"MIAMI VICE" (2006) Photo Gallery

Five months ago, I had posted this REVIEW of Michael Mann's 2006 adaptation of the 80s television crime drama, "MIAMI VICE" (1984-1989). Below are photos from the 2006 movie that starred Jamie Foxx and Colin Ferrell:


"MIAMI VICE" (2006) Photo Gallery

"STAR TREK VOYAGER" - Unfit For Command?

"STAR TREK VOYAGER" - Unfit For Command?

Do many STAR TREK fans consider most Vulcan characters unfit for command? I wonder. I came across this ”STAR TREK VOYAGER” fan fiction story about the letters written to the Alpha Quadrant by Voyager’s crew in the Season 1 episode, ”Eye of the Needle”. The author of this particular fan fiction story seemed to believe that because of their emotional distance, Vulcans are basically unfit for command. Personally, I disagree.

This belief that Vulcans were unfit for command certainly seemed supported by Lisa Klink’s screenplay for the Season 2 episode, ”Resolutions”. I am sure that many recall this episode. In it, the Voyager crew is forced to leave Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and Commander Chakotay (Robert Beltran) behind on a planet after the pair found themselves infected by an incurable disease. Lieutenant Tuvok (Tim Russ) assumes command of the ship and ends up facing a possible mutiny led by a very distraught Ensign Kim (Garrett Wang). Klink’s screenplay portrayed Tuvok as a cold by-the-book officer, incapable of noticing or understanding the crew’s uneasiness of leaving behind the captain and first officer. Quite frankly, not only did I dislike this one-dimensional portrayal of the ship’s highest ranking Vulcan, I found it slightly inaccurate.

As a Vulcan, Tuvok has made it a practice to keep his emotions to himself and lead his life in a very logical manner. But this does not mean that he was exactly how Klink had described him in ”Resolutions”. Underneath the cool exterior laid a very emotional and passionate man who loved his wife and family a great deal and considered Kathryn Janeway a great friend. He also possessed a temper that he obviously must have struggled to contain all of his life.

Tuvok did possess a problem with interacting with others. This stemmed from a tendency to be a loner. This trait of his was specifically pointed out in the Season 3 episode, ”Alter Ego”. In it, Harry Kim became infatuated with a hologram (a tall and leggy blonde named Marayna). To deal with his infatuation, he turned to Tuvok to help him recover from it. Tuvok did more than that. He became friendly with the hologram. But the hologram proved to be a lonely alien at a space station who used superior technology to prevent Voyager from leaving a particular area of space. When Tuvok pointed out her loneliness, she returned the favor:


MARAYNA: I don't believe you.

TUVOK: I beg your pardon.

MARAYNA: I think you're tying to isolate yourself and make a public protest at the same time.

TUVOK: Explain.

MARAYNA: You didn't want to be here in the first place. Being the only one without a lei sets you apart from the others, allowing you to symbolically maintain your solitude. And since everybody can see that you're the only one without a lei, you're letting them know that you'd rather be somewhere else.

TUVOK: Your logic is impeccable.


But Tuvok’s loner tendencies did not mean that he lacked an ability to understand the emotional needs of others. Even before ”Resolutions” had aired, Tuvok managed to display this trait on a few occasions. He was the first member of the crew to sense that Seska might prove to be a dangerous problem for the crew . . . even if he did not know about her being a Cardassian spy. Instinct told him that Tom Paris may have been innocent of the murder of a Banean scientist in ”Ex-Post Facto”. In ”Elogium”, he expressed compassion for Neelix’s fear at becoming a parent and helped the latter come to a decision about starting a family with Kes. He was the only one who did not allow his fear or paranoia to get the best of him and realized that fighting the entity that was rearranging Voyager’s structure might prove to be the best thing in ”Twisted”. He managed to befriend Kes. In ”Innocence”, he managed to offer comfort to a dying Voyager crewman and a group of alien children who had been abandoned to die by their kind. And for a man who was supposed to be an incompetent leader, he sure as hell managed to avoid any problems with leading the Security/Tactical Division.

If there is one scene before ”Resolutions” that provided an excellent example of how compassionate Tuvok can be, one might as well return to his scene with the dying Ensign Bennet in ”Innocence”:


TUVOK: Tuvok to Voyager. Voyager, do you read? You must lie still.

