Previously - SPN Krissy died dramatically in TeenDerek's arms, the druids had a special sacrifice tree, Cora was wounded, Derek had a fling with Darach (Blake), she tried to kill Lydia, DumbleDeaton knew a lot but never shared until pressed to, and Darach stabbed Sheriff before taking him off in the night.
Over at the Doomsday Hospital, they are busy evacuating patients because a plot device is coming. If my hospital shut down just for a storm I wouldn't be keen to stay there period but I don't live in Beacon Hills, current home of Darach, nature manipulator. Cora has not been evacuated so Derek…no Peter, takes care of her. The "I'm not leaving" Derek is AWOL I guess. Melissa comes to evacuate Cora when she sees Peter. Melissa: "You're supposed to be dead." Peter: "I get that a lot actually." Ha! Cora interrupts to vomit black goo and again, a warning would be nice. Just saying. The missing Derek is actually home when Blake rushes in. They hug while she rants about Scott and Stiles lying about her. Strategy - get there first to spin last week's events and keep Derek's loyalty. Great strategy in the age of Roman soldiers. In the age of cell phones, 5 minutes later it's already on YouTube and Tumblr. Plus she had to drop off Papa Stilinski first. One kiss and she knows the gig is up. Scott and Stiles pop out of the shadows. Blake makes a compelling case for how ridiculous the whole Darach plot sounds, but hey it's Beacon Hills and besides Scott and Stiles have a great plan for once. They blow mistletoe at Blake, giving her plenty of time to skedaddle during Scott's monologue. Not sure why she doesn't. Mistletoe reveals her true Darach form to an aghast Derek. She flees but Derek stops her with a choke hold. Apparently Darach powers ebb and flow like werewolf supersenses do. I blame telluric currents. She pleads for her life by saying she can cure Cora while Peter confirms Cora's vomiting mistletoe. Derek goes to kill Blake but Scott and Stiles urge him to let her go. He does and suddenly Blake's whole demeanor changes. She is in charge still.
Well kind of. As they drive to Cora, Derek and Blake in one car and Scott and Stiles in the jeep, Blake says she doesn't have to help. She wants to. I don't buy it because she likely poisoned Cora in the first place. Blake wants to tell her side of the story but I second Derek. "Stop talking." Never a good plan to tick Derek off in close proximity. Besides Stiles' and my spidey senses tingle. Stiles: "We proved it to Derek but she still had this