Highlander 5x17 - The Modern Prometheus

 

The end of "the best seven episode run in the entire series" as I keep putting it is this episode right here. It kinda stands alone after the last few, with a different filming style and weird disregard for everything Duncan might have learned in the episode right before this. It's one of those episodes that I didn't think that highly of at first viewing and then really appreciated what it was going for on repeat viewings. Also, the ending of this episode is what I thought was kinda the pinnacle moment of the whole show as a kid. It was a "the show really made it" moment. It's another episode that feels like it could have been a series finale.

Aired May 12th, 1997. I actually recommend stopping the show after this episode and jumping forward to the last three episodes of the series. That's right, I recommend skipping some ten or eleven episodes. We'll see if those episodes are better than I remember, but as of right now, I think they followed the best 7 episode run in the series immediately with the worst run of episodes. Season 6 is short and kind of mediocre.

"Forgive Us Our Trespasses" or "Duende" would have both been worthy season finales or maybe even series finales. Especially Duende, if it were a two-parter and made into a bit more of a movie. That way, the hours-long waltz of a final battle between Duncan and Consone could have been much longer.

We start with a rock concert held by the legendary band, Byron and The Undead.

The band is captain'd by legendary writer/poet and deeply flawed man, Lord Byron, muse of Mary Shelley and Percy Shelley - and inspiration for the story Frankenstein. Alas, he himself really is a Frankenstein's Monster of sorts, a walking patchwork of life's tolls. The end result of ceaseless pain and heartache. The grim inevitability of a life lived after midnight, spiraling towards destiny in its most brutal form.

Anyway, now that we've set the tone for the episode, I love when this show takes real people and events out of history and has them turn out to be immortal. It's rare but it's awesome when it happens.

A fan who sent his mixtape to Byron catches his ear. Byron actually listened to it, and invites the fan to lay down some tracks. I'm guessing this guy is someone relevant to the show's production; he has that look.

Unfortunately, they don't make music together. Instead, Byron challenges the guy to leap off a bridge with him.

Byron is so charismatic that the guy gives him the benefit of the doubt. Wanting Byron to like him, he agrees to jump, and hallucinates the image of a massive, cheering crowd. Interestingly, the crowd's chants metamorphosis from "Byron" into the man's name as he gets closer to leaping.

And of course, they both go splat. Byron gets up, the guy doesn't. So we've got a "Studies In Light" (S2) situation here, maybe combined with a bit of a "Courage" (S3) situation.

Byron arrives at Maurice's Bar, and he's the talk of the town. Everyone knows Byron.

Even Duncan Macleod knows Byron and his music. What he didn't know is that Byron and Methos are good friends who go way back.

Fun Fact: Maurice can be seen sitting with them in this scene, for a moment. Originally he was supposed to be a part of the conversation here. This was his last scene in the show, too.

Matter of fact, Methos adores Byron, and it sounds like he invited Byron to drop in. Or this is just a coincidence. Inviting him is all well and good, but if I were Methos I'd want to keep my friends far away from the murder machine that is Duncan. You might as well be introducing Byron to a woodchipper!

Joe's latest protege, Mike, is laying down some SICK TRACKS. This young guitar protege is going places.

Byron is impressed with Mike, and asks him if he wants to jam some time. Mike is astonished that BYRON is here, and thinks he can play.

Joe says this interaction could make or break the kid's career. Imagine if Byron brought Mike into his band, or had him open a show.

Methos says Byron is connected, and this will do a lot for Mike.

Duncan, on the other hand, thinks Byron comes off like a conceited prick. Now Duncan, what did we learn one episode ago about judging people?

We get some of my favorite flashbacks in Season 5. Byron and Methos are hanging out in 1816, drinking and speeding around on horse-drawn carriages.

This is probably the happiest we ever see Methos. He's as happy with Byron as Duncan was with Brian Cullen. At the end of the day, this is very much a Methos episode.

