Well, what can I say? Apparently Bitten is my new obsession. I think I'll be recapping the episodes
in an effort to dispel how much the show eats my brain. Between Arrow and this program, I'm in complete
overload mode. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but I only have so much
space in my head and putting my thoughts out there might help, right? LOL
So… full disclosure. I'm just now reading the Kelley
Armstrong books the series is based on. The advantage to that is—I can watch
the series with zero expectations—and I can read chronologically, which is a
bonus for me. The only disadvantage? She writes a lot in first person, which I
seriously dislike with an abiding passion. That said, I am enjoying the books. I'm contrary that way.
Let's see, the usual standard warnings apply. Always keep
drinks safely away from the computer/device/screen when reading. Be prepared
for snarky commentary and foul language. When I get excited and/or upset about
something, the four letter words fly. (And okay, sometimes more than four
letters and occasionally completely made up to fit the mood, too. LOL) I'm not
always on the same page as the rest of the world so off the wall opinions, observations,
and over the top ramblings are pretty much par for the course. Spoilers and
speculation will abound. If you haven't seen the episode and want to stay
spoiler free, please back away slowly and look the other way.
As always, keep your hands and feet inside the roller
coaster at all times. Safety first, people.
Okay, everyone ready? Here we go…
Cold Opening
Hello Toronto!
I'll freely admit I'm shallow enough to appreciate opening a
brand new series with a sex scene.
Throw in the hotness getting interrupted and it's even
better. And let's face it, not wanting to change into a four-legged beast when
banging your boyfriend is a damn good reason to halt five minutes away from
getting off, right? Oh wait, the excuse is they got carried away and Elena is
late for a photo shoot. Oops!
But hey, what a perfect guy—understanding, supportive, and
pretty damn hot.
Makes me wonder, you know? I'll look forward to seeing if
he's got any flaws. J
And hey, at least Elena promises to make it up to him.
So, picking up, Elena makes a mad dash for the elevator and
escape but wouldn't you know… another passenger is on board.
Key information:
—it's a good thing the other rider in the elevator is more interested
in her phone than people watching.
—Elena lives on the 15th floor. Hopefully it's a
fast trip down.
—Oops, claw hand can't be good.
Whew. She got it under control. (And by 'it', I mean the Change, but we don't know that yet.)
Gotta say, she looks so odd ducking into a grungy alley dressed in sparkles, leather, and heels. Just saying. And it's always a good idea to strip down to nothing in a dark alley before Changing, but seriously? Taking the time to fold everything and stash jewelry in her purse? I know it's Canada, but does she really think her clothes and everything will still be there? *shrugs* I wouldn't.
So… I'm glad I'm not a werewolf. Looks damned painful to transform.
See…
And…Scene Change
And here's where I do a format change, too. There's so much going on I'm thinking it might be better to do the recap by each act. We'll see what shakes out. I'll find a good fit as soon as possible.
So… set up: bar, a young woman puts some music on and tries to pick up a fairly non-threatening, halfway good-looking guy.
Here's the sum of their conversation:
He's not from around there. Yes, the town is that small. He wants to know about the Danvers family aka the creeps in the country. They're hot, but weird. What does he know about them? They think they can set their rules. What rules?
At this point, I'm pretty sure they're not actually having the same conversation, you know?
The rules don't matter. Dude is there to break them. Does he want to go back to her place? Nope. Why? Because she's a slut.
Whoa. Harsh, dude, very harsh. Then again, she did grope him. *shrugs* Maybe the hot Danvers men are more his type. (Which yeah, they are, but not for the reasons one might think.)
Interesting warning: Be careful out there. Foreshadow much?
Music Note: Bambi by Suuns is the song playing in the bar.
SIDE NOTE:
Actually, the way this rolls across the screen, it's not quite clear if we're back with Changed Elena or if maybe we pick up with Bar Dude after he's done a quick transformation. It's pretty safe to assume we have a cut scene with Elena then a shift back to the girl who didn't get the guy. But it is a little misleading because the wolf heads for a park area and the girl is walking on a trail somewhere. So yeah, there's that.
And of course the girl hears some cracking branches but keeps walking… only a little bit faster. A wolf creeps around in the woods and catches a scent. Back to the girl, more than a little freaked out. Wolf lumbering along. Girl. Wolf.
