Dracula 1x02: "A Whiff of Sulfur"

[cleolinda]

@InterestingLit: Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, was born on this day in 1847. In early drafts of the novel, Dracula was named ‘Count Wampyr’.

@particle_p: Count Wampyr just made my morning.

@cleolinda: People in "Count Wampyr" really should know they're in "Count Wampyr."

So I'm just in time, it sounds like.

Comments

[glenvorian]

I kind of wish you'd do a Reign re-cap, that show is RIDICULOUS in a bad way. xP

[cleolinda]

I had a great time watching other people watch the first episode of Reign on Twitter, is all I know about that.

[glenvorian]

Lmao! I'm not surprised.

[greyduck]

So, basically, it's a show that goes out of its way to get certain very specific things right while getting a lot of other things blithely, horribly wrong? Craziness.

[cleolinda]

Yeah, the women's clothes actually look pretty consistently 1940s-inspired, maybe with a touch of 1930s or 1950s here and there. It's very consistently what we would think of as a 20th-century "vintage" look. Bustles went out a few years before the time of the show, but it looks like they don't want to deal with the huge 1890s puffed sleeves, either. I'm surprised they're not going for a Gibson Girl look generally, because that hairstyle is gorgeous--but they mostly seem to want to have the girls' hair down. And that's mostly what they're getting "wrong," the wardrobe. But they seem to be doing it with some kind of consistent vision. If they're going so far as researching Victorian music hall songs, they've got to be doing anything else "wrong" by choice.

(I don't know if they did or did not know better in terms of the carriage seating; I can see how that's either a bit obscure or possibly just awkward to have the actors move around that much when no one but me actually cares.)

[greyduck]

On a budget (they've gotta be cutting corners where they can on something this lavish) the issue of camera coverage and blocking comes up, it's true.

At least it seems to be entertainingly bonkers. It has that going for it. :)

[sorcha_r]

The hair thing was totally irritating me, so I did a bit of research, and it seems that it was acceptable for a young, single woman to wear her hair down. Still, after reading all the stuff in the Little House and the Anne of Green Gables books about girls being all excited to be old enough to wear long skirts and put up their hair, I'm thinking she'd at least put it up once in a while - especially since long hair would seem to get in the way when you're doing surgery and all.

[cleolinda]

Yeah, it seems really unlikely to me, just culturally speaking, that they'd want to go around with their hair down. But their hair is also done really really pretty and this show is so nutty that it really only bothers me if it seems SUPER out of place, like Mina's hair down while she's at school. But even then, I notice that she had it down while she was in Dracula's carriage, but then put it up for the exam, and for class in the first episode. Really, it's mostly Mina whose hair ends up being down, and I wonder if they're doing that so often because they're trying to highlight the Ilona thing.

[uldihaa]

Maybe they're using it as a visual symbol of the way her character is bucking societal norms? She'll put her hair up, but only if there is a practical reason to do so; for example, her exam. If it's just social expectations she's all, "Whatever." Or as Drac said, "So what."

Though it would be more effective if every named female character wasn't doing it too. They need some contrast.

[jubilantia]

That Laurent business was pretty hysterical. Your misplaced horror is the gift that keeps on giving.

Also, two scenes where he didn't have the horrid American accent! I think this is progress.

Lucy is amazing. The end.

Dracs, I hope you're also going to furnish Poor Jonathan's new house; it's not like he can just rock on over to IKEA for cheap furniture. Although I suppose his salary will cover that, once he gets it? Whatever; I'm having fun picturing Imaginary Victorian IKEA in my head.

I thought Harker was pretty supportive of Mina last episode! I don't understand why he's suddenly being a Neanderthal about it. Maybe he's just acting that way to look better for his friends? Which is still bad, but... oh whatever. Lucy/Mina Forever. (I agree with whoever it was, though- I feel like it was clumsy character assassination, and that it happened at least an episode too soon.)

[cleolinda]

Oh, good. I was hoping my horrific confusion would be entertaining (since it was COMPLETELY GENUINE) rather than "oh my God, is she even TRYING to recap properly?"

I keep trying to remind myself that there's only ten episodes, so they're probably having to move pretty quickly. Because I feel like what happened in the British Coolant WA WAWA subplot in this third episode happened WAY too fast. But then, depending on what kind of plot they're trying to move through--maybe not.

[jwdmeow]

So is Lucy cloned from Kiera Knightley? Because I swear they have the same bone structure and pout.

[jwdmeow]

Oh, whoops. I just realized I never got to the comments last time (http://cleolinda.livejournal.com/1055845.html?thread=64809573#t64809573)

[icprncs]

I missed those comments last time too, but I definitely noticed it very strongly in last night's episode. And that when it came down to it, several of the actors remind me of other, frequently better actors: Jonathan had moments of seeming exactly like young Jack Davenport, Mina was calling to mind Kate Beckinsale, Van Helsing was inexplicably but unquestionably making me think of Brett Cullen in Person of Interest, and Lady Jayne is giving me images of a specific action-y willowy blond actress I've seen in a bunch of TV shows whose name is escaping me...it's very strange.

[cleolinda]

See, Jonathan looks more like Jake Gyllenhaal to me. Which may be proving your point. And people have pointed out that JRM's American accent/persona is very Leonardo DiCaprio somehow.