ORBzine - Highlander TV Review
[Season 1 !Season 2 !Season 3 !Season 4 !Season 5 !Season 6 !Highlander: Raven ]
Feature Films 1986-2002
HighlanderShown 7 Mar 86
Highlander II: The Quickening
Shown 1 Nov 91
Highlander III: The Sorcerer
Shown 25 Nov 94
1. 1- 1 92102 3 Oct 92 The Gathering 2. 1- 2 92103 10 Oct 92 Innocent Man 3. 1- 3 92108 17 Oct 92 Road Not Taken 4. 1- 4 92107 24 Oct 92 Bad Day in Building A 5. 1- 5 92101 31 Oct 92 Free Fall 6. 1- 6 92111 7 Nov 92 Deadly Medicine 7. 1- 7 92110 14 Nov 92 Mountain Men 8. 1- 8 92109 21 Nov 92 Revenge is Sweet 9. 1- 9 92112 5 Dec 92 The Sea Witch 10. 1-10 92115 12 Dec 92 Eyewitness 11. 1-11 92106 19 Dec 92 Family Tree 12. 1-12 92114 6 Feb 93 See No Evil 13. 1-13 92118 13 Feb 93 Band of Brothers 14. 1-14 92117 20 Feb 93 For Evil's Sake 15. 1-15 92116 27 Feb 93 For Tomorrow We Die 16. 1-16 92123 6 Mar 93 The Beast Below 17. 1-17 92120 13 Mar 93 Saving Grace 18. 1-18 92121 24 Apr 93 The Lady and the Tiger 19. 1-19 92122 1 May 93 Avenging Angel 20. 1-20 92124 8 May 93 Eye of the Beholder 21. 1-21 92125 15 May 93 Nowhere to Run 22. 1-22 92126 22 May 93 The Hunters
Highlander [Season 1, Episode 2
]
Shown th June 2006 [Wednesday]
Reviewed in our special supplement
here!
23. 2- 1 93201 2 Oct 93 The Watchers 24. 2- 2 93202 9 Oct 93 Studies in Light 25. 2- 3 93203 16 Oct 93 Turnabout 26. 2- 4 93204 23 Oct 93 The Darkness 27. 2- 5 93205 30 Oct 93 Eye for an Eye 28. 2- 6 93206 6 Nov 93 The Zone
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 7]
Return of Amanda
Shown 13 Nov 93
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 8]
Revenge of the Sword
Shown 20 Nov 93
Shown Feb 1999 [wednesday & thursday, ITV]
Season 2 continues - the French babe bit the big one, and Amanda guest-starred in a couple of episodes. IMHO she did not deserve to be given the spin-off series - there must have been SOMEONE they could have used instead. I mean, the actress was former Miss America, had 2 guest-star slots in Season 2, slept with Slick Willie once ...
Hmm ...
Richie also left the series, temporarily - these days the sidekick is Phil Akin, the token crippled black guy from Season One of War of the Worlds.
Other Guest-stars include Rowdy Roddy Piper [ They Live! ] as an evil immortal who contributes to MacLeod's Quickening, and Nicholas Lea [ X-Files ] as brother to a babe-of-the-week.
So with such a wealth of talent at their disposal, why the hell did the Producers select the woman with the most off-putting bleach-blonde bob-cut in the North American TV industry?
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 9]
Run For Your Life
Shown 27 Nov 93
Shown 16th Feb 1999 [Tuesday]
This week's Immortal-of-the-week is Johnathan Banks, an instantly recognisable face from the likes of Freejack . He plays a Bounty Hunter whose fanaticism about Law conflicts with MacLeod's idea of Justice. This episode allows Richie to develop more as a character, and lets us see him try to adapt to his new life as an Immortal.
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 10]
An Epitaph For Tommy
Shown 4 Dec 93
Shown 17th Feb 1999 [Wednesday]
This is unnotable except for the appearance of Carolyn Dunn as a 1920s Flapper in the gratuitous flashback scene. Ms Dunn is notable only for her role in the Israeli-made Florida Detective show, Tropical Heat, which also co-starred Vancouver resident Ian Tracey. Tracey is a veteran of SF shows like The Outer Limits and X-Files - it appears that he arranged for his friend from Israel to appear in this Vancouver-made show.
33. 2-11 93213 29 Jan 94 Bless the Child 34. 2-12 93211 5 Feb 94 The Fighter 35. 2-13 93212 12 Feb 94 Under Color of Authority
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 14]
Unholy Alliance: Part 1
Shown 19 Feb 94
Shown 24th February 1999 - Tuesday
MacLeod is hunted down by a pair of Season 1 villains. Xavier St Cloud is on the rampage - and in order to make up for the arm he lost to MacLeod, he has chosen to cheat in his duels. He has his opponents gunned down by a hit-squad hired by his accomplice, Horton.
