ER: "The Long Way Around" Summary/Review
Scott Hollifield
E.R., Season 3, Episode 15, "The Long Way Around"
Written by: Lydia Woodward
Directed by: Christopher Chulack
PLOT ONE: PLAYING HOSTAGE
Carol's unusual day begins when she's woken up by a phone call from
her mother at 7:00 am. Not scheduled to work since she was suspended
from the ER, Carol gently but firmly rebuffs her mother's attentions,
and leaves her house for an errand. Her day's plans change
drastically,
however, she stops into a local convenience store and finds herself
in the middle of a stickup, which begins shortly after she walks in.
The two gunmen, one with a Scottish accent and one with an American
accident, are in the middle of demanding money from one of the
elderly proprietors, Mrs. Novotny, when Mr. Novotny emerges from the
back with a shotgun. The standoff lasts only a second before
gunplay erupts, with the American shooting at the quickly-turning
new arrival. Mr. Novotny shoots at the shooter, hitting him in the
side, and is himself shot by the other gunman. Mrs. Novotny cries out
and attends to her fallen husband.
With police massing outside, the gunmen are trapped inside the store
with no apparent way out. It comes to light that the two robbers
are cousins; the American one is named James, and the Scottish one
is Duncan. Aside from Carol Hathaway, their hostages
include: the Novotnys, one of whom is lying a pool of blood; Angie,
a first-grade schoolteacher whose hand was burnt by hot coffee when
Duncan inadvertently shot at it; Robert Potter, a ten-year-old boy;
Lockhart, the baked goods delivery man; and Mr. Duzak, an elderly
gentleman. With Mrs. Novotny's wailing filling the store, Carol
steps forward and admits to being a nurse, which pleases Duncan.
He forbids her to examine Mr. Novotny, however, until she's
first had a chance to treat his injured cousin. James' wound is
bad, Carol observes, and he needs a doctor, but James refuses to
allow a doctor to enter the store. Instead, he insists that Carol
make do by using household supplies from the store's shelves.
By this point, the police are barking reassurances through a
megaphone heard outside, and calling in on the phone also, which
no one answers initially. Having finished doing what she can for
James' wound, Carol is finally given permission to examine the
old man, who is far worse off. Using various items from the store,
she performs some impromptu doctoring on the unconscious Mr. Novotny,
with Angie assisting via CPR. Despite her best efforts, however,
Mr. Novotny doesn't make it, and his body is dragged to the back.
While little Robert is given leave to visit the bathroom to throw
up, Carol assures Duncan, who's upset over having killed Mr.
Novotny, that the law will go relatively easy on him since he's
never killed before. His "And just how do you know that?" challenge
is met with her reply, "You haven't, have you?" While in the
back, Carol's attention is drawn to a hidden figure whom the robbers
are unaware of: Javier, a stockboy, who is concealed by a tall
shelf of supplies. Javier whispers to Carol that behind him is a
back door, of which the gunmen are also igorant, but it's locked.
Carol takes an opportunity to quietly ask Mrs. Novotny for the
key, which is located behind the counter; unfortunately, a
covert attempt on Mrs. Novotny's part to retrieve it fails.
Much of Duncan and James' conversation is argumentative, and it
becomes gradually apparent that James is the more criminally
minded of the two. The robbery was James' idea, and he
had discounted Duncan's mitigative suggestion to try the robbery
outside of business hours with no customers, a veto which had
now resulted in a casuality, Duncan reminds him repeatedly,
obviously still aghast over his responsibility for Mr. Novotny's
death. During one such exchange, Mrs. Novotny interrupts and
gives James, who's making light of Duncan's shooting spree, an
impassioned piece of her mind. Flustered, Duncan checks on
Robert in the bathroom, but the boy refuses to come out until
Carol goes in after him. Even when he returns, Robert scurries
from Duncan's grasp, and an expasperated Duncan plants Robert
in front of the pinball machine with a pile of quarters. "I
better hear 'ping ping ping' coming from this general direction,
or else I'm most likely to turn around and shoot," he threatens.
