This page refers to the phenomenon of Quickenings from the Highlander universe of Highlander (film) and Highlander: The Series. In the Highlander Universe when an Immortal beheads another Immortal in combat the lifeforce is released into the victor. This transfer of energy is known as the Quickening.
Duncan MacLeod receives a QuickeningThe Quickenings in the Highlander movies vary greatly as the creators were still experimenting with the concept.
In the first movie the majority of Quickenings seen on screen feature a series of explosions in the immediate area surrounding the victor as the surviving Immortal is filled with an unseen energy.
Connor MacLeod receives a Quickening from The KurganFeatured at the end of the first movie, The Kurgan's Quickening absorbed by Connor MacLeod became the standard for the following Highlander stories. This Quickening features lightning, explosions and what appears to be a large energy beast surrounding and then merging with Connor. Beads Freshwater Pearls Gemstone Beads Gifts - Accessories Imitation Pearls Jewellery Jewellery Findings for bead stringing. The idea with this Quickening was that it was the merging of all Immortal power on Earth in the last survivor.
The Quickenings of this film (as with many other parts of it) do not match up with the rest of the series of Highlander stories. One Quickening de-ages Connor (who had grown old after winning the Prize). This Quickening also managed to resurrect Ramirez after being dead for 500 years. Another odd use of the Quickening has Ramirez expelling his lifeforce to stop a large machine from killing Connor.
In this film the Quickening is shown to more directly transfer knowledge and skill (as opposed to the vague transfer seen elsewhere). The whole plot of the movie is that the villain beheaded an Immortal wizard and gained his magical abilities for himself. Gifts for all occasions: African figurines, African art, tart burners, home accents, Oriental figurines, Oriental gifts, oil warmers, medieval figurines, wrought iron decor, and. In theory Connor received these abilities at the end of the movie. Though other Highlander stories have featured Immortals with unusual gifts, none have shown the direct transfer of those gifts upon beheading.
All Quickenings featured on the television series take the form of lightning storms striking the victor. The exact nature of each Quickening varies. Sometimes it is seen as a transfer of knowledge (represented through visions of the deceased Immortal's life or briefly taking on their mannerisms), while other times the world around the Immortal changes through cloud coverage and the passage of several hours (generally day to night). All quickenings feature lightning and explosions (the power of the surrounding explosions also varies).
A build up of quickenings from evil Immortals can overwhelm even the best of Immortals and lead to a Dark Quickening. Christmas Wreaths. The Dark Quickening draws out the darker elements of an Immortal's psyche until they are evil themselves.
In season four of Highlander an Immortal Native American named Coltec, who took it upon himself to rid the world of evil by killing as many evil Immortals as he could was eventually overwhelmed by the Dark Quickening. Duncan MacLeod was forced to kill his friend and was himself overwhelmed.
A direct QuickeningDuncan then went on a rampage in Paris, ending with the beheading of another old friend Sean Burns. Burns was known as one of the wisest and most peaceful of the Immortals and his Quickening subdued the Dark Quickening long enough for Methos to take Duncan to a long forgotten healing spring where Duncan was able to vanquish the darkest elements of his soul.
In the first season of Highlander, the Immortal monk Darius was introduced as an ancient warlord who lead an army across Europe. When he reached the gates of Paris, Darius encountered an Immortal holy man who tried to protect the city. vases and desk accessories, perfect as anniversary gifts and executive gifts. When Darius beheaded the holy man, his purer essence overwhelmed Darius and caused him to disband his army and spend the next thousand years living in peace on holy ground. Undoubtedly, the man who confronted Darius was man of incredible spiritual power.
From the 5th season episode Revelation 6:8 the only example of a double Quickening came as Duncan and Methos battled the remaining Horsemen in their French lair. Duncan battled the Horsemen leader Kronos, while Methos (a Horseman himself) turned against his former "brothers" and battled Silas. As Duncan and Methos won their respective battles at the same time, the Quickenings merged and split between the two of them in an unusual display of a spiraled lightning effect. Whether this Quickening was special in any way other than visually is unknown.
Renegade Watcher James Horton and his band of allies beheaded several immortals between 1990-1993. Gifts for complementary therapies and alternative health, as well as candles, angels, inspirational books and new age music. Since they were mortal, the Quickening was presumably lost (whether it manifested at all is uncertain). This type of beheading was featured in more detail on the spin-off series Highlander: The Raven. In one episode the mortal character Nick beheads an Immortal by firing his gun at a huge pane of glass which slices the Immortal villain's head off. With no other Immortal present the Quickening appears as a stream of lightning floating up towards the sky. It's unknown if this is the same affect that happened with Horton's beheadings since it was revealed later that Nick was a pre-Immortal (one who had not died his first death yet).
Amanda receives a QuickeningThe only time we see Horton behead an Immortal onscreen, a second Immortal is present and, though he didn't deliver the killing blow, the Quickening went to him. This was also shown on Highlander: The Raven when Nick beheaded an Immortal and Amanda was nearby to receive the Quickening. Thema: knitting at unusual places.
The rules of the Highlander universe state that Immortal combat is strictly forbidden on Holy Ground. While we have several examples of battles taking place there have been no on screen beheadings (due mainly to the fear of unknown consequences).
At least a hint of those unknown consequences can be glimpsed in Highlander 3 when despite the rules Kane engages Connor in battle on the grounds of his holy sanctuary. A foreboding atmospheric effect begins culminating with the destruction of Connor's sword which shatters into thousands of fragments. The two immortals wisely choose to postpone their battle.
The only time that an Immortal was beheaded on Holy Ground came in the season 1 episode the Hunters in which Darius is killed. However, his beheading was carried out by mortal Watchers with no Immortal present. Gift Ideas And Unusual Gifts - A Specialised directory of links to those hard to find unusual gift ideas for special occasions. Therefore the rules of Immortal combat wouldn't apply and the Quickening may not have manifest itself.
According to Joe Dawson there is only one Watcher legend indicating an Immortal beheading another on Holy Ground. The legend states that the battle took place in AD 79 Pompeii and resulted in the famous volcanic explosion. However this is an unproven legend that may or may not be true.
The fourth Highlander movie follows the plots and continuity of the show rather than the earlier movies. Therefore the Quickenings in this movie follow the rules of the show. The villain Jacob Kell has amassed more than 600 Quickenings. Unusual. This is reflected in his increased skill as a fighter, and Connor's assertion that Duncan must kill him in order to be strong enough to defeat Kell. However, Kell does kill a number of Immortals on holy ground, with no apparent disastrous effect.
Criticism of the holy ground beheadings meant that all references to the Sanctuary being holy ground were removed from the DVD edition.
Duncan seemed to briefly take on the voice of Connor at one point prior to Kell's defeat, which has never been seen in other Quickenings.
Not considered part of the official Highlander canon, the animated series featured a different type of Quickening than any previously shown. Due to the fact that it was a show aimed at young children, beheading never took place and instead the Quickenings were transferred through the swords. If in the future it becomes canon, it'll mean that an immortal can give up its own Quickening to another at will, while still able to be taken by beheading an opponent. EUR 13,17. In one episode, Kortan was shown killed another immortal off-screen because he refused to transferred his Quickening through sword, instead killed the immortal. They never mentioned beheading, only a swing of a sword.
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