Written by John Edward Betancourt Alexandra Daddario and Ted Levine as Dr. Rowan Fielding and Julien Mayfair in Episode 205 of ‘Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches’ – ‘Julien’s Victrola’. (Photo Courtesy of Skip Bolen/AMC.)
Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 205 of ‘Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
Within every family, is that one family member that everyone gossips about. Because they are the toxic one, the one who causes all the trouble and all the strife. Sometimes they’re someone we see on a regular basis, and we have to bite our tongue regarding what we’ve heard, while others… died long ago. But they were so awful and so toxic that they haunt the family to this day, and they are the ones we are curious about. Because we simply want to know what they were like, how toxic they turned out to be and we wonder how we would handle them if we ever had the chance to confront them and their toxic nonsense. But alas, such a confrontation is but a fantasy. One however, that we can sometimes explore in the world of fiction. Because in stories, anything can happen and curiosities can be explored and well, this particular pondering just so happened to be showcased in the next episode of Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches on AMC. For ‘Julien’s Victrola’ picked up immediately after the end of last week’s episode. Wherein Rowan stepped into Julien Mayfair’s weird spirit room and well, at first… it seemed as though this voyage was going to be a genuine waste of time. Because the Julien present here, was a far cry from what Cortland encountered. For he was frail, confused and very, very sleepy. Leaving Rowan to wonder if by chance some measure of projection applied in this realm, since she thought little of him, making this the end result. So, she opted to head home quick. Only to learn… that Julien was in fact, a formidable opponent. For that was but a ruse, one designed to split Rowan into two halves. Where her emotional self, returned to Earth, and her intellect stayed in his realm. To in part, mess with her, but also to see if she could match wits with him, impress him, and learn the truth about Lasher and his final destination. Which led to some fascinating moments in New Orleans. Wherein Moira and Cortland worked to unlock his memories since Emotional Rowan did establish that Scotland was involved in this, and Cortland realized he was there long ago. Which let us learn about him like never before, since that journey showcased the abuse, he suffered at the hands of his father. The kind related to him not being evil enough, really, to make the Mayfair line proud. Not to mention, Emotional Rowan opened herself up to Lark like never before. Because he came by to check on her and her new powers since the genetic coding, he pulled, showed something was off about her. Which led to a full confession from E-Rowan about her powers, about Lasher and about how much she loved Lark. To the point where she made it clear she wanted him to be at her side from now on, including when the family headed to Scotland. Once they figured out where to go, exactly. Plus, she even protected him when the moment was right, and it was just fascinating to see this half of Rowan since she has, rightfully, not put much of her emotions on display in this tale because of the chaos that’s surrounded her.  Harry Hamlin and Alyssa Jirrels as Cortland Mayfair and Moira Mayfair in Episode 205 of ‘Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches’ – ‘Julien’s Victrola’. (Photo Courtesy of Skip Bolen/AMC.)
But while that all happened in the Big Easy, Intellectual-Rowan did indeed lock into a battle of wits with Julien Mayfair. For he informed her that she had forty minutes to live without both halves of her mind in one place, and that had she paid him proper tribute, this would not have happened. Plus, he teased her often and worked to distract her. Making him supremely cruel in a manner we don’t often see in horror. Since his actions were less about guts and gore and immense power, and more about psychological warfare and exploitation of one’s emotional weakness. Something only a true abuser would lean upon. But thankfully… I-Rowan knew what she was up against, and she gave as good as she got, which surprised Julien.
Because he did not expect any clap back and was deeply uncomfortable with the fact that she was able to match him and figure things out, and that made for some equally as unsettling moments for Julien. Since I-Rowan stunned him often with her musings and understanding of the situation, and she slowly wore him down and began to figure out that there was a second Mayfair line in Scotland. One that was deemed a protector of Lasher. Plus, she also came to learn how much Julien enjoyed power in real life and used the afterlife to grasp to tastes of it and used that to her advantage as well. But all that cat and mouse aside, Intellectual-Rowan eventually win the day, and her emotional half pulled her out of that madness, shortly after she received the exact location of Lasher’s whereabouts. Not a moment too soon for that matter. Because we did see that Albrecht brought him to Cortland’s brother, Ian, across the pond, and we quickly came to learn… that Ian has dark plans for Lasher. For despite offering him kindness and anything he could want for in this life, he also locked him in a room and made sure to brutally murder Albrecht. Making it clear that whatever father wanted, father is going to get, when it comes to Lasher, and that helped to close out, the finest episode of this series to date. One that featured, a lovely little game of ‘what if?’ Wherein we came to learn that chatting with a long-gone toxic family member, could be quite the beneficial sparring match, one that we would win if we kept a level head in the battle. But this episode also made sure, to catapult this story forward in an epic manner. By showcasing that the real villain of the story is indeed Julien and his machinations, and clearly… everyone is his pawn. Not to mention, let’s make sure we give Ted Levine a round of applause for putting forth an EPIC performance in this tale. For he was just brilliant, plain and simple, and offered up a calculated and frustrated madness from Juilen, and hopefully we get more Julien before the season ends. But while we wait, we can applaud one amazing episode. One that took us on an incredible ride and set the stage for more incredible adventures. For it would seem that Rowan and the Mayfair family are headed to Scotland to save Lasher, Jojo, and Daphne and stop Julien’s plans once and for all. Until next time. Watch ‘Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches’
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