Thus revealed, the creature buried its nose in the tire-tilled soil...
June 16, 2011
Mystery Lalla dialogue scenario?

Occasionally I'll get part of a line of dialogue -- and sometimes just the rhythm or feel of a line of dialogue -- stuck in my head, and it'll bug the crap out of me until I can figure out 1.) the full line, 2.) who said it, and 3.) what it's from. And as I try and try and try to determine these things, I get even more frustrated because I know that if I could discern any one of them, I could derive the others from it and put my mind at ease.

Sometime early yesterday -- it might even have begun Monday evening -- I found my thoughts thus assaulted. This time, I didn't have even part of the line (which does make things easier; then I can google it and hopefully find the full line and circumstances on an episode transcript or list of quotes), just an idea of the rhythm behind it. For some reason, I also had the distinct impression of Lalla Ward saying the words rather coldly to a man who was genuinely trying to help her, but whom she did not trust and who was taken aback when he heard them. I could fit words to it -- and some of them fit very well -- but I was convinced that those words were wrong... mostly because the words that best fit the cadence in my head were a known line from Apocalypse in X-Men Evolution. ("Since when has mankind ever known what it needs." Incidentally, this was itself a mystery line of dialogue that got stuck in my head at one point.) Apocalypse is not in any way reminiscent of Lalla, and the scenario was all wrong.

So with Lalla Ward in mind, I defaulted to classic Doctor Who -- but quickly ruled that out. And since that's the only thing I've seen Lalla in, this meant she wasn't actually the speaker. Next I considered characters reminiscent of Lalla, and the only one who sprang immediately to mind was April Leonard from the current season of Primeval (terrible show, by the way). But I couldn't recall her even having any especially memorable lines from the last few weeks' episodes, let alone anything that would fit the vague scenario I envisioned.

After fixating on this on and off for nearly a day, I decided to go over the TV shows and movies I've watched somewhat recently -- and also my favorites, since I'd be most likely to remember dialogue from them -- in order to see if I could jog my memory. Game of Thrones, no; current Doctor Who, no; Ashes to Ashes, no; Life on Mars, no; Smallville, no; Fringe, no; V, no; Lost Girl, no; Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, no... and I kept going back in my viewing until I hit on Spartacus: Gods of the Arena. That was also a no, but something about the scene and the show's setting seemed right to me. I could certainly imagine a number of female characters saying cold things to men who would probably be surprised to hear them.

So Ilithyia seemed like the primary suspect at first, what with her sharp tongue and blondeness -- even if I don't quite picture Lalla Ward when I think of her. (Mickey sees quite the resemblance to Michael Cera in her.) But I couldn't land on any of her dialogue that would quite fit the rhythm and scenario I had in mind...

...and then I remembered Aurelia, and suddenly everything fell into place.

"And I should believe a man that would do anything to win?"

-posted by Wes | 6:32 am | Comments (3)
3 Comments »
  • Mickelodeon says:

    These types of situations drive me mad, but if I can't recall details and figure it out in a reasonable amount of time, either I forget about it entirely or just give it up as one of those mysteries of life. Kudos for being so methodical and actually getting to the bottom of it. XD

    • Mickelodeon says:

      PS It's all about the noses when it comes to Illithyia's resemblance to Michael Cera. Goodness, it's like they might share a nose or something. Have you ever seen them at the same place at the same time? I ask you... XD

  • Susan says:

    Happens to me too, although primarily with lyrics. I'll hear notes, rhythms or lyrics, rarely all 3 together, and then I got through much the same process as you did. Drives me crazy util I figure it out!!

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