Lunge!!! Scream!!
A wolf flinging something around then a dead rabbit hits the ground, followed by the girl having falling over with a dead stare.
Cue opening credits.
Nicely done, show, nicely done.
SIDE NOTE: I'm totally in love with the theme music. Just saying.
ACT ONE
Okay, seriously? Canada is awesome. Elena's clothes were still in the alley she left them in. Lucky her. (Background Music: Trouble's What You're In by Fink)
Notice the food consumption. It's a big thing. Werewolf metabolism and all that.
Philip is one understanding dude. Then again, when Elena decides to make it up to him, she goes all out. *wink*
But… hold up here. Scene shift to my newest TV boyfriend. Warning in advance… I'm pretty sure I'll be blathering on and on in this next section so feel free to skip ahead. I won't be insulted.
So… Intro to Clayton Danvers 101
To quote:
To fully actualize self, we have to acknowledge who we really are. It's what Carl Jung referred to as the animus for males and the anima for females. These are the sides of us we hide beneath what he calls the persona. And in applying these theories to anthropology, specifically the study of human behavior, I'm not so much interested in what we hide, but why we hide it.
Whew… *fans self* Honestly? This is where reading the book comes in really handy. This scene could easily come across as almost smarmy with the way it's delivered. But knowing Clay's deep fascination with and study of humanity makes this something of a religious experience for me. I know, I said I'd blather on… I totally meant it. LOL
Back to the quote…
What deep desires are we repressing? And if we tore down our personas, what sort of beast lies within?
*shivery chills*
I love Clay's answer to his student's question, who by the way, is totally hot for her professor, just saying.
Proof
We are animals. All of us. The only difference between humans and anything else is the persona, the mask behind which we hide all desires and everything that scare us about ourselves.
Gah. Think about the context here. My head wants to explode—in a good way. Here, while I try to form coherent thought again, have another pretty picture of Professor Danvers:
Random Question: Are there ANY dudes in his class?
Scene switch…
Logan, it's nice to meet you.
So… Logan is a psychologist in the TV 'verse. I like the deviation from the book 'verse. Also, note the consumption of food again. :D
Elena doesn't like lying to Philip, which, okay, I get. But… omission is damned near as bad. I mean she's keeping one big ass secret from this guy, right? But I kind of like the struggle Elena goes through. She fights the Change for thirty-seven days? Logan thinks she's batshit. (Yeah, okay, he's WAY nicer about it than I am. LOL)
He even offers to have Elena run with him. He misses running in a pack. Lovely gesture, but Elena doesn't want to run. Period. And deffo doesn't want to make a social outing of it. Okay, no prob. But she has to get on a schedule. Otherwise she'll push the change until it overtakes her.
Wouldn't that be just dandy? *eye roll*
But hey, it's good it happened when it did and NOT when she's at the award ceremony for Philip… with his whole family.
You think?
Anyway… no one will judge Elena if she can't make it 'out here', she can always go back home. Nope… Elena is home now.
Something tells me that's not really the case. J
Shift scene…
And to briefly provide the important details, Big Game Hunter Dude *eye roll* finds the Girl from the Bar. Ewww.
Philip's sister, Diane, also Elena's best friend, is…
—apparently into crossfit, appears to be ALWAYS on a diet AND covets Elena's tiny brownie, and does some freaky named cleanse thing.
—uber impressed with her brother's taste in jewelry, and no, she didn't help him pick it out.
—wonders why Elena doesn't want to attend one of her parties. (Hint, if Elena isn't there, she's with Philip, making him happy.) BTW, Diane set Elena and Philip up.
—Tells Elena not to lie about not being able to wait to spend more time with Philip's mom… but they'll get Elena through it. J
Scene Shift
Stonehaven—There goes the neighborhood
What a gorgeous home they're using. Seriously.
So… dead body found. The dog, Blue, didn't kill her, but something did. (No shit.)
Jeremy… although he's referred to as Boo Radley by the deputy for the moment, stops since the body is practically on Stonehaven property… which, incidentally, is marked as private property.
And guess what…
There's something in the air that doesn't make Jeremy very happy.
Ha! I like the sheriff. Telling the deputy not to start is kind of awesome… she wishes more people were quiet and kept to themselves.
