]

Yeah, that was pretty gross, especially following That Scene on Downton.  I couldn't watch and only looked up to see Mary holding a foot.  

I'm glad they are giving Emma some depth and not making her an eyelash batting belle.  (That's her sister's role, I guess.)

I hope Miss Hastings was sincere about helping feed the wounded and won't use it as a means of discrediting Mary.

I'm not so interested in the Green's storyline, much as I love Gary Cole.  However, Belinda demanding being paid was a "hell,yeah!" moment.

Miles running off is not going to end well.  The conversations about returning runaway slaves are pretty anvilicious.

[Milz]

Over the years, PBS has shown stuff like lions taking down a gazelle and eating it, childbirth, etc.

 

Anyhow, the M*A*S*H/China Beach/Call The Midwife plots don't interest me that much.  I find Belinda and Mr. Green adapting to a new social infrastructure more interesting.

[AzureOwl]

So that means that Mr. Green had his way with the girls Belinda gave it to after they were "dragged up to the mansion"?

Or maybe it was Mrs. Green's father or brothers, since Belinda had been with her "since she was a little girl."

Edited to change "mother" to "father or brothers."

  

Also, interesting that she mentioned having used this 'remedy' to keep women who'd been dragged to the manor from bearing children. Good question re whether this pertained to Mr. Green himself or Mrs. Green's father/ brothers/ male relatives? It could be that, as the Civil War diarist Mary Chestnut put it, Mrs. Green likely knows the paternity of every biracial child in a ten mile radius except in her own household whom she considers to have dropped from the sky or pretends to.

It's almost certain that it was Mrs. Green's family that raped their female slaves. Just last episode Mr. Green distanced himself from the plantation owners and their business model in a tone that I don't think the son of a plantation owner would've used. And this during a private conversation to his son, so it wasn't posturing. He is also way too laissez faire and sympathetic when it comes to the "contraband".

Besides, much is made of the Green's position in Alexandria and all that the family has built, meaning they've been in Virginia for at least a couple generations. However, Belinda mentioned that the plantation where she was born and had to learn at an early age to use the pennyroyal was in one of the Carolinas (I didn't quite catch which one).

[Milz]

We're 3 episodes in and he's giving off that Scarlett O'Hara vibe that he'll never be hungry again and will restore the Hotel to its former glory by doing whatever he can to obtain and make money.

 

 

[Milz]

I'm happy she isn't the stereotypic "southern belle" languishing at home during troubled times. She's one of the stronger female characters in recent period soaps.

[AzureOwl]

But with one important difference. Mr. Green doesn't strike me as a sociopath.

And so far he hasn't actually done anything morally reprehensible, other than his Confederate sympathies.

[AzureOwl]

The US didn't become royal/aristocratic title obsessed until about the 1870s when the "Dollar Princesses" started the  trans-Atlantic "dollars for titles" trade. The last "European" war the US was involved with was the War of 1812, which was 46 years prior to the American Civil War. Some of the older members of the US population (North and South) were either veterans of that war or children during that time.

What I find interesting is that according to the book cited above, the Baron was a quite liberal sort who had to get out of the Germanies in a hurry after the Revolutions of 1848. And once in the US he had to work for a living as a chemist, the ancestral castle having long since been sold off.

I can clearly see a Mary falling for a fellow of that sort.

[Milz]

Yes, and according to that book, Mary was in her early early 40s when the Baron died. Not to mention they were nearly flat broke when he died.

 

But back to the Miss Phinney thing......she is always referred to as Mrs. von Olnhausen  in that book.

[Milz]

Good ol' Scarlett!

 

Anyhow, Green is clever going into the furniture business (selling coffins to the Army). And he seems to have a "okay, life just handed me a barrel ful of lemons, so let's start making lemonade." attitude, which is admirable.  That's why I'm beginning to like his storyline rather than the M*A*S*H-China Beach soap at the hospital. It's showing how a person has to adapt to change.

[blackwing]

I think it's a bit lazy of the writers to pair up the two nasties, Hale and Hastings, together.  Hale obviously hates Dr. Foster, Hastings obviously hates Mary.  The two of them are together and feed their nastiness and bitterness off each other.  Meanwhile, the show's heroes, Mary and Dr. Foster, are clearly going to end up together.

 

And what becomes of Mrs. Foster?  I think it was a bit unrealistic to ship her off in a stagecoach all the way from Virginia to California all by herself.  She doesn't have any brothers or friends that she could ride along with?  Wonder if she is going to return before season's end. I know Mary Phinney von O is a real person  Is Dr. Foster a real person too, or fictional?  If fictional, I don't understand why they created the character of this wife that he sends away that we might not see again.  I get that it's to create angst and have some kind of impediment to Foster and Mary getting together.  But they could have just as easily done that with a girlfriend that he left back home in Maryland because it's not safe in Virginia.  Why bother to introduce this wife?

 

 

The amputation was grisly. Damn PBS. No wonder they put up the warning. 

