Evil Season 4 Episode 2 ratcheted up the tension as many of our favorite characters found themselves distressed.
Some kicked ass, like Sheryl, and some fell into a blubbering heap, like Andy. Either way, there's a lot to digest, as we are only a mere 12 episodes away from the finale.
Although "How to Train a Werewolf" began with a supernatural bent, science won this time out.
Every season has a theme, and the pop-up book at the beginning of the credits (which began 17 minutes into the episode) is The Big Pop-Up Book of Science.
This makes me wonder if they'll tie the whole series together with a scientific explanation for everything before the end. That would be a satisfying series conclusion, if somewhat disappointing.
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As science is malleable as new evidence emerges, even if the series receives its Hail Mary pass and is saved, it won't matter how things end, as there is always a new beginning waiting in the wings.
How DO you train a werewolf?
Well, it turns out that you don't. You don't even find a werewolf on a werewolf hunt in a dark cemetery, but you do discover other surprises.
Fact: I would take a robo-dog in an instant!
Kristen has a no-pets mandate with the girls; for people like that, a robo-dog would be welcome and effective. I have pets, but dogs require much more work than cats, and I fear I'd fail an actual dog. Couldn't do that with a robo-dog.
When the robotic critter attacked David, the first thought that came to everyone's mind was that it was a "white dog," aka trained to attack Black people.
That was incorrect, but the truth was just as nefarious. It was singling out people of faith based on phone apps. Nefarious but clever.
That's the problem with any robot -- someone could hack it to make it do their bidding.
It's a little too much like life in this online world where we're manipulated with every keystroke. Dealing with a bit of poo on the floor is less unsettling.
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Is Lynn interested in becoming a nun?
Kristen's eldest daughter, Lynn, is interested in religion. Like our conversation about the robo-dog above, Kristen would probably be happier if Lynn was sneaking out to see her boyfriend rather than Sister Andrea.
The dog targeted Lynn more than once, but with so much going on, it escaped Kristen, and as far as we could tell, she didn't put two and two together.
Kristen has been against faith and religion from the start. When we talked with the Evil cast, they shared how the characters' relationships fundamentally changed their views on science and faith.
Kristen can be a hard-nosed mom sometimes, but she's all in when her girls need her.
I want to think Kristen will support Lynn as she navigates her journey through faith.
A woman's work is never done.
Kristen is incredibly active and always on the go. She doesn't take no for an answer -- she got a lot of that from Sheryl.
Sheryl's life path has exceptionally diverged from the norm, but damn, you have to hand it to her -- she never gives up.
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Who was Sheryl before we met her? She must have been very unsatisfied to turn to evil as she has. She met Leland while she was on a date with someone else. She's always searching.
While we would have never expected her to turn so completely on her daughter, Sheryl is giving her new career her all. Leland toys with her and pits her against The Manager, but she always surpasses their expectations.
Christine Lahti nailed her performance against the demonic Danny, and it was especially fun seeing Sheryl make fun of the guy after she chopped off his finger.
Still, enjoying Sheryl's hijinks doesn't mean I support them. She deserves the crushing ceiling of her new office just for the pain she's inflicted upon her family, all in the name of, well, I don't know what.
Watching Andy be tortured is torture itself.
Andy's personality has drastically changed since we first met him. Kristen chalks it up to being lost in the mountains, but it's weird that with everything she's experienced since Evil Season 1 Episode 1, she isn't digging a little further.
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How could she find her husband sleeping under the bed rather than on it and so quickly brush it aside?
OK, she did want him to get a physical examination, but she's just not showing the right amount of concern given her history.
She's less likely to pick up on how different he is when he's actually suffering than when he's having fun. Did you see the look on her face when he was laughing and having a good time with the robo-dog?
Finally, she appeared to think to herself, "who IS this guy?"
They also brushed aside finding needle marks between Andy's toes too easily. Maybe you suffer from those types of things after being lost in the mountains.
Have you ever had an injury to the soft flesh between your toes? That hurts. Andy's toes looked painful. How did he not see it before?
When he collapsed in the tub and cried like a baby, his girls comforted him. I've never been so thankful for their incessant chatter as I was at that moment.
If you've seen the Evil trailer in our Everything We Know article, then you know it won't get any easier for Andy. It will be as painful to watch as the needle marks between his toes.
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Buh bye, Mr. LaConte, and welcome to remote viewing.
Bon voyage, Mr. LaConte. Nobody else will be able to deliver a line like "Do you have mosquitos?" with the same panache.
LaConte is taking his leave because he doesn't believe in the CIA's use of remote viewing -- if he believes in remote viewing at all. But even he had to admit that what David accomplished in his first session was remarkable.
What I like about this particular storyline is it's one of those rare phenomena that crosses the line between faith and science.
David frequently has visions (often with the help of a foreign substance), but adding the CIA to the mix creates a new level of intrigue.
It sure sounds like this story involving Grace, the Vatican, and now David will expand quite a bit before the series ends. Are all of the parties involved aware of Leland and his attempts to bring the anti-Christ into the world?
How could they not be aware? This should be fun.
Particle accelerator follow-up.
We need to briefly touch on the Evil Season 4 premiere events and how Ben was affected. He's got his work cut out for him, ridding himself of unwelcome visitors in his mind.
He's having these visions due to the particle beam going through his thick skull. For the briefest instant when that occurred, we saw a smattering of evil images on screen.
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I don't even know how it happened, but I stumbled over a story in the real world about CERN and some opening ceremony mumbo jumbo they had by way of celebration for some new wing or something.
As it turns out, many people think CERN scientists are actively trying to find a new dimension or bring forth the devil.
Do yourself a favor and search for the CERN opening ceremony on YouTube. Your mouth will fall open when you see the similarities between the premiere and real life.
Michelle and Robert King take real stories and incorporate them into all of their shows, but Evil is sometimes so fantastical that it's easy to overlook the reality of what we're watching.
Seeing those videos was a real kick in the ass, I'll tell ya!
Until next time.
If you've made it this far, please let me know below what you think of the season so far and how you would like to see the series end.
Are you hopeful for a scientific explanation for what we've witnessed so far, or would you prefer the same noncommittal approach that leaves the world and its contents open for exploration?