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 15]
Unholy Alliance: Part 2
Shown 26 Feb 94
Shown 2nd March 1999 - Tuesday
MacLeod returns to Paris, which queues a flashback compilation of scenes with Tessa ( Alexandra Vanderoot ). Then he goes about taking care of the bad guys, and meeting his new love interest.
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 16]
The Vampire
Shown 5 Mar 94
Shown 9th March 1999 - Tuesday
MacLeod is still in Paris this week, so the usual sidekicks are missing. The comic relief from the previous episode is still around, to fill the void left by Richie.
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 17]
Warmonger
Shown 12 Mar 94
Shown 10th March 1999 - Wednesday
Yet another Evil Immortal pops up from MacLeod's past - this one is a Soviet turned Nazi; funny how Stalin's crimes are always painted over, to make Hitler's seem worse [as if that were possible].
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 18]
Pharaoh's Daughter
Shown 30 Apr 94
Shown 11th March 1999
MacLeod opens a sarcophagus, unwraps the mummy - and discovers the corpse is an immortal woman, preserved for 2000 years, who speaks perfect English!
The Evil Watcher thread turns up again, and there is a nice twist on the main Evil Immortal plot. This episode keeps the audience guessing, even up until the final climax - who is the real villain, and who will win the duel?
Highlander [Season 2, Episode 19]
Legacy
Shown 7 May 94
Shown 18th March [Thursday]
Richie returns, pursued by an evil Immortal. This time, not only has the villain met MacLeod before - he actually DEFEATED the Highlander!
42. 2-20 93220 14 May 94 Prodigal Son 43. 2-21 93221 21 May 94 Counterfeit (1) 44. 2-22 93222 28 May 94 Counterfeit (2)
45. 3- 1 94301 1 Oct 94 The Samurai 46. 3- 2 94302 8 Oct 94 Line of Fire 47. 3- 3 94303 15 Oct 94 The Revolutionary 48. 3- 4 94304 22 Oct 94 The Cross of St. Antoine 49. 3- 5 94305 29 Oct 94 Rite of Passage 50. 3- 6 94306 5 Nov 94 Courage 51. 3- 7 94307 12 Nov 94 The Lamb 52. 3- 8 94308 19 Nov 94 Obsession 53. 3- 9 94309 26 Nov 94 Shadows 54. 3-10 94310 3 Dec 94 Blackmail 55. 3-11 94311 4 Feb 95 Vendetta 56. 3-12 94312 11 Feb 95 They Also Serve 57. 3-13 94313 18 Feb 95 Blind Faith 58. 3-14 94314 25 Feb 95 Song of the Executioner 59. 3-15 94315 4 Mar 95 Star-Crossed 60. 3-16 94316 11 Mar 95 Methos 61. 3-17 94317 29 Apr 95 Take Back the Night 62. 3-18 94318 6 May 95 Testimony 63. 3-19 94319 13 May 95 Moral Sins 64. 3-20 94320 20 May 95 Resonable Doubt 65. 3-21 94321 27 May 95 Finale (1) 66. 3-22 94322 3 Jun 95 Finale (2)
67. 4- 1 95401 1 Oct 95 Homeland 68. 4- 2 95402 8 Oct 95 Brothers in Arms 69. 4- 3 95403 15 Oct 95 The Innocent 70. 4- 4 95404 22 Oct 95 Leader of the Pack 71. 4- 5 95405 29 Oct 95 Double Eagle 72. 4- 6 95406 5 Nov 95 Reunion 73. 4- 7 95407 12 Nov 95 The Colonel 74. 4- 8 95408 19 Nov 95 Reluctant Heroes 75. 4- 9 95409 26 Nov 95 The Wrath of Kali 76. 4-10 95410 3 Dec 95 Chivalry 77. 4-11 95411 4 Feb 96 Timeless 78. 4-12 95412 11 Feb 96 The Blitz 79. 4-13 95413 18 Feb 96 Something Wicked 80. 4-14 95414 25 Feb 96 Deliverance 81. 4-15 95415 2 Mar 96 Promises 82. 4-16 95416 28 Apr 96 Methuselah's Gift 83. 4-17 95417 5 May 96 The Immortal Cimoli 84. 4-18 95418 12 May 96 Through A Glass, Darkly 85. 4-19 95420 19 May 96 Till Death 86. 4-20 95421 26 May 96 Judgement Day
87. 5- 1 95422 28 Sep 96 One Minute to Midnight 88. 5- 2 96501 5 Oct 96 Prophecy 89. 5- 3 96502 12 Oct 96 The End of Innocence 90. 5- 4 96503 19 Oct 96 Manhunt 91. 5- 5 96504 26 Oct 96 Glory Days 92. 5- 6 96505 2 Nov 96 Dramatic License 93. 5- 7 96506 9 Nov 96 Money No Object 94. 5- 8 96507 16 Nov 96 Haunted
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 9]
Little Tin God
Shown 23 Nov 96
Shown 15th October 2001 - Monday
MacLeod is attacked by a trio of amateurish newbie Immortals. They think they are angels, and an evil Immortal from MacLeod's past has made them think that he is god! MacLeod has been stuck in the role of Satan, and he's outnumbered four to one. Worse, the newbies are so stupid they try to take him out on holy ground!
