Directed by Nick Copus Written by Brian Peterson and Kelly Souders Reviewed by Gavin Hetherington
THE CHARACTERS
SEASON GUIDE
Click on a title to be taken to the review for that episode. Need a catch-up of season one before starting season two? Be sure to read the ultimate catch-up review of season one.
"Mirror, mirror, on the wall. Who is the most betrayed by all?"
The best thing about cliffhangers after an intense episode is that they usually continue straight into the next episode. Half the time, the follow-up from an intense cliffhanger is disappointing, but because this is Salem, there was no disappointment whatsoever. I loved that the action started immediately from Mary and Tituba discovering George dead with streams of water pouring out of his mouth. This was a fantastic opening as we see Mary's desperation to save George - someone she despises really but needs to survive as a ruler in Salem. If he dies, she is f*cked. We discussed this in the comments of my review from the last episode about how George dying would mean Mary is in a more desperate situation because she needs George and if he dies, her power to rule Salem also dies. Part of me really wanted him to live as he has been so obedient and handy lately, but as I came to realise, his death opens so many more exciting doors for the future. Mary is husbandless. That security is now gone. I loved the scene with Mary and Tituba trying to resuscitate him with magic though and I always love seeing the spells and the sick way the witches on this show perform them.
Of course, the much anticipated arrival of the Countess in Salem was the highlight of the episode. Not just the fact that Ingrid is in Salem, but also her son, Sebastian. Both make, quite possibly, the creepiest mother-son relationship, blowing Norma and Norman Bates of Bates Motel away with their craziness. Totally love it though as that relationship develops and we start to see why Joe Doyle is part of the main cast. I loved the look of disgust on Ingrid's face when she first approached the people of Salem. Whenever Ingrid and Mary share a scene together though, it's electric and so beautifully written. I just find myself smiling whenever they share words because it's written so brilliantly that it gives me chills. Well done Kelly Souders and Brian Peterson for continuing the fantastic dialogue these two powerful women share for the second episode in a row. Am I the only one who gets chills when they speak? For instance, they make the perfect frenemy relationship with Ingrid telling Mary after Mary chooses life, to "practice the art of losing gracefully." Love that so much. Even when it appears they may become allies, there is still that danger behind them both. Ingrid holds so much power over Mary already with the death of George now threatening to expose Mary's vulnerability to the town, so this is the perfect obstacle Mary needs to overcome. She's our main girl, the main witch we root for but with this new threat, I can't help but love every minute of it even when I want my Mary to win.
John hasn't been as intense as he was at the beginning of the season and has appeared to have taken a step back from the main action of the show. That's not to say he hasn't been important. This episode furthered that internal struggle John is having with his new role as a charged witch hunter, empowered by mysterious magic to keep him on his bloodthirsty mission. The cliffhanger from the episode before with John as he had followed Anne to the burial of her familiar continued here too. He follows her home under the invisibility ability he has acquired and now we know he is definitely after Anne. He beats around the bush a little so we know that he isn't particularly happy with having to kill her, which shows his humanity is still very much present. I found it so creepy when John visited the militia man who he killed, but it turns out he's, well, undead. I love the special effects of the show for one thing - it's so raw and realistic looking - so major props on that one make-up team. One line that stuck with me - "you're almost as dead as I am" - reinforces the idea that myself and the readers of my reviews have had that by not killing any witches like John has been tasked to do, it's slowly killing him. He desperately needs to kill a witch or that power inside him will overcome him and take his life. In a way, John has also sold his soul, just not to the Devil. We do go back to John around the end as he breaks into Anne's house - a truly horrifying scene - because the threat he poses to Anne now is huge and would Anne kill John to protect herself, someone she cared for in the past? It didn't come to that fortunately as Tituba, who had been absent in the episode after the opening and Cotton's fight, stops him from doing so. She didn't seem to recognise John though as she refers to him as "witch hunter" so he is still hidden (in a way) from Tituba's eyes, and probably will be from Mary's eyes too. What will Tituba do next with him I wonder?
Cotton had a pretty big episode too as we see the effects of Anne's spell start to infect him. At first I wasn't sure if it had absolutely worked, but it's affirmed from pretty much the beginning of the episode. Hathorne says some pretty dirty stuff about Anne within earshot of Cotton, and Cotton bravely defends her honour. I would like to think he would do that for Anne regardless of being under the spell. He's always cared for Anne, that we saw developed through season one and then when Anne visited him in Boston, so it's not like this comes from nowhere. The fight between them was fantastic though and I loved that it spilled to the outside of the tavern so Mary and Anne could see. The cutting between the fight and Anne watching and Mary watching made this a great scene. The violence takes a pretty nasty turn when I thought, for a moment, that Cotton was actually going to stab Hathorne. I wanted him to, don't get me wrong because I don't like Hathorne at all and he needs to be taught a lesson, but like Anne said, "you're no killer". I loved that Cotton fought that apparent urge to kill Hathorne, and Mary's demanding "do it", to retain the character we all know and love. I worried we'd lose the essence of his character but he's still very much present. I also loved the jail scene between Cotton and Hathorne and the Countess putting Hathorne in his place. If anybody could do it, it was her.