Despite this warning, Robert soon tries to escape by hopping
on the machine and clambering through the roof. Duncan's
attempt to pull him down is too late, and Duncan falls to land
on the pinball machine, cutting up his face.
As Carol gingerly treats his cuts, she quietly advises Duncan,
"You have to give up now." James will die of blood loss if
he's not brought to a hospital, she reminds him, and there's
no way out. A weakened James slips into a melancholy delirium,
and prompts Duncan to talk about the beautiful landscapes of
Firth of Clyde and Little Cumbrae, a fantasized-about escape
destination. Meanwhile Carol clandestinely retrieves the keys
to the back door while getting glue for Duncan's cuts. Duncan
begins ranting that no one present except himself knows what
it's like to kill man, but Carol admits that she does, having
given a fatally incorrect blood type to a patient recently.
"You didn't mean to," Duncan replies, but of course, he didn't
either.
Impatient from waiting in his isolated hiding spot in the
storeroom, Javier emerges with a baseball bat, of which he's
quickly relieved by an enraged Duncan. "Where were you?!"
Duncan repeatedly demands, and when Javier reveals the
existence of the back door, this doubles Duncan's frenzy.
"There's a back door??!" Carol steps between the two men
to defend Javier, and hands over the key to him. With an
escape route open to him now, Duncan decides to split the scene,
leaving his cousin behind, who feebly grants him leave.
("We should have waited," James finally admits in a hoarse
murmur.) Duncan takes Carol with him as protection, and the
two scoot up the fire escape and into a vacant apartment.
They exit the building into a deserted alley. "We finally
made it, eh, Miss Hathaway?" Duncan gloats unconvincingly,
and agrees to her request to let her go free when they reach
the end of the alley. Before they get to that point, however,
they are confronted by a police car, from which a voice
orders Duncan to drop his gun. Duncan disobeys, and, letting
Carol go, sprints back the way he came. Carol yells at him
not to run, but this also Duncan disobeys, and after
refusing to stop, is shot by the officer in the back.
Both gunmen are taken to County, and Carol is onhand to give
the ER docs the "bullet" on Duncan. In the ER, she insists
on calling procedures and dominating the operation even
though she's not even working there at present, and has to
be brushed off by both Doug and Kerry. (Doug also notices
Carol's fevered attention to Duncan.) As for the robbers'
fate, Lydia predicts that James will pull through, since
the bullet merely hit his spleen, but Duncan doesn't make it.
Walking numbly out of the ER, Carol is met by Doug, who asks
her twice if she's all right. "I'm fine," she replies, and
apologizes for her behavior in the ER. "Forget about in
there," insists Doug. "I'm just glad you're okay." Carol
is followed outside by Kerry, who tells her, "We've missed
you around here." "I've missed it too," says Carol, adding,
"I love my job, Kerry." "I know," Kerry replies. Carol
then announces that she's going to go home, and does exactly
that.
-----------------------------------------------------------
I think I might need to be examined by Jami Gertz's new
character, psych attending Dr. Pomerantz, because I'm of two minds
about this episode.
Just under two years ago, in the normally dormant post-sweeps
March schedule, "ER" delivered what many believe is the series'
best episode to date, "Love's Labor Lost", the one where Mark Greene
operates on a pregnant woman who dies after giving induced birth.
By dispensing with the show's normal multiple-story formula and
concentrating on a single, proportionately-enlarged story, the show
was able to focus the viewer's attention along a roller coaster
biorhythm of drama and action, and NBC was probably surprised to
discover the next day that the episode had become a singular
water cooler phenom unlike any episode to date at that point.
Recognizing a good thing when they see it, the producers have chosen
to eventually craft the same type of intense, single-level show
a few times since to pull in ratings, a stunt which usually works.
