Dracula: The Modern Prometheus by Rafael Chandler (Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker)

Mina Harker, newly qualified solicitor, was just going to Transylvania to aid in the transfer of property – the Countess is certainly a little unusual but she is also educated and worldly and she certainly appreciates that

Until it becomes clear she’s stumbled onto something very unworldly, one she barely escapes – but when that threat follows her to London she gathers her fellows and is determined to fight

Even while the Countess’s grizzly experiments rise from the grave with her own desperate purpose.

This book has that very elaborate writing that is quite common with a lot of books set in the Victorian era. This does a lot to convey a greater sense of time and place – which did work very well to create that sense of place that these books needed. But it does make for a book that is quite long winded – it does slow the plot down.

This slow speed is a particular problem because, certainly in the beginning, we kind of know what the story is going to be like. Yes, bits have been changed and the book combines both Dracula and Frankenstein. We all know when Mina Harker arrives at Countess Dracula’s castle roughly how this plot is going to play out. Elaborate and beautiful language may be good for the setting – but we know this setting – and it may set the tone but it makes the book very slow to start and get past the basic plot lines we don’t already recognise.

Once we do get past that beginning it develops excellently, weaving the two stories together into a coherent whole. The Countess and her drive to bring back her beloved sister resorts to any means she can – both mystical and “scientific” – regardless of the cost and with her obsessive focus and brilliant intellect, leading to both vampirism and the monster being created.

Ash vs Evil Dead

There was absolutely no way we couldn’t cover this show, drawing on one of the most iconic zombie film series of all times. I expect very little sense, very little coherence, and a whole lot of chainsaws.

And apparently a man putting on a girdle in a trailer before heading out on what I will optimistically call a “date.” He also attaches a false hand over his stump. Yes, this is Ash – and the same actor that appeared in the original films, so rather older now.

He goes to a bar and tries to be cool, picking up a woman for sex in the toilets. Including him needing a breather half way through. It’s campy, over the top and rather classically sets the tone for the whole episode. When his partner turns all demonic and yells “they’re coming for you” (yes this riffs of “coming”. Of course it does). The woman is surprised he stopped and turned back to normal. He briefly worries about something happening that hasn’t happened in 30 years – the evil dead – before they finish having sex.

Tone has been set – but not badly, it got a laugh, I admit.

Afterwards he hurries home and finds his big ominous book under his porn and drugs. And remembers he actually recited several parts of it to impress a girl while high.

 Move to some police checking a house where they had reports of a woman screaming for her life. It is now ominously silent. I know the police don’t have the option – but I’d turn around and run right there – sorry lady, you’re on your own. Alas, Detective Amanda Fisher and her partner are braver than I and Amanda finds a body of a woman who died in terror. Even worse, John her partner finds a rocking chair that rocks by itself.

I would be out of there so fast the monsters chasing me would be stunned by the sonic boom.

They find a woman – the same woman Ash tried to impress with his evil poetry – and she twists her head around backwards to go all evil dead on them. She runs at them backwards in the most ridiculously comic zombie attack ever followed by a bloody and nasty gory fight with scissors and a shotgun. And John is killed by the antlers on the wall. As you would expect, there is spouting gore everywhere. John’s body disappears but there’s still lots of ominous noises… John’s body is running across the ceiling. Yes, the ceiling. I have no idea why things running across the ceiling is ultra creepy, it just is.

The Walking Dead, Season Six, Episode Four: Here's Not Here

Now

With tears in his eyes Morgan tells his captive that he said he wanted everything that Morgan had. Morgan tells the man he is going to give him every last bit.

Then

Morgan has clearly lost it. He paces back and forth with the radio near by that Rick left him. He screams as a fire breaks out around him.  Morgan screams repeatedly, "you know that you were supposed to."

Morgan is now in the woods and he goes on a spree bashing walkers with the but end of his gun. He then gathers all of the dead walkers and places them in a pile.  Later that night, Morgan sets the walkers on fire and watches them burn.  Another walker approaches attracted by the firelight and Morgan bashes it.  One walker walks through the fire and Morgan takes it out.