So Anne, who kind of loved the fact that two men were fighting over her, still kept hope that Cotton would still be himself after the spell was cast. Another discussion we had in the comments of the last episode was whether Brown Jenkins was Anne's familiar as she appeared to kill him, but as we saw in this episode, he really is her familiar. The love spell needed Anne to sacrifice something she loved, and the squeezing of the mouse she fell in love with was the token of that sacrifice. Even though the bar fight went as far as it did because of the love spell (Cotton would definitely defend Anne but probably wouldn't have went as far as he did in the fight without the spell), I think the true effects of the spell didn't show until Cotton visited Anne during the night. In a way, again, it felt very Cotton-like for him to confess his feelings towards Anne the way he did because he's always had that sort of jumbled way of speaking what's on his mind and it's very cute. I would have enjoyed this so much more if I didn't know he's just under a spell, but at the same time, some of it has to be true, right? We saw some feelings sparked in the past, who's to say the spell didn't just rush things forward? Kind of like how drinking alcohol releases your inhibitions to speak what's really on your mind. Cotton says he loves Anne, which is definitely too fast, but then he pulls away after kissing her when he realises it's too soon, so his rationality is still intact. I'm so conflicted because I want this to happen between them but not in this way. How sweet was this line though after Cotton says he loves her - "its name (love) is forever inseparable with yours." Awwww.
My god I love the Mercy / Dollie / Isaac sub-plot right now. As we saw in the last episode, Dollie stole Isaac from being Mercy's slave and showed us that finally someone is putting Isaac's best interests before themselves. Unlike Anne and Cotton, this little love story is far more sweet because there are no dark underlining forces between their intimacy. It was so sweet when Dollie kissed Isaac and I very much root for this couple (though if the end is any indication, it may not happen, boo!). Mercy, who I do feel sorry for, is visited by the Countess who appears to her like her fairy godmother, which I found hilarious in a way as it reminded me of Shrek 2 when the Fairy Godmother appears to Fiona, so that's how I see those two at the minute. But I do love that the Countess and Mercy now have this relationship and Ingrid is showing Mercy some hope in her fight against Mary. Two heads are better than one. Mercy's snot bubble though was hilarious - that reminded me of this funny little video of a little boy singing Let It Go from Frozen. If you haven't seen it, I implore you to watch it and see if you can watch Mary snotting in the same way:
VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED
God, I haven't laughed so much in so long. But that scene was awe-inspiring between the Countess and Mercy as a new alliance is formed.
So the ending was yet another amazing one by the writers. Dollie and Isaac had plotted to leave Salem by stowing away in a ship leaving the town, and the sweetest exchange ever happened between them - "There is nothing left for me here but you." Happiness is of course short-lived on Salem as the two are taken away and it's revealed the Countess has Dollie tied to the ceiling of her cabin on the ship, like a girl in a previous episode, ready for her to show Mercy what power can heal her from her crispy condition. I love that Mercy is still hesitant to harm Dollie as I really thought she would kill her on the spot for betraying her, but Mercy's compassion was still evident. Even though Mercy doesn't save Dollie, she still weeps for her after arguing with her about their past. It's clear Mercy doesn't really want to drain Dollie of her blood, or hurt her in any way, but she doesn't really have a choice. The entire scene is mesmerising, especially the last shot of it with the Countess helping Mercy bathe in Dollie's blood, with Dollie hanging helplessly from the ceiling. I pray to God Dollie does not die from this. I really want her to survive. That would have been a creepy way to end the episode, but the writers had to go one further to add a double-whammy. Mary digs Increase Mather up and pulls off his head. We saw in the past with Tituba how witches speak with the dead so I am so excited to see the next episode if they reanimate Increase's face to make him talk (hopefully with Stephen Lang's voice) about how Mary can overcome the Countess.
"A true war is only won when the enemy is dead."
- Will John turn into a tree if he is invisible too long?
- Salem has some of the wisest metaphors.
- That sex dream with Anne. My mother could have walked in at any moment during the episode, but no, she chose to come round once naked people were on my television screen. She wasn't fazed: we did watch True Blood together after all.
- I'm glad we are seeing more of Sebastian now. He's going to be interesting to watch as his fascination with Mary seems intense. Will he really give Mary what she wants?
- Brown Jenkins looks absof*cking scary with those red eyes, Jesus. If I was sitting in a chair, I would have fallen from it.
- Don't be dead Dollie!
EPISODE VERDICT
Salem has the ability to slap its viewers in the face and make them beg for more. I feel with every episode that has aired this season (and even in season one), the endings have been so incredibly delicious that the anticipation for the next episode is unbearable. The intricate weavings of a fabulous story by the show's storytellers keeps us coming back for more and they fill every episode, from start to finish, with excitement.
This was no different for 'Ill Met By Moonlight'. A perfect streak for season two continued with the sixth instalment of the show's sophomore season. So much fun is to be had here while also keeping us horrified and anticipating what is going to happen next. The interactions between Mary and the Countess are so wonderful to watch that I feel like now, I don't want either to win because that would mean one of them will die. I want neither to die (but of course Mary is our heroine so she must triumph) as I want to see both of these empowering women for seasons to come.
Anne's storyline heats up with Cotton and Mercy might just get her groove back (and her skin). I fear for Dollie that she might be dead going into the next episode, so I am hoping she isn't. John's story is being developed at a slow but interesting pace, and the omniscient threat over Salem still looms and we have to choose sides for the witch war that is flaring. Be sure to read the full review above for my complete thoughts because I always have a lot of them when it comes to Salem. How can I not when every episode is packed with so much evil goodness that makes the show my biggest guilty pleasure. Only, I don't feel guilty watching this show at all. I'm an out and proud fan of Salem.
What did you think of 'Ill Met By Midnight'? Let me know your thoughts on the episode in the comments and be sure to watch the next new episode on May 17 on WGN America at 10PM!
