Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Warehouse 13 Recap - Episode 305 - 3...2...1

This episode flashes back and forth between the present time, 1893 London, and 1962 Greenbury, Ohio.  It also marks the return of last year's villain, Helena "H.G." Wells, played so brilliantly by Jaime Murray.

1893, London, England

The episode started at a location near Warehouse 12 in London, England.  There was a man in a frock coat who ran into someone he knew, but a horn sounded, there was a soundwave hitting the man, and he disintegrated into dust.

1962, Greenbury, Ohio

A man was on a bicycle and looking at birds, when he saw a tangle of metals on the ground.  A horn sounded, a soundwave hit the man, and the man disintegrated into dust.  We found out later that his name was Doug Varley.

Present Time, Pittsburgh

The same horn and soundwave hit a man fixing a billboard on top of a building, and he also disintegrated.

Pete was sitting in a diner across from the building that had the billboard, and he was eating a piece of pie.  Myka came in and made fun of Pete for eating a pie and they were in a middle of investigation.  Pete defended himself by stating that the power had gone out and the pie was going to go bad.  He also pointed to the waitress, and stated that the waitress heard the sound of a horn before the power went out.  Myka mentioned that she went up in a cherry picker to investigate the billboard, and part of it had a strange edge where it disintegrated, and there was strange white dust.

Back in the Warehouse, Pete was angry that he wasn't consulted about a decision, but Artie said that the Regents had approved it.  He twisted a black sphere and Helena Wells showed up.  Similar to the first episode of the season, it was just her consciousness being projected.  She was being physically held in an unknown prison.  Helena was there because back when she was an agent for Warehouse 12 in the late 1800s, they were investigating similar deaths.

1893, London, England

The action flashed back to 1893, and Helena was at a house party.  Her brother Charles, who pretended to be the H.G. Wells who wrote the stories, were entertaining some women with his stories.  Helena was obviously annoyed that her brother was taking all the credit for her stories.  An older man, Vincent Crowley, went up to Helena and stated that people had no idea what she was capable of.  A young man, Wolcott, ran in and told Helena and Vincent that there had been a curiosity, which is a ping in the present vernacular.  They had another hit on the stolen artifact.  Vincent stated that maybe he should go with Helena instead of Wolcott, because two agents already died when the artifact was stolen.  Helena said she and Wolcott would be fine.  Wolcott brought Helena up to speed when she was changing.  He stated that the latest incident occurred in Duncan near Piccadilly, and he had the policeman stand guard so Helena would get to investigate the crime scene herself.

Helena and Wolcott went to the crime scene, and found white dust.  Helena found a piece of papers with a series of numbers of it, and dropped some dust into a test tube.  She deduced that the victim was Sir James Eddington, a famous astronomer.  She said she and Eddington were working on a project together, and he was killed to prevent him from getting to the Observatory.  Helena said the man with the horn was out to stop Eddington, and she and Wolcott hurried to the Observatory.

Present Time, Warehouse 13

In the present time, Artie ran to some archives room and found the parchment that refers to the horn.  The artifact is Joshua's Trumpet, an ancient horn who emits such power that it pulverizes everything in its path.  It was used by Joshua in the fall of Jericho, and inspired the Legend of How.  Helena explained that she might not be able to help the current team that much because she thought she ensured that no one would get a hold of the horn again.  Pete was continuously giving Helena a hard time and making snide comments about her.

1893, London, England

When Helena and Wolcott got to the Observatory, Helena showed Wolcott the project she was working on with Eddington - it was a rocket.  She opened the main engine area and it turned out someone had put the horn there as a power source.  Two guys held them at gunpoint and the villain showed up - it turned out to be Vincent.  Vincent said the British Empire was waning and there were even talks about moving the Warehouse to America.  He planned on using the rocket to make a statement about British power and ensured British dominance for another 100 years.  Wolcott asked Helena when she knew, and she said she knew it had to be someone close to her when she discovered that her diary was facing the wrong way in her drawer, and it was implied that Vincent and Helena were lovers.  While he was busy with the rocket and set a timer, Helena and Wolcott overpowered the men with the guns and Helena ran to redirect the rocket.  Vincent fought to stop her, but Helena dropped him to the floor and succeeded in turning the wheel to redirect the rocket.  The rocket took off.

Present Time, Warehouse 13

Pete was still giving Helena a hard time, and Helena explained that she thought she had sent the rocket to the stars.  Claudia said what went up must have come down, when Artie came back with some files.  These were Jack and Rebecca's files, Warehouse agents in the 1960s (who were introduced in a rather poignant episode back in Season 2)

1962, Greenbury, Ohio

Two teenagers were making out in a car, and then they stepped out to see the tangle of metal that killed Doug Varley.  They saw Helena's crashed rocket with the horn attached when the horn sounded and pulverized a cow.  The two teenagers ran back to the car.

