Midnight, Texas Season 1 Episode 1: Pilot Recap

November 1, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ Leave a comment

Happy Halloween! I’m going to rewatch season 1 of Midnight, Texas, so for fun I’ll try to write some quick recaps. Let’s see how far into the season I get. I recapped season 2 as it aired.

Midnight, Texas is a 2 season show that aired from 2017-18, currently streaming on Peacock, which is loosely based on the 3 book series by Charlaine Harris. The books take place in the True Blood/Sookie Stackhouse universe with a couple of minor character crossovers, but the show didn’t acknowledge the connection. It originally ran on the NBC broadcast network, so it’s also much tamer than True Blood, but it’s still an hour long dramedy about supernaturals finding refuge in a small town in the southern US.

The main character of Midnight, Texas is Manfred Bernardo (Francois Arnaud), a medium from a long line of mediums, who was raised by his recently deceased grandmother and is still close to her ghost. Said ghost now dwells in the RV where they lived as they traveled the country, working their trade. Manfred is on the run from a business deal gone wrong, so Grandma Xylda (Joanne Camp) counsels him to hole up in her old haunt of Midnight, a town where supernaturals are safe to be themselves and everyone has a secret.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 Episode 7 Recap: In Which Diana Rescues Matthew

February 26, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

In episode 7, the series finale, Diana shows that she’s come fully into her power. She rallies the family, including Baldwin, to find Matthew and rescue him from Benjamin’s torture. Then she confronts the Congregation with scientific evidence that the Covenant is helping drive species extinct, and in the process thwarts Gerbert’s plans, while helping bring justice for the long overlooked daemons. Once she’s done saving the creature world, Diana turns back toward Matthew and tying up loose ends with her family.

Recap

The action picks up not long after the end of the previous episode. Dressed in ~~black~~ dark colors, the family gathers in the Sept-Tours great hall to organize the search for Matthew.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 Episode 5: In Which Diana and Matthew Return to Sept-Tours

February 10, 2022March 19, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

In episode 5, the Bishop-Clairmont family and their allies travel to Matthew’s French ancestral home, Sept-Tours, for the twins’ christening. The gathering also serves as a war council as they consider future plans in their fight to modernize the Congregation’s rules and operations. Benjamin takes witches hostage in Poland in the hope of turning them into his own “Diana”. The Congregation discusses the twins and how to deal with the threat they could pose to the established order.

Recap

As Tmrw. by Milk and Bone plays, Ysabeau (Lindsay Duncan) oversees the preparations for the twins’ christening at Sept-Tours and Diana (Teresa Palmer) and Agatha (Tanya Moodie) attend Timothy’s funeral in the Cotswolds, England. Timothy wasn’t exaggerating the extent of his isolation- Diana and Agatha are the only mourners at his funeral. Agatha made the preparations to have him laid to rest in the tiny village cemetery, but she feels bad because she has no idea what he would have wanted for himself.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 Episode 4 Recap: In Which Diana And Matthew Welcome Twins

February 2, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 2 Comments

In episode 4, Diana and Sarah seek the help of a local coven to perform a locator spell to aid in their search for the last missing page. Now that they have more blood samples to work with, Chris and Miriam’s research yields some disappointing results, which Miriam shares with Matthew in New Orleans. Everyone returns to London just in time for Diana to go into labor.

Recap

Diana (Teresa Palmer) sits on her bed, weaving a spell using the knots Goody Alsop taught her in the 16th century, with her grimoire and a pregnancy book beside her. After a minute she stops to take a break, then heads downstairs, where she runs into Gallowglass (Steven Cree). He watches her with affection as she takes a cup of tea from Fernando (Olivier Huband) and greets Phoebe (Adelle Leonce) and Sarah (Alex Kingston). The two women have been sifting through the hundreds of potential TJ Westons who might own the third page from the Book of Life and are getting frustrated.

Diana wonders if the TJ with the page doesn’t want to be found, so she’s been creating a locator spell. Sarah is intrigued by Diana’s idea, but realizes they’ll need a coven, since it takes several witches to work that type of spell. Phoebe, Gallowglass and Fernando worry that working with a coven will alert Peter Knox (Owen Teale) to their activities, but Diana has come too far to let Peter scare her off.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 Episode 3: In Which Matthew Goes to New Orleans and Diana Goes to the Library

January 24, 2022January 25, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 2 Comments

In episode 3, Diana substantially ups her sweater game while she and Phoebe continue their research into the missing pages. Matthew, Marcus and Jack visit New Orleans to convince Marcus’ family to put aside their hatred of Matthew and join the new scion. Gallowglass, Fernando and Sarah bond as Diana’s support crew.

Recap

We begin in New Orleans, home of the large circle of vampires Marcus (Edward Bluemel) made after he grew tired of the de Clermonts and ran away from home to join the circus in the 19th century. No, seriously- several of his children were circus performers before they were vampires. Marcus has always had a sense of fun and adventure. When he created a new home and family that was all his own, he made sure they shared those traits, in addition to wanting warmth and love as much as he did. Then the Congregation, Matthew (Matthew Goode) and Philippe took the community they’d built away from all of them again. They didn’t understand why until last season, more than a century later. Matthew earned the bitterness they feel toward him.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 3 Episode 1 Recap: In Which Diana and Matthew Return to the Present

January 11, 2022January 13, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Fellow creatures, it’s time to travel back to 21st century France and Britain for the 3rd and final season of A Discovery of Witches. After their sojourn in 16th century Europe, Diana and Matthew timewalk straight into Sept-Tours and find themselves in the middle of several crises- as usual. Before long, Matthew’s brother, Baldwin, arrives to stir the pot further.