If she only knew, right?
Hunter guy is a grade A asshole. Michael Braxton. He's heard wolves around Stonehaven. Gotta give it to Jeremy… he didn't bat an eye. He doesn't hunt at Stonehaven, so he has no clue what passes through, but yeah, he's heard wolves before.
They might need to search his property? Sure, no prob. Anything he can do.
Shift scene
Thanks, Professor. The bevy of female coeds exits the room. Clay's phone beeps and he calls Jeremy back.
C: "Yeah, Jeremy, what's up?"
J: "There's a mutt here. A girl was killed."
C: "I can be back in two hours. I'll deal with it as soon as I get to Bear Valley"
J: "Come straight here. I'm calling everyone home."
C: "I can handle it."
J: "Clay, I want everyone here first."
C: "Everyone?"
J: "Just come home."
And… even if the audience hasn't read the books, it's a safe bet Clay's wondering if Jeremy will be calling Elena back to the fold.
Jeremy does indeed call everyone so we get a brief look at more of the family.
We meet Logan's girlfriend, a chef looking to make a career move. Logan plays supportive BF and lets her know she doesn't have to conquer the world in a day. They're mid-kiss when he gets a text to call home.
Now Nick… probably has my favorite introduction of all the characters. He's engaged in a threesome with Mr. and Mrs. Smith. Seriously… the producers couldn't have picked a better scene to sum up Nick's moral ambiguity. At all.
Anyway, Jeremy needs Nick and Antonio back at Stonehaven.
Elena, when she gets a text, tosses her phone back in her purse and zips it up…
Cut to a body bag being zipped and the guy from the bar, aka the mutt, wandering in the crowd of onlookers.
Cue commercial break.
ACT TWO
Notice Elena is eating again. J
Ahhh. I see why Philip got them doubles… and why he said it might be a long night. The guy's mom IS his flaw. *shudders* This also deviates from the book, but honestly? Way better viewing to have a battle axe mom, yeah?
Examples:
Elena: So glad you could make it.
MFH (aka Mom From Hell): Oh, um, I've been going to Philip's things since he was born. Haven't missed one yet.
MFH: I'm allowed to picky about my son's choices.
Diane: Actually, you're not. Clearly, he's a grown man.
MFH: He's also my only son and he met her on a blind date.
Diane: Yeah, set up by me.
Aside: Speaking as someone who met her husband on a blind date, MFH can bite a ginormous big one. *smirk*
Diane (to Elena): The only thing you need to worry about is finding a dress.
Elena: Oh, I thought I would just wear this one.
Whut?
GAH! Kudos to Elena for not faceplanting the catty maven into the nearest table. Yeesh.
Meanwhile, back at Stonehaven…
(Again, gorgeous music in the background)
Nick and Antonio arrive and Clay greets them. I like the way roles are established. Antonio is the Pack financier and a good one if it only took a day to move the Italian Pack's assets through Geneva, giving him time to relax on the Malfi coast.
Random Question: There's an Italian Pack? Who knew?
Ooohhh. Creepy basement complete with a cage. If I didn't already love the show, I'd totally be in now. J
Here's what Jeremy knows—
It looked like a wolf kill, which the coroner will determine, but it didn't smell like a wolf.
And here's the thing… he can't tell who it is; he's never smelled this particular mutt before.
Some random mutt kills in their territory… why? More importantly? The kill itself. The mutt broke a cardinal rule by killing a human for sport. They have to pay. (See… tie back to Bar Guy and his aversion to rules, right?)
What follows is really interesting. Jeremy announces they'll deal with the mutt problem as a pack. Everyone comes home. Everyone? Yeah, Pete, Logan… Elena? Yeah, Elena, who's been gone a year and shows no signs of wanting to come back.
No prob. Pete and Logan will talk to her.
And if she doesn't come?
She's their best tracker and knows it. She'll come.
She'll come
Back in Toronto…
Philip gets his award for ad agency of the year, winning on a, well, it's either a completely brilliant or totally lame concept—I seriously haven't decided—offering coverage for the zombie apocalypse for a dollar a year for his client's company.
*handwaves* It's an 'in the moment' thing, right? Run with it.