About the Author - Gavin Hetherington
Award-winning author of 'Abyssal Sanctuary: Remnants of the Damned'. Gavin joined SpoilerTV on August 9, 2014 and will be reviewing 2 Broke Girls, Mistresses, Orange is the New Black, Pretty Little Liars, Salem and Sleepy Hollow. Gavin's favourite shows include Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Desperate Housewives, The Walking Dead, Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Scandal and much more. You can contact him at gavin@spoilertv.com.
Mirror, Mirror, don't be slow. Tell WGN America to renew this show. Hope you guys enjoyed last night's episode. Let me know what you loved, and maybe didn't love, about the episode!
I do like the pace of this season, but is it just me, or is the main story line not really happening? We're not really seeing their plan or ritual or whatever it is, they're just talking about it a lot.
I'm really loving the dynamic between Ingrid and Mary and just like Increase in S1, Ingrid's arrival to Salem shifts everything and raises the stakes. And did you see that gorgeous purple outfit? I figured she'd help Mercy with some witch makeup tips and while I expected Dollie to die (she's a guest not a regular, she's suddenly Isaac's love interest and goes against Mercy- of course she's doomed) I didn't expect her to be a ceiling tap for the blood bath.
I'm still not sure if John has to kill witches or the magic will kill him, it might just be the invisibility talisman that is slowly killing him. That scene between him and the dead!seer in the cabin was creepy- was he really there, or is John losing his mind? And I'm pretty sure Tituba knows exactly who the witch killer is- she ate the seers eyes and in this episode she told John that allowed her to see who the witch killer is. I'm wondering why she kept this a secret and what she intends to do with John- does she want him to kill Ingrid?
I'm curious about the love spell Anne put Cotton under and what it means exactly- will it make him obsessed with her? Will loving her be enough or will it just get progressively worse? I loved how after she was pleased with Cotton making out with her, she looked at Jenkins and saw those demon mouse eyes and her smile fell- that was a cold reminder that she's doing a pretty evil thing to someone she cares about. Would Cotton have eventually come around without a spell? We know he's attracted to her, since he tried kissing her last season. But was over Gloriana? Was he ready to marry anyone? I'm not so sure and Anne didn't have time to find out.
I hate Hawthorne, but I also enjoy how despicable he is, in a weird way.
Sebastian has it bad and Mary is collecting suitors left and right this season, LOL. On the plus side- a man raised by someone like Ingrid would definitely treat Mary with respect and devotion, but he's also a mama's boy, so she'd always come second. We'll see what happens when the good BDSM doctor comes back, poor Mary has her hands full with their grand plan, being husbandless, enemies all around and now two suitors.
Another excellent ep. That scene of the blood bathing reminded me of the scene in Hostel 2 where they hung a girl above a bathtub and hacked her up for the blood. Very creepy. I hope Dollie lives, too. And I'm sure we will get more scenes of poor Isaac being tortured again.
John's whole storyline has just been so poorly written this season. It's been the one disappointment I have from this show. I hope we get some answers next ep.
I thought the Countess rocked every scene. I can't wait to see what happens now that Mary has resurrected Increase's ghost. (She really does resurrect his ghost in the promo).
I was so happy to see Jenkins is alive. Still doesn't makeup for the show killing cute small animals, but at least this one was brought back.
I thought Cotton and Anne had good scenes. Looking forward to seeing if they do get married.
This show is so good each week. I'm never bored with it.
Exactly, the total viewers worries me but I hope, since it was WGN America's first ever show, they might want to keep it around as long as possible, and it's not like the other scripted shows on the channel (Manhattan) is doing any better. I feel like Salem might be okay and get a season 3, but I want it to be official.
Yeah I get what you mean about the main storyline - as in the witch war and the raising of the devil - hasn't been progressing amongst the other chaotic storylines amongst the characters.
Call me full of hope but Dollie might not be dead yet! Even though she is just a guest character, I really want her to stick around for as long as possible for familiarity in the town of Salem besides the mains and recurring characters. Poor Dollie though, and poor Isaac (yet again) if he does lose the only chance of happiness he'll ever have in a long time.
Cool point about Jenkins and Anne looking at him with those demon eyes, which creeped me right out. I wonder how the love spell will work too. It's dark magic so I doubt it will end well, so I think his feelings will turn to a dangerous obsession to the point where all he can think of is Anne and he'll become infatuated by her non-stop. It will drive him crazy, and it will eat him alive. I very much doubt they will have a happy ending in this love story if the spell is retained.
This show is filled with characters we can smile at how deliciously evil they are, though Hathorne is one of the only ones that is just pure despicable. I do quite like it, it provides a more human aspect to the term 'villain'.
The idea of a mama's boy for a lover is quite scary in a show like Salem, and with a mother like the Countess. I thought Norma and Norman Bates had it bad, but this is way worse. Didn't think of how busy Mary is with her suitors and the plan, now you mention it, she has so much on her plate. She must be so stressed.
Oooh that sounds chilling. I haven't watched Hostel 2 (but I do have it on Blu-ray). I'm glad you're rooting for Dollie to live, poor girl, and Isaac will not catch a break. Ill-treated by everyone except Dollie who might be dead. I need her to live.
I think John's storyline is now building towards some answers. There's no way they can string him along for many more episodes without any progression of his mystery. And ahhh I love that you get to see the promos and tell me what happens, I am SO EXCITED about Increase's ghost! Next episode already sounds like a fantastic entry in season 2 yet again.
Yeah I agree about the cute animals, and Anne and Cotton. You're preaching to the choir about how the show never makes you bored, as I feel the same. Just one episode after another of pure adrenaline.