BENNET: I can't, I can't feel my legs.

TUVOK: Several of the vertebrae have been fractured.

BENNET: Isn't there anything you can do?

TUVOK: I'm afraid the shuttle's medical supplies are inadequate. We must wait for Voyager to find us.

BENNET: It's getting worse. My whole body feels numb.

TUVOK: I want you to slow your breathing, relax your muscles. Try not to move.

BENNET: All this time I thought I was so lucky with no family back home. Nobody to miss. Now it seems kind of sad not to leave anybody behind.

TUVOK: I believe Ensign McCormick would miss you a great deal.


I realize that Lisa Klink wanted to create some kind of conflict between Tuvok and some of the crew in ”Resolutions”. But in painting Tuvok as an emotional iceberg incapable of compassion or seeing to the needs of others, I feel that she had went too far. This is quite evident in that the mutinous and obviously immature Harry Kim had been written with more sympathy than Tuvok. It is no wonder that ”Resolutions” has become one of my least favorite ”VOYAGER” episodes.

"ANGELS AND DEMONS" Review

”ANGELS AND DEMONS” Review

After the success of the 2006 adaptation of Dan Brown’s novel, ”The DaVinci Code”, director Ron Howard and actor Tom Hanks returned to adapt another Brown novel that featured the character of symbologist Robert Langdon – namely, ”Angels and Demons”. Although the latter novel had been published first; it became the second of Brown’s works to be adapted by Hollywood, making ”ANGELS AND DEMONS” a cinematic sequel to ”THE DaVINCI CODE”.

”ANGELS AND DEMONS” revolves around the quest of fictional Harvard University symbologist Robert Langdon (Hanks) to uncover the mysteries of a secret society called the Illuminati and to unravel a plot to annihilate Vatican City using destructive antimatter. Like the novel, the movie uses the idea of a historical conflict between science and religion, particularly that between the Illuminati and the Roman Catholic Church.

Following the death of the Pope, a destructive antimatter is stolen from CERN (the world's largest particle physics laboratory located in Geneva, Switzerland) and one of the scientists murdered. The Vatican then receives a threat from a group calling itself the Illuminati (a former secret society that consisted of European freethinkers that supported new scientific discoveries, despite the Catholic Church’s opposition), which claims it will destroy the Vatican using the stolen antimatter. The Church summons both Robert Langdon and CERN scientist Vittoria Vetra (Ayelet Zurer) to prevent the Illuminati from carrying out its threat in less than 24 hours. During their time at the Vatican, both Langdon and Vittoria encounter some degree of hostility – mainly from Commander Richter, head of the Swiss Guard (Stellan Skarsgård).

”ANGELS AND DEMONS” can boast solid performances from a first-rate cast. There were no bad performances that I could spot. On the other hand, not one member of the cast gave what I would consider an exceptional performance – not even top-notch talents like Hanks, Skarsgård or Ewan McGregor, who portrayed the Vatican’s the Camerlengo, Patrick McKenna. The more I try to think of an exceptional performance in this film, the more difficult it was for me to achieve this goal. However, I must admit that I found Rance Howard’s appearance as one of the Cardinals voting for a new Pope rather out of place. Other than his appearance, everyone seemed . . . solid.

And if I must be frank, I might as well say the same about the movie. Some have claimed that the screenplay had failed to follow the novel very closely. I say . . . who cares? I am not a fan of Dan Brown’s novel. It bored me so much that I did not even bother to finish it. The only reason I had bothered to go see the movie was due to my hope that like ”THE DaVINCI CODE”, it would be an improvement over the novel. Thankfully, Ron Howard’s direction, along with the screenplay written by David Koepp and Akiva Goldsman improved the story immensely. Well, the parts I had read. Like the novel’s beginning.

I can see that it would be futile to compare the entire novel to the entire film. Especially since I never bothered to finish the novel. But . . . I must admit that I did enjoy the film. Langdon and Vittoria’s efforts to stop the group from killing four Vatican cardinals and destroying the Vatican managed to maintain my interest. I was especially impressed by Howard’s direction of the sequences that featured Langdon and the Swiss Guard’s Lieutenant Chartrand (Thure Lindhardt) being trapped in the Vatican’s increasingly airless archives; Langdon and Inspector Ernesto Olivetti’s (Pierfrancesco Favino) attempts to save one of the kidnapped cardinals suspended above a roaring fire inside the Santa Maria della Vittoria Basilica; and the efforts of Langdon, Vittoria, Chartrand and Father McKenna to find the antimatter and prevent it from blowing up.