Episodes like "Hell and High Water", "ER"'s highest-rated week
to date (and to a lesser extent, "The Healers" and "Fear of
Flying") were promoted like miniature movies-of-the-week, with
main storylines that emphasized high drama and danger.
This idea is good and bad (and I'm getting to this week's
episode soon, so be patient). It's good because sometimes an
intense shot of drama is just what the doctor ordered, no pun
intended, to turn a pivotal character's personal story down a
new path, a la Mark and "Love's Labor Lost". By focusing on a
single character through most of an episode, we sometimes are
allowed unusually close scrutiny of their individual
underpinnings, and good, complex characterization is the lifeblood
of this show. The idea is also bad, however, because it sometimes
is used to tilt a story into over-the-top sensationalism, which
I felt "Hell and High Water" threatened to do. There is a point
at which The Event becomes more important than the character,
and when that happens, "ER" can turn into "Asteroid", and
exploiting the cliche trappings of disaster movies, currently
in vogue, is something I would really hate to see happen to my
favorite show.
"The Long Way Around" was one of the good examples of
this "ER" trend, and it was one of the bad, as well.
Despite how much space I've spent harping about how
this episode is part of a pattern, it does do something new for
"ER" (although old for television), and that is to utilize
the "fishbowl" technique of the one-act play. The idea is that
when you have nothing more than a closed-off room with a handful
of characters, no technological tricks and no multiple scenes,
it can allow a pure sort of drama to emerge through the
interaction among the characters. This concept has produced
some remarkable plays and some excellent television, and also
some lackluster plays and some irritating television. (Also
some good and bad movies.) I *like* the concept itself, and
I think it's terrific that Lydia Woodward tried a stab at
making it work for "ER", because it's a very challenging form;
since dialogue propels the action, it has to be just right.
Here, I think it succeeded on a couple of levels, and failed on
others. For one thing, a wise choice was made in picking
Carol Hathaway as the episode's star. No other character would
have really fit the format just now at this point in the show's
chronology. With pre-med classes, owning a house, grappling
with hospital administration, dealing with the attitudes of her
fellow nurses, and generally wondering with each decision if she's
made the right choice, there's more going on in Carol's
mind, and in her life, than with any other character currently on
the show. Carol is in a state of transition, as are some of the
other main characters, but to me, the sense of her place in the
world, the tangibility of the choices she makes, that quick
gasp of breath she takes before stepping forward into a new crisis
-- all that seems very real. It's the most genuine element on
the show, and her character, I think, is the most fully realized.
When the episode opens on a shot of her waking up in the morning,
we get more of a sense, not just from Julianna Margulies presentation,
but from the character's history, exactly what her attitude is.
Compare with Doug Ross or John Carter, who are generally ciphers
upon waking up, until they get up and do something else.
As a character study of Carol Hathaway, I think "The Long
Way Around" generally succeeds. Her behavior with Duncan, with
James and with the other hostages wasn't especially flashy or
surprising (which some might mistake for dramatic), but it was
true 100% Carol: brave, firm, uncompromising except when compromise
saves lifes, a flash of hesitancy once or twice when we can
almost see options scrolling across her brain, and utterly
direct and immediate while treating someone. One of my initial,
jumbled impressions of this episode was a little disappointment that
Carol didn't really seem to change, or go through any kind of
crucible, in the process of this episode, but after some thought,
I think I'm glad that things weren't constructed that way. A few
times too often, the show's writers have placed people and events
in such a way to influence the characters in specific directions
like a pinball, such as when Jeanie was inspired to reconsider
her reluctance to date Greg Fischer after a convenient conversation
with an AIDS patient last week. There was no such contrivance
in this episode; instead, we see Carol simply being Carol, and
the writing of the story and character lets the events that
contextualize her personal backstory resonate through her actions.