I mean, a few seconds every episode with showing those dead bodies turning to black goo or something else would show us the plan is progressing, right now it's like we're suspended and just watching the characters react to situations. Last season we knew how many dead they needed for their plan, which helped us keep track of it and how it was progressing, here... What needs to happen, besides Mary making a sacrifice (ooh, does Tituba intend for John to be that sacrifice?)? How many need to die? What is going on with that? I'm enjoying the chaos, but we're losing track of their big picture.
I'm a pessimist, Dollie might not be dead yet, but she won't survive the season, one of the reasons being that it would be a nice thing and Isaac can't have nice things or happiness. But at least he's looking a bit better.
Hawthorne is really despicable, but he's an effective antagonist and it's always fun seeing someone put him in his place.
Mary does seem stressed, poor thing, she has no one to trust, no security, too many enemies and now also two suitors, one of whom is really, really creepy and is potentially blackmailing her, while the other is into BDSM and stopping the plague. She definitely has a lot to handle.
I would like to see just a few seconds of that, just to show progression for the main storyline. I wouldn't have thought John to be the sacrifice but it does have to be something or someone Mary loves, and there's no one in the world Mary loves more than John. Good eye, again! I learn something new from you every week!
Isaac really is looking so much better, so he must naturally be fighting the plague that was brought upon Salem. Realistically, you are right about Dollie and I expect her to be dead, or die soon.
I must admit, I wish I was in Mary's shoes a little. So much power, yet too little control over it. One of her biggest challenges is controlling what's around her and I hope she learns how to do that by the end of the season. I love character development and I think it will be important for Mary to learn how to control her life, really.
" Will John turn into a tree if he is invisible too long?" LMAO MAN! really, we thought the same things. Another excellent episode so far Salem has had a great season and we are halfway far of it. That opening scene was really good, one of teh ebst. Seeing Mary trying to save George, not because she loves her,it was because she knows she wuill loose her advantage if the people knows he is dead. Seeing her wrecked was intense and she knows how powerfull the countess is. The Countess son is anotehr thing, he is lost with lust for Mary and she will atke advantage of it. Lets see if the boy is just playing with her or if he backstabs his mother. After all "all kids must kill their parents" right?. Isaac ahs the worst luck on the show. he cant catch abreak, he finally found someone that understand him and loevs him and BOOM! lets make her into a human fountain of youth. Am i imagine things or was Mercy crying for Dollie?. Im really sad to see her go, I was hoping for her to become a witch and not just Mercy but well.... Cotton and Anne, that last scene they got, when he told ehr he loves her was really sweet and i felt sbad for a moment, cause none of that is real and Anne looks like she is believing her own lie. Tituba, my gurl, Kick John's ass.
Mostly, it was the Increase stuff. There's a scene where Mary is standing by a mirror and she can see Increase in the mirror in full form. She has definitely brought him back as a ghost of some kind. The rest of the promo was really too brief to remember much, but I think there was a glimpse of the Countess. I'm sure you'll get to see it online soon.
Yeah, a few seconds here and there to show the plot advancing or giving us small goals they need to achieve would help progress the main story line. Well, she DID choose devil child over John, so I'd argue she might love him more than John, but either of them would be a fitting sacrifice as the one she loves. And thanks, I'm just spit balling here, I also learn things/figure things out from discussions.
If Isaac can naturally fight a supernatural plague, it's not much of a plague, in my opinion, but we'll see.
Well, if Mary ever completely controlled her life, the show wouldn't be as tense, part of the fun is watching her rise to new challenges, having her plans ruined and having to form new plans on the fly.
I also think that it being WGN America's first scripted show (and the other shows not doing any better) might help Salem get a S3. Crossing my fingers!
I would like to know what the witches are going to do next. It seems they're really distracted with the issues at hand rather than the bigger picture. I guess they do have to stall a little bit because there's still 7 episodes of the season (that feels so little right now, it's going to be over before we know it) because completing the Grand Rite was something that was naturally gradual over the space of the first season. I kinda hope Little John is the one Mary sacrifices because he's crazy, but at the same time I want to see more from him. He was missing from this episode so he might be in the next one. I want him to do something really out there and crazy.
You have a point about Isaac fighting the plague, but maybe there's just something about him that's special and that might be his storyline instead of him being continually abused left, right and center. Might actually give Isaac some purpose. Or Mary really did come through on protecting him like she promised and she worked some sort of magic that has been keeping him alive and gradually making him better?
Got to agree with the tense atmosphere of the show due to Mary's inability to control those around her. She likes to think she can but she forgets that everyone has their own crosses to bare, and some of them are going to fight back (like Mercy). I'm starting to wonder if Anne will strike back at some point if she ever realises what she's doing is wrong.
Haha it's definitely something that crossed my mind when the sound effect came on.
I am so glad you're loving this season Ron! Nice catch on the kill parents thing from a few episodes ago, it does make me wonder if Sebastian will ever kill the Countess for Mary - that would be a twist. He is a main character after all, and Lucy Lawless is just a special guest. I think Mercy was crying for Dollie, but she knew it had to happen. It was so sad yet twisted. I am praying to God Dollie is not dead after this, I mean surely she can survive it, right? Wishful thinking I know, but it could happen. On a side note, the actress who plays her, Sammi Hanratty, followed me on Twitter last night after I posted this review and I tweeted it out. I am totally fangirling right now. I need more Tituba right now! Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts :D
Yeah, the witches are either getting distracted from their main objective (and didn't they give some kind of deadline in 2X01, like a comet or something?) or it's going on in the background without them needing to do much, in which case I'd still appreciate updates. And yeah, there are still quite a few episodes left, so it makes sense for them to stretch it out. I like devil kid, but obviously I'd rather keep adult John over him, if I have to make a choice. What if the Countess is the one who completes the ritual and so she sacrifices her son? Can that even happen or is it that only Mary can finish the job?