The villain was self-proclaimed god to some remote Incas in Peru, 1830. In typical Inca fashion they still performed human sacrifice. Luckily, MacLeod has an ally of his own - Joe Dawson the Watcher. We learn a bit more about the Watchers' history, and about the only recorded Quickening on holy ground. The fact that the Watchers' Council is still in turmoil is given as the reason the villain's deeds are going unchecked.
The token genuine Christian preacher's only bible quote is Ezekiel 25:17 - yes, the Tarantino version!
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 10]
The Messenger
Shown 30 Nov 96
Shown 16th October 2001 - Tuesday
Richie meets a new immortal - Ron Koslow [ Alien Resurrection ], who claims to be Methos, the oldest Immortal. He preaches a doctrine of love and peace.
Season Five's opening credits have an extensive and unwieldy voice-over by Joe Dawson. However, the visuals are great.
MacLeod meets the episode's villain. His flashback takes him to 1864, when the villain is the evil Confederate officer in charge of Andersonville POW camp. Boo, hiss!
MacLeod knows that Koslow isn't Methos, because the REAL Methos [Peter Wingfield] is hanging out at MacLeod's flat. While Richie believes the peacenik message, nobody else does. Is the fake Methos setting people up and taking their heads himself? The climax features an incredibly surreal quickening, but the ending leaves many questions unanswered.
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 11]
The Valkyrie
Shown 1 Feb 97
Shown 17th October 2001 - Wednesday
It's Moscow and a reactionary politician is plotting race-hatred. Musetta Vander enters, in skimpy negligie but with deadly intentions.
Back in Seacouver, MacLeod bumps into Ms Vander. They originally met in Berlin 1935, when MacLeod was working for British Intelligence. Now she's on the run from the police.
MacLeod and Ingrid were apparently key members of Operation Valkyrie, both planning and performing the assassination attempt on Hitler that is usually attributed to Colonel Klaus Von Stauffenberg. After the war she worked for Mossad, MI6 and the CIA These days she kills extremist politicians to make up for the botched attempt on Hitler [who was very badly-acted, IMHO]. She only attacks White Power racists, not the Black Power extremists or Latino seperatists. She talks about a world without tyrants, but she wants to limit democracy and remove freedom of speach.
Methos gloats while Mac has a crisis of conscience. Can he allow his friend to continue murdering mortals?
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 12]
Comes a Horseman
Shown 8 Feb 97
Shown 18th October 2001 - Thursday
Methos uses his centuries of knowledge to appear on a TV quiz show. MacLeod fears that this may have attracted unwelcome attention, and sure enough Immortals start to gather. One is Kronen, a villainous robber who MacLeod first met in 1867. Apparently, a few years after Mac was a slave-runner he joined the Texas Rangers!
The second Immortal to pop up is Cassandra [ Tracey Scoggins , acting in serious mode and using an English accent for some reason]. She provides us with some helpful exposition and a flashback. Kronen was originally Kronos, one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Yes, apparently the four oldest Immortal warriors teamed up, and spent the Bronze age raping and pillaging their way across Asia and Europe.
Cassandra was originally a foundling child raised by desert nomads. The Horsemen wiped out her village and killed her, making her Immortal. Then one of them took her as his concubine, but lacked the will to murder her later on.
Methos has history with both Cassandra and Kronos. When this is revealed, he breaks off his friendship with MacLeod. Mac is very judgemenmtal of his friend, a man who he always knew had a shadowy past but had lived honestly in more recent centuries.
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 13]
Revelations 6:8
Shown 15 Feb 97
Shown 19th October 2001 - Friday
Kronos and Methos get together with the other two horsemen. It is now the Scientific Age, and Kronos has a plan to bring about the Apocalypse and get world domination. It involves a water-borne virus he has obtained from the bloodstream of monkeys.
