#watched #PennyDreadful Finale S3E8-E9 #SPOILERS Ahead!
The 3rd and final season of PENNY DREADFUL played out the lives and deaths of Vanessa Ives, Ethan Chandler, Sir Malcom Murray, Victor Frankenstein, Dorian Grey, - in a two episode finale (Eps 8 & 9), aired back to back on Showtime two Sundays ago.
I had actually typed most of these up after watching the finale but had chosen not to publish this as a few folks were
But no, I shall deny myself no longer!
Thusly, herein lies *SPOILERS GALORE* - Fair Warning for folks whom have yet to catch this stupendous series/season! Go watch it, then come back to read this, fhanks :)
With the credit roll by the end of Ep9, the lore that which comprised 3 x seasons of Penny Dreadful, had come to it's completion, with no new seasons announced. Instead, the announcement from creator John Logan, is that the series has ended it's course.
Ethan, Sir Malcom and Kaetenay reach London by the beginning of Ep8, to find the fog / "smoky plague" engulfing the city, and Vanessa taken away from her home, and find themselves fighting off Dracula's minions! With the aid of Catriona Hartdegan, they vanquished the bloodsuckers/flesheaters, and both Ethan and Kaetenay leave the house to hunt down Vanessa.
Since Dorian's betrayal of Lily, Victor attempts to "cure" Lily, but alas, he proves himself too much of a "sensitive caring man" to do what he had set out to do, and perhaps seeking redemption by joining in with Sir Malcom's "Vampire Killing Squad" (my name, not the producers' :p).
"Redemption" seems the buzz word of this particular season, with well intentions to no doubt resolve conflicts (within the characters themselves) and story scenarios. Works for me :)
Lily confronts Dorian (in Ep9), and they part, finishing a distraction that had plagued Penny Dreadful for an entire season - no, I had no particular love for this subplot, as it served only to squeeze in the introduction of Dr Jekyll / "Lord Hyde", IMHO.
All bluster and blood, and a pile of severed hands on the dining table, led eventually to an unmemorable "goodbye"? Goodbye, then :)
By the end of Ep8, Kaetenay reveals his true primal self, and both werewolves slash down vampires down a dank alleyway, Kaetenay's long grey hair/fur flowing in slow-motion, looking much more regale than Ethan's "wolf-boy" facial shenanigans lol
Seems to me Kaetenay had put an apache curse on Ethan to become the "Wolf of God"? Or was that all destined? Never could figure that out … :p
The Creature / John Claire reunites with his family of wife and son, and proceeded to tell her the entire truth of his current existence (in Ep7), which comes back to bite him before Ep9 ended.
His son dies, and his "wife" tells him to bring the boy to Victor to make him "alive" again, or not to return to her … his decision is heartbreaking, but shows the utter compassion this script has for "humanity", even in such a creature, as "The Creature".
Ever the tortured soul, we last see him at the end of Ep9, irrevocably linked with Vanessa, and it is again a heartbreak of silent sorrows.
Vanessa and The Creature's time together in "The White Room" (Ep4) will remain the highlight of this season.
The beginning of Ep9 sees Dracula in fear of the Wolf of God, as Vanessa appears to calm him, in her full darkly dressed "Mother of all Evil" regalia, looking extremely gorgeous! I missed her in a dark dress, in this season!
I enjoyed the notion of her being "amongst" the normal humans, dressed brightly as others do, and frankly relinquishing her "uniqueness" and her elegant beauty of being the "tortured soul in black", in the 3rd season, but that's just me. Even at her death, I was enthralled vy her darkened eyes, like wicked eye-liners, so sue me :p
A "Vampire Killing Squad" (or rather a "Rescue Vanessa Squad", actually) consists of Sir Malcom, Ethan, Kaetenay, Victor Frankenstein, Catriona Hartdegan and Dr. Florence Seward - all of whom go in search of Vanessa, deduced to be hidden in the forsaken slaughterhouse, filled with slabs of decaying human bodies hung from hooks = Yummy.
And enter the "Dragon's Cave", they went … as ludicrous as the premise may be, as desperate as they seemed to be - I'd bite and go along for the ride, AND ENJOYED IT, I DID!
But I truly have to say, I didn't realize I have been waiting for a squad like that since watching Penny Dreadful! If only The Creature was among them, it would have truly made my dreams come true ... and came true they did, in a sort of fashion!
One of my "dreams" was to see the entire collection of misfits banding together to "fight evil" - ala Alan Moore's "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen", or even the big screen version "LXG" - which they never quite did, until this incarnation, in the last episode of the season series!
If this be a somewhat warped "fan service", than you have my grateful "Thank You".
Fighting vampires and Dracula took quite a bit of screen time, actually … but it was worth the wait when Ethan discovered Vanessa, and the "inevitable" happened …
I was unashamedly in tears by the end of the episode, even before, upon Vanessa's death and her friends and companions who had been affected by her passing.
There were no "magical enchantments" to raise the dead, nor reverse-curses to stop the march of death … Vanessa had gone.
And while my wish to see Ethan-in-werewolf form versus Dracula did not hsppen as I hoped it would, "Dr Sweet" was vanquished, and London's fog of death was lifted …
With the climax of Ep9, the reality is that the show would be hard-pressed to go further, without dredging it's characters thru vile "excuses" that which might well herald the downfall of television: A Zombie-Vanessa? A "Walking Dreadful"?
Please, NO.
And how far back can a "prequel" take you too? Goodbye, Penny Dreadful, fare thee well...
What would work - moving forward - are spin-offs mini-series, featuring the characters introduced in Penny Dreadful, IMHO. As much as I'd love to see John Claire AKA "The Creature" again, his final choice taken with regards to his son, was a definite choice.
What had happened between Victor and Lily should stay buried, fhanks. Lily as a Victorian-day vigilante? Oh dear gods, I certainly hope not!
The one person deserving a spin-off, is Catriona Hartdegan (played by Perdita Weeks) - someone not necessarily belonging to the literary-lore, but created standalone as a distinct standout character of that era, to rival "girl-power" of the NOW Generation … constantly feeling she WAS created to have her spin-off on her own, IMHO.
I find myself holding my breath somewhat, as I re-watch the video clips posted in this particular post
If ever I am able to, I would more than gladly procure the DVD boxed-sets for all three seasons, and re-watch them again and again, to invigorate my hollowed heart.
Dreadfully Yours,
Andy TOYSREVIL
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