The next day, Morgan is sharpening wooden sticks and creating a barrier.  A walker stumbles forward with its hand tied and he makes short work of it before dragging it close the burning remains of the walkers from last night.  Alternately, we see him moving through the woods and drinking beside the fire.  In the woods, two men follow Morgan.  He hides behind a tree and when they catch up with him, Morgan drives a wooden stake through the neck of one and chokes the other to death saying repeatedly, "you don't".  That night, Morgan has another huge bonfire burning.  In the morning, he pulls a walker off the wooden stakes he has erected around his site. One walker has a belly wound and Morgan uses the blood to make markings on the trees around his perimeter. On the rocks he writes in blood, "pointless acts, clear" and "here's not here." Morgan is hypervigilant as he walks around his little area in the woods.  He makes his way into a clearing where flowers are blooming and sunlight is streaming through the trees.  Morgan talks to his staff saying , "you know what it is." He swings his staff as though he is fighting off an opponent though there is no one there.

Morgan hear's the sound of a goat and move towards it.  He has step over a booby trap.  Morgan follows the sound until he comes across a house.  Morgan hops over the fence and approaches the goat. A voice calls out asking Morgan to step away from the goat because she is still needed and the owner is still trying to figure out how to make cheese. Morgan looks around and when he sees the speaker, he fires a round. The speaker asks Morgan to put the gun down so that they can talk and eat. Morgan makes his way to the house and looks through a window.  Morgan continues to move around the house as the man asks him again to put down the rifle so they can talk. The man calls out that this is Morgan's last chance and that he is to lower his gun and step away from the cabin.  Morgan keeps moving though, gun at the ready.  Morgan is then hit from behind by a man holding a staff and knocked out.

When Morgan awakes, he is lying on the floor in some kind of cell with a plate of food next to him. The man enters the cabin carrying wood and asks Morgan for his name. Morgan asks the man to kill him and the man responds, "that's a stupid name; it's dangerous." Morgan again asks to be killed and when he gets no response, he screams it repeatedly.  The man walks over to Morgan's cage and tosses in a book entitled, The Art of Peace.  The man introduces himself as Eastman and leaves the house. Outside, Eastman takes out a walker to protect his goat Tabitha.  Morgan watches through a window as Eastman drags the walker away.  Morgan is eating and says repeatedly, "it's yours so you take it." Eastman brings the goat in the house for the night and asks Morgan not to hurt the goat because though Morgan shot at him, he fed him.  Eastman says goodnight to Morgan, turns out the lights and locks his door.

The next morning, a more settled Morgan watches as Eastman rushes outside and kills yet another walker.  Slowly, Morgan eats his food but he is still talking to himself.  Later, Eastman continues to work on making cheese from the goats milk.  After some time, Eastman checks his efforts and finds that once again, he has failed to make cheese and spits it out in disgust.  Later, Morgan looks out the window to find Eastman practicing the kata with his staff.

Eastman is now preparing some salad and tells Morgan that he wanted to wait awhile before they talk. Eastman says that he is from Atlanta and worked as a forensic psychiatrist.  Eastman asks what Morgan did and Morgan replies that he clears: kills anything that gets anywhere near him. When Eastman asks why, Morgan explains that this is why he is still here. Eastman gives Morgan a plate of food and tells him that his response is the biggest horse shit he has ever heard.

Morgan has managed to get the head of a zipper and is using it to loosen the window frame.  When he sees Eastman heading towards the house Morgan stops.  Eastman tells Morgan that he is suffering from PTSD.  Finally, The Walking Dead has bothered to name what its characters are going through. Morgan tells Eastman about the two men he killed the day before he arrived at the house. Morgan says that this is what he does and that he has killed a lot of people. Eastman asks if Morgan has saved anyone and Morgan calls it a pointless act because everybody turns.  Eastman asks about Morgan's wedding ring and if he had children. Eastman says that Morgan saw it all happen in front of him and that he cannot stop thinking about what happened with his family. Morgan tells Eastman that he is going to kill him because he has to kill but Eastman counters that humanity isn't meant to kill. Eastman explains that vets come back with PTSD because we aren't comfortable with killing. I gotta say that this line really blew me away. I have to admit that I have never thought about it like that. Eastmen says that of all the people he has interviewed for his job, he has only met one evil person and the rest could heal. Eastman tells Morgan that the cell door is open and that he threw the key in the river awhile back.  Eastman says that the door has been open all along and that Morgan can stay or go but he will not allow Morgan to kill him.