Byron is enjoying the company of this Helena Bonham Carter looking woman, who is a lot more fetching than this picture makes her look. She's apparently "seeing" both of them, so Byron and Methos take turns between who's driving and who is sitting in the back making out with her.

Even in this era, they're basically celebrities, and random women are stopping the carriage to try and get Byron's attention.

Byron throws them a scarf and speeds off. Then the women start pawing each other, I guess out of the pure excitement of seeing Byron.

But wait! Another immortal appears! This is F. Braun McAsh, the main fight choreographer for this entire show. They finally gave him a significant role in an episode, here near the end. It's interesting because both he and Anthony Delongis (Duende's bad guy) were major backstage presences on the show that trained guests in fighting and so forth, later getting their own appearances in S5.

Delongis was the runner-up to play Duncan Macleod to begin with (back when he was still Connor) and I sometimes wonder what this show would have looked like as a Delongis-led Connor show. It's hard to imagine, given how malevolent he was in "Duende".

Anyway, here, Braun McAsh plays Hans Kirschner, an immortal whose wife apparently was bedded by Byron. Of course, Byron thinks all of this is hilarious, as he flees for his life. The way they sell it, Hans is much better than Byron and would crush him if he caught up. Byron is still really young at this point, and Methos is still teaching him the immortal ways.

Some amazing shot composition and art direction in this episode, especially in this chase scene.

S5 really is the height of the show in terms of cinematography and so forth. It's worth noting that this episode was directed by Adrian Paul; only a few episodes were, but he tended to knock it out of the park every time. "Homeland" is another good example.

Eventually Hans rolls over a rock and busts a wheel, losing the race to catch them.

I love the outfits of this era. Those Victorian overcoats and top hats make me want to play Bloodborne for the 18th time.

Sigh.

BRB in 3 days.

And I'm back, that was fun. Alright, the next scene has our heroes in a greenhouse, drinking while Byron reads poetry aloud. They live in a gated mansion, so I guess they aren't worried about Hans catching up.

Famed author Percy Shelley is enraptured by the prose stylings of Byron. I think he's in a throuple with Mary Shelley (the redhead) and Helena Bonham Carter here. Or at least, Helena seems to flit about and be with all of them at any given time (including Mary).

Here she is just spinning over to Methos to kiss him before she spins off to continue fluttering about the room like a butterfly. This episode...is very sexual, when you're paying attention.

They also do a lot of drugs. Percy Shelley seems to pretty much be high or drunk at all times. Here he is offering morphine to Byron, starting what may have been a lifelong addiction to painkillers. Byron, you see, was born with a deformity in his right foot that gave him a noticeable limp and constant pain/discomfort. His constant pain might have inspired his creativity, to an extent...or maybe the drugs he took to treat it did that.

Methos, the soberest of this bunch of spoiled aristocrats, seems to legitimately care about Mary Shelley. He clearly respects her and her intelligence, while she goes unnoticed by everyone else in that regard. Mary Shelley, you see, is also a writer of poetry, but it isn't like she'd be taken seriously in this era the way Percy or Byron would.

Who IS this woman, anyway? She's as horny as a box of rabbits.

Speaking of, the night devolves into a messy orgy, as our heroes get increasingly drunk and high.

Byron is just enjoying the festivities...as am I. Helena and Mary should lock these men in the room and head off to bed.

Methos, the soberest, is lost in thought. He's alone a lot of the time, even when he isn't, an observer of other people and their quirks and foibles.

Helena is gorgeous, you just need to catch her at the right camera angles.

Mary is stricken by a sickness, probably from consuming too much opium, and Methos tends to her. He's a doctor, lest we forget, especially in this era. Byron calls him "Doc" because of his ability to take care of people when they overdo it at these wild parties.

Byron shows up and challenges Methos to have a three-way with him and the barely-conscious Mary, who is also quite gorgeous even if the episode doesn't really show it most of the time.

Byron catches Methos off guard when he makes it clear that he wants them both (say word).