I guess we'll see about Isaac and how he's fighting the plague, Mary didn't plan on him being around that apple thing when it went off and we didn't really see her put any protection over him afterwards... I doubt Isaac is naturally special, though that would be a nice change from him constantly being abused all the time.
I would love to see Anne go against Mary at some point, but I wonder if just like Mercy, she'll just end up as a pawn in the Mary-Ingrid game of wits. We'll have to see what happens with her and if she enjoys her new found powers a bit too much.
I really want to go back and look for that and what it was that they required for this new ritual and if the time frame was given, because it really could just be a waiting game now for Mary before starting it. I also love that this season has been so amazing it makes me want to rewatch so soon.
I think Mary will finish the job, so the Countess sacrificing her son might not happen but I do believe she has it in her. However, she is only a special guest star while the actor playing Sebastian, Joe Doyle, is in a starring role. That probably doesn't really mean anything in the long run and it could still happen, but I was just discussing with Ron that maybe Sebastian could kill his mother as he's overcome with lust for Mary - maybe she manipulates him or something and he will be the weapon she needs against the Countess? He's such a mama's boy so I don't know if that would happen, but it will be interesting to see how far this obsession with Mary will go and if she will use that to her advantage.
Maybe there will be a Countess & Mercy vs. Mary & Anne thing, so Mary and Anne will team up to take down the two "villains" of their story. While I would also love for Anne to fight back against Mary, part of me would love to see what these two powerful women could do together. I'd also like to see more with Tituba as I feel she's been sidelined a lot.
We'll keep an eye on how those two perform. Surely a season 3 of Salem will be announced by the time they start, but if they don't perform any better, then I guess we could be seeing Salem stick around for quite a long time, which would be totally fine by me :D
That's so cool. I have authors of my favorites books following me xD Andrew Smith and CC and Britney Spears . Cant tell you how much i fangirled about it.
I think if either shows were about to premiere, then they might have waited for ratings before they decided about Salem. But it's going to be an insanely long wait until they premiere, so I think they'll make a decision about Salem by the end of its run and won't wait for those numbers.
I don't really rewatch things, so feel free to go back and see if they gave a time frame, I thought they indicated the task had to be complete by a certain point, though if time is running out, the witches don't really seem concerned (you'd at least expect us to see more bodies and less town folk).
She might just be a guest star because she's too expensive to be a regular or because of other commitments (she's going to be on the new Evil Dead show), while the actor who plays her son is a nobody, so it's cheaper to just sign him up for the whole season, regardless of how many episodes he ends up being in (same goes for devil child as opposed to the Good Doctor- he's a known actor).
Maybe they're all gonna die by the end of the season, maybe some would continue to a hypothetical S3, I dunno. Maybe Sebastian would kill his mom (honestly, I don't know if he has it in him and I think she's way more powerful than him, but yeah, that "children always kill their parents" line could be foreshadowing).
I'm hoping now that Tituba has John, it'll give the two of them a good story line to explore and some screen time, they've both kinda just been there for the most part- Tituba was mostly glued to Mary for magic scenes while John was mostly skulking in the background, not even killing many witches. I wouldn't mind Anne teaming up with Mary, I'm open to seeing where they take Anne this season and how dark she gets.
That would be the logical thing to do for WGN America. I mean what kind of ratings were they expecting. I mean, the show did premiere to 1.5 million viewers and has dropped since then between 0.20 and 0.50 million but they can't be expecting Walking Dead or Game of Thrones like numbers, surely. They're a new network and they can't be too hasty about pulling a show for low numbers when the network as a whole rates low.
I don't really have time to rewatch things nowadays since going back to education and writing articles and reviews for this site and so many other things, but sometimes through the summer I can rewatch some shows here and there. But yeah, there's no sense of urgency to complete this task right now so hopefully that will be addressed in the next episode.
Ahh you make a point there about Lucy Lawless not being a regular. I guess that also doesn't mean she has to die at the end of season 2, which is probably likely because she's the enemy of our 'hero'. I love that the characters are so complex we're not sure what they will do in the future, even if something seems obvious, that's not typically the case.
Definitely more Tituba and John would be great. So interested to see where those two are going, and it's quite dangerous for Tituba too since John is on his witch hunt so she had better be careful.
I'm sure all their shows do around 1 at best, so they don't have many options. I'm hoping they'll renew the show, I don't see a reason for them to cancel it, unless they don't have any time slots or something or the show is too expensive compared to their other shows.
I just don't have the patience to rewatch things, especially shows, there are very few shows I'll rewatch.
I'm hoping in the next few episodes they'll discuss their task again, so we can know how it's going, what needs to happen for it to be complete, etc.
I also love that we just don't know where they'll take characters, it makes things more interesting.
Between the fact that John was Mary's beloved, while Tituba loved her and the fact that Tituba framed John for the witch crimes, I feel like there's enough antagonism there for the two to have some very interesting interactions, which I'm excited about.
NOTE: Name-calling, personal attacks, spamming, excessive self-promotion, condescending pomposity, general assiness, racism, sexism, any-other-ism, homophobia, acrophobia, and destructive (versus constructive) criticism will get you BANNED from the party.
Mirror, Mirror, don't be slow. Tell WGN America to renew this show.
ReplyDeleteHope you guys enjoyed last night's episode. Let me know what you loved, and maybe didn't love, about the episode!
I do like the pace of this season, but is it just me, or is the main story line not really happening? We're not really seeing their plan or ritual or whatever it is, they're just talking about it a lot.