Unfortunately, since this has to be Carol's Story, the
other handful of largely supporting characters introduced in this
episode took a backseat role. None of the hostages were really
drawn to my liking. The closest any of them got to possessing
real characterization was the scared-but-tough-talking Marisol
Nichols' Angie, whom you could tell had practice from carping
at first graders all day. Mrs. Noviat was ably portrayed by
Ruth Maleczech, but she was basically the same strong,
emotional elderly lady we've seen in a dozen other episodes, and
here she wasn't allowed to exhibit hardly any emotion aside
from grief. Mason Gamble, whom I half-expected would become
a talentless MacCauley Culkin clone after his hijinks on and off
the camera in 1995's Dennis the Menace movie, actually showed
some real acting chops in a couple of scenes, but I had to dock
him since I generally dislike it when the show trots a child
onto the screen to generate pity points. That leaves the
three virtual non-entities, Javier, Lockhart and Mr. Duzak,
although Jan Rubes gets a nice moment as the latter when his
character nobly refuses to take liquor for his pain since he's
an alcoholic.
That brings us to stunt-casting coup Ewan McGregor, who
is probably the hottest British actor since Hugh Grant following
his charismatic turn as a junkie in Trainspotting. McGregor's
Scottish burr, good looks and boyish cheek have won him many
fans, although personally, I think he's perfect playing the
completely amoral goofball he did in Shallow Grave. His
character here, Duncan Stewart, is a sort of reverse mirror of
his Shallow Grave performance: he's a dangerous gunman instead
of a mere affluent twit, but unlike Shallow Grave's Alex, who
gets a happy ending he doesn't deserve, Duncan is redeemable
but meets a tragic fate. I'm not sure if McGregor's talent
really lies with the crook-with-a-golden-heart type -- he was
at his best in the episode when shouting Trainspotting-style
barbs ("I'm not gonna hurt him, I'm just gonna kill him!")
-- but he was fairly effective, particularly as Duncan begins
to subtly respond to Carol's attempts to reach out to him.
Despite the chemistry between McGregor and Julianna
Margulies, and despite that I think their characters *did*
possess a natural bond, I couldn't help but feel manipulated
when the script dropped pieces of their connection into
view, one by one. Duncan despairs about killing a man, which
spurs Carol into revealing that she did the same.
Duncan mentions that he wants to be something better than what
he is, which prompts Carol into obliquely referencing her
med school ambitions. On the one hand, these were important
elements that should have been on everyone's mind at some
point, but on the other hand, they also felt like flash cards
being shown to the camera.
The final act, which takes the story back into the
ER, was precise enough to bounce Carol off of both Doug and
Kerry, the twin poles of Carol's professional gestalt. I
was especially pleased to see Doug's pre-eminent attitude
being concern but not overbearingly so. Hmm, perhaps these
two are just going to be really good friends after all. I
know I certainly wouldn't mind.
I've seen this episode three times now, and I think I
appreciate it more with each viewing; either that, or
repeated exposure dulls me to its flaws and warms me to its
strengths. After much thought, and considerable mental
seesawing, I think I have to say that my conclusion is this:
As an edge-of-your-seat sweeps month blockbuster
television event, this episode more or less fails. But as a
carefully crafted, well-acted and contextually relevant
character study of this season's best and most significant
figure, it succeeds -- and then some.
Some assorted comments:
--Most people who'll read this are already aware that
I was dreadfully late with this week's summary/review,
and for that I offer my regrets. Both circumstance
(working late Thursday) and carelessness (I set
my VCR incorrectly) contributed. But the heroine of
the hour is none other than alt.tv.er's own Tirya,
who was gracious enough to quickly mail me a copy
(Federal Express, mind you, not U.S. Mail) which I
received less than 36 hours after the episode aired
Thursday night. I'm very grateful to have such
friends on the Internet, and I hope they stick around.
