Forever Knight

Another strong entry in this series. Nicholas goes up against yet another serial killer. This one is a religious fanatic who murders women he believes have fallen from grace due to their own immorality.



This episode raises the issue of confessional sanctity. One of the priests has heard the confessions of the killer, but steadfastly maintains his silence about those confessions. Not even the likelihood of more homicides will persuade him to violate his confessional obligations.



One of the strong suits of this series is the ability to witness various periods of Nick's long life through flashbacks. This episode focuses on his encounter with Joan of Arc. He offers her immortality; she declines on the grounds that she will have spiritual immortality after her martyrdom for allegedly being a heretic. I viewed the encounter as a juxtaposition between the soul vs. the soul-less.



While this story is very weighty on issues pertaining to the Church, it does find time for a bit of much-needed humor. While Nick sits in the confessional awaiting the arrival of the killer, who should show up but Det. Schanke. Nick puts on his best Irish brogue and hears Schanke's entertaining confession about a recent indiscretion.



This was a very enjoyable installment in what seems to be shaping up as a great series. I can already see why "Knight" had a devoted following.

I'm a new fan of this show. After enjoying Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel I decided to give this series a try. And so far I am enjoying it. This was a wonderful episode. We see more flashbacks of Nick's life, including some exchanges with Joan of Arc. At first I wasn't too impressed, but when you see how he genuinely wants to become human again and the pain he endures in order to try, you really have to admire Nick. He understands the pain he caused many people, and now he endures more pain to make up for it. Even though overall this series is much more serious than Buffy and Angel, there is an attempt to add some humor, mainly in the scenes with Schenke, where he goes to the club and then gets so freaked out he confesses, only to discover Nick in the confessional. It's a good balance, and I'm looking forward to enjoying more of this series.