BIG BIG SPOILERS - #3.40: The Swan Song for Season Three

[kira]

Thank you very much! Can't blame you for being impatient, since it has taken such a long time for me to upload these episodes. But boy oh boy, you might not want to miss reading about those major events and the Big Twist first-hand! Maybe once they're uploaded you can go back and check 'em out.

I hope you'll introduce yourself, tell us where you're from and how you found the site. And then you can join in on some of the episode threads when you get a chance!

I'm really glad you enjoyed catching up on ASF. See you in Season 04, and thanks a million!

[GaryLee]

OK, I didn't do TOO bad. I suspected something was amuck with Beth when she was introduced in the first season. I'm not sure whether she struck a "familiar" note, or what, but she just seemed as though there were a WHOLE lot more to her than met the eye. But in year 1 she was very much a side character--one I remember commenting on that I was intreagued by and looked forward to getting to know more.

Year 3 made me suspect multiple personality farely early, but I can't say why I felt that. I did catch the Christmas party thing, but didn't quite know what to make of it then.

I grew suspicious when it seemed as though everybody and their sister was being described as being a redhead. Life doesn't have that many redheads, so I became suspicious at that point.

What really caught me was the dress thing at The Lighthouse. I don't know why it jumped out at me, but I caught it immediatly and even scanned back in the episode to check what Danielle was wearing "when last seen." The tight fitting white dress" was, I knew, NOT what Danielle was wearing. I smelled a rat!

I suspected two of the redheads: Beth and Danielle's sister-in-law, Laurie. Laurie's reason would be to somehow get Danielle in trouble. Beth's reasons were obvious to me. I leaned toward Beth at that point.

What convinced me beyond all doubt was the scene were "Danielle" (Banny) flaked out on poor Tris at the start of their trist. It wouldn't make sense for anyone to be having those second thoughts except Beth--a multiple personality. (I already had totally ruled out Danielle as being Tris' lover, so I knew Cam had nothing to do with it and there was nothing to lead me to believe Laurie was having second throughts.)

As I told Kira elsewhere, going into the Opera, I was pretty certain that "Danielle" was really Beth. That put a whole different slant on reading it because everyone seemed determined to get Tris, Beth, and everyone else in the box at once. That would be diasterous at the start of the program! Whould would happen. It was like watching a program where you know the murderer in advance and see them slowly stalking the victim, only to have the scene change, the hero(ine) change direction, or move out of danger at the last moment. Finally at the last second of the episode, Tris makes the discovery--that I had figured out by the dresses being wrong.

For the other thread: Shock or Suspense, I have to say that the suspense of this thread was, for me, riviting! I'm and old Hitchcock fan, so I suppose that it just fits my needs!

Great writing, though. I missed a lot of the little clues---though remember the scenes well, so they all stuck in my memory for some reason!

Good work, Kira!

Gary

[kira]

Many many thanks, Gary. The redhead thing was a definite teaser all the way. FWIW, "Danielle" was usually described with coppery hair only when the light was striking her. Real Danielle has auburn wavy hair (deep dark red), Laurie has straight hair that's a more brassy, true red (think Julianne Moore ... or for soap fans, Laura Leighton and Jamie Lunier on Melrose Place). Beth's hair is curly and more of a brown with red highlights. Oh, and our remaining redhead, Rena, is more of a strawberry blonde with straight hair. Only one of these gets her hair color from a bottle. Any bets on which one?

(Hey, when playing tricks on the audience, a wicked author can certainly call all of the above manes "red" with impugnity. Such are the delights of a text-based series! This storyline would have been impossible to pull off in any other format.)

I'm very glad you enjoyed the suspense so much. This and the di sangue plots were probably the most elaborate and fun to write, so it's extraordinarily rewarding when the audience reacts so well to 'em!