--I noticed some debate over Carol's interaction with
Ducan, with a number of people attributing her
seemingly inscrutable bond with him to the so-called
"Stockholm Syndrome", the relationship of dependence
that supposedly forms between a hostage and his or
her captor. As I understand it, Carol didn't
endure the type or duration of the conditions that
would have contributed to such a syndrome. Instead,
I thought her relationship with Duncan was wholly
believable; as a perceptive judge of character,
Carol assessed Duncan as a wayward soul, who had
gotten caught up in events beyond his control, and
would reform if given the chance. Tragically,
that chance was not in Duncan's future.
--I was a little confused by the opening "Previously,
on ER" clip, which seems to be typically used to
"remind" the viewer of past events that will have
a bearing on the current episode. Except for the
ones relating to Carol, none of the clips
shown (from Benton's appendectomy, to Mark's
relationship with Nina, to Doug's treatment of
Jad Heuston, to Carla's pregnancy) had a direct
affect on this week's show. Next week's promises
to be a plot-filled doozy, though.
--That's all my comments, since this was an unusually
detail-less episode. Remember, only two more
episodes (I think) until the March hiatus!
--Line of the Week--
Carol: "I hate it when [Robert] calls me 'Miss
Hathaway'."
Leon: "Yeah, it's a real crime when kids show that kinda
respect."
---
Scott Hollifield * sco...@cris.com * http://www.cris.com/~scotth/
Ken Stitzel
Scott Hollifield (sco...@cris.com) wrote:
Yet another dang perceptive little summary/review! Glad
Tirya came to the rescue--wish I had such a gaurdian angel
with a VCR (mine won't record anymore).
Scotty, I think you are right that the episode worked fairly
well as a character study of "Carol in a crisis", a "fishbowl"
look at one of the ER's most interesting characters.
But, as you said, the single-character episode "sometimes is
used to tilt a story into over-the-top sensationalism".
First, the episode bears a little TOO MUCH similarity to "Hell
and High Water": i.e., put the character from the ER
into a new dangerous situation and, lo and behold, the
character is a hero! Not quite like Doug's situation, but
this was certainly the impression the dialog gave when Carol
talked to Angie in the ER. Sure, ER people are bright and
capable, but....
: Despite the chemistry between McGregor and Julianna
: Margulies, and despite that I think their characters *did*
: possess a natural bond, I couldn't help but feel manipulated
: when the script dropped pieces of their connection into
: view, one by one.
Agreed--this chemistry seemed just a bit manipulative.
At first, I attributed this to an assumption of the Stockholm
Syndrome at work (hostages begin to identify with their kidnappers),
but then I realized that happens only after a long time. The
identification seemed a little TOO manufactured.
Furthermore, Carol seemed much TOO RELAXED at the end. Maybe
she was exhausted, but she hardly seemed anxious to find out
if everyone else was OK. Maybe it's different for medical
people who see mayhem every day, but even the smaller-town
ER nurses I know have their bad days. A few episodes like
this would give common folk a bad case of post-traumatic
stress disorder. It just seemed a little weird and inexplicable
to see Carol taking it so calmly at the end.
I also had problems with plot holes and lapses in believability:
* Why didn't the robbers try to shoot the damn lock off the
back gated door at the beginning? It looked like it was
held closed by a small padlock, for gosh sakes. They
certainly weren't reluctant to wield their guns...
* I can see that maybe Carol <could have> believably stayed
with Duncan administering CPR all the way to the ER, but
shouldn't she have let the paramedics have taken over at
some point? If nothing else, their hands might be cleaner...
(maybe she feared another Jerry incident ;-).
* The cops didn't seem to have the building scoped out too
well, what with the robber and Carol nipping out the back
so easily. I'm sorry, but it seems a big city SWAT team
would have been all over that building like flies
over...something that flies like. My brother-in-law (BIL)
was caught up in a similar incident of urban violence and this
just doesn't seem consistent.