Anyway… Elena's phone buzzes right in the middle of Philip's speech. Score more negative points from the MFH. Philip finishes his speech by mentioning shifting the focus of family to a new generation (or something like that) then thanks his family.
Logan wants to know why she didn't call Jeremy back. Gee… she's kind of busy with the whole award ceremony thing. *Right* He gives her the rundown. Girl killed. Mutt problem. Jeremy's called a meet. It's a family obligation.
Family. Big word/concept/idea of the episode. By the way, we get to see Peter in the background at Logan's.
Elena watches Philip embrace his mom and sisters… and informs Logan the Pack isn't her family anymore so not her obligation.
Not gonna be that easy, right?
Nope.
Logan tells her to call Jeremy… she knows she has to. Elena doesn't take his order that well. If she won't call, at least meet Logan and he can tell her what he knows. Fine. She'll meet him first thing… tomorrow.
Random Commentary
So, when Elena meets Logan at his place the next day, I love the intro of Pete.
The comment about smelling him ties back to Elena being the best tracker, but the scent aspect is something they all share. Jeremy has been shown twice (the mutt and when Antonio and Nick arrive at Stonehaven) and I love the subtle story nudges.
But, if I have one gripe about the show, this scene would be it—with the exception of making Peter an instantlove character. I think it's because I don't quite get why Elena is so pissy about everything. If I hadn't read the books in chronological order, I'd be thinking she's putting way too much bitch on over Jeremy's call. But since I do have that background info, I can totally run with her lack of enthusiasm.
Anyway back to the recappage…
Logan nails it when he pretty much lays out the massive fucked up mess that'll land on their doorstep if the mutt shines a light on their kind.
Elena can't argue the point. So… who killed the girl? Jeremy doesn't know. He caught the scent put can't place it.
From Elena's point of view, it should be easy to figure out—who's the most pissed off at Clay? And Pete's response is the second reason I fell in love with him: Aside from you?
Yeah, nice moment there. Succinct and to the point. And okay, Clay is enough of a reason for Elena not to go back, but a girl got killed—right outside of Stonehaven. The pack needs her.
Random commentary:
And here's where the episode almost loses me again. Elena's spiel over 'What about what I need, huh?' just doesn't quite cut it, IMO. First, she didn't show all that much enthusiasm when she lunched with Diane so the whole being 'normal where people go to brunch and don't murder to hide their secrets' sort of gets lost in the background noise of something of a whiny tirade. Plus… there's the whole why would she want to fit in with the MFH, anyway? Seriously, that woman alone makes it hard for me to get behind her 'normal life' yen.
And Peter puts it best: Sweetheart, that ship sailed years ago.
Indeed.
Brief pause for commercial break…
And a quick disclaimer from yours truly, regarding the above commentary. Seriously, if this is the only thing I have to be picky about, we're in great shape. Just saying. J
ACT THREE
At the Condo of Normalcy
Ha. The dreaded shopping day has arrived. Philip isn't going to stay and keep Elena company while Diane shoves a bunch of dresses in her face. Instead he'll be at the office, or more likely, at a sports bar watching golf. LOL
Elena loves many things about Diane, but her deep, deep passion for shopping isn't one of them. But… Elena's willingness to make Diane happy tops the list of a million reasons Philip loves her. Really? That tops the list? At the moment, yeah. LOL
Gotta say, I enjoyed that little exchange. And the quick finding of the dress. How many times does the first one work? (Er, well, when I got married, the very first dress I tried is the one I went with. So it happens, yeah?)
Anyway, DRINKS to celebrate the first dress. And a brief look at Elena's other side, the dangerous one. Dude, don't lay adds you'll get to bang the blonde, because it won't happen. And never make a grab for her. She'll rip your arm off. Actually, rightfully so. Just saying. 'Just joking' is a truly lame excuse, IMO.
I do like the way her reaction segues into hinting about her childhood and dealing with the more creepy aspect of being in the foster system. Sometimes women know that kind of self-defense to prevent bad things from happening. Other times, it's to prevent those things from happening again. (And sometimes it's because the woman is a werewolf and can pretty much kick ass, just saying)
And I also kind of appreciate Elena's sentiment about the thing about bad families is making it easy to know when you've landed in a good one. More on this later.