ReplyDeleteI'm really loving the dynamic between Ingrid and Mary and just like Increase in S1, Ingrid's arrival to Salem shifts everything and raises the stakes. And did you see that gorgeous purple outfit? I figured she'd help Mercy with some witch makeup tips and while I expected Dollie to die (she's a guest not a regular, she's suddenly Isaac's love interest and goes against Mercy- of course she's doomed) I didn't expect her to be a ceiling tap for the blood bath.
I'm still not sure if John has to kill witches or the magic will kill him, it might just be the invisibility talisman that is slowly killing him. That scene between him and the dead!seer in the cabin was creepy- was he really there, or is John losing his mind? And I'm pretty sure Tituba knows exactly who the witch killer is- she ate the seers eyes and in this episode she told John that allowed her to see who the witch killer is. I'm wondering why she kept this a secret and what she intends to do with John- does she want him to kill Ingrid?
I'm curious about the love spell Anne put Cotton under and what it means exactly- will it make him obsessed with her? Will loving her be enough or will it just get progressively worse? I loved how after she was pleased with Cotton making out with her, she looked at Jenkins and saw those demon mouse eyes and her smile fell- that was a cold reminder that she's doing a pretty evil thing to someone she cares about. Would Cotton have eventually come around without a spell? We know he's attracted to her, since he tried kissing her last season. But was over Gloriana? Was he ready to marry anyone? I'm not so sure and Anne didn't have time to find out.
I hate Hawthorne, but I also enjoy how despicable he is, in a weird way.
Sebastian has it bad and Mary is collecting suitors left and right this season, LOL. On the plus side- a man raised by someone like Ingrid would definitely treat Mary with respect and devotion, but he's also a mama's boy, so she'd always come second. We'll see what happens when the good BDSM doctor comes back, poor Mary has her hands full with their grand plan, being husbandless, enemies all around and now two suitors.
Another excellent ep. That scene of the blood bathing reminded me of the scene in Hostel 2 where they hung a girl above a bathtub and hacked her up for the blood. Very creepy. I hope Dollie lives, too. And I'm sure we will get more scenes of poor Isaac being tortured again.
ReplyDeleteJohn's whole storyline has just been so poorly written this season. It's been the one disappointment I have from this show. I hope we get some answers next ep.
I thought the Countess rocked every scene. I can't wait to see what happens now that Mary has resurrected Increase's ghost. (She really does resurrect his ghost in the promo).
I was so happy to see Jenkins is alive. Still doesn't makeup for the show killing cute small animals, but at least this one was brought back.
I thought Cotton and Anne had good scenes. Looking forward to seeing if they do get married.
This show is so good each week. I'm never bored with it.
This is my fear, it will get canceled simply because it's good and I like it :) Not enough viewers. I hope it's given another season.
ReplyDeleteExactly, the total viewers worries me but I hope, since it was WGN America's first ever show, they might want to keep it around as long as possible, and it's not like the other scripted shows on the channel (Manhattan) is doing any better. I feel like Salem might be okay and get a season 3, but I want it to be official.
ReplyDeleteYeah I get what you mean about the main storyline - as in the witch war and the raising of the devil - hasn't been progressing amongst the other chaotic storylines amongst the characters.
ReplyDeleteCall me full of hope but Dollie might not be dead yet! Even though she is just a guest character, I really want her to stick around for as long as possible for familiarity in the town of Salem besides the mains and recurring characters. Poor Dollie though, and poor Isaac (yet again) if he does lose the only chance of happiness he'll ever have in a long time.
Cool point about Jenkins and Anne looking at him with those demon eyes, which creeped me right out. I wonder how the love spell will work too. It's dark magic so I doubt it will end well, so I think his feelings will turn to a dangerous obsession to the point where all he can think of is Anne and he'll become infatuated by her non-stop. It will drive him crazy, and it will eat him alive. I very much doubt they will have a happy ending in this love story if the spell is retained.
This show is filled with characters we can smile at how deliciously evil they are, though Hathorne is one of the only ones that is just pure despicable. I do quite like it, it provides a more human aspect to the term 'villain'.
The idea of a mama's boy for a lover is quite scary in a show like Salem, and with a mother like the Countess. I thought Norma and Norman Bates had it bad, but this is way worse. Didn't think of how busy Mary is with her suitors and the plan, now you mention it, she has so much on her plate. She must be so stressed.
Oooh that sounds chilling. I haven't watched Hostel 2 (but I do have it on Blu-ray). I'm glad you're rooting for Dollie to live, poor girl, and Isaac will not catch a break. Ill-treated by everyone except Dollie who might be dead. I need her to live.
ReplyDeleteI think John's storyline is now building towards some answers. There's no way they can string him along for many more episodes without any progression of his mystery. And ahhh I love that you get to see the promos and tell me what happens, I am SO EXCITED about Increase's ghost! Next episode already sounds like a fantastic entry in season 2 yet again.
Yeah I agree about the cute animals, and Anne and Cotton. You're preaching to the choir about how the show never makes you bored, as I feel the same. Just one episode after another of pure adrenaline.
I mean, a few seconds every episode with showing those dead bodies turning to black goo or something else would show us the plan is progressing, right now it's like we're suspended and just watching the characters react to situations. Last season we knew how many dead they needed for their plan, which helped us keep track of it and how it was progressing, here... What needs to happen, besides Mary making a sacrifice (ooh, does Tituba intend for John to be that sacrifice?)? How many need to die? What is going on with that? I'm enjoying the chaos, but we're losing track of their big picture.