If a moviegoer is looking for an exceptional movie this summer, ”ANGELS AND DEMONS” is not the right flick. Well . . . to be honest, I have yet to see an exceptional film this year. But I rather enjoyed ”ANGELS AND DEMONS”. It was a solid and entertaining thriller filled with good performances, first-rate action, great location photography of Rome and a pretty good solid story. If you simply want to be entertained, I highly recommend this movie.

"TERMINATOR SALVATION" (2009) Photo Gallery

Below is a gallery of photos from the fourth installment in the "TERMINATOR" franchise. Directed by McG, "TERMINATOR SALVATION" stars Christian Bale and Sam Worthington:


"TERMINATOR SALVATION" (2009) Photo Gallery

"MAN MEN" Season Two Quibbles

Within a few months, I managed to become a big fan of the AMC series, ”MAD MEN”. I became a fan so fast this past summer that after watching two episodes of Season Two, I purchased a copy of the set for Season One. And fell deeper in love. As for Season Two, I thought it was excellent. In fact, I consider it a slight improvement over Season One. But . . . I do have some quibbles about it:


"MAD MEN" Season Two Quibbles



1. Duck Phillips - I had once complained on the "" site that by the end of Season 2, Duck Phillips (portrayed by the superb Mark Moses) seemed to resemble a minor villain that Don Draper had to defeat. Someone responded that Matt Weiner never intended to portray Duck Phillips as some kind of villain. After reading two interviews that Weiner had given, I now see that I had been right to accuse him of such a thing in the first place. How disappointing.




2. Don's Approval For Pete - Why did Pete Campbell need Don Draper's approval? What on earth for? Pete is a grown man in his late 20s. His existence at Sterling Cooper should have meant more to him than acquiring the approval of someone as flawed as Don. He did not need Don's approval. He did not need anyone's approval to exist. And the fact that he gave up a promotion to snitch on Duck - all for Don's approval - makes me realize that Pete has not matured one bit.




3. Bobbie Barrett - Matt Weiner's comments about Bobbie Barrett made me realize a few things about the show's fans. Judging from the comments I have read about Bobbie over the past few months, I get this feeling that most fans viewed Bobbie's sexual desires and aggressive personality in the same manner that Joan's fiancé, Greg, had viewed Joan's sexual history. And since these fans certainly could not drag Bobbie to the floor and rape her, they resorted to calling her every bad name in the book and then some.

After 46 years, our society has barely changed. It seems as if even in the early 21st century, we have maintained a whore/Madonna complex about women. Even Weiner labeled Bobbie as ”that woman” in his interviews about Season Two. He also claimed that it had been wrong for Don to sleep with Bobbie. I do not understand this comment. What was Weiner trying to say? That it was it wrong for Don to have sex with Bobbie and not wrong for him to cuckold Betty with women like Rachel Menken, Midge Daniels and Joy?




4. Paul Kinsey and Sheila White - What on earth happened to the storyline featuring Paul Kinsey’s romance with Sheila White? The season’s second episode - (2.02) “Flight 1” - reveals that Paul is involved in a romance with an African-American woman named Sheila White. This revelation causes a rupture in Paul’s friendship with Joan Holloway, when the latter makes racist comments about the romance. Two episodes later, the romance is hinted again when a visiting Sally Draper finds a photo of Sheila on Paul’s desk. In the episode (2.10) “The Inheritance”, Sheila makes another appearance on the show. She and Paul have a fight over his reluctance to join her in Mississippi for a voter’s registration campaign. He eventually joined her after being pushed out of a trip to California by Don Draper. When Paul returned to New York in (2.13) “Mediations in an Emergency”, Paul informed his co-workers that Sheila had dumped him after three days.

All I can say is this - WHAT IN THE HELL HAPPENED? What led Sheila to finally dump Paul? Unfortunately, Weiner never revealed her reason. He simply ended the romance on a vague note. What makes this move even more annoying to me is the fact that many fans did not question the vague manner in which the romance ended. Instead, they crowed that Sheila had dumped Paul because of his pretentiousness.