Of course, Diane makes a kick ass point: How quickly Elena forgets about Diane's mother. Too true. LOL
Back at Stonehaven
So, the sheriff stops by to let Jeremy know the coroner confirmed a wolf kill. Interesting moment when she spots Antonio, Nick, and Clay coming out of the house, right? But she doesn't miss much of a beat, going on to mention the bounty, even though killing wolves is illegal. Now that it has had a taste of blood, it'll need to be put down.
The dialog about the traps and it being a dangerous combination with would be hunters put a nice touch on the whole scenario. Nick calls it. What's worse than a bunch of trigger happy dudes and a killer mutt? The whole damn deal can't be over soon enough.
They need Elena.
Clay agrees.
Scene shift
Shit's about to get real… sort of…
So, Elena has affected Philip in the following ways:
—he now has six kinds of tea in his kitchen and zero beers in his fridge
—he sleeps on a side of the bed
—he can't remember the last time he brought home a whole roasted chicken and ate the entire thing.
See, maybe they need to compare notes a little more, yeah? I mean Elena could probably scarf at least two of those chickens… maybe more, right?
And wow, Elena had no idea how much she's impacted Philip's life. Then again, she's about to add a big one-two punch because her phone beeps and it's a text from Jeremy to call home.
Home? Where's home?
Dun, dun, dun…
Brief pause for commercial break.
And… I'm inserting a random image here… it'll come up again later, in the next episode.
ACT FOUR
So, Jeremy Danvers is a member of Elena's extended family, not one of foster families, REAL family. Okay, I have thoughts about the 'real' aspect, but I'll put them on hold, because apparently the familial relationship is complicated. You think?
I like that Philip wonders where the hell they were when she bounced around the foster system. And Elena's answer of not knowing they existed and vice versa until she became an adult is a safe, but cagey dodge, because as she pointed out to Logan and Peter, Toronto is home, not some town one hundred miles west of Syracuse.
But… the subtle nudge provides a little insight into Elena's conflicted feelings, even if I have some reservations about how easy it seemed for her to lie to Philip—again—and her somewhat emotionless response. Until she goes into backpedal mode and claims Toronto as her home again… and she's ignoring the call.
Right. Not so much. As Philip states, saying no to family is a slippery slope. Call them back. Exactly what Logan and Peter urged her to do, right? But with Philip standing right there, Elena can't really refuse, or she'll have to get into the whys and that definitely wouldn't be good.
Of course, the call goes totally fubar as soon as the phone is answered at Stonehaven. Or I should say, not answered. Clay picks up but says nothing, leaving Elena to speak first.
It's good to hear your voice.
Click.
Well, dammit. LOL The rest of the guys are not going to be thrilled Clay answered the phone.
Elena tells Philip the line got disconnected, live in the middle of nowhere, blah, blah. She'll try again later. And Philip being the supportive dude he is, tells Elena it'll be okay.
Oh, Philip… it so won't. Just saying.
And back at Stonehaven, a dejected Clay has to tell the Pack Elena hung up. Well, no shit, dude. As Nick points out, Clay shouldn't be answering the phone. They're trying to get her to Stonehaven, not remind her of the reasons she left.
Nice anvil drop moment. Combined with Peter's comment about Elena being the most pissed off at Clay and this, viewers who haven't read the books are definitely clued in to a troubled history between Elena and Clay. Even after reading the books, I'm dying to see it play out on screen. J
Anyway, Jeremy isn't thrilled. "She's not gonna call back" kind of says it all, right?
Which brings me to the next scene and what I interpret as Jeremy using his 'special' ability—the one that lets him communicate with people via dreams. Elena is sleeping and wakes to the sound of a wolf howling.
Cut to Logan meeting Elena for a late night run. Elena brushes off his comment about not wanting to run together. She's allowed to change her mind. She also thought he might be at Stonehaven by now, which I'm interpreting as her way of fishing for information and hiding the unsettled effect of waking up to the howling has on her.
Logan takes the opportunity to remind Elena that a meet is a meet and can't be ignored. He's got a patient in a tailspin, but he'll be heading to Stonehaven the next afternoon. He also points out they'll go home, take care of the mutt issue, and come back to their lives in Toronto. Elena thinks they're soldiers. No, they're family.