"It's not gay, when it's in a three-way. With a honey in the middle, there's some leeway."

-Lord Byron, 1816

This is a show from the 90's, so of course Methos has to rebuff Byron's advances rather than appear to be gay in any way. That and he isn't going to let Byron take advantage of a semi-conscious Mary either way. I'll say this though, it's hard to believe that in 5,000 years, a social guy like Methos, perpetually studying humans, wouldn't have engaged in same-sex hanky-panky out of curiosity. Again though, 90's show, so it has to only be alluded to, with Methos rebuffing it quickly.

Back in the present, Byron takes Mike onto the bridge and challenges him to jump. Mike is willing to do it, so...Byron stops him, and says now he's ready to make music. Why didn't he stop that other guy earlier? He just let the guy go splat!

Next scene is Byron fooling around with two women while Mike lays down some SICK GUITAR SOLOS nearby.

This episode should have been called "The Group Episode"

When Byron gets out the drugs, Mike finally rebukes him a bit. He has to go do band practice with Joe Dawson in a few hours. Byron isn't thrilled with this, and uses Internet Dating Coach style "push/pull" tactics to manipulate Mike into sticking around.

Groan.

The two women climb back into bed and start doing something off-screen, and whatever it is has Mike rethinking his choices.

He takes Byron's drugs and jumps into bed while Byron looks on.

Byron is basically completely bonkers, a little bit of Charles Manson and a little bit of Marilyn Manson.

The next morning Mike shows up to play...and can't even get his guitar in-tune.

Joe thinks Byron might have given him something to help him fly, and Mike is all like "UR NOT MY DAD" and storms off.

Duncan (oh yeah, he's in this episode) decides to go talk to Byron about his corruption of this young kid. Methos quickly grabs his coat to go with. Methos wouldn't have done anything to stop Byron on his own, but Duncan will, and Methos is only going with to try and diffuse the situation so Byron doesn't end up dead.

Byron is having a big ol' snort when they arrive, pretty much confirming all their suspicions.

Further flashbacks, as Methos spends more time with Mary Shelley and her magnificent, corseted rack.

Elsewhere, Mary's husband Percy drinks wine off of Helena's feet while she pours it down her legs.

I'd say I feel sorry for the maids that have to clean up after these people, but it looks like the maids are also participating in the orgies and they seem quite happy with the arrangement.

Methos returns Mary to her dumbass husband, who spins her around and takes her to bed.

Helena, who has never seen a twosome that couldn't use a plus one, swoops in!

The two immortals in the room sense something, so they leave their friends to their threesome and go investigate.

I'm just gonna put out there that both of these women really do it for me. Helena with her "nothing is sacred" fluttering about and enjoying everyone, and Mary with her great mind and her...rack.

Well shit, it's Hans! He's back!

Methos begs Hans to reconsider slaying Byron and depriving the world of the genius writing that he does.

They battle it out! Byron's preferred weapon style for dueling is with twin swords. It's rare to see anyone in this show dual-wielding, and it's awesome. Hans clearly out-matches him, and seems to have the fight won when he impales Byron. And yet, Byron, perhaps fueled by all the morphine in his system, no-sells it and powers through to behead a startled Hans with his free sword just before he himself collapses.

What results is a spectacular light show, a glorious flash of electric power. Mary Shelley wanders out here in time to witness it, and Methos holds her back to protect her.

A clearly-dead Byron is blasted with electricity, causing his corpse to rise up off the ground and jolt awake. Mary sees this happen.

Mary asks how this is possible, and Methos tells her about immortals and how they must keep this a secret.

As Byron limps away on his bad leg, Mary calls him "The Modern Prometheus" and says that it gives her an idea for a story, a story of a man reanimated from the dead.

You know, Frankenstein. Not only is Byron a great writer, he also inspires other great works. One way or another.

Methos: "I knew you two wouldn't hit it off. You're matter and he's anti-matter. Put them together and kaboom." **

Duncan: "Your friend's a mess."