Present Time, Pittsburgh

A unseen man had mounted the horn on a satellite dish and was heard to say that he needed more power.

Present Time, Warehouse 13

Artie read Jack and Rebecca's files and everyone noted the similarities between their report and what happened in 1893 and at the present time.  Artie sent Pete and Myka to Greenbury, Ohio to see if they can find any evidence, even though Jack and Rebecca noted in their files that the horn had been destroyed.  Pete did not want Helena to come with them, but Artie said she had intel and had to go with them.  He showed them how to operate the sphere so they can call her out.

1962, Greenbury, Ohio

Jack and Rebecca visited the house where the two teenagers were telling their story.  Doug Varley's wife, Nora, walked in with her son Daniel, who was wearing an astronaut helmet.  She wanted to know if the government agents were there to find out what happened to her husband.  Rebecca engaged Daniel in conversation, and Daniel asked her if they were there to catch the aliens who took his dad and bring him back.

Jack and Rebecca went out to the site of the crashed rocket, and attempted to bag the horn, but it was too unstable and started shooting around.  It pulverized many things, including the front part of their car.

Present Time, Greenbury, Ohio

Pete, Myka, and Helena were at the same crash site.  They were investigating the remains of Jack and Rebecca's car.  Myka noted that the edges at the front of the car matched the edges on the billboard.  Pete found Jack's hat and an old copy of Astounding Tales in the trunk.

1962, Greenbury, Ohio

Jack tried shooting the horn with the Tesla, but it only made the horn more unstable.  Rebecca shot it with a regular gun which caused an explosion.  But when they walked over, there was no sign of the horn.

Present Time, Greenbury, Ohio

Pete, Myka, and Helena were walking around the crash site, and Pete found a brass piece that Helena stated definitely came from her rocket.  They told Claudia on the Farnsworth that Joshua's Trumpet was definitely there in 1962, and it was the same artifact they were looking for now.  Claudia said a helicopter was just shot down out of the sky, so someone was amplifying the reach of the horn.  Pete went off on Helena and about how this was all her fault and how people die or leave whenever she showed up.  Myka twisted the sphere to take Helena out, and told Pete that she knew Pete blamed Helena for her leaving, but she came back.

Pete eventually figured out that Daniel Varley, Doug Varley's son, snuck into the trunk of Jack and Rebecca's car back in 1962, and was with them when they were investigating the horn.  The Astounding Tales book was his.  Pete and Myka deduced that, after the explosion, the horn must have flown near the car, where Daniel picked it up and ran away with it.  Pete and Myka told Claudia to find out what she could about Daniel Varley.

The scene flashed to the present Daniel Varley, who was muttering about needing more power on the horn and the star Gliese 581.  He said that this time, "they" were going to hear him.

Claudia and Artie eventually figured out that Daniel Varley was in Pittsburgh, and had been in and out of psych hospitals almost his entire life.  When he was well, he was a genius who had worked at SETI.  The last time he was well, he taught astronomy at West Pa. Tech (a fictional Carnegie Mellon perhaps?).  Pete and Myka headed out there and talked to a colleague of Daniel's, who showed them his office.  He said Daniel was always troubled, and then became obsessed with a personal project before he left.  Pete and Myka noted that he was obsessed with one particular star, Gliese 581, which was 20 light years away.  Daniel's colleague explained that at the end of last year, Gliese 581 was discovered as a series of planets that might support life.  Pete and Myka deduced that Daniel thought his father was abducted by aliens, and that he thought he had found the aliens, so Daniel was planning to shoot the star using the horn. Claudia and Artie mapped the spots of the recent incidents, and found that it originated from an abandoned SETI facility.  They also found that if Daniel tried to shoot the horn again tonight, it would run through Allegheny Field during a Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game, which would kill a lot of people.

Pete and Myka found Daniel at the abandoned facility, but he was protected by some sort of force field, so they could not get to him.  They tried talking to him, but he was determined to set the timer and shoot the horn at the star.  Pete had the idea of bringing Helena back, and Helena took the blame for Daniel's father's death. She was able to breach the force field (since she was only a hologram herself) and talked to Daniel.  She explained how it was just a terrible accident, but causing more deaths was not going to make him feel better or bring his dad back.  Eventually Daniel relented and turned off the timer on the horn.

Back at the Warehouse, Helena and Myka had an awkward conversation while Myka was cataloging the horn about how they were a good team until Helena decided to destroy the world.  Pete came by and grudgingly gave Helena some praise.  Myka then twisted the sphere and Helena was gone.

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