TELEVISION: A Small Light - episode 4
Aug. 23rd, 2024 03:50 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
feather_ghyllA Small Light - 1.4 The Butterfly
Coming up to Christmas/Hannukah, and the pressures on everyone ratcheted up. Miep returned to the office to get money for Hannukah gifts to find it had been ransacked by thieves, and everyone up in the attic terrified. They were also a bit testy because there was no way for them to get away from each other, and Dr Pfeffer was particularly touchy, threatening to leave to be with Lottie. Miep also learned that he had a son he’d sent away abroad.
When Jan said he was going to see his brother and she should go home, after a colleague took over cleaning the office and staying as a guard, she felt a little suspicious, watched her husband from a window and saw he was going the wrong way. Turned out he was going to a church, which Miep reacted to as if it were worse than cheating, going to Tess’s to complain. In fairness, he had lied to her and that was the underlying problem. Of course, we knew that it was resistance work, and it turned out the priest was sheltering two Jews (who were snuck into a cupboard, which looked even worse than the flat the Franks and company were in). Turned out that they were parents, and the mother was near hysterical missing her boy. Jan hoped a photograph of the boy would help, but it didn’t.
(After the episode, it occurred to me that it was a bit rich having Miep and the mother be the most overwrought, but of course, it may well be rooted in fact.)
We learned that Tess’s mother was dying of cancer, and she was glad to see her best friend and suggested an ice skating party at her boyfriend’s. Miep had a bit of a row with Jan, angsting over whether she was judgmental and not entirely accepting his explanations for going to church – it felt believable that she’d be worried that their marriage would go the way of his first, with him seeming to change on her.
Dr Pfeffer’s Lottie called at the office, and Miep got the genius idea of bringing him to the grill where he could hear her voice, as Miep got her to explain what was in the Hannukah basket she’d brought for him, thinking he was in the country and that Miep might go there. Miep guided the conversation enough so that he could hear Lottie’s messages for himself. As there were treats in the basket, Anne and the rest of the apartment would eye it covetuously for days.
Arrangements for the party went apace – while Miep was scrabbling to find food for her friends – and Tess wasn’t inviting the old crowd, but she gifted Miep a beautiful necklace of butterflies, saying that her friend had grown into one (in a way that was almost faintly insulting about what she’d been like in the past.) Jan wasn’t keen on this party and Miep knew she’d have to pawn the necklace after. But Jan was inspired by Miep’s story about Dr Pfeffer and Lottie to try bringing little Nathan near the church, where his parents could see him. Except the mother didn’t have much self-control, not when the little boy was crying, and nearly gave them all away.
When the ladies of the apartment heard about Miep’s party, they set aside their jealousy to give her a very fancy silvery dress and even fancier cape to wear. She would just have to lie to Tess about where she got it. Miep was looking forward badly to the party, because she needed to be reminded of good times and that there would be good times after. She got into a little fight with Jan, where he eventually buckled and all but told her that he’d been lying about his reasons for going to church because he was helping others in the same way that she was, repeating the word ‘resist’ until even a moron would have got it.
The party, at Daniel’s big house, was very fancy. Miep was surprised that she knew no one there except Tess and her boyfriend, but going along with it. Jan headed for the drinks. Neither was exactly comfortable, so Miep went out to find the temporary ice rink and go skating, looking beautiful in her silver gown, with fake snowflakes falling on her head. But Jan was a lot less comfortable when he saw that most of the men wore badges declaring themselves members of the Nazi party and dragged Miep off the ice, telling her they had to leave. When she saw the badges for herself, she became a ball of fury, attacking Tess. Jan had to descend to pretending she was drunk and get all bossy husband, but, as he said when they got outside, she was liable to get herself arrested if she continued lashing out, and then where would her friends be?
So, instead, the couple went back to the office (risky) and went upstairs to celebrate the first night of Hannukah. The men were giving moving speeches, and Miep and Jan shared all the food and bottle of champagne they’d managed to steal from the party, while Dr Prefer shared his basket. But things took a turn when Mr Frank saw Miep’s necklace, and he showed her that it was an old necklace, from a time when Jews had been forced to convert to Christianity, which could be folded into the Star of David. It was clear that it had been stolen from Jews.
Miep, a ball of fury again, went to accost Tess, wanting to know exactly where she’d got the necklace from. It was from a friend of the boyfriends. Miep was being all judgy as Tess said, pretty Tess, whose mother was dying, who was going to cling on to Daniel who’d happily work with Nazis. Miep vainly tried to get a hold of Tess’s better self, and ended on the perfectly right point that the war would end and would Tess be able to live with what she’d become then? But Tess remained self-interested (and I, sadly, could see why.)
Jan took the necklace to his Resistance contact, who said he’d try to return it to its rightful owners someday. Jan expressed his own frustrations – having generally been better at suppressing them than Miep. He got led into the backroom of the bar and shown some weapons.
