Season 2, Episode 2: The Devil you Woe
So we got a lot of plots going on. Mostly this episode consists of Wednesday on another creepy murder case which is more necessitated by prophesy rather than Wednesday’s sense of morbid curiosity.
So Wednesday’s old buddy old Pal disgraced Sheriff Galpin has been murder by a murder of crows, which the Wednesday defiantly remarks on. Also with all the crow imaginary I can’t help but be reminded of another show that Netflix preemptively canceled but I digress.
I fully admit that I don’t love horror due to be easily being freaked out, The fall of the House of Usher still freaks me out, but the crow jump scare did nothing. Maybe it wasn’t that scary?
Wednesday gets a tip that the birds can be controlled by new type of Outcast called “Avians” of which there are none at Nevermore. This information was given to her by Christopher Lloyd as a head in a jar….. or Professor Orloff. Lloyd’s inclusion makes for the second casting of a former Addams cast member from the 90s movie. Holding out hope for Joan Cusack. Anyway not sure what to make of the head in jar but the name is similar to Nosfertu’s Count Orlok and the head jar is reminiscent of Futurama.
Since Galpin has been murdered, by crows, Wednesday takes a trip to Tyler which feels more an exuse for some The Silence of Lambs references than actually making sense but we’ll see, it’s still early in the season. Though Tyler is more interesting than his season one “reformed bully” persona but that might because the being “evil” gives the actor more to work with.
More plots are Bianca and the Gala. Dort wants Morticia’s mother to donate to the gala. Is the Gala like the required dance for the season? And on top of the Wednesday’s stalker is revealed after set-up an elaborate puzzle for Wednesday to solve or Enid and Bruno will die. Her stalker is fan-girl Agnes who got those “Davincis” to help set up the elaborate death by falling swords. Again WHAT ARE THE DAVINCIs? Telekinetic inventors would be a guess.. Doesn’t really matter as so far none have a name or character, they are set-dressing at best, a thing that is used to explain away props and sets.
Just No on the whole Zombie plot-line. The only zombies I vaguely tolerate is when Bob’s Burgers does it and that’s it. Pursing through reddit (though avoiding spoilers) it does seem like this Zombie is Pugsley and Eugene’s plot for the season which means one can’t really skip passed on a first watch so that is irritating. And what is up with show and vomit? Once was too much. So this a big aspect of season 2 that personally I really hate.
Back to Agnes DeMille, Wednesday number fan, stalker “vanisher” and who’s named after an American dancer & choreographer which maybe is an easter egg, maybe? Anyway, it is appreciated that the stalker plot wasn’t drawn out but we shall see what the show does with her. Her ‘prank” to get Wednesday’s attention with the saw puzzle was just middling as there is not real tension or even comedy till Agnes’ reveal. Agnes herself is rather interesting since she’s weird and creepy in addition to her “outcast’ status. There is more to say on Agnes but let’s just put a pin in that just in case later episodes yield some plot points on Agnes versus the stalker set-up from end of season one.
Overall this episode felt all over the place. That could be due to a lack of focus about juggling the characters and their plot or the growing pains of set up but giving the lackadaisical writing it’s probably the former.
And Now a Tangent…
As part of Agnes’ puzzle to save Enid and Bruno, Wednesday has look through a series of piles of the complete works of “famous authors.” Most of these authors inclusion work on thematic and the aesthetics of the show. Poe (of course,) Shelley, Dante, Dickens work for the aesthetic nature of the show, though I had to be reminded of Miss Havisham for the Dickens inclusion to make sense. The Baby Sitter’s club does work as a joke. The outliners are Tolstoy and Proust. Not arguing Tolstoy as brilliant famous author if had to venture a guess it would a writer in the writer’s room just really loved both Proust and Tolstoy and wanted to included them even though Tolstoy wrote realist-fiction and Proust wrote psychological realism. No Brontë, who did write gothic lit or Hugo who wrote about gothic architecture. Though Proust did write an essay on gothic cathedrals so that at least counts over Hugo in this instance right?
