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"Power" is the first episode of the first season and the first episode of the Murdoch Mysteries series. It first aired on January 20, 2008.

Summary[]

The city of Toronto is considering converting its electrical system from direct current to alternating current. A demonstration against the proposal is held with the intent of electrocuting a dog with high power. The newly crowned Miss Toronto Electric and Light, Alice Howard, attends the ceremony, having been invited to pull the switch on the mechanism. As she does, the crowd is horrified to see that she is electrocuted instead of the dog.

Nikola Tesla helps Detective William Murdoch with an experiment that proves that the switch used had been tampered with. Doctor Julia Ogden learns the route the electric current followed through the victim's body; she also determines that the victim was pregnant.

Allen Fawkes, Daniel Pratt, Edwin Dodd and Edna Garrison are all suspects. Eventually, Pratt admits to having been intimate with the young woman but is murdered by electrocution and Garrison is cleared. Tesla helps Murdoch construct a radio transmitter that allows Murdoch to record Dodd confessing to the murder of Pratt. The timing of the young woman's pregnancy and that of Fawkes's visits to Toronto, coupled with the fact that Fawkes expects to marry into a wealthy family, lead Murdoch to determine that Fawkes killed the woman.

Character Revelations[]

  • Murdoch refers to Nikola Tesla as one of his heroes.
  • Murdoch makes the Sign of the Cross when confronted with the dead body of Alice Howard.  Murdoch is Roman Catholic and this Catholic ritual continues in every episode forward.
  • Dr. Ogden and Murdoch go to scientific exhibitions together.
  • The reason why Dr. Ogden keeps goldfishes in the City Morgue is given, "Sometimes I desire a little more companionship."
  • Crabtree gets a new pet – a dog named Violet.

Continuity[]

Historical References[]

  • This episode takes place in Toronto 1895 – Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria 1819- 1901) is Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Defender of the Faith, and Empress of India. It is also known as the Belle Époque era, conventionally dated from the end of the Franco-Prussian War in 1871 to the outbreak of World War I in 1914.
  • Beginning with the 1763 Treaty of Paris, Canada came under British rule when New France, of which the colony of Canada was a part, formally became a part of the British Empire.
  • The War of Currents.
  • The Power Station in Niagara Falls, New York.
  • Murdoch and Tesla discuss the possibilities of future inventions, even the television.

Trivia[]

  • This episode was originally going to be episode 9 in Season 1.
  • Actor David Huband returns in Season 6 as Mayor Clarkson of Toronto.
  • "Case closed" is used for the first time by Dr. Ogden, who remarks on it as one to remember.
  • Mr. Pratt generously offered Murdoch an orange when the detective went to his office: "They are very hard to find. Grown in Florida."
  • "Me Ol' Mucker" Count: 1

Errors[]

  • The phonograph played by Dr. Ogden was not available until around 1912, though the episode is supposed to take place in the 1890s.
  • Constable George Crabtree casually enters Edna Garrison's rooms after hours, via the window, at her invitation. But in 1895, respectable people would never have done this, and done it so casually. If Crabtree had been discovered there, it would have meant the end of his police career, and Edna would certainly have been evicted.
  • Also, Edna's room is not on the ground floor in an earlier scene, but it's on the ground floor later.
  • Supposedly, Toronto is planning to bring electric power from Niagara Falls AC, in 1895. But it wasn't until 1906 that the Toronto Power Generating Station was opened at Niagara Falls, Ontario, to harness hydro electric power for Toronto.
  • Allen Fawkes is mistakenly referred to as 'Guy Fawkes', the famous historical personage who tried to blow up Parliament.
  • The dog to be executed is placed inside a metal cage, the cables attached to the cage itself. This would act as a Faraday cage, acts to protect the dog; However the cage, being made of iron/steel, would heat up due to high resistance thus burning the dog alive. This would have been known in 1895 and certainly would have been discovered during previous demonstrations.
  • The word "girlfriend" is used by the Inspector, to imply a romantic partner. In the 19th century, girlfriend referred to platonic female friendships; The romantic meaning did not appear until 1922.

Cast[]

Main Cast[]

Yannick Bisson as William Murdoch
Hélène Joy as Julia Ogden
Thomas Craig as Thomas Brackenreid
Jonny Harris as George Crabtree

Recurring Cast[]

Dmitry Chepovetsky as Nikola Tesla
Tamara Hope as Edna Garrison

Guest Cast[]

Patrick Garrow as Allen Fawkes
Alan C. Peterson as Edwin Dodd
David Huband as Daniel Pratt
Kristin Fairlie as Petunia
Tamsen McDonough as Alice Howard

References[]

Gallery[]


Murdoch Mysteries Season 1
"Power" • "The Glass Ceiling" • "The Knockdown" • "Elementary, My Dear Murdoch" • "'Til Death Do Us Part" • "Let Loose the Dogs" • "Body Double" • "Still Waters" • "Belly Speaker" • "Child's Play" • "Bad Medicine" • "The Prince and the Rebel" • "The Annoying Red Planet"
Season 2Season 3Season 4Season 5Season 6Season 7Season 8Season 9Season 10Season 11Season 12Season 13Season 14Season 15
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