* Why didn't Carol ever talk to the cops at the end??? Did the
writers forget about this? Evidently the cops did, and there
were certainly cops in the ER when Carol walked out. Guess
they forgot all about one of their key witnesses. I'm sorry,
even with Carol trying to administer CPR to the robber, this
just doesn't seem real. After my BIL's experience, (guy with an
automatic weapon goes berserk on the street and cops return
fire at the psycho from my BIL's apartment), he described
the long tedious wait as the police carefully interviewed
everyone involved. I'm sorry, but this seemed like a MAJOR lapse
in believability. Carol herself was irresponsible not to
talk to them herself. The writers could at least have shown
her walking out of a debriefing or something.... Sheesh!
: That brings us to stunt-casting coup Ewan McGregor, who
: is probably the hottest British actor since Hugh Grant
Indeed. This episode wouldn't have worked without Duncan's character
being so well played. Thanks for the info on Ewan.
--
Ken Stitzel (k...@fc.hp.com)
Learning Products Engineer (tech writer with functional enhancements)
Hewlett-Packard Company (a pretty cool company to work for)
Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
(Opinions stated herein are provided without warranty and are not
representative of official or unofficial HP policy on ER snarking ;-)
Colleen McGhee
Thanks, Scott! I know many of us have missed your excellent summaries
and reviews the past few days. You always have interesting things
to say instead of resorting to "Way cool episode" or "This episode
was a piece of shit" or "Isn't George Clooney hot?" and this time
was no exception.
Thanks again!
Colleen
Mark VandeKamp
Just a few nits to pick and a comment or two.
sco...@cris.com (Scott Hollifield) writes:
>Her day's plans change
>drastically,
>however, she stops into a local convenience store and finds herself
>in the middle of a stickup, which begins shortly after she walks in.
>The two gunmen, one with a Scottish accent and one with an American
>accident, are in the middle of demanding money from one of the
^^^^^^^^ --Freudian slip?
>elderly proprietors, Mrs. Novotny, when Mr. Novotny emerges from the
>back with a shotgun. The standoff lasts only a second before
^^^^^^^ --not a shotgun. Looked like a semi-automatic rifle
(aka "assault weapon") to me. A shotgun wound to the abdomen and the guy
bleeds out in a couple minutes.
End of nit-picking. I guess there's really only one there. On to
comments.
> I think I might need to be examined by Jami Gertz's new
>character, psych attending Dr. Pomerantz, because I'm of two minds
>about this episode.
I can sympathize. I think it was engaging but flawed.
> Just under two years ago, in the normally dormant post-sweeps
>March schedule, "ER" delivered what many believe is the series'
>best episode to date, "Love's Labor Lost", ....
<snip stuff about single-thread episodes>
I think part of the impact of LLL was exactly because it was the first
departure from formula. I find it interesting to read posts from
disappointed viewers who missed it the first time around and find that it
doesn't live up to their expectations. Part of that might be because all
of us who watched it on first airing didn't know that there would be no
other plots. The episode snuck up on us and blasted us with an undiluted
emotional hammer. That element of surprise can't be recaptured. And every
time the writers use the alternate formula it becomes more routine.
I think that lack of surprise is part of why I was disappointed in the
Hell and High Water episode. I saw the commercials and knew it was going
to be "Doug's episode". I had expectations about the outcomes. I watched
the show and instead of being lost in the story I was critiquing the plot
and camera work as it was being presented. Shots that might have seemed
appropriate if I was caught up in the action seemed over the top
(actually, WAY over the top). I still think LLL was a better episode, but
H&HW had one strike against it because it wasn't the ground-breaker.
Thursday's episode suffers from some of the same comparisons.
> As a character study of Carol Hathaway, I think "The Long
>Way Around" generally succeeds.
