Warning: Spoiler Alert
Religious fervor’s lead to more deaths of human beings, than probably any other cause of death throughout man’s existence on this planet. Although we’ve evolved and advanced in so many other areas, organized religions and their followers, still drive people apart as much in the USA in 2015, as it did if France back in the late 1600’s. This week’s episode of the BBCA Original Series “The Musketeers,” concentrated greatly on religion, as a French young peasant woman, became a hero to her fellow citizens, as she received messages each night in her sleep from God.
The young woman believes it is her mission to join French King Louis XIII, on the battlefield, as they lead the French people to war over Spain. The young woman says that God’s revealed to her that Spain’s King Phillip’s actually Satan and he’s called upon her to drive him from the throne. The woman named Emilie’s and she’s gathered an army of followers from the small towns and villages in the country, on her journey to Paris, and are willing to follow her straight to the Spanish border and fight, without a weapon among them.
We get our first look at the people’s prophet at the same time the Musketeer’s do as they’ve set up camp on the outskirts of Paris. Emilie’s frightfully young, no older than her early twenties, thin and frail looking, resembling a young Cissy Spacek, when she portrayed Carrie in the seventies. However, she’s got the heart and courage of a lion and the faith that only a true zealot possesses. She addresses her followers and the only sound’s her voice, ringing clearly through the forest.
Some of the men recognize the Musketeers and ask why they’ve arrived. Athos asks Emilie if she’s aware that forming an army without the King’s permission’s treason and she replies they love King Louis and want to meet with him and have him join their crusade. D’Artagnan, Porthos and Athos, leave the camp saying they’ll pass their request on to the palace.
The King’s soldiers return to the palace and talk to the Musketeer’s Commander, Captain Treville and their mate Aramis. The three who saw her say she’s touched in the head, D’Artagnan tells the pair she even fainted in the middle of talking to them. Aramis says that religious people refer to that as the special sickness and berates his comrades for not reading the Bible more often. Treville tells Aramis, since he’s so knowledgeable, he’ll act as their spy in Emilie’s camp to determine just what’s occurring. When asked what Louis thinks of the situation, Treville responds the King’s concentrating on matters of State.
Actually Louis’ concentrating on his new playmate Milady De Winter, excited as a boy on Christmas day and randy as a teen at senior prom. He tells Milady he’s got a present for her and she says a small principality, would be lovely and he laughs at her sense of humor, then gives her a new necklace. He asks her to take off her ever-present choker, but she tells Louis it hides a birth mark, however he can see other parts of her frame if he desires.
The citizens are attacking Spanish citizens in France, the French Ambassador’s secretary’s ripped from his carriage by an angry mob, found by a young boy and his dog, hours later, dead and covered in cuts and bruises. Ambassador Perales, summons Red Army Captain and his agent Count Rochefort, to complain and to tell him to convince the King to arrest Emilie and put an end to all the madness. Rochefort asks why he should as he’s told and Perales reminds him rather brusquely, that Rochefort works for Spain.
Rochefort tells Perales to watch his tone, as soon he’ll rule France with Queen Ann at his side and he’ll have the Ambassador’s head on a chopping block. Perales stunned, looks Rochefort in the eye and tells him he’s as mad as a rabid dog and Rochefort slaps him across the face. The Ambassador tells the undercover spy, that’s the second time he’s hit him, there won’t be a third time.
Aramis’ about to leave the bed of the Royal Prince’s governess Marguerite, who he started sleeping with to have more contact with his son. She says he’s got time before he needs to leave, but he says he’s got to get to work. She asks him if he loves her and he tells her, he’s very fond of her. Then he says that she needs to marry someone from her own class, as a soldier he’s below her. However, until she meets Mr. Right, let’s have a good time, then takes off.
Perales decides to pay a visit to Rochefort’s role-playing call-girl. She thinks Perales wants a roll in the hay, but he quickly corrects her, telling her this concerns Rochefort, then opens a money pouch emptying the contents on her table. She says I don’t think you want the usual thing and he smiles and says that’s correct.
Emilie’s talking to her mother about the troubling visions she’s had recently and her mother says, that God’s showing her what will occur if she fails. Aramis walks into their tent, but he’s soon followed by six other guys who tackle him, they ask who he is and he says he came to meet Emilie. She recognizes him as a Musketeer, he tells her he heard her talk, got so inspired he deserted his post to join her. She looks him in the eye and says sit down and eat.
Rochefort runs into Milady in a hallway, when it’s just the two of them and pins her against a wall, asking who she is and what’s her game, he removes the choker and sees the noose-mark around her neck. He asks her what the King would think if he found out his new lover got convicted for murder. He then says the conversation’s not over.
Aramis and Emilie get along well and he says that people call her the new Joan Of Arc, she says she’s not Joan, the thought of being burned to death haunts her. She then tells Aramis, she’s glad he’s joined her movement, that he will be right by her side when they march into Spain. He says they have no weapons, does she expect God to protect her army and she tells him of course he will.
As Emilie sleeps, she screams in terror through the night and Aramis hears it all. The next morning, Emilie’s mother Josette, tells Aramis her daughter wants to see him, but he’s going to help her first. The Musketeer talks to Josette about Emilie’s screams and the old woman says when God talks to her daughter, sometimes it rips her like a hurricane.
He then asked her if hearing her daughter scream like that doesn’t bring her great anxiety? She responded, that her daughters an innocent, God gave her to Josette to protect. He goes to see Emilie and she tells him that he was in her dream last night and the two of them will meet with King Louis. Aramis asks her if all her dreams come true and she says they do.
Ambassador Perales suddenly hears a crowd on the street below, and rocks start crashing through his office window, the Musketeers tell the crowd to stop and go inside the Embassy to rescue the Ambassador. Perales says this is madness, that he spends every day trying to make peace between two Catholic nations, but some in Paris and Barcelona, have their own agendas. Porthos says you can blame this on Emilie and Perales says he’s referring to someone else.
Queen Ann’s beside herself, not only was she born and raised in Spain, her brother’s Phillip the Spanish King. She tells Constance, that she’s heartbroken over the death of Spaniards in Paris, due to that silly girl and her silly visions. Constance says that her followers say all she wants is to talk to the King, but Ann says he’s too entranced with Milady to meet with her. So she tells Constance, the two of them will go to see Emilie, not a great plan.
Another plan that didn’t work out was Perales attempt to get the call-girl to murder Rochefort, she attempted to stab him, but he easily overpowered her. He asked who had set up the hit and she told him it was Perales, then Rochefort took the knife she tried to stab him with and gutted her, the life slowly oozing out of her body.
Back in the woods, Emilie tells Aramis that her followers are restless and want to go on and march to Spain and take Phillip from the throne. She asks why Louis doesn’t love his people, when they have so much love for him? Both the King and her are servants of God and God wants them to do their bidding. Aramis asks her how she’s so sure that’s God’s plan and she smiles and says she realizes, Aramis doesn’t believe her. But she tells him, you won’t betray me.
Rochefort seeks out a Priest that was a trusted aide to Cardinal Richelieu and asks what he know of Milady De Winter and the Priest replies she just arrived in Paris. Rochefort knows he’s lying and starts bringing up some sordid affairs the Priest’s involved in. He then tells Rochefort that Milady was the Cardinal’s agent and assistant, she’s a spy and a murdering whore. Rochefort thanks the cleric for playing along and says he might spare his life.
Constance and the Queen quickly realize how stupid Ann’s plan was as Emilie’s followers and mother start saying they should hang her, so that Louis can marry a French woman and make her the new Queen. Luckily for them Aramis is there, but more lucky is the decision by Emilie to have God instruct her what to do that evening while she slept. Until that time, they’re guests of Emilie’s.
A messenger arrives with a package for Perales and Porthos brings it to him, the Ambassador quickly opens then screams as the box contains one of the call-girl’s ears. Porthos then opens the box and looks at it and Perales says he knows where I am, but won’t tell Treville or the soldiers whom he’s referring to, saying he’ll only tell Louis or Phillip.
As much pleasure as Louis exhibited earlier, De Winter may have shown even more pleasure she wakes up in her own bed in the palace. She’s made it, life doesn’t get better than this, she’s the Royal Courtesan and will receive all the benefits that come with the position, she opens her window and takes in the view of the grounds, when her mood quickly sinks as she sees Rochefort waving at her holding an envelope.
Rochefort has a list containing every crime she ever committed, but offers her a deal. Commit one murder for him, the list disappears and all debts are taken care of. She agrees to the deal.
Aramis gives Ann a cup of the broth and says it’s quite tasty, Emilie says she’s not hungry so Constance eats her bowl. A short time later Constance has these terrible nightmares, involving Louis, Ann, a masked executioner with a two-sided hatchet and lots and lots of blood. She wakes up screaming, her clothes soaking wet and Ann says she had a nightmare, but Constance said it was more real than any nightmare she ever experienced. Emilie, says perhaps Constance received a vision.
A messenger arrives with a written order by Rochefort saying that a carriage’s arrived that will take him to Barcelona. Treville sends D’Artagnan, ahead to make sure the carriage’s there, but for some reason he decides not to wait for his soldiers response. The four soldiers, walk towards where the carriage’s said to be, while D’Artagnan arrives, quickly realizes it’s a trap and runs back to warn the others. However it’s too late De Winter stabbed Perales with a poison pin, while all were walking he died soon after.
Emilie wakes up the next morning, telling all that God told her to free Constance and Queen Ann and that Aramis will take them back to the palace. She tells Ann however to send the King that it’s imperative that they meet as soon as possible and Ann says she’ll do everything in her power to have her husband meet with her. Aramis fills a canteen from the bowl of soup that Constance ate the night before, he explained that bowl was meant for Emilie and perhaps the soup caused the visions. He asks her to summon the Royal Doctor when they return to the palace.
The pair present the soup to the doctor, but he says he’s not an alchemist, however, he’ll have a look-see. Turns out it was the broth that had caused the visions as Josette had fed her daughter “Magic Mushrooms,” from childhood onward and the psychedelic visions resulted from the narcotics in the mushrooms.
Rochefort denies sending the message saying it’s not his signature and the stamp’s a poor imitation of his. He then blames Treville and the Musketeers for Perales death. Louis explodes when he hears the news, having the fire in his belly generously stoked by Rochefort. Louis sends Treville and the Musketeers to arrest Emilie for the murder of Perales, though completely innocent.
However Aramis has a far better idea and a way to solve the problem. They tell her she’s got an audience with the King, so she rides away from her followers, the conquering heroine. When they arrive at the palace, Treville tells her she’s under arrest for the murder of Perales. Constance, Athos and Aramis all tell her they know she’s innocent, but her mother’s been drugging her, causing the visions. They go through a hellish night of withdrawal, but then she crashes and sleeps 15-hours. She had no dreams.
She doesn’t want to accept it but she does and Aramis tells her there’s only one way to make things right. She goes back to all her followers, denounces Josette and says she was deceived and in turn deceived them. There’s no mission, no war, go home and live your lives. But the folks are just stunned and stand there, in a last-ditch effort Josette says they substituted another girl for her daughter and she’ll lead them all to Spain. One of Emilie’s men screams false prophets, hits Josette in the head and she died instantly. Emilie told Aramis to leave. The army dispersed and all went home, crisis averted.
Except France needs a scapegoat for Perales murder and Rochefort talks King Louis into dismissing Captain Treville. When the four Musketeers arrive at the palace, Treville tells them he’s relieved of duty and no longer their Captain.
The Story Continues Next Saturday night at 9:00 pm on BBCA.