One aspect of good cinematic storytelling is that one should ”show” what happened and not tell. Weiner ”told” the viewers what happened to Paul and Sheila . . . and he failed to tell the entire story. This makes me wonder if Weiner had decided not to continue exploring Paul’s relationship with Sheila in order to please the fans. If most of them had defended or made excuses over Joan’s racist comments about the pair’s romance, it really is not that hard for me to come up with this possibility.




5. Peggy Olson’s Meteoric Rise - Could someone please explain how a young woman between the ages of 20-22 or 23, managed to rise from a secretarial school graduate/secretary to the senior copywriter for Sterling Cooper in less than two years? I realize that Peggy was a natural talent in the advertising business. Both Freddie Rumsen and Don Draper recognized this. And I had no problem with Don promoting her to junior copywriter in the Season One finale - (1.13) ”TheWheel”. But what on earth made him promote her to senior copywriter around the end of Season Two’s (2.09) “Six Months Leave”?

One, Don was rather peeved that Peggy had failed to inform him about Freddie Rumsen’s drunken “accident”. And two, there were other copywriters at Sterling Cooper who were capable of assuming Freddie’s position as the senior copywriter. Who? Well, there was Paul Kinsey. I realize that Paul’s pretentiousness and romance with Sheila White made him unpopular with many fans. But Season Two also proved in the episode, (2.06) “Maidenform” that he was just as talented as Peggy. He also has more experience than her, which would have made him the perfect candidate to replace Freddie. Personally, I believe that Don had allowed his mentoring of Peggy to get the best of him and promoted her at a time when she did not really deserve it.

* * * *

Aside from the above quibbles, I thought that Season Two of ”MAD MEN” was excellent. I would go as far to say that it was actually an improvement over Season One. I would be very surprised if it ever failed to earn an Emmy nomination for Best Drama, next August.

"Return With a Vengeance" [PG-13] - 16/18

"RETURN WITH A VENGEANCE"

CHAPTER 16

The sorcerer took a deep breath and opened his eyes. He leaned forward and blew out the candles that made up part of his makeshift altar. After several hours of meditation, he now felt complete. In full control. The mortal, he surmised, should no longer prove to be a problem, when he attacks the witches again.

After another deep breath, Dako rose to his feet. He walked over to the window of his bedroom, and peered outside. It was almost midday. Time for him to go after the witches. He hesitated, recalling his encounter with the daemon the warlocks called, Belthazor. Dako had encountered daemons before - even killed a few. But he had never gone up against one as powerful as this Belthazor.

And there was another matter to consider. Namely the witch with the powerful baby. Unlike the situation with Belthazor, Dako had already formed a plan to deal with the witch. Namely, steal the child from the witch's womb. He had done it before. Using a spell, Dako had managed to transform the embryo from a powerful priestess to his own mistress. Unfortunately the latter, who became frightened by the idea of helping him raise the child, betrayed him by running off. Dako had eventually caught up with his mistress and took care of her - permanently. But he never learned the whereabouts of the child, until 'he' appeared thirty years later to kill him.

In the case of this Halliwell witch, Dako had no intention of transferring her child to another womb - including the one that belonged to that sharp-tongued warlock. Instead, he planned to simply wrench the baby from the witch's belly. Without another womb to nourish it, the child should simply die. A cruel smile curled the bokor's lips.

Feeling alert and sure of himself, Dako headed downstairs to meet with the warlocks. Only he could not find one sign of them. The house seemed to be empty. Where could they be?

A deep suspicion began to form in the bokor's mind. That the Crozats had known about Belthazor for quite some time. Perhaps they had even intended to steal the daemon's powers for themselves. Anger surged through Dako. If those warlocks had so much as decided to . . . He paused. If what he now believed to be true, Dako realized that he might not be able to exact revenge upon the warlocks. He had not seen them in several hours and there was the possibility that they might already have Belthazor's powers. It would be best, he decided, to simply bide his time, work with the warlocks, until he could find a way to steal the demon's powers and kill them all. Meanwhile, he had a few witches to kill.

* * * *

"Officer, put your gun down," Olivia coolly ordered the security guard. She then flashed the badge that hung around her neck. "I'm a police officer. Inspector McNeill. San Francisco Police. I need you to call for back-up."

Bruce McNeill saw the bewilderment that flashed in the guard's eyes. "I don't understand," he cried. "You're the police? But that's . . . that's Mrs. Maxwell over there. And Mr. Crozat."