<snip again>
I agree with this sentiment. I liked this episode. One of the keys to my
understanding of the events shown was to think of Carol as someone who
values life above all else. More than law or any other ideology, Carol is
working to try and save lives. This is, of course, consistent with her
own recovery from attempted suicide, and her recent mistake with the
transfusion, but the fact that it is consistent doesn't make it boring --
at least not to this viewer.
> That brings us to stunt-casting coup Ewan McGregor,....
<final snip and final comment>
I was very much impressed with this fellow's acting ability. The ability
to convey confusion, regret, fear, and ferocity -- switching from one to
another convinvcingly and rapidly is something I don't often see on tv.
Good stuff from "across the pond".
Mark Vande Kamp
P.S. Thanks, Scott for all your great summaries. And Tirya gets the
"play of the day" for her assist on this one.
P.P.S. LOW for me was the one that went something like:
".. If I don't hear that 'ping-ping' I'll shoot the machine. We all know
I will too, because I've already shot the coffee-pot..."
sarah
sco...@cris.com (Scott Hollifield) wrote:
>PLOT ONE: PLAYING HOSTAGE
There was only one plot Scott :)
So I'm not quite sure Scott how you really feel about this episode, so why
don't you put it on a scale of 1 to 10 for me :)
> --I was a little confused by the opening "Previously,
> on ER" clip, which seems to be typically used to
> "remind" the viewer of past events that will have
> a bearing on the current episode. Except for the
> ones relating to Carol, none of the clips
> shown (from Benton's appendectomy, to Mark's
> relationship with Nina, to Doug's treatment of
> Jad Heuston, to Carla's pregnancy) had a direct
> affect on this week's show. Next week's promises
> to be a plot-filled doozy, though.
Yes, I think somebody screwed up here, it is obviously a previous scene
section for next week's episode.
sarah
sarah
me...@u.washington.edu (Mark VandeKamp) wrote:
>P.S. Thanks, Scott for all your great summaries. And Tirya gets the
>"play of the day" for her assist on this one.
>
>P.P.S. LOW for me was the one that went something like:
>
>".. If I don't hear that 'ping-ping' I'll shoot the machine. We all know
>I will too, because I've already shot the coffee-pot..."
That one had me howling!
sarah
Derek R. Larson
In article <5ed9d6$c...@nntp4.u.washington.edu>,
>>back with a shotgun. The standoff lasts only a second before
>(aka "assault weapon") to me.
It was a .22, not an "assault weapon" by any working definition, but a
small-caliber target gun with a short folding stock. It struck me as an
odd choice as a defensive weapon-- but the wound was pretty realistic,
since it would have been at best about a 40 grain bullet (tiny). A
shotgun would indeed have left a large hole in his abdomen...no need for
Carol then.
--
________________________________________________________________________
Derek R. Larson Indiana University Department of History
"Eastward I go by force, but Westward I go free!" -H. D. Thoreau
-------------http://php.ucs.indiana.edu/~drlarson/home.html-------------
Michael Patten
As for the weapon that Mr. Novotny (sp) used (see posts below), to me
it appeared to be an M-1 carbine. This is a WW 2 vintage weapon that
fires a 30 cal bullet. Up until Vietnam this weapon was used by
officers, paratroopers and others who needed a "light" rifle.
The old guy probally had it because he used one during the "Big One"
and thought it was a good gun to have (I have an uncle who fits this
bill). I don't think he would get some facny folding stock gun.
drla...@copper.ucs.indiana.edu (Derek R. Larson) wrote:
>In article <5ed9d6$c...@nntp4.u.washington.edu>,
>Mark VandeKamp <me...@u.washington.edu> wrote:
>>Just a few nits to pick and a comment or two.
>>
>>>elderly proprietors, Mrs. Novotny, when Mr. Novotny emerges from the
>>>back with a shotgun. The standoff lasts only a second before
>> ^^^^^^^ --not a shotgun. Looked like a semi-automatic rifle
>>(aka "assault weapon") to me.