This was mostly engrossing.
Coming up to Christmas/Hannukah, and the pressures on everyone ratcheted up. Miep returned to the office to get money for Hannukah gifts to find it had been ransacked by thieves, and everyone up in the attic terrified. They were also a bit testy because there was no way for them to get away from each other, and Dr Pfeffer was particularly touchy, threatening to leave to be with Lottie. Miep also learned that he had a son he’d sent away abroad.
When Jan said he was going to see his brother and she should go home, after a colleague took over cleaning the office and staying as a guard, she felt a little suspicious, watched her husband from a window and saw he was going the wrong way. Turned out he was going to a church, which Miep reacted to as if it were worse than cheating, going to Tess’s to complain. In fairness, he had lied to her and that was the underlying problem. Of course, we knew that it was resistance work, and it turned out the priest was sheltering two Jews (who were snuck into a cupboard, which looked even worse than the flat the Franks and company were in). Turned out that they were parents, and the mother was near hysterical missing her boy. Jan hoped a photograph of the boy would help, but it didn’t.
(After the episode, it occurred to me that it was a bit rich having Miep and the mother be the most overwrought, but of course, it may well be rooted in fact.)
We learned that Tess’s mother was dying of cancer, and she was glad to see her best friend and suggested an ice skating party at her boyfriend’s. Miep had a bit of a row with Jan, angsting over whether she was judgmental and not entirely accepting his explanations for going to church – it felt believable that she’d be worried that their marriage would go the way of his first, with him seeming to change on her.
Dr Pfeffer’s Lottie called at the office, and Miep got the genius idea of bringing him to the grill where he could hear her voice, as Miep got her to explain what was in the Hannukah basket she’d brought for him, thinking he was in the country and that Miep might go there. Miep guided the conversation enough so that he could hear Lottie’s messages for himself. As there were treats in the basket, Anne and the rest of the apartment would eye it covetuously for days.
Arrangements for the party went apace – while Miep was scrabbling to find food for her friends – and Tess wasn’t inviting the old crowd, but she gifted Miep a beautiful necklace of butterflies, saying that her friend had grown into one (in a way that was almost faintly insulting about what she’d been like in the past.) Jan wasn’t keen on this party and Miep knew she’d have to pawn the necklace after. But Jan was inspired by Miep’s story about Dr Pfeffer and Lottie to try bringing little Nathan near the church, where his parents could see him. Except the mother didn’t have much self-control, not when the little boy was crying, and nearly gave them all away.
When the ladies of the apartment heard about Miep’s party, they set aside their jealousy to give her a very fancy silvery dress and even fancier cape to wear. She would just have to lie to Tess about where she got it. Miep was looking forward badly to the party, because she needed to be reminded of good times and that there would be good times after. She got into a little fight with Jan, where he eventually buckled and all but told her that he’d been lying about his reasons for going to church because he was helping others in the same way that she was, repeating the word ‘resist’ until even a moron would have got it.
The party, at Daniel’s big house, was very fancy. Miep was surprised that she knew no one there except Tess and her boyfriend, but going along with it. Jan headed for the drinks. Neither was exactly comfortable, so Miep went out to find the temporary ice rink and go skating, looking beautiful in her silver gown, with fake snowflakes falling on her head. But Jan was a lot less comfortable when he saw that most of the men wore badges declaring themselves members of the Nazi party and dragged Miep off the ice, telling her they had to leave. When she saw the badges for herself, she became a ball of fury, attacking Tess. Jan had to descend to pretending she was drunk and get all bossy husband, but, as he said when they got outside, she was liable to get herself arrested if she continued lashing out, and then where would her friends be?
So, instead, the couple went back to the office (risky) and went upstairs to celebrate the first night of Hannukah. The men were giving moving speeches, and Miep and Jan shared all the food and bottle of champagne they’d managed to steal from the party, while Dr Prefer shared his basket. But things took a turn when Mr Frank saw Miep’s necklace, and he showed her that it was an old necklace, from a time when Jews had been forced to convert to Christianity, which could be folded into the Star of David. It was clear that it had been stolen from Jews.
Miep, a ball of fury again, went to accost Tess, wanting to know exactly where she’d got the necklace from. It was from a friend of the boyfriends. Miep was being all judgy as Tess said, pretty Tess, whose mother was dying, who was going to cling on to Daniel who’d happily work with Nazis. Miep vainly tried to get a hold of Tess’s better self, and ended on the perfectly right point that the war would end and would Tess be able to live with what she’d become then? But Tess remained self-interested (and I, sadly, could see why.)
Jan took the necklace to his Resistance contact, who said he’d try to return it to its rightful owners someday. Jan expressed his own frustrations – having generally been better at suppressing them than Miep. He got led into the backroom of the bar and shown some weapons.
This was mostly engrossing.