In her mind, it's the same thing.
In the interest of moving the recap along, Logan and Elena undress, with Elena giving special care to folding her clothes, change, and start on their run. Logan takes the lead and a coyote picks up his trail. When the coyote goes to attack Logan, Elena counters and tangles with the animal, killing it after it gets a good swipe in at her.
The really interesting thing…
Someone filmed the encounter. Methinks that's gonna bite someone on the ass in the near future. How can it not?
FINAL ACT
So, Elena definitely not unscathed. The coyote made a decent sized bite along her shoulder, but not a big deal. Logan offers some advice about what to say regarding going back to Stonehaven. Keep it simple. A cousin got in a car accident, it's serious, that's all they know. Elena's a little iffy about qualifying her relationship with Logan. She's never had to do it before. They're cousins. Rachel would never question that, and neither should anyone else. In the grand scheme of things, they're related because of what they are, so not a total lie.
And again, Elena wishes they didn't have to lie at all. But, think about it, once they're there, they can run free, no questions asked. But that's Elena's problem. The minute she goes back the questions will start. Clay grilling her on her year away, she couldn't possibly tell him about Philip. Logan agrees, unless she wants to put Philip's life at risk. Wait… he's kidding. Sort of. And boy do I have some thoughts about this, but they'll wait for next week.
Here's what Elena needs to think about. When the coyote came after Logan, she had his back. That's what they do for each other. That's why Jeremy is calling her back home. The Pack needs her.
What if Elena wants out altogether? She's a werewolf. Ultimately, there is no out.
She'll be on the first train.
Seriously, that's a nasty looking bite on her shoulder.
Ohh. Some tension. Philip asks if Elena had a shoot. He woke up, surprised to find her gone. No… she was with Logan. Her therapist? Well, no. Logan's not her therapist, he's her cousin. Her family tree is more like a forest.
Cousin? Why wouldn't she just tell Philip that from the get go? Her lame excuse? She doesn't like talking about her messed up family, but… there was a car accident. One of her cousins is pretty bad so she should probably go be with them… they'll need help with the kids. (Remember the deal about keeping it simple? Epic fail. LOL)
Of course Philip is all contrite. Go. Take care of them. And when she gets home, he wants to hear about the rest of them.
Dude, you so don't. LOL
Scene shift…
Random comment: Awesome background song. Pillars and Pyre by Christopher Smith. The music is this show is kick ass.
Elena heads to Stonehaven.
Don't worry, Elena knows what people think of Stonehaven. Nothing up there scares her.
Right. Except Clay and anything Pack related, but we'll get into that next week.
Anyhow, the next part is one of the best…
E: You'll have to do better than that, if we're tracking a mutt.
C: Missed you, too.
Elena and Clay reunited. Yep, she's home.
Cut scene
Oi, the mutt sure lives the highlife. LOL Or not. But apparently he found someone not slutty to sleep with. He heads for the bathroom and starts his change. The poor woman thinks he's heaving his guts up and offers to help him out with it.
Here's his response…
And cue end credits.
So, yeah. That's the first episode of Bitten. Seriously, the show hooked me from the beginning, but by the end, I couldn't wait for the next episode.
Reading the books helps, but I'd watch the show even if I didn't have the background information. It's nice to have some of the added depth, but I'm anal about wanting to get my hands on anything and everything about the characters. Other viewers' mileage may vary on that front.
And I'm totally thrilled with the cast. I don't care that Clay isn't a tow-headed blond. My personal feeling is the character works WAY better as somewhat dark and brooding. And I'm equally thrilled he doesn't have a southern accent, or not much of one. The reminder in the books actually bugged me. The notion he'd lived in New York for more than half his life and never lost it, or at least had it toned down, just yanked me out of the story. My aunt grew up in Texas, but has lived in a northern state for more than fifty years. She'll get her southern on when she's upset, and it slips through occasionally at other times, but for the most part, she lost the deep twang. I can't believe someone as isolated as Clay, whose main contact is with the Pack, wouldn't eventually lose most of his.
And obviously, that's my personal take on the character. The author had a much different view, and it's her work and her call. For the show, I'm beyond happy there's not much of an accent. J
And that's it for this recap. Up next is episode two. Woo!
Thanks for reading.
Sky
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