 

They had the same warning for the previous episode, and I didn't see anything that merited an "adult warning" in the previous episode except for the implied oral on Miss Hastings by Hale.  So I was quite surprised when we actually saw the amputation pretty much from start to finish.  In most Civil War shows/series, we typically see them talking about amputation and then the scene cuts to something else and then it cuts back and the doctor throws a boot with the amputated leg still in it into a basket.  We saw everything, including the leg actually detaching from the body.  On the one hand, it was a bit fascinating, because this is not something typically seen on TV.  On the other, wow, that was a bit gross.

[blackwing]

I find myself so thoroughly uninterested in him, his wife, and his son.  I couldn't care less whether or not he refuses to accept that the Union is occupying his city, or how his business is going to survive, or whatnot.  The show has way too many characters as it is and I think these three are easily superfluous.  I get that Emma and the other one need a family and a home to live it, but I don't really care what's happening there.

[Milz]

 

And what becomes of Mrs. Foster?  I think it was a bit unrealistic to ship her off in a stagecoach all the way from Virginia to California all by herself.  She doesn't have any brothers or friends that she could ride along with?  Wonder if she is going to return before season's end. I know Mary Phinney von O is a real person  Is Dr. Foster a real person too, or fictional?  If fictional, I don't understand why they created the character of this wife that he sends away that we might not see again.  I get that it's to create angst and have some kind of impediment to Foster and Mary getting together.  But they could have just as easily done that with a girlfriend that he left back home in Maryland because it's not safe in Virginia.  Why bother to introduce this wife?

 

 

 

 

 

Mrs. Foster goes to California...She would have been able to get to Iowa from Dc via railroad before she would have had to join a wagon train or take a stagecoach. http://etc.usf.edu/maps/pages/2800/2889/2889z.htm

 

One of the things glossed over in school is that during the Civil War, there were continued skirmishes between settlers and Native American tribes in the West. So that's one way to kill Mrs. Jed. Foster off.

 

As for Maryland being safer, Maryland was under martial law during the Civil War. It was occupied by Union troops stationed a series of forts that surrounded DC, Union and Confederate spies, and everyone else. It also was home to Point Look-Out, a Federal prisoner of war camp which not only housed Confederate soldiers but also civilians who were sympathetic to the Confederacy. So California was probably safer than Maryland.

[Milz]

I find myself so thoroughly uninterested in him, his wife, and his son.  I couldn't care less whether or not he refuses to accept that the Union is occupying his city, or how his business is going to survive, or whatnot.  The show has way too many characters as it is and I think these three are easily superfluous.  I get that Emma and the other one need a family and a home to live it, but I don't really care what's happening there.

 

Exact opposite with me. The Greens and Belinda and the rest of the former slaves transitioning and adjusting to a new social order is more thought provoking and more interesting to me.

 

The hospital dramas are very clichee and have been done better in the past, imo. Instead of Frank Burns and Margaret Hoolihan, we have Dr. Hale and Miss Hastings. Instead of impaired physician House, we have impaired physician Foster. Instead of Cherry White, we have Emma Green. Instead of McMurphy, Jenny, Chummy, Trixie and Cynthia, we have Miss Phinney. Been there, done that.

 

It wouldn't surprise me if the writers decide to rip off Call the Midwife, which borrowed the plot from The Nun's Story, and have one of the nurses fall ill with tuberculosis, and have her love-interest doctor diagnose her and successfully treat her. B-o-r-i-n-g.

Edited February 2, 2016 by Milz

[HoodlumSheep]

I like how she keeps Nurse Mary on her toes. Emma is a smart cookie.

[jschoolgirl]

There's no other topic this really fits in, so I'll put it here.

I spent some social time this evening with a consultant to the producers and learned that Mercy Street has been renewed for another season. I'm not sure of how many episodes.

My friend has been spoiled for the rest of this season; she has the full DVD set. I found nothing out other than that there will be no more scenes this season as graphic as the amputation.

[hoosiermommy]

Mrs. Foster goes to California...She would have been able to get to Iowa from Dc via railroad before she would have had to join a wagon train or take a stagecoach. http://etc.usf.edu/maps/pages/2800/2889/2889z.htm

 

One of the things glossed over in school is that during the Civil War, there were continued skirmishes between settlers and Native American tribes in the West. So that's one way to kill Mrs. Jed. Foster off.

 

As for Maryland being safer, Maryland was under martial law during the Civil War. It was occupied by Union troops stationed a series of forts that surrounded DC, Union and Confederate spies, and everyone else. It also was home to Point Look-Out, a Federal prisoner of war camp which not only housed Confederate soldiers but also civilians who were sympathetic to the Confederacy. So California was probably safer than Maryland.

She may be heading to California by sea, too.

[AzureOwl]

She also lasted longer without vomiting during the amputation scene than I would have.

[jschoolgirl]

They had the same warning for the previous episode, and I didn't see anything that merited an "adult warning" in the previous episode except for the implied oral

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It may be a general trigger warning on depicted battlefield suffering. At the Fredericksburg Battlefield Visitor Center the room where a movie on the battle is shown has a warning on the door. Of course, a lot of kids go there whereas they may not be watching this.