FORKNI-L
Digest - 9 Aug 2008 to 10 Aug 2008 (#2008-188)
Sun, 10 Aug 2008
There is 1 message totalling 88 lines in this issue.
Topics of the day:
1. Vampire Blood Injected in Human Characters
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Date: Sat, 9 Aug 2008 16:59:26 -0700
From: "Amy R." <akr@l.......>
Subject: Re: Vampire Blood Injected in Human Characters
In the 8/7/2008 digest, P J <blue_twingo772@y.......> wrote:
> >>I'm not sure if I understood you correctly and if I remember the
> episode ["If Looks Could Kill"] correctly, but it never occurred to
> me that Sofia's patients recovered their youth. I always assumed
> that she began treating them while they still were young and
> beautiful.<<
So you interpret that Sofia began treating young women during
or shortly after World War II, and continued until the
present? That's possible! I've not run into the idea before; I've
always interpreted that Sofia began the treatments in recent years,
with elderly women. Do you see Sofia shepherding the group around
through the years, so they're always close to her for her
"treatments"? And -- just curious -- would you guess they always
called her "Doctor Jurgen," or would that be a recent change, as
society became more accepting of women professionals?
Agnes's "catching up" remarks could apply in either case. But
Sofia says that she gave the "treatment" to those who "wanted it
most," so if this began while they were still young, they must have
wanted it before they could personally know what it was like to begin
growing older. And all her patients are of the same generation; so
this interpretation perhaps leaves us wondering why Sofia didn't
accumulate some younger patients through the years, if she's been
doing it that long; are they guinea pigs in a first-run test, and
she's waiting them out before starting a second round? (Also, Sofia
characterizes her treatment as something she wishes Nick had thought
of for her, though she was not young when Nick knew her. Would she
ignore women like herself, who felt past their prime, and help only
younger women, like those her husband and Nick both preferred in the
flashbacks? Or did we just not meet all her patients?)
The patients' names -- Agnes, Norma, Bernice -- are
conspicuously, uniformly names that were common two generations ago,
but not recently; those names contrast with the characters' apparent
age. On the other hand, the young women in the episode, the ones not
being treated by Sofia -- Kiki, Debbie -- have names that are
conspicuously young; their names match their age.
Schanke and Nick prove that Norma Dean had been collecting her
pension; she had to have been old enough to earn that pension. If
she had looked so young all those years she had been working, she
would have had the same problems as an FK vampire in staying until
retirement-age without question. She could have cleverly negotiated
those obstacles, but it would be an accomplishment for all three of
them to have done so with such evident success for so long. Perhaps
Norma was the only one who dared take her pension, but they are
apparently all using their original names.
Bernice reminisces about when Norma had been Miss Calgary
Stampede in relation to "the war." This turns Nick's head back there
in 1993, because that's a specific phrasing that usually meant World
War II. Bernice looks much too young to have meant that! But I've
always supposed that's exactly what she does mean, because the
vintage of her name matches the vintage of that expression.
I am not yet convinced by this alternate interpretation, but I
will continue thinking about it. Having a new interpretation to
ponder is always a delight!
> >>That's what I recall as well.<<
Yes, Sofia draws blood from her arm. No question.
I was just excited about the possibility that if Sofia's
treatment has an effect that is _different_ from similar situations,
then Sofia's treatment might logically involve an _additional_
element we do not see on screen (a chemical, nutrition regimen,
behavioral change, etc.), which then would make Natalie less stupid
in "Fallen Idol" for trying pure vampire blood. If Sofia's treatment
is no different, then I believe no excuses can really be made for
Natalie's choice in FI. Oh, well.
We've doubtless been here before; I just don't remember. :-)
Amy R.
akr@l.......
FK Site: http://users.LMI.net/akr/fk/
FK Blog: http://brightknightie.livejournal.com/
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End of FORKNI-L Digest - 9 Aug 2008 to 10 Aug 2008 (#2008-188)
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