>It was a .22, not an "assault weapon" by any working definition, but a
>small-caliber target gun with a short folding stock. It struck me as an
>odd choice as a defensive weapon-- but the wound was pretty realistic,
>since it would have been at best about a 40 grain bullet (tiny). A
>shotgun would indeed have left a large hole in his abdomen...no need for
>Carol then.
>--
>________________________________________________________________________
>Derek R. Larson Indiana University Department of History
> "Eastward I go by force, but Westward I go free!" -H. D. Thoreau
>-------------http://php.ucs.indiana.edu/~drlarson/home.html-------------
========================================================================
Michael L. Patten
Penn State University
Email: ml...@psu.edu
si...@dc.net
In article <33092b20...@news.cris.com>, sco...@cris.com (Scott
Hollifield) wrote:
One of my initial,
> jumbled impressions of this episode was a little disappointment that
> Carol didn't really seem to change, or go through any kind of
> crucible, in the process of this episode, but after some thought,
> I think I'm glad that things weren't constructed that way.
I think Carol did change. The story arc is bigger, but this episode shows,
Carol does not let "feeling emotions", control her actions. The old
Carol (suicide, wedding breakup, leaving the ER,etc..) reacted to what she
felt in those contexts. In this episode, she still feels, but does not let
it control her actions. In the ER, she calls out orders and takes charge.
She realizes the good and bad of helping people, but "loves [her] job".
Carol is not overwhelmed by her feelings, which has always been one of her
character flaws.
Shashin
Nancy O'Connor
Scott Hollifield wrote:
> That brings us to stunt-casting coup Ewan McGregor, who
> is probably the hottest British actor since Hugh Grant following
> his charismatic turn as a junkie in Trainspotting. McGregor's
> Scottish burr, good looks and boyish cheek have won him many
> fans, although personally, I think he's perfect playing the
> completely amoral goofball he did in Shallow Grave. His
> character here, Duncan Stewart, is a sort of reverse mirror of
> his Shallow Grave performance: he's a dangerous gunman instead
> of a mere affluent twit, but unlike Shallow Grave's Alex, who
> gets a happy ending he doesn't deserve, Duncan is redeemable
> but meets a tragic fate.
I am unclear as to the ending of Shallow Grave--I thought Alex was dead
at the end. I realise he appeared to be revived, and laughing, but I
interpreted this as his having the last laugh--albeit from the grave.
There is a cop taking pictures of him in the last scene while he is
laughing hysterically, isn't there? Why take pictures of him if he
isn't dead?
Nancy
Tirya
Ken Stitzel (k...@fc.hp.com) said...
> Scott Hollifield (sco...@cris.com) wrote:
>
> Yet another dang perceptive little summary/review! Glad
> Tirya came to the rescue--wish I had such a gaurdian angel
> with a VCR (mine won't record anymore).
Well... I *do* have a backlog of ER episodes (no idea how many, since we
occasionally re-use the tape)... but I could be convinced to catalog them
and possibly make dupes...
The going price is a comparable number of Law & Order episodes from the
first five seasons (i.e. before they ditched Logan).
::grinz:: Anyone interested?
Tirya
--
ti...@enteract.com http://www.enteract.com/~tirya NO JUNK EMAIL
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't want to start any blasphemous rumors,
But I think that God's got a sick sense of humor
And when I die, I expect to find him laughing.
- Depeche Mode, "Blasphemous Rumors"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dana Akanova
>I am unclear as to the ending of Shallow Grave--I thought Alex was dead
>at the end. I realise he appeared to be revived, and laughing, but I
>interpreted this as his having the last laugh--albeit from the grave.
>
>There is a cop taking pictures of him in the last scene while he is
>laughing hysterically, isn't there? Why take pictures of him if he
>isn't dead?
They were waiting for the paramedics/docs to arrive before they could
move him (removing the knife would be dangerous for the knife was
prob-ly what was keeping the wound closed). Policemen had to take
pics of the crime scene.