Episode Report Card Demian: B+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Something Better Change
By Demian | Season 7 | Episode 12 | Aired on 01.22.2005
Anyway, the boys finally reach the point of this scene when Zankou admits he broke into Straight Estates for the sole purpose of swiping the remaining Egyptian potion vial. Brody loudly insists he'll not surrender it -- nor will he use it against an Avatar -- until he's certain the sisters are safe. Zankou's forced to admit that it will take quite some time for the paranoia to reach its full effect. "And to that end, I suggest you come with me," he adds. "Why?" Brody squints. "We wouldn't want you to fall asleep with everyone else, now would we?" Zankou croons lightly with a slight smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye. Goddamn. He's flirting with Brody, isn't he? I mean, I'm not imagining this stuff, am I? "You," Zankou continues, sauntering up to Brody to place a firm grip on the latter's upper arms, "are going to be the proverbial straw that breaks the camel's back." Brody's sort of twisting his head away from Zankou while retaining a wary eye contact, as if he's afraid Zankou's going to hike his tongue down Brody's own throat at any second. Heh. Instead, Zankou just smirks once more and blazes out of the apartment with Brody in tow. Good scene.
Not!warts. A scattered and jittery Raige is doing something stupid with the books in the library, and I'm going to ignore the disjointed babbling that pours from her mouth when Piper enters the room because this scene, badly acted as it is by Rose McGowan, exists simply to demonstrate the paranoia crystal's increasing effects on her. The only important bit of this comes when Piper crosses to lead Raige by the arm into the Not-So-Great Hall to perform the Avatars' Menopause spell. As Piper's fingers brush against Raige's skin, a tiny burst of electricity leaps between the two women to sting Piper. "What was that?" Piper goggles. Raige says something stupid by way of response. Piper eyes Raige uneasily and leads her from the room.
Out in the Not-So-Great Hall, Piper quickly descends into her own, far more accurate version of the paranoia as Phoebe jiggles over to greet them. When Raige says something particularly asinine, Phoebe presses her palm against Raige's forehead to check for temperature, and for her troubles receives a sparking burst of paranoia herself. I'm Not Candy and No Name, incidentally, witness the entire exchange, and if the idiot Avatars were as super-wonderful and omniscient as they're supposed to be, you'd think they'd realize what's going on. Zankou, after all, introduced Brody to the paranoia crystal by noting a wizard brought down an entire empire with the damn thing, so the Avatars should be well aware of said crystal, its effects, and how those effects are transmitted from person to person. Whatever. As the gals' erratic, sketchy, and scattered behavior quickly ramps up and begins to detract mightily from an episode that's been pretty damn good so far, I decide to skip ahead to this scene's central point: The Change itself. After offering a few last-minute Zankou-related words of advice to the Manor Morons, the Avatars silently summon Uniqua, who flares into the hall toting a wrought "cartouche." With a soothing yet somewhat detached smile, she offers it to the gals, asking them to place their hands on the thing. The ladies comply, forming a small circle in the middle of the assembled group as the established Avatars plus Dolta, in a larger ring surrounding them, lift their arms with their palms upwards and close their eyes. We never do hear the actual spell, but the cartouche soon enough glows, and a small globe of white light forms to hover above its center. The globe quickly bursts outwards and emits a wavering stream of glowy golden mojo that pours up towards the ceiling before the shot cuts to take in...