Methos: "He's a genius."

Having warned Byron to leave the kid alone, Duncan takes off. Methos again finds himself playing the role of standing up for Byron, asking Duncan if it's worth depriving the world of that sort of talent.

Duncan doesn't care. He is judge, jury, and executioner. HE IS THE LAW!

Remember "Forgive Us Our Trespasses"? He doesn't.

** - This line was cut from the episode, and can still be seen in the deleted scenes. Not sure why they cut it, because Methos references it later.

Back at the ranch, Mike shows up in no condition to perform. Joe tells him he's supposed to play tonight, and Mike is all "UR NOT MY DAD" and storms off.

He goes to see Byron, who has just what Mike needs to get his creativity going.

That's right...something in a syringe. Nothing good comes in a syringe. We get a big skull in the foreground to hammer this home.

Later, Mike doesn't show up and leaves Joe high and dry. Duncan is on the scene, and knows it's Byron.

Sure enough, at Byron's place, he finds Mike's body. Looks like he mixed whatever that drug was with alcohol, and that was all she wrote. Duncan then smashes the alcohol bottle in frustration, probably both at his inability to help this kid, and also at the fact that Byron didn't listen to him. Now he's going to have to deprive the world of poetry, as Methos put it.

Elsewhere, Byron is getting ready for another concert. "BYRON! BYRON!"

Methos is here to implore Byron to leave town, because Duncan is on the way. And at this point Duncan is to immortals what Raid is to a bug. In the next few episodes Duncan is going to FIGHT SATAN because nothing else is a credible threat to him anymore.

Byron got over there fast after shooting up with Mike. Not sure if he even knows that Mike died. Doesn't seem to have any idea. He was just having fun, as always. I'm just going to transcribe what was said:

Methos: "There was a time..when you were reaching for the heavens."

Byron: "There is no Heaven. Just an illusion for fools and innocents."

Byron: "I have no hope. No dreams. No poetry left. All I feel is a raging hunger, and all I hear is my own voice screaming my failure. You know what I've become."

Methos: "Yes I know."

Byron: "Do you know who you are, Doc? You're the guy in the audience and I'm the guy on the flying trapeze. Who do you think is having more fun?"

Methos: "Who do you think is going to live longest?"

Byron: "Who cares?"

Methos: "I do."

Byron: "Do you want a tombstone that says -He lived for centuries-, or do you want a tombstone that says -For centuries, he lived-?"

Well, Methos tried. Byron refuses to leave town, refuses to change his ways at all. He goes out for his concert, and Methos resigns himself to losing a friend.

Duncan arrives. Methos takes one final stab at getting Duncan to let Byron go. It isn't like Byron is a huge menace to the public the way Brian Cullen was. He seems a lot more in control of his bad habits, and has found a niche even if he's dying inside.

Well, time for Duncan to kill him for real.

Yeah, remember ONE EPISODE AGO when Duncan learned to judge not, lest ye be judged? This episode drives me nuts. It's a Methos episode and it was really none of Duncan's business. Is Byron a bad guy? Yeah. He's also Methos' friend, and he also had a lot to give the world. Maybe he would have turned things around and found himself.

Mostly I feel like this story could have been an entire arc in a Methos show. I should write treatments for a season one of a hypothetical Methos show and see what other kind of ideas I can come up with. No, I'm serious. I should do that.

With another successful concert in the bag, Byron is heading out with an incredibly gorgeous lady-friend. She's like a young Marisa Tomei. Marisa To-bae, am I right?

Duncan appears, so Byron waves everyone off. Security drags the hapless woman away.

She thought she was getting laid! How many lives must Duncan ruin tonight?

They have a battle, and Byron uses his same dual-wielding techniques. He's a formidable foe considering he has a bad leg and is in constant pain. If he were healthy and focused, he'd probably be one of the deadliest immortals around.