Olivia sighed. "Yes, I know. Both of them tried to kill that man over there." She pointed at a groggy Cole. "Mrs. Maxwell's attorney. He had stumbled across a smuggling ring operating from this company." The guard failed to lower his gun, much to Bruce's consternation. Olivia added in a sharp tone, "Look Mr. Whatever-Your-Name-Is, do you really want to explain why you're holding a police officer at gunpoint?"

Finally, the security guard lowered his weapon. Much to Bruce's relief. Olivia strode toward him and began to explain what happened. Bruce turned to Cole and Cecile. "We really need to get this file out of here." He indicated the thick, brown accordion file in his hands. "Especially if the cops are on their way here."

"Leave it to me," Cole murmured in a tired voice. With a little effort, he waved one hand over the file and it disappeared. "Your father should have it, by now."

Cecile added in a low voice, "What about the urn?"

Before Bruce or Cole could respond, the guard's eyes spotted the object in question. "Is that one of the pieces you were talking about, Inspector?"

Olivia whirled around and eyed the urn with dismay. "Uh, yeah. I believe it might be the latest piece that was smuggled."

"And what about Mr. Turner?" The guard pointed at the still haggard Cole. "He don't look so hot. What happened to him?"

Olivia quickly replied, "He was drugged."

"Maybe I can help. I've been trained . . ."

Cole barked, interrupting the guard, "I'm fine! I just need . . . I need some rest. That's all." Bruce knew that would not happen. At least not right now. They still needed to track down Dako. And confront him.

"Oh." The guard turned to Olivia. "Then is there something . . .?"

"I need you to call the police. And wait outside for their arrival," Olivia replied. She paused. "Have you called them yet?"

According to the guard, he had summoned the police right after hearing gunshots. Sure enough, the sound of police sirens wailed in the background. Bruce wondered how they would get out of this. Olivia said to the guard, "Don't you think you better go outside, Mr. uh . . .?"

"Vasquez. Yeah, I guess I better go." And the guard sprinted out of the office.

Bruce and the others heaved large sighs of relief. Olivia said to them, "Okay, we don't have much time. This is how it will go down. Cole has been suspicious about Suzanne's smuggling operation and decided to confront her about it. She and Junior, over here" she pointed at the dead male warlock, "tried to kill him. But we had arrived in time to stop them. Suzanne and I struggled for control of her gun. Bruce, you admit that you and young Crozat got into a fight, while he was trying to stab you."

"In other words, we were struggling for the knife," Bruce interjected.

Olivia nodded. "That's right. I'll also explain that I have been investigating VENDRUM in connection to Pablo Alvarez and Ben Mallard's murders."

"Pablo who?" Bruce asked with a frown.

"Bruce!" His younger sister regarded him with a glare. "Just tell them what I told you and play along." Olivia rushed over to the female warlock's body. "Oh and Bruce, you better put Whatshisname's prints on that knife you killed him with. I only hope we can get out of here, fast and warn the Halliwells that Dako is still on the loose."

While Olivia momentarily gripped the dead woman's Glock pistol, Bruce followed his sister's instructions. Just as brother and sister had finished their tasks, the office door burst open. In marched the security guard, with two uniformed cops in his wake. One of the cops stepped forward, his eyes taking in the sight before him. "Jesus! What the hell happened here?"

* * * *

"Thanks for the information," Phoebe said for the last time and disconnected the living room telephone. She turned to her sister and brother-in-law, who sat on the living room sofa. "That was the hospital. Looks like Paige will be released, tomorrow morning."

Piper heaved a relieved sigh. "Thank God. I guess it could have been a lot worse, for her. A lot worse."

"I guess that Darryl . . . I mean, Dako likes to play with his victims before killing them. He did the same with Harry McNeill." Phoebe paused, before she added, "I wonder why he didn't kill the Murillos, when they walked in?"

Leo added, "Just be happy that they didn't. Hopefully, this all should end pretty soon. Olivia told me that Cecile's boyfriend might be able to find the spell that will vanquish this Dako."

"I'd rather use a Power of Three spell, thank you very much," Piper murmured dryly.

Phoebe reminded her sister that with Paige in the hospital, they did not have the Power of Three. And their last encounter with Dako had proven that even the baby or Cole were not more powerful than the sorcerer.

