Any Highlander fans out there? I have some questions.

[thefourthvine]

Do you know HL? I need some help from people who have seen Highlander canon. Here's what I'd like to know:

1. What are all the ways to permanently kill an immortal? I know cutting off heads, but is there anything else? And is it different the first time they die? And does it matter if the whole head doesn't come off - like, can they come back if the neck is only mostly severed?
   
   
2. What happens the first time they (don't) die? I mean, they think they're mortal for a period of time, right? And then they die, except they don't, and they say, "Whoa, dude. I must be immortal, because that sure as shit should've killed me." (Although I think most people would assume the injury or whatever just hadn't been as bad as they thought, so - do some of them have to die a lot before they figure it out?) But I'm a little foggy on the whole deal, frankly. Do they have to be buried and then rise again, like vampires? Or is it more of an instantaneous thing?
   
   
3. What happens if you shoot an immortal (who has already done the first not-death, if that matters) in a way that would kill a human but won't kill him? (Like, gaping chest wound, something like that.) I'm pretty sure he has at least a period of, shall we say, limited activity, but how long is he down for? And exactly how limited is his activity? And what happens - like, do the wounds visibly close over and heal, or does he just suddenly sit up all better, or what?

As much detail as you've got, that's how much I'd like.

And if you know any sources for getting this kind of information without bugging my friends list - like, a Highlander encyclopedia or whatever - I would love to know about it.

Comments

[stillane.livejournal.com]

I'm actually just now trying to learn all of the ins and outs of this one myself. From what I can tell, these seem to be helpful points to keep in mind (and anyone older and/or wiser, feel free to correct me):

1. As others have said, don't lose your head. (Which I am personally finding to be a bit of a bitch. I want long, drawn out scenes of soul-wrenching mortal terror, damn it, and the whole "head on or off" thing seems pretty inarguable. I need the Immortal equivalent of the magic vampire poison from Buffy.)

2. Someone who has seen more than I could probably tell you definitively, but the first time seems to be a little longer in terms of recovery requirements. Again, as others have said, they typically stay dead exactly as long as the plot requires them to stay dead, but there's usually some extra weight to the first bucket kicking. This translates as a little longer time spent assuming room temperature. I think.

3. Sometimes, the temporarily life challenged individual seems to wake up cranky, but otherwise whole. Other times, he spends a while limping through the healing even after he comes back online; in particular, I'm thinking of an outtake scene with Methos reviving, and then having the fatal injury tweaked by a not-so-friendly party. Basically, death works like sleep, I figure: sometimes a quick nap is enough, and sometimes anything less than a good twelve hours leaves you angrier than a nest of hornets on PCP.

Also: you mentioned above the idea of just whacking the guy you're fighting prior to... well, whacking him. This apparently is not against The Rules - which have presumably dire consequences which are never fully explained - but it is bad form. Provided you care about that sort of thing. (Which Methos evidently doesn't, given that he does exactly that at at least one point... after temporarily offing MacLeod, come to think of it. This is why I love this character.) MacLeod, however, disapproves mightily.

So, yeah. Jack Sparrow rules are in effect, mainly. Aside from having it out on holy ground, I'm pretty sure everything else is more like a guideline.

[lunardreamed.livejournal.com]

Hmm. As far as mortal terror goes, hope you don't mind me jumping in, the first canon example that comes to mind is Claudia Jardine. She chose not to learn to defend herself so that she would keep a sense of mortality. Another example is of an Immortal being hunted to exhaustion because he was famous for his skill with a sword. He couldn't handle the contant fighting for his life and became addicted to heroin. Many lack the skill to win in a fight and when someone chooses to challenge them or hunt them, they seem to be in pretty mortal terror. Of course, there is always torture while trapped in some way, while knowing that it will eventually come to a beheading.

On holy ground, I think I recall a plotline in which an Immortal set himself up as a god and would kill Immortals in his temple. Now, whether this was sanctified ground, given that he was the one worshiped there, might be debatable. I think there is an Immortal fairy-tale that Vesuvius went up when an Immortal killed on holy ground.

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Hmm. As far as mortal terror goes, hope you don't mind me jumping in...

Not at all! These are great points, and helpful suggestions. I've just gotten lazy lately, and find myself wanting to go for the easy out, trauma-wise. *g* I need to get more creative, it seems. Or more introspective. Something.

I'd forgotten about Claudia and her mortality dilema. I'm still kind of curious how that one would have turned out, in the long run. I kept wondering if there would come a time when the fear of death would hit the breaking point; eventually, I think it would either become too stressful to allow creativity or too commonplace to keep her inspired. Hmm.

I think I recall a plotline in which an Immortal set himself up as a god and would kill Immortals

Huh. This would be one of the ones I've missed. Thanks for the heads up! *wanders off to watch*

[lunardreamed.livejournal.com]

It's "Little Tin God" Season Five.

[jacquez.livejournal.com]

On a slightly different note, there's some evidence that Immortal friends will kill each other (temporarily) for various reasons, or else use their deaths for a particular advantage. stillane mentions Methos killing Duncan temporarily, for example, and Cory Raines gets his cute butt exploded...also, there's that robbery spree Cory and Amanda go on, where they steal, get themselves shot & buried, and Duncan digs them up -- lather, rinse, repeat.

This kind of behavior can make writing hijinks in HL fandom very fun indeed, because you can kill folks off for humor value! It's awesome!

[stillane.livejournal.com]

Hee. Gotta love a fandom in which death = funny (and occasionally profitable). *g*

And then there's the fact that among some members of the Immortal community, it seems to be a bizarre form of greeting. (Yes, Kronos, I'm looking at you.) Like a slightly twisted secret handshake.