Morgan opens the door and attacks Eastman but is taken down to the ground. Eastman tells Morgan to stop and reminds him that he gave him two choices.  The two men struggle and this time, Morgan gets the upper hand and starts choking Eastman.  Eastman gets on top of Morgan and this time, it's Morgan who finds himself being choked. Morgan raises his hands in submission and Eastman backs off and picks up his staff.  A defeated Morgan lies on the floor.  When Eastman notices that in the struggle, the child's drawing that was hanging on the wall got ripped in half, he picks up his staff in anger and aims it at Morgan. Morgan calls out for Eastman to kill him but Eastman backs off and reminds Morgan of the choices he was given.  Morgan gets to his feet and walks back into the cage and closes the door.  Eastman picks up the drawing and then opens the cage door before walking away.  Morgan uses his foot to kick the cage door closed.

Da Vinci's Demons, Season 3, Episode 2: Abaddon

Random cryptic vision time before Leo wakes up from the ruin left by the tank, pulled to his feet but Zoroaster and his father, Pierro. Lorenzo is still fighting to try and delay the advancing Ottomans – even as they use more inventions that look like Leonard’s work. Lorenzo is captured.

There’s lots of slaughter and capturing and general awfulness in the sacked Naples, complete with that tank rumbling around causing chaos and destruction and death. The gang seeks shelter in a church while Leo starts to have genius moments

Zoroaster does his best to try and comfort some of the locals – he’s awesome and cute at it. Leo is busy being a genius and doing smart stuff – and realising that Al Rahim is the one who betrayed him and stole his designs. Al Rahim responds with cryptic riddles and insists that yes, they do want what Leonardo wants. An “enlightened world.” And to create that – they need to destroy everything first. Leo is not a fan of this idea

Of course Al Rahim is one of Leo’s hallucinations and Pierro catches him talking to himself. While Leo babbles, Pierro tries to get him to see sense and see reality. It’s not a matter of Leo vs his own genius, it’s about saving the people who are dying. He also collapses over having, presumably, killed his mother to try and stop the Turks. Leo is carrying around a mountain of guilt but Pierro is there to keep him focused on saving them

With brains, archery and a plucky child they manage to get the gathered refugees to a neighbouring building where they can flee through the hidden tunnels underneath (pointed out by Malia, a Jewish woman who knows where the tunnels the Jews use to hide are). Pierro is captured delaying the enemy so they can escape.

Lorenzo is taken before Bayezid. Bayezid’s general doesn’t care but keeps him around in case he is useful.

The captured men are gathered those who refuse to convert to Islam are executed. Pierro is in the line.

Despite everyone else escaping, Leonard decides to stay… and, of course, Zoroaster stays for him. Leo watches as Al Rahim tries to recruit Pierro – who speaks out against everything Al Rahim stands for and embraced death. Pierro is executed, saying Leo will save them right to the end.

Doctor Who, Season Nine, Episode Seven: The Zygon Invasion

Once upon a time, there were three Doctors and two Osgoods.  Think back to the 50th anniversary special when the Doctor was dealing with the destruction of Gallifrey (the day when it was impossible to get it right) and the invasion of the Zygones.  The Doctors decides to force the humans and Zygones to create a treaty by affecting their memory so that neither human or Zygone could remember their identity, thus forcing them to create a treaty that works for both sides.

Last week, Ashildr said that the Doctor solves the problems and then flies away leaving others to deal with the results.  Well in The Zygon Invasion we get to see the results of the Doctor's problem solving. In The Day of the Doctor, two Osgoods were created when a Zygon took the form from the human Osgood. In the present, the two Osgoods speak about operation double which was created to resettle and rehouse an alien race.  With Unit's help, 20 million Zygones have taken human form and are now living on earth. The Osgoods are making this recording in case something goes wrong and Unit is infiltrated or one or both of them dies.

We then flash to a scene where one Osgood stands in front of a tombstone which is inscribed with the word sister with no date of birth or death. The dead Osgood was killed by Missy.

Back to the recording where the Osgoods both claim that the Zygones are a peaceful race.  They claim that shape shifting is a survival mechanism and that any race is capable of the best and the worst. The Osgoods claim that if one Zygone or on Human goes rogue, it will destroy the peace treaty. It seems that the Doctor left the Osgoods, the Osgood Box and it is the last resort - the final sanction. Both Osgoods say that if the box is ever needed, it would be a disaster; it would mean war.