"Well, maybe we should consider using both the baby's power and Cole's," Leo said. "Together."

The two sisters stared at Leo, as if he had lost his mind. Especially Phoebe. "Work with Cole? Are you serious?"

"Phoebe, you saw how he managed to knock Dako's spirit out of Darryl. With all of us working together, we might . . ."

However, Phoebe would have none of it. "Cole could have killed Darryl, Leo! In fact, he didn't even consider Darryl, when he deflected Dako's powers."

A frustrated sigh escaped from Leo's mouth. However, he did not say anything. It was Piper who finally spoke up. "I hate to say this, Pheebs, but Leo might be right. I didn't care what he nearly did to Darryl, either. But we might need Cole, after all. This . . . Dako is very dangerous. And very powerful. Plus, we still have the Crozats to worry about."

Tension filled the Halliwell living room. Phoebe realized that both Leo and Piper were right. But the idea of working with Cole, again . . . There were moments when she feared she would never be free of him. Somehow, he always managed to remain in her life . . . despite her efforts to move on. Phoebe even suspected her ex-husband of using Olivia McNeill to make her jealous. Deep down, she feared that he might be succeeding.

Phoebe sighed. She hated it when any of her sisters were right. "I guess you have a point," she said. "I'll call his office and see if he can come by, later." As she began to dial the number to Cole's office, a familiar figure materialized in the middle of the living room. It was Dako . . . in Darryl's body. "Oh my God!" Phoebe exclaimed.

"I do not think 'He' can save you," the sorcerer crowed. He shot a bolt of lightning at Phoebe. Who immediately levitated above the line of fire.

Leo cried, "Piper, the potion!" He tackled the sorcerer to the floor. Leo's actions gave Piper the opportunity to race to the kitchen for the power-stripping potion. Unfortunately for Leo, he was not able to maintain the advantage. Dako let out an enraged growl and flung the whitelighter off of him and to the other side of the living room. Leo slumped back, unconscious.

"Well, look who is left," Dako declared. His eyes now rested upon Phoebe. Fear formed a large lump in her throat, as he raised his hand to strike. At that moment, Cole, the McNeills and Cecile appeared in the room.

* * * *

Still slightly groggy from the potion that Suzanne Crozat had given him, Cole looked upon the scene inside the Halliwell living room with dismay. Piper was nowhere to be seen. Leo lay sprawled upon the floor, unconscious. And Dako seemed primed to attack a defenseless Phoebe.

Dako sent a bolt of lightning toward Cole's ex-wife. Olivia reacted first. She deflected the sorcerer's attack, using her telekinesis. Although she had managed to succeed in saving Phoebe, she was not strong enough to prevent herself from being injured. The lightning bolt touched Olivia's arm and she fell back on the floor, cradling her arm and crying in pain. Cecile rushed toward her.

Then Dako used his own telekinesis and sent everyone, including Cole, flying across the room. Cole finally snapped out of his stupor and did the same to Dako. The latter hit the side of the staircase with a sickening thud. After a moment's pause, Dako quickly rose to his feet and stared at Cole with gleaming hatred. He raised his hand to attack.

So did Bruce, who used his aero kinesis against the sorcerer. The witch's power had no effect. Dako merely deflected Bruce's power, sending the latter hard against the wall.

Piper rushed into the living room, carrying a small vial. A power-stripping potion, Cole surmised, as he struggled to stand up. She tossed the vial at Dako. Everyone waited breathlessly for it to take effect. Nothing happened. Dako's mouth curled with derision, as he focused his attention upon the oldest Halliwell. He extended his arm toward her direction and began to chant. Piper cried out in pain, as she gripped her slightly rounded belly.

"Piper!" Phoebe cried in anguish. "What is he . . .? He's harming the baby!"

Using his telekinesis, Cole flung the bokor away from Piper. She fell to her knees with a sigh. Then a small vase came from nowhere and struck Piper on the side of her head, leaving her on the floor, unconscious.

Cole barely heard Phoebe's cries. However, he did see Cecile reach inside her purse for something . . . and react with dismay. "What's . . . wrong?" he demanded.

"My potion!" the priestess cried. "I must have left it at the apartment!"

Back on his feet, Dako smiled dangerously. "You must be a mamba. Forgot something?" A massive energy ball began to form in his open palm. He stared pointedly at Cecile, Phoebe and a prone Olivia.