ReplyDeleteI'm a pessimist, Dollie might not be dead yet, but she won't survive the season, one of the reasons being that it would be a nice thing and Isaac can't have nice things or happiness. But at least he's looking a bit better.
Hawthorne is really despicable, but he's an effective antagonist and it's always fun seeing someone put him in his place.
Mary does seem stressed, poor thing, she has no one to trust, no security, too many enemies and now also two suitors, one of whom is really, really creepy and is potentially blackmailing her, while the other is into BDSM and stopping the plague. She definitely has a lot to handle.
The promo with Increase is awesome.
ReplyDeleteI would like to see just a few seconds of that, just to show progression for the main storyline. I wouldn't have thought John to be the sacrifice but it does have to be something or someone Mary loves, and there's no one in the world Mary loves more than John. Good eye, again! I learn something new from you every week!
ReplyDeleteIsaac really is looking so much better, so he must naturally be fighting the plague that was brought upon Salem. Realistically, you are right about Dollie and I expect her to be dead, or die soon.
I must admit, I wish I was in Mary's shoes a little. So much power, yet too little control over it. One of her biggest challenges is controlling what's around her and I hope she learns how to do that by the end of the season. I love character development and I think it will be important for Mary to learn how to control her life, really.
Anything else interesting happen in the promo that you remember?
ReplyDelete" Will John turn into a tree if he is invisible too long?" LMAO MAN! really, we thought the same things.
ReplyDeleteAnother excellent episode so far Salem has had a great season and we are halfway far of it.
That opening scene was really good, one of teh ebst. Seeing Mary trying to save George, not because she loves her,it was because she knows she wuill loose her advantage if the people knows he is dead. Seeing her wrecked was intense and she knows how powerfull the countess is.
The Countess son is anotehr thing, he is lost with lust for Mary and she will atke advantage of it. Lets see if the boy is just playing with her or if he backstabs his mother. After all "all kids must kill their parents" right?.
Isaac ahs the worst luck on the show. he cant catch abreak, he finally found someone that understand him and loevs him and BOOM! lets make her into a human fountain of youth.
Am i imagine things or was Mercy crying for Dollie?. Im really sad to see her go, I was hoping for her to become a witch and not just Mercy but well....
Cotton and Anne, that last scene they got, when he told ehr he loves her was really sweet and i felt sbad for a moment, cause none of that is real and Anne looks like she is believing her own lie.
Tituba, my gurl, Kick John's ass.
Mostly, it was the Increase stuff. There's a scene where Mary is standing by a mirror and she can see Increase in the mirror in full form. She has definitely brought him back as a ghost of some kind. The rest of the promo was really too brief to remember much, but I think there was a glimpse of the Countess. I'm sure you'll get to see it online soon.
ReplyDeleteYeah, a few seconds here and there to show the plot advancing or giving us small goals they need to achieve would help progress the main story line. Well, she DID choose devil child over John, so I'd argue she might love him more than John, but either of them would be a fitting sacrifice as the one she loves. And thanks, I'm just spit balling here, I also learn things/figure things out from discussions.
ReplyDeleteIf Isaac can naturally fight a supernatural plague, it's not much of a plague, in my opinion, but we'll see.
Well, if Mary ever completely controlled her life, the show wouldn't be as tense, part of the fun is watching her rise to new challenges, having her plans ruined and having to form new plans on the fly.
I also think that it being WGN America's first scripted show (and the other shows not doing any better) might help Salem get a S3. Crossing my fingers!
ReplyDeleteAhh thanks for letting me know. You're basically my informant of the promos haha I'll be asking the same thing every week :D
ReplyDeleteI would like to know what the witches are going to do next. It seems they're really distracted with the issues at hand rather than the bigger picture. I guess they do have to stall a little bit because there's still 7 episodes of the season (that feels so little right now, it's going to be over before we know it) because completing the Grand Rite was something that was naturally gradual over the space of the first season. I kinda hope Little John is the one Mary sacrifices because he's crazy, but at the same time I want to see more from him. He was missing from this episode so he might be in the next one. I want him to do something really out there and crazy.
ReplyDeleteYou have a point about Isaac fighting the plague, but maybe there's just something about him that's special and that might be his storyline instead of him being continually abused left, right and center. Might actually give Isaac some purpose. Or Mary really did come through on protecting him like she promised and she worked some sort of magic that has been keeping him alive and gradually making him better?
Got to agree with the tense atmosphere of the show due to Mary's inability to control those around her. She likes to think she can but she forgets that everyone has their own crosses to bare, and some of them are going to fight back (like Mercy). I'm starting to wonder if Anne will strike back at some point if she ever realises what she's doing is wrong.
Definitely! I only really know of Manhattan, are there any other scripted original shows on WGN America?
ReplyDeleteHaha it's definitely something that crossed my mind when the sound effect came on.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad you're loving this season Ron! Nice catch on the kill parents thing from a few episodes ago, it does make me wonder if Sebastian will ever kill the Countess for Mary - that would be a twist. He is a main character after all, and Lucy Lawless is just a special guest. I think Mercy was crying for Dollie, but she knew it had to happen. It was so sad yet twisted. I am praying to God Dollie is not dead after this, I mean surely she can survive it, right? Wishful thinking I know, but it could happen. On a side note, the actress who plays her, Sammi Hanratty, followed me on Twitter last night after I posted this review and I tweeted it out. I am totally fangirling right now.
I need more Tituba right now! Thanks for reading and sharing your thoughts :D
According to SpoilerTV, they have Underground and Outsiders, but I think they've only started production on those two.