Meanwhile, MacLeod and Cassandra [ Tracey Scoggins ] are on the trail. We get to see the source of Cassie's grudge: she's not angry at Methos for what he did to her, per say.
This episode was directed by Adrian Paul himself.
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 14]
The Ransom Of Richard Redstone
Shown 22 Feb 97
Shown 22nd October 2001 - Monday
This is a tongue-in-cheek episode, a nice change of pace after the tense two-parter. It starts with a car chase involving a red sports car and a James Bond-style theme tune.
Richie is living the life of a Casino high roller. However, he manages to get himself kidnapped. MacLeod goes to investigate. Since he had visited the casino in 1978, he has to disguise himself as older!
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 15]
Duende
Shown 1 Mar 97
Shown 23rd October 2001 - Tuesday
MacLeod is back in Paris, living in his river-barge again. He meets up with a lady-friend of his who has a feud with an evil Immortal. The Kimmie wants the woman's twenty-something daughter, because he couldn't get the mother.
MacLeod was friends with the evil Immortal in 1850, Spain: the evil dude was a fencing master and Mac was his student.
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 16]
The Stone of Scone
Shown 26 Apr 97
Shown 24th October 2001 - Wednesday
1720, Westminster Abbey, MacLeod and Fitzcairn plot against King George I. This is played purely for laughs, and is completely convincing both politically and in all other ways. They sort out their differences in a game of golf ...
1950, and the two guys are golfing again. Amanda [ Elizabeth Gracen ] is there too, and as well as scamming Fitzcairn she joins them in a plot to steal the Stone of Scone. Of course, since she's a Yank she doesn't know what she's after.
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 17]
Double Jeopardy
Shown 3 May 97
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 18]
Forgive Us Our Trespasses
Shown 10 May 97
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 19]
A Post-Modern Prometheus
Shown 17 May 97
Shown 26th October 2001 - Friday
Methos is buddies with MacLeod and Joe Dawson again, and they're all back in Seattle again. They meet up with Lord Byron, now a soft-rock musician and superstar. He's a total drug-head who corrupts the morals of young musicians. Typical bad role-model influencing youth propaganda. This is especially hypocritical when Mac himself is a kill-crazy adrenaline junkie.
We get a flashback to Switzerland in 1816, to the night of the infamous party on Lake Geneva. Lord Byron and Percy Shelley consume Laudanum, while Methos passes himself off as a Doctor with an interest in dissecting corpses to discover the secrets of life. Byron has a sword-duel with a cuckolded husband, and Mary Shelley sees the Quickening ...
Highlander [Season 5, Episode 20 - Finale]
Archangel
Shown 24 May 97
Shown 29th October 2001 - Monday
Mac and Richie are hanging out in Paris when they are approached by an OAP archaeologist. The OAP tries to tell them about a prophecy that Mac will be the champion of Good who saves the world from Evil. In the mist, Mac sees his old enemy, Horton the evil Watcher ...
We get a flashback to 1625, when Mac had been an Immortal for two years. We see his first Quickening, and he mentions that he later met his teacher, his cousin Conor MacLeod. Since the prophecy only gives the surname MacLeod as the champion, why does nobody think that it will be the older, wiser Conor?
It turns out that the villain is a Zoroastrian demon that taunts Mac by appearing in the guise of Kronos and Richie. The demon kills people off in scenes that are inferior The Omen rip-offs, and tries to drive Mac insane. MacLeod's incredibly weak-willed and indecisive, especially for a 400-year-old warrior.
Joe and Methos, for some reason hanging out together in Paris, both refuse to believe in demons. They can believe in supernatural Immortals, though. Richie stays open-minded, and tries not to lose his head.
107. 6- 1 97601 4 Oct 97 Avatar 108. 6- 2 97602 11 Oct 97 Armageddon 109. 6- 3 97603 18 Oct 97 Sins of the Father 110. 6- 4 97604 25 Oct 97 Diplomatic Immunity 111. 6- 5 97605 1 Nov 97 Patient Number 7 112. 6- 6 97606 8 Nov 97 Black Tower 113. 6- 7 97607 15 Nov 97 Unusual Suspects 114. 6- 8 97608 22 Nov 97 Justice 115. 6- 9 97609 31 Jan 98 Deadly Exposure 116. 6-10 97610 14 Feb 98 Two of Hearts 117. 6-11 97611 2 May 98 Indiscretions 118. 6-12 97612 9 May 98 To Be (1) 119. 6-13 97613 16 May 98 Not To Be (2)
Highlander: Endgame
Shown 1 Sep 00
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