Mustering every ounce of strength that he possessed, Cole struggled to fight the drug in his system. Then he dematerialized. And re-materialized directly in front of the three women. Dako threw the energy ball in their direction. Cole grunted, as he used his telekinesis to redirect the ball right back at the bokor.

The energy ball struck Dako squarely in the chest with great force. He let out a cry, as his body slammed against the side of the staircase. Seconds later, the bokor's spirit burst out of Darryl Morris' body. "A vanquishing spell would be nice, right about now!" Cole shouted at Cecile.

The Vodoun priestess glared at Dako and began to chant, using the Benin dialect:

"In Legba's name, I open the gate;

In Nana-Buluku's name, I summon the twins;

In Liza's name will your spirit be judged;

And in Mawu's name I send you to darkness and

Back to Ghede, where you belong!"

A bright light filled the room, along with a strong wind. Then a vortex materialized before Dako's spirit. While Cecile repeated her chant, he cried out loud. His non-corporeal form finally shot through the center of the vortex, and it closed in an explosion of light. Cole, Phoebe and Cecile reeled backward.

Cole struggled to his feet with great difficulty. He glanced around the room. "Someone better wake up Leo," he commented. "This place is beginning to resemble a battlefield." The drug from the Crozats' potion finally overwhelmed him. And everything went black.


END OF CHAPTER 16

"Dear Orry" [G] - 1/1

Here is a small fanfic based upon both John Jakes' 1982 novel, "NORTH AND SOUTH" and the miniseries that aired in 1985. This story is about the westward journey of newly commissioned Army officer, Charles Main, to his new post in Texas, revealed in a letter to his cousin in South Carolina:



"DEAR ORRY"

RATING: [G]
SUMMARY: A view of Charles Main's journey to Texas, via a series of
letters written to his Cousin Orry.
FEEDBACK: deerush76@yahoo.com - Be my guest. But please, be
kind.
DISCLAIMER: Charles Main, Orry Main and all other characters
related to the North and South trilogy belong to Wolper Productions,
Warner Brothers Television and John Jakes.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Here's a little story I wrote in letter form. Newly
commissioned Army officer, Charles Main, writes a letter to his
cousin, Orry Main. The story is a combination of canon from both the
miniseries and the novel.

--------

October 10, 1856
Camp Cooper, Texas


Dear Cousin Orry,

After a month long journey that started in Charleston, I have finally, I have arrived at my new Army assignment. Camp Cooper. It is located in South Texas, on the Clear Fork of the Brazos River. Texas turned out to be more than a pleasant surprise. But I will talk about it, later.

My journey went off smoothly, despite the long distance. The steamer that conveyed me from Charleston, had arrived in New Orleans, six days later. I believe that Madeline LaMotte is from New Orleans. Right? I must say that it was a fine-looking city. Very exotic. I have not encountered so many different types of people since my four years at West Point.

Upon my arrival, I checked into the Saint Charles Hotel, which is popular with many American guests. You will be pleased to know that I did not waste my two days in New Orleans, visiting saloons and sporting houses. Instead, I explored the Old French Quarter, took a ride on the trolley that led from the Quarter to the Garden District - a residential area for many of the city's well-to-do Americans, and took a brief train ride to Lake Ponchatrain. I also paid a visit to a local fencing hall on my second day, where many of the city's gentlemen practice the sport. I managed to get into a match with Creole peacock named Emile Lacroix. Needless to say that
my fencing had not improved since leaving the Academy. Mister Lacroix later invited me to join his family for supper at a restaurant called Antoine's, where we ate a delicious meal. By the way, would you please ask Mrs. LaMotte if she has ever heard of the Lacroix family? My two days in New Orleans ended on a pleasant note. The visit was so splendid that I hated to leave. But, Texas awaited me.

Another steamer took me through the Gulf of Mexico, where I finally arrived in Indianola, Texas, a few days later. No one felt more happier to leave that steamer than me. All I had to do was mention I was from South Carolina and the conversation on board turned to Preston Brooks. You know, one of our congressmen who thrashed that
Yankee senator in the Senate, last spring. One particular passenger, a cotton planter from Alabama, even offered me a drink when he learned of my origins. In fact, he offered the others in the saloon, a free drink. I realize that as a Southerner, I should be more sympathetic toward Congressman Brooks, but the idea of drinking to celebrate a man's beating seemed distasteful to me. My reluctance to drink made me a little less popular.

