Oh what a chilling villain this one was! A lot happened in this episode, with Mary and Otto’s union starting to show cracks, Otto taking a stand, Jimmy once again not listening to Duval… And what a final twist with Alexa plotting something on the side with Connor! What did you think of Palimpsest?
Expect spoilers for the episode – so if you haven’t seen the episode yet and don’t want to be spoiled, you should avoid reading the comments on this post until you’ve watched it.
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Different aspects of the story begin to gel in this episode, which, hopefully, will make the series look less like two separate shows. Apparently, Lookinglass, or rather the technology available at Lookinglass, is becoming more an investigative tool for Duval than his FBI resources. I like it. It gives Duval a different millieu to inhabit while still doing his FBI thing.
My favorite aspect of this series in the Pritchard family interaction, at a minimum in this episode. I liked what little we saw of Duval, Jimmy, and Helen, and I feel bad for Helen that she doesn’t realize she’s talking to, and about, her own father. Come on, Duval–just tell her, then you can deal with it together. I understand why he hasn’t, but both Helen and Gracie deserve to know the truth. I missed Gracie again this week.
Tim DeKay can work a kitchen sink while wearing a tie and look sexy as hell doing it. Just an observation.
Creepy COTW, but they all are, in their own way. People fighting, and losing to, their inner monsters. The execution of the idea is a bit heavy-handed, but it’s an interesting idea nonetheless.
The twins’ bond is showing signs of strain. I was proud of Otto for standing up to Mary and Jimmy, but his timing was wrong and there was too much as stake for Mary not to override his wishes. Otto thinks, and speaks, in concrete, literal terms, and I enjoy how that unnerves Jimmy, and annoys Mary, just a little. “She’s upstairs having sex….”. Funny.
Otto definitely feels threatened by the connection he sees growing between Mary and Jimmy, which is ironic considering Otto’s part in bringing Jimmy back to life. I wonder, what if Jimmy’s second chance not only stirs his own inner monster but awakens the shadowy side of all the people in his life. Mary crossed ethical and moral boundaries by bringing Jimmy back to life (for her own selfish reasons) and now basically controls his very existence, Duval is lying to the FBI and to his family, and now the relatively innocent Otto is antagonizing the man who is keeping his sister alive.
Apparently, the Goodwin twins are victims of a long con, courtesy of Connor, Mary’s lover and the one person other than Mary that Otto trusts implicitly. They might be geniuses, but they’re not very good judges of character. Obviously, Connor is a plot device created for the purpose of pushing Mary and Jimmy together, but he’s using Alexa to glean information, which is a welcome surprise. Not that I want to see Alexa victimized or used as a pawn, or shown to be complicit in Connor’s schemes, but I like that she’s been given more to do than simply be at Mary’s beck and call.
Finally, I’m not feeling Jimmy and Mary. I can’t decide if it’s because of their complete dependence on each other for survival, or if it’s simply because RK and DV lack sufficient chemistry, but there is no intangible something that suggests a potential romance worth rooting for.
I was pleasantly surprised to notice #SecondChance trending on Twitter for a brief period. Let’s hope it’s not too little, too late.
An interview with EP Howard Gordon from TCA (no spoilers)–
http://www.assignmentx.com/2016/howard-gordon-exclusive-interview/
I like that he mentioned the NY Times review–one good word from the NY Times goes a long way toward achieving credibility.
Barely enough Duval this week, but some very interesting development in the various character interactions.
Duval doesn’t seem all that convinced that his father coming back is a good thing. And Jimmy sure doesn’t make it easy by keeping doing things his own way…
I didn’t feel that Connor guy last week, but I didn’t see Alexa’s treason coming! The drift between Mary and Otto couldn’t come at the worse moment! But really, I feel betrayed by Alexa, here!
Basically, all the scenes between the regular characters were great. I love all the one-liners, the implied conflicted feelings, the upcoming storm… The case of the week, on the other hand not so interesting. I really don’t like creepy bad guys…
But I can’t wait to see how it all unravels in the upcoming episodes!
The story is really getting interesting. I crossed the point where I only watched it for Tim DeKay. I would have watched him reading the phone book or the foreign exchange rates. 🙂
But guess what, the case of the week was quite bizarre – something I liked. And all the side stories with Mary’s mean boyfriend, the assistant with her own agenda, it can develop…
No, I still don’t like the idea of third parties having unlimited access to police body cams or any other confidential information. But sigh, I ignore it.
However, I hope the next episode as a lot more Duval time. I think 6 minutes passed this time before he entered the scene. 6 minutes lost if you ask me…
I do hope they’ll make an episode that highlights the Big Brother side of Lookinglass – or the Goodwins. Too much power is never good.