Duncan knocks one of his swords away, going "Now we're even". Byron then WHIPS OUT A PISTOL and shoots Duncan in the foot. "NOW we're even" he says. He isn't wrong, and it was strangely honorable of him to only even up the fight with a single shot rather than give himself a win by firing more shots. ...except that Duncan is now in WAY more pain than he is. It seems to me like Byron has done this with other opponents before, given how smoothly he produced the pistol and fired.

A now-beleaguered Duncan continues to fight, and a now-empowered Byron starts belting out lines of his own poetry as they clash swords.

"Once more through all he bursts his thundering way!" bellows Byron.

Finally, Duncan catches Byron mid-swing, and has him dead to rights. Byron was quoting himself, and...Duncan finishes the quote, showing the respect he actually does have for this man and his works. I think the stanza they're quoting is "Apostrophe to the Ocean" from Childe Harold's Pilgrimage, where Byron talks about the powerlessness of humanity in the face of the ocean's eternal force.

Though this part in particular is referring to a mighty beast that fought furiously, but couldn't overcome the ravages of time and injury, succumbing as it could no longer keep going.

Duncan sums it up, with palpable anguish in his voice:

"The mantle quits the cunning hand,"

"Wrapped fierce eye, tis past,"

"He sinks upon the sand."

SHIIIIIIING.

THISH...ISH...

...probably one of the best Quickenings in the entire series.

Maybe my personal favorite. No, definitely my personal favorite. This is a pinnacle-level Quickening. Incredible music plays (made with this in mind by Marcus Testory and his band - he played Caspian of the Four Horsemen, and deserved a lot more screen time). This sort of rock and roll Quickening takes it to another level, especially when images of Byron's life - and the sheer chaos of his existence - flashes by. The crowds, the mental turmoil, the struggle, it's all there.

You know what, just watch it for yourself:

What an amazing moment. This is the peak of Highlander: The Series. In context, taken for everything it represents, this episode is a good one, and this scene is a great one. It's simultaneously sad and triumphant, as Byron's eternal suffering has come to an end. All that he was is continuing on in Duncan, and now it's up to Duncan, Methos, and everyone else that cared about him and his work to remember who he was.

The episode ends with Duncan going back to Joe's Bar and silently having a drink. Methos is already there, silently having his own.

Outstanding episode. I've seen it 3 times this year for the purposes of writing about it, and each time I notice something new about it, some new nuance.

What stands out about Byron is how young he was, both in mortality and immortality. Pretty much the definition of "burns brighter and fades quicker". Unfortunately mania and depression often go hand in hand with creativity, just ask Robin Williams. At the end of the day, Byron became the monster that he inspired, Frankenstein's monster. He said it himself to Methos: He was an abomination. Someone so jaded at everything that he needed to live vicariously through other people jumping off a bridge to their deaths. Except unlike him, they didn't get up.

A+ episode, elevated by the flashbacks (some of the best in this season visually) and Duncan's quoting Byron at the end of the fight, acknowledging the man and showing him the respect of knowing his work, even as he put him to rest. I wish he hadn't killed Byron, as the guy was no Brian Cullen style menace. And yet, given how much Byron was falling apart, perhaps he did Byron a favor. Still, this seemed like a Methos episode, or it should have BEEN a Methos episode. This was Methos' situation to deal with, and Duncan should have respected his request to spare Byron. Methos, of course, wouldn't have ever slain Byron unless he really had no choice.

One more round of applause for the flashbacks, especially Methos' temptation to have a menage et trois by Byron, who in real life was attracted to everyone in one way or another. And you're damn right Methos was tempted by Byron's overtures; like I said, a 90's show couldn't admit it, but he was 5,000 years old. He's been around the block, and he can go for unorthodox things. Half-conscious Mary in the middle ensured that Methos was going to take a reasonable path, though.

This episode belongs in a Methos show, and a different decade, along with the obvious changes to how it ends up. This is probably my favorite episode of this series, take that for what it's worth.

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