The Alienist Part 2

[Trish]

@nathanbforrest45

I think you're right about the two not being connected. I didn't think of the Spanish kidnapping as an inside job but you may be on to something. And it did happen after the husband left for his meeting. I can't figure out who the wife's companion is. Maybe the wife has mental health issues..........

I also think they turned to Sarah to investigate because she's a women and they didn't think she would be competent to figure out the mystery.

OR - Maybe Libby and the Spanish dude were getting it on and she ended up as a patient who "lost" her baby or thought she lost her baby but the baby was taken by the Spaniards. That's why Libby was following the wife in the park.

It's awfully convenient that the female alienist showed up. I think the Uncle is paying her to get close to Kreizler to work her way into the investigation and get the scoop for his paper since the soon to be son in law won't work for him.

[nathanbforrest45]

I still can't figure out what the murder of the two thugs in the butchershop has to do with anything.

I also keep thinking there is going to be some romantic interest between John and Sara at some point. The woman he is engaged to is certainly nothing at all like him.

Well, only 3 more days until the next episode!

[Trish]

I still can't figure out what the murder of the two thugs in the butchershop has to do with anything.

I also keep thinking there is going to be some romantic interest between John and Sara at some point. The woman he is engaged to is certainly nothing at all like him.

Well, only 3 more days until the next episode!

You know as well as I that back then it didn't matter whether the husband and wife had anything in common. It was a financial transaction.

I think the dock murder was a way to silence a witness. My theory is the doctor is selling babies of the unwed mothers and the goo goo guy is helping him.

[nathanbforrest45]

You know as well as I that back then it didn't matter whether the husband and wife had anything in common. It was a financial transaction.

I think the dock murder was a way to silence a witness. My theory is the doctor is selling babies of the unwed mothers and the goo goo guy is helping him.

Agreed about the doctor selling babies. I don't agree entirely about the financial transaction. Perhaps in the upper classes to tie families together, like kingdoms in Europe. But what does John bring to the table in this marriage?

[Trish]

Agreed about the doctor selling babies. I don't agree entirely about the financial transaction. Perhaps in the upper classes to tie families together, like kingdoms in Europe. But what does John bring to the table in this marriage?

I think he brings status from his family. Isn't he upper middle class? The girl brings money. I think there's something off between her and her uncle. Just a vibe.

[nathanbforrest45]

I think he brings status from his family. Isn't he upper middle class? The girl brings money. I think there's something off between her and her uncle. Just a vibe.

We shall see (I hope)

[Chris]

Finally watching on the TNT app, which is a terrible app, keeps crashing.

Anyway, have seen S2E1&2 so far. S1 seemed more intense, focused on the crime and solving it. S2 seems unfocused, spending too much time on distractions, women's lib, anti-death penalty. Sure, those were happening then but could be acknowledged in asides. Also, Laszlo seems the odd man out, and kind of flakey, as S2 shifts focus to Sara.

Best scene was when Moore got cornered by Hudson Duster leader Goo Goo and gang and Sara saves him by pulling out a gun and threatening to make Googoo a eunuch. That had the intensity of S1.

[nathanbforrest45]

OK, now I've watched the next two episodes @Trish and some questions are being answered. First of all I missed somehow the fact that John's betroth really had no status for some reason. She may be Hearst niece but that doesn't seem to offer much. The scene where she is telling John that she was a nobody, with no name and that is why she wanted to be his wife as that would give her some status is interesting.

One other thing, the Ted Levine character showed a glimmer of his having a moral base. He said he knew that the doctor was probably selling babies but that had to be only what he was doing or he would take care of him.

Obviously, Libby is not of sound mine. Apparently she has been killing babies for quite some time. It seems to me that she is looking to replace a child she lost but none of the ones she kidnaps will do that so she kills them. Goo Goo isn't much better in that he is abetting her.

BTW, I can find no reference to Cornelius Vanderbilt's grandson being kidnapped. Vanderbilt died in 1877, 20 years before this series. There was an article that two men were asking an informant for help in kidnapping his grandson or even son but it never happened. They did kidnap another child who was never recovered.

I thought that John and Sara would do the nasty at some point but I don't think he is going to dump Violet although he wants to.

It seems the kidnapping of the Spanish child was just a target of opportunity. That still leaves us with what is the good doctor doing at the Lying In hospital (which was a real thing and was solely used in childbirth.). It also ask, just who is the female alienist and what is her role in all this, is she going to have a relationship with Laszlo, and finally does the butchering of the thugs at the beginning have any bearing on any of this. They keep coming back to the "Boneless Meat" facility

One thing I do think is that this has almost become a one person series, Dakota Fanning. The other characters are not adding much when it comes to actually determining what is going on. All the other parties could be left out and nothing would change much.

More next week.

[Trish]

@nathanbforrest45

I haven't watched the next episode so I'm not going to read your comment yet to avoid learning what happens. I'll try and catch it tonight or tomorrow and then respond back.