ReplyDeleteYeah, the witches are either getting distracted from their main objective (and didn't they give some kind of deadline in 2X01, like a comet or something?) or it's going on in the background without them needing to do much, in which case I'd still appreciate updates. And yeah, there are still quite a few episodes left, so it makes sense for them to stretch it out. I like devil kid, but obviously I'd rather keep adult John over him, if I have to make a choice. What if the Countess is the one who completes the ritual and so she sacrifices her son? Can that even happen or is it that only Mary can finish the job?
ReplyDeleteI guess we'll see about Isaac and how he's fighting the plague, Mary didn't plan on him being around that apple thing when it went off and we didn't really see her put any protection over him afterwards... I doubt Isaac is naturally special, though that would be a nice change from him constantly being abused all the time.
I would love to see Anne go against Mary at some point, but I wonder if just like Mercy, she'll just end up as a pawn in the Mary-Ingrid game of wits. We'll have to see what happens with her and if she enjoys her new found powers a bit too much.
I really want to go back and look for that and what it was that they required for this new ritual and if the time frame was given, because it really could just be a waiting game now for Mary before starting it. I also love that this season has been so amazing it makes me want to rewatch so soon.
ReplyDeleteI think Mary will finish the job, so the Countess sacrificing her son might not happen but I do believe she has it in her. However, she is only a special guest star while the actor playing Sebastian, Joe Doyle, is in a starring role. That probably doesn't really mean anything in the long run and it could still happen, but I was just discussing with Ron that maybe Sebastian could kill his mother as he's overcome with lust for Mary - maybe she manipulates him or something and he will be the weapon she needs against the Countess? He's such a mama's boy so I don't know if that would happen, but it will be interesting to see how far this obsession with Mary will go and if she will use that to her advantage.
Maybe there will be a Countess & Mercy vs. Mary & Anne thing, so Mary and Anne will team up to take down the two "villains" of their story. While I would also love for Anne to fight back against Mary, part of me would love to see what these two powerful women could do together. I'd also like to see more with Tituba as I feel she's been sidelined a lot.
We'll keep an eye on how those two perform. Surely a season 3 of Salem will be announced by the time they start, but if they don't perform any better, then I guess we could be seeing Salem stick around for quite a long time, which would be totally fine by me :D
ReplyDeleteThat's so cool. I have authors of my favorites books following me xD Andrew Smith and CC and Britney Spears . Cant tell you how much i fangirled about it.
ReplyDeleteI think if either shows were about to premiere, then they might have waited for ratings before they decided about Salem. But it's going to be an insanely long wait until they premiere, so I think they'll make a decision about Salem by the end of its run and won't wait for those numbers.
ReplyDeleteI don't really rewatch things, so feel free to go back and see if they gave a time frame, I thought they indicated the task had to be complete by a certain point, though if time is running out, the witches don't really seem concerned (you'd at least expect us to see more bodies and less town folk).
ReplyDeleteShe might just be a guest star because she's too expensive to be a regular or because of other commitments (she's going to be on the new Evil Dead show), while the actor who plays her son is a nobody, so it's cheaper to just sign him up for the whole season, regardless of how many episodes he ends up being in (same goes for devil child as opposed to the Good Doctor- he's a known actor).
Maybe they're all gonna die by the end of the season, maybe some would continue to a hypothetical S3, I dunno. Maybe Sebastian would kill his mom (honestly, I don't know if he has it in him and I think she's way more powerful than him, but yeah, that "children always kill their parents" line could be foreshadowing).
I'm hoping now that Tituba has John, it'll give the two of them a good story line to explore and some screen time, they've both kinda just been there for the most part- Tituba was mostly glued to Mary for magic scenes while John was mostly skulking in the background, not even killing many witches. I wouldn't mind Anne teaming up with Mary, I'm open to seeing where they take Anne this season and how dark she gets.
OMG Britney Spears! I don't think all the celebs following me could amount to Britney Spears. Bravo Ron, I am so impressed!
ReplyDeleteThat would be the logical thing to do for WGN America. I mean what kind of ratings were they expecting. I mean, the show did premiere to 1.5 million viewers and has dropped since then between 0.20 and 0.50 million but they can't be expecting Walking Dead or Game of Thrones like numbers, surely. They're a new network and they can't be too hasty about pulling a show for low numbers when the network as a whole rates low.
ReplyDeleteI don't really have time to rewatch things nowadays since going back to education and writing articles and reviews for this site and so many other things, but sometimes through the summer I can rewatch some shows here and there. But yeah, there's no sense of urgency to complete this task right now so hopefully that will be addressed in the next episode.
ReplyDeleteAhh you make a point there about Lucy Lawless not being a regular. I guess that also doesn't mean she has to die at the end of season 2, which is probably likely because she's the enemy of our 'hero'. I love that the characters are so complex we're not sure what they will do in the future, even if something seems obvious, that's not typically the case.
Definitely more Tituba and John would be great. So interested to see where those two are going, and it's quite dangerous for Tituba too since John is on his witch hunt so she had better be careful.
I'm sure all their shows do around 1 at best, so they don't have many options. I'm hoping they'll renew the show, I don't see a reason for them to cancel it, unless they don't have any time slots or something or the show is too expensive compared to their other shows.
ReplyDeleteI just don't have the patience to rewatch things, especially shows, there are very few shows I'll rewatch.
ReplyDeleteI'm hoping in the next few episodes they'll discuss their task again, so we can know how it's going, what needs to happen for it to be complete, etc.
I also love that we just don't know where they'll take characters, it makes things more interesting.
Between the fact that John was Mary's beloved, while Tituba loved her and the fact that Tituba framed John for the witch crimes, I feel like there's enough antagonism there for the two to have some very interesting interactions, which I'm excited about.