As I had stated at the beginning of this letter, Texas appealed to me the moment I first arrived. The land looked nothing like I had ever seen before. Instead of our dank low country or the Hudson Highlands near West Point, Texas has low, rolling hills that makes me feel open and free. Not long after my arrival in Indianola, I
boarded a stagecoach for San Antonio. Now that was an interesting little city. In a way, it reminded me of New Orleans, but not as grand. The homes seemed to be a mixture of American brick houses, German one-story buildings made of limestone and Spanish-style adobes. I also saw the Alamo, where Congressman Crockett, Jim Bowie
and the other Texas freedom fighters took their stand against General Santa Ana. It is hard to believe that you were fighting against the same man, eleven years later. The people here in San Antonio seemed very friendly. Especially the lovely senoritas. Do not worry, Cousin. You will be relieved to know that I had behaved
like a Carolina gentleman.

Not long after my arrival, I reported to Regimental Headquarters, where I met Colonel Robert Lee. He was the Academy's superintendent during my first two years there. It seems strange that an Army engineer would end up as a calvary regimental commander. I am happy to report that he still remembered me from the Academy. Or at least my riding prowess. Did you or George Hazard ever met him when you were fighting in Mexico? Colonel Lee's nephew, Fitz Lee, happens to be an old Academy friend of mine and Billy's. I understand that he is now serving at Fort Mason.

Both Colonel Lee and Major George Thomas had invited me to supper at the Plaza Hotel in San Antonio. Major Thomas also happens to be a Virginian and Academy graduate - class of 1840. Both seemed to hold Academy graduates in high regard, in compare to the army officers that rose through the ranks. From them I learned that I had been assigned as Company "K"'s second officer. The following morning, I accompanied the Department of Texas' paymaster, as he left San Antonio to deliver the pay for various Army forts and camps throughout the region. I had a brief reunion with Fitz Lee at Fort Mason. From him, I learned that many of the Army officers assigned to the Second Calvary are Southern-born. No wonder so many Yankees are complaining.

The final leg of my journey took me from Fort Mason to Camp Cooper, where Company "K" was stationed. Along the way, our party encountered a brief rainstorm. Strange weather in this state. One minute it is hot and the next, it is pouring down buckets. The weather only endured me more to Texas. The only Indians I have encountered so far were a poor bunch who had formed several villages not far from Camp Cooper. I find it hard to believe that these people may be related to the Commanches and other tribes who are causing mayhem along the frontier.

My company commander seemed like a pleasant fellow. His name is Baldwin Wayne and he is an Ohioan who had graduated from the Academy two years before you did - in 1844. Do you remember him? What was he like back then? Captain Wayne informed me that he will not be "K" Company's commander very long. He will be reassigned next spring. I
can only hope that his replacement will prove to be just as easy to serve under. The company's first officer is another Yankee from Ohio and his name is Lieutenant Lafayette O'Dell. Unlike Captain Wayne and myself, Lieutenant O'Dell started out as an enlisted man, some twenty-five years ago. He was fourteen at the time. Captain Wayne seemed to hold the lieutenant in high regard, despite the latter's lack of Academy training. In fact, the entire company seems to like O'Dell. I guess I will have to work hard to earn the same kind of respect from the men. It looks I will have my work cut out for me, considering that I seemed to be the only Southerner in the company. Everyone else is either from Ohio, or had emigrated from Europe.

Please give my love to Aunt Clarissa and Cousin Brett. You can even say hello to Ashton for me. Speaking of my 'dear' cousin, has she married James Huntoon yet? Was their wedding supposed to be held this fall or next spring? I have forgotten. It is a shame that I will miss it. Honestly. One last thing I want to say, Orry. Thinking of my new situation has reminded me of how much I owe you. You gave a young and resentful boy a second chance to make something of his life. Namely me. Instead of ending up dead in a ditch with a broken neck, or killed in a tavern brawl, I am a West Point graduate and Army officer, serving my country on the Texas frontier. All of this happened to me, because of you. I will never forget your kindness and love and will forever be grateful.

Sincerely your beloved cousin,


2nd Lieutenant Charles Main, U.S.A


THE END