Osgoode is now in a war zone and she rushes into a building to hide.  When a Zygone approaches, she tries to hide under a desk. Osgood uses her inhaler and then frantically pulls out her phone to send a message to the Doctor.  The Zygone enters the building and then pulls Osgood out from under the desk where she is hiding and then zaps her in the forehead.

The Doctor is in the Tardis playing Amazing Grace on his guitar when he receives Osgood's message about the nightmare scenario. Is every episode going to have Capaldi playing the guitar now?

The Doctor is in Brockwell Park, London.  Several school age children mill around and the Doctor sits on a swing. The Doctor calls Clara, calling himself Doctor Disco and says that he staking out some of the most dangerous people imaginable.  The Doctor takes off his glasses (yes, the Doctor is still wearing the blasted sonic sunglasses. A pox on Moffat)  and approaches two little girls who are playing on the monkey bars, telling them that they need to talk.

In the Unit safe house, in south London, Kate Lethbridge Stewart is trying to plan what to do next now that one Osgood is dead and the other is missing.  Kate watches a video of Osgood being taken away and learns that the encryption system for Osgood's files have been hacked.

On the playground, the Doctor informs the kids that he knows that they are Zygones but they ignore him and play. The Doctor says that he knows that the factions which the twins don't control are planning something. He warns that if they don't do something the peace will end. One of the girls tells the Doctor that this is their jurisdiction and that are close to finding the rebels.  The Doctor replies that he is taking this out of their hands and steps away when his phone rings.  It's Kate, who informs the Doctor that the cease fire has broken down.  Suddenly, red smoke appears on the playground and the Doctor rushes to the two little girls.  Zygones appear out of the smoke, snatch the girls and then drive away in the truck, leaving behind a claw like mark.

The Doctor and Kate watch a recording of Osgood. Two Zygones stand guard as Osgood says that the war is about to begin and that those who oppose the Zygones will be destroyed wherever they are. Osgood says that there will be truth or there will be consequences.  The Doctor calls Clara and once again gets her answering machine. The Doctor leaves a message demanding that Clara call him now.

Clara returns home and when she checks her phone, she notes that she has missed 127 calls from the Doctor. Clearly something is up. I cannot imagine the Doctor calling even one time and Clara ignoring him, particularly given how close they have become recently. Clara quickly hangs up the phone on the Doctor when she sees a dejected Sanjeep sitting on the stairwell.  The little boy says that he cannot find his parents, so Clara instructs him to wait there while she has a look.  Clara enters the child's apartment and is approached by two Zygones masquerading as Sanjeep's parents.  The child screams but Clara is told that everything is fine.  When Clara leaves the apartment, she gets another call from the Doctor.

Clara and the Doctor meet Kate at Drakeman Junior School - the Zygone headquarters in Dulwich London.  Kate explains the treaty to Clara and the Doctor and says that he left them with an impossible situation. Yep, remember what Ashildir said last week. The Doctor simply calls it peace and asks about the two little girls.  Kate answers that the girls were impossible to deal with since Osgood left and that there's a revolution brewing in the younger brood.  The Doctor says that the Osgoods were the peace because they were Zygone and human at the same time.  The Doctor learns that when one of the Osgoods died, the other went mad with grief.  Touching the control pod for all of the Zygones on earth, the Doctor learns that the Zygones are starting to worry.  The Zygones hatched and dispersed but something has gone wrong and they are worried about what would happen if the humans knew who they were.

They get another video from the Zygones which says that their rights were violated and that they demand the right to be themselves. They force the two little girls to take their true form and then slaughter them. The Zygones say that they will kill all traitors and finish with the words, "truth or consequences."

The Doctor wants to open negotiations but Kate refuses to do so. Kate wants to bomb Turmezistan. The Doctor points out that the problem is a splinter group and that if Kate starts bombing, the rest will be radicalized.  Clara pipes up to say that Truth or Consequences is in New Mexico and she knows this because it's a Trivial Pursuit question.  It seems that Clara's little hobby is memorizing the answers so that she can win. The Doctor sends Kate to Truth or Consequences to negotiate peace and rescue Osgood. Clara and Jack are told to stay in the U.K. because this is their country. The Doctor asks about his the presidential aircraft because he likes flying about in a big plane.

The Doctor boards the plane and Kate says that they don't have many troops.  Kate talks about a previous invasion in which a member of their staff created a nerve gas to take out the Zygones but it was stolen by somebody with a Tardis.  Yes, they are talking about the same gas Harry Sullivan created to turn the Zygones inside out after he was duplicated by them (classic who, 4th Doctor). I guess that's one way to get even.

Clara and Jack head to her home to grab a couple of things.  They come across the zygones dragging out the little boy wrapped in a carpet.  Clara's big plan is to catch up to the elevator and she and Zack race down the stairs.  Clara notes that the elevator is slower than usual and when the doors open, the elevator is empty.  Clara and Zack enter the elevator and the doors close. Something starts to ooze out of the control panel of the elevator and when Clara opens the control panel. she sees Zygone parts. Clara touches it and the lights go out and the elevator starts to shake.  When the elevator door opens again, Clara and Jack cautiously step out.  In the distance, they hear the screams of the little boy. They see the zygones in their true form, so Clara suggests that they need  reinforcements.

Grimm, Season Five, Episode One: The Grimm Identity

"It is not light that we need,

but fire."

Juliette lies dead in Nick's arms. He barely has time to comprehend what has happened when armed men burst in and take Truble away.

The screen now flashes to Juliette lying in her coffin and her friends and Nick looking down at her dead body. This scene is filmed in black white. Nick returns home to his empty house and sits at the table absolutely lost.  Suddenly a box appears in colour in front of him and in the box is the face of his mother.  Then  coffins start to appear and more boxes.  The face in the box opens its eyes.

Nick awakes and finds himself on the floor.  He remembers Truble being dragged out of the house and searches for her but gets no answer.  His phone starts to ring and it's Hank, who is checking in on him.  Nick says that he was drugged, that Juliet is dead and that Truble was taken.  Nick looks at the place on the floor where Juliet's body should be and finds it missing.  Nick flashes back to his fight with Juliet and her death.

Monroe has made some waffles when Rosalee enters the kitchen. It seems she was up thinking about all of the help that Nick is going to need because eventually, Adalind is going to give birth.  They are interrupted by a call from Nick, who immediately asks if they have seen Truble. When Monroe says that they last saw Truble at Bud's, Nick explains that Truble has been taken and so has his mother's head and that Juliet is dead.  Nick hangs up promising to call them back.

Nick rushes upstairs and is still clearly disoriented from the drugs.  Nick has a vision of Truble telling him that it was Chavez who kidnapped her and that Chavez is a Wesen.  Nick rushes down the stairs when he hears Hank downstairs.  Nick explains that Truble killed Juliet to stop Juliet from killing him. Nick grabs his gun, quickly loads it and heads towards the door. Hank tells Nick to calm down and Nick explains that the men who entered the house were professional because when he tried to protect Truble, they drugged him. Hank questions why this happened and a frantic Nick explains that they took everything, so now there's on evidence that anyone was ever here. Nick doesn't believe it was the royals because he would be dead now and is instead convinced that it was Chavez. Nick reveals that Truble told him that Chavez is part of a secret government group that wants to use her to go after wesen. Hank wonders why they didn't take Nick as well since he was a Grimm and Nick explains that when Chavez was investigating, he had lost his Grimm powers.  Hank again asks Nick to slow down and Nick asks Hank to find out everything he can about Chavez.  Nick heads towards the door determined to go after Chavez. Hank tries to stop Nick, pointing out that he is going after an FBI agent but Nick is adamant that since Chavez is Wesen, he is taking her down.

At the station, Renard is informed that the cops believe that they have caught their Jack the Ripper. Apparently, the cops found the murder weapon on him. Renard tells the cops to do what they need to do to wrap it up.

Nick is driving and he remembers Chavez asking him about Truble and commenting how handy Truble is with a machete.  Nick is so lost in his thoughts that he barely avoids getting into an accident.

At the station, Wu approaches Hank to talk to him about a 911 call they just received but is cut off by Hank, who instead brings Wu into Renard's office.  Renard is on the phone talking to the mayor about the capture of the Jack the Ripper killer. As soon as Renard is off the phone, Hank tells Renard that Nick has "gone off the deep end" and is going after Chavez.  Wu and Renard are in shock, as Hank explains what happened with Juliet and Truble.  Hank says that Nick is going to take Chavez down because he believes she is behind it all.

At the FBI office, Chavez is informed that Nick is there to see her.

In Renard's office, Wu says that two bodies were found across the street from Nick's house and it looks like a home invasion. Hank wonders if it is all connected and says that Nick wants a background run on Chavez. Renard makes it clear that he doesn't want this connected to the precinct and tells both Hank and Wu that if they do it, they are not to do it here. Renard then advises that the men find Nick first.

Chavez let's Nick into her office and Nick immediately asks Chavez were Truble is. Nick yells at Chavez that she took Truble from his house last night.  Nick starts to rant and Chavez says that she doesn't know what he is talking about.  Chavez threatens to have Nick arrested and two officers drag him out of her office.

Back at the station, Wu reports that no body has been brought in matching either Truble or Juliet's description. Wu acknowledges that Juliet turned into a hexenbiest but had hoped that she would come around.  Hank however says that another body was found in the house across the street from Nick's and it was reported as a home invasion.   They are interrupted by a call from Nick, who says that he had a chat with Chavez and she knows.  Nick asks about the background check and where Chavez lives but Hank tells him that he needs to forget about this for now and return to the station.  Hank then informs Nick about his dead neighbours and he finally agrees to come in.

Renard is in his office practicing the speech he is going to give about the Jack the Ripper murders when his secretary informs him that Chavez is on the phone for him.  Chavez tells Renard that Nick made some accusations which lead her to believe that he is under a lot of stress. Renard replies that Nick has had some family problems recently but Chavez informs him that she almost had to place Nick under arrest. Chavez warns that if it happens again, it will be out of her hands and Nick will find himself in jail. Renard promises to ensure that it doesn't happen again.

Back at the station, Hank tells Nick about his dead neighbours.  Nick says that this is how the royal family controlled the area to get to his mother.  Renard tells Nick that he needs to see him in his office. Once in the office, an angry Renard confronts Nick about his visit to the FBI. Renard tells Nick that if he doesn't stop, he will get arrested on federal charges.  Nick explains what Chavez is part of a secret government organisation but Renard stops him cold, promising that they will investigate. When Renard tells Nick that he needs to take some time, Nick questions if Renard believes him. Nick says that he doesn't need time but Renard makes it clear that if Nick doesn't take time, he will be suspended. Renard warns Nick that if he goes near Chavez again, he will be facing a lot more than a suspension. An angry Nick storms out of Renards office and moves to leave the building.  Nick catches up with Hank and tells him what happened in the office. Hank believes it might not be a bad idea for Nick to take some time, causing Nick to say that Hank doesn't believe him either.

Z Nation, Season Two, Episode Eight: The Collector

The crew stop to take stock of their supplies.  They are extremely short on ammunition food and gas. Warren assures the group that they will find a way to get Murphy to California.  Murphy is asleep in the back of the car and he dreams of seeing Doc and the brains that lie under Doc's skull.  Doc wakes Murphy from his dreams to help him find some edible food.  In the woods, Doc tries munching on a tree bark but ends up spitting it out. When the Doc hears the car horn, he tells Murphy it's time to go. Murphy doesn't follow because he is captivated by a brain just hanging from a tree. Murphy reaches for the brains and falls into a trap. His hat on the ground is the only indicator of where he has gone.

The crew decides to head into the woods and look for Murphy. Warren is not impressed that Doc lost Murphy.  In his little trap, Murphy regains consciousness and finds himself facing a zombie who is munching on brains.  The zombie offers Murphy a bite of his brains and Murphy sticks his finger in the brain matter before putting his finger in his mouth. Wow, it looks like Murphy is turning more and more into a zombie. Murphy stands and calls out for help.

The group are angry about the missing Murphy as Doc leads them to where he believes is the last place he saw Murphy is.  Murphy kills sometime interacting with the zombie. The collector charges in and hog ties Murphy. The angry zombie tries to come to Murphy's rescue but the collector is wearing protective body armor and promptly kills the zombie.  The collector then cuts off the zombie's head as Murphy watches.

The group has made their way back to the car and still no Murphy. Vasquez says that Murphy is going to spend the rest of his days in shackles if he has anything to say about it.

Murphy regains consciousness and finds himself strapped to a cold metal table.  The collector is now whistling and he notices that Murphy's eyes are following him.  Murphy watches as the collector opens up the zombie's head and pulls out the brain.  The collector says that he wishes he were a doctor. He adds that the quacks at the CDC should have listened to him. The collector then begins his examination of Murphy and comments on how mellow Murphy is.  When Murphy speaks, the collector takes a note.  The collector says that he is going to have to remove Murphy's brain to see if it matches the brains of the typical zombies. Murphy then asks for water and is given the nickname bright eyes.  Yep a nice little reference to Planet of the Apes. The collector lifts Murphy's head and gives him some water. The collector is ecstatic to find his first talking zombie. The collector says that Murphy's skin is deteriorating but he is conscious. Murphy tries to explain that he accidentally stumbled into the trap.

The collector then plays the recording from Citizen Z, informing the population of Murphy.  The collector the pronounces Murphy half man/ half zombie. The collector opens Murphy's shirt and looks at the bites to confirm Murphy's identity.

Murphy is now off the lab table and the collector continues to take notes on the things he notices about Murphy. Murphy is wearing a shock collar because the collector believes that Murphy is dangerous. Murphy warns that his friends are going to be looking for him but the collector says that they are taking Murphy to the idiots at the CDC lab.  The collector shows Murphy all of the unopened letters he sent to the CDC and warns Murphy to stay away from the CDC. Murphy concedes that his interactions with the CDC have left him less than impressed.  The collector tells Murphy to relax because he doesn't want the bounty and only wants to know what it is to be Murphy.

The collector gives Murphy a tour of the zombie museum that he is creating as he continues to rant about the CDC.  The collector  shows Murphy his collection of zombie movie posters.  When Murphy is slightly critical of Dawn of the Dead, he gets an electric shock for his trouble. The collector says that Murphy is to be revered and that people will travel great distances to be in his presence.  Murphy talks about how filthy the apocalypse is and the collector offers Murphy a hot shower.  This is a rare find in the apocalypse.

The crew are still looking for Murphy and can find no sign of him. Warren says that without Murphy, there is no mission.

Murphy gets out of the shower and puts on clean clothes.  While Murphy has been showering, the collector has wrangled up another zombie.  Murphy bashes the man in the head and tries to escape but he is shot with a tranquilizer gun.  The collector screams that if anyone wants to see Murphy, they are going to have to come to him.

Murphy wakes up and finds that the collector is taking a blood sample.  The collector decides to record an interview with Murphy and when Murphy doesn't answer, he is shocked for his failure to comply.  Murphy decides to play along.  The collector takes a swab of Murphy's mouth and prepares to take a bone marrow sample to discover if Murphy is more human than zombie.  The collector jams the eight inch needle in Murphy's leg and Murphy screams.

Haven, Season 5, Episode 17: Wild Card

Dave has more scary dreams – a vision warning him of a woman being attacked.

So he and Vince go to check it out… alone. C’mon guys you have more brains than this. They find no killer – but thy do find the woman alive. Unfortunately, like everyone else exposed to void-beasties, she doesn’t remember a thing. Dwight hopes Gloria will be able to do something

She can’t use her lab because of a random Trouble. Goria is always awesome. She can’t restore memories –but she can test if people have lost time. They realise they all have, that day – the beastie has been around.

Now Charlotte and Dwight are all couply and romantic (and clearly just woke up together) – and Dwight address the whole immortality thing when she raises the idea of them living “happily ever after.” So she’ll still look like this and he will lose that impressive torso (thank you Haven by the way).

She and Audrey go to the massive stack of Aether which they have to control/convert together. Charlotte’s plan is create a new non-killy barn.

There’s a random man ranting about horsemen of the apocalypse. In any other town that would just be random ranting guy – in Haven it means a man being trampled to death by invisible horses, of course.

Later Dwight and Nathan find another body who looks burned and pummelled. Both dead men had roman numeral tattoos – but different numbers. The body helpfully has a list of names attached which may take a while to look up because Haven no longer has phone lines or internet or computers.

Dwight has a random bruise which Nathan turns into a sex joke which then goes into the deepe end of talking about dating immortals. And Nathan gets a Roman Numeral X while Dwight gets VII. Not a good sign.

Charlotte and Audrey, working with the Aether, get their own numbers VIII (Chalotte coming with a lot of fatigue) and II (Audrey can’t see). Dwight realises this is just a bit too targeted – though Audrey and Charlotte have to continually push to keep working on the Aether despite both being incapacitated. They also have doubts about their skill to control the Aether since Mara learned all her skills from her dad – which is a nice exposition lead in to daddy being all dangerous and obsessed with his research which got him banished.