Season 2 Summary

At the end of season 2, Matthew and Diana had spent almost a year in Elizabethan London, with a side trip to Prague in search of the Book of Life. While there, they spent time with Matthew’s vampire nephew, Gallowglass, and fostered an orphaned human boy, Jack. Before they left, Diana secretly asked the vampire-priest who ruled the creatures of London, Father Hubbard, to watch over Jack for her. On their way to Prague, they stopped at Sept-Tours and stayed with Matthew’s vampire stepfather, Philippe, who sanctioned their mating and marriage, then adopted Diana as his blood-sworn daughter using a vampire blood vow.

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A Discovery of Witches Seasons 1-3: Every Recap in Order

November 8, 2021October 31, 2022 ~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Links to every Metawitches post about A Discovery of Witches, in order. Recaps for the complete series, plus a few extras.

Season 1

Book vs Screen Review: A Discovery of Witches Season 1 vs Book 1 – Review of the first installments of the saga, comparing and contrasting book and series.

A Discovery of Witches Season 1 Episode 1 Recap: In Which Diana Summons a Book and Meets a Vampire – Diana Bishop, a hereditary witch who shuns the use of magic, discovers an unusual book in a British library. Before long, she attracts the attention of witches, vampires and daemons, including Matthew de Clermont, an ancient French vampire.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 1 Episode 7 Recap: In Which Diana and Matthew Travel to America

June 26, 2021June 26, 2021 ~ Metacrone ~ 3 Comments

Following Diana’s rescue from her ordeal with Satu, in episode 7 she and Matthew decide they need a new hiding place where Diana can learn to control her magic. It’s time to visit her aunts at the Bishop ancestral home in America. Miriam and Marcus join them before long.

Baldwin holds off the Congregation by blaming Satu for his failure to bring Diana back to Venice with him. Domenico, who isn’t finished with his revenge on Matthew, goes on the hunt for the Finnish witch.

Agatha tells Hamish about the connection between Sophie and Diana. They wonder if the changes that are coming will finally bring daemons more respect.

Recap

Ysabeau and Marthe walk Matthew and Diana to their helicopter as they prepare to leave for Diana’s aunts’ house in Upstate NY. Diana thanks Ysabeau for everything. Then Ysabeau reminds Matthew that Baldwin will stall the Congregation for now, but he’ll only be able to give them a couple of days head start. She warns Matthew to be ready to lead the fight that’s surely coming, but she’s available to help whenever he needs her. Matthew thanks her, then he and Diana board the helicopter.

I maintain that helicopters have essentially become flying cars for the wealthy.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 1 Episode 6 Recap: In Which Diana Is Kidnapped

June 17, 2021 ~ Metacrone ~ 3 Comments

In episode 6, the de Clermonts search for Diana after she is kidnapped by Satu and Gerbert. Satu attempts to torture Diana’s secrets out of her.

Recap

After abducting her from Sept-Tours while she was on a morning run, Satu flies Diana to an abandoned castle owned by Gerbert. The vampire waits for them there with Meridiana in her box.

When they arrive at the castle, Satu drops Diana into a courtyard and joins her there. Diana tries to escape, but is met by Gerbert, who is delighted to have seen a flying witch for the first time in many years. He examines Diana, noting that her scent is mingled with Matthew’s. He wonders if Matthew is attracted to Diana for herself, as well as for the Book of Life. “Women, after all, are his weakness.”

And apparently everyone knows it. But then Gerbert knows Matthew so well that he successfully created a vampire lover tailored exactly to Matthew’s tastes. Diana isn’t aware of Juliette yet.

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A Discovery of Witches Season 1 Episode 5 Recap: In Which Diana and Matthew Break the Covenant

June 15, 2021June 15, 2021 ~ Metacrone ~ 2 Comments

Matthew and Diana are separated for most of episode 5, with him back in Oxford investigating the break in at his lab while Diana stays at Sept-Tours with Ysabeau and Marthe. Ysabeau takes the opportunity to test Diana by informing her about the realities of vampires and of Matthew’s romantic past. Matthew informs Gillian that it’s not a good idea to mess with vampires without backup. The various factions within the Congregation continue to huff and puff about the Covenant and the Book of Life.

Recap

Diana soaks in a luxuriously deep tub, recovering from her spontaneous witch water spell, while Ysabeau and Marthe look on to make sure she doesn’t flood the bathroom. Marthe brings her a towel and comments that the ability to produce witch water is a rare power these days. Diana says that she can’t control the elemental magic that she’s producing, like witch water and witch wind. Marthe thinks she just needs time, but Diana wants to visit her aunts to see if they can help her.

Ysabeau insists that she made a promise to Matthew, so Diana isn’t allowed to leave yet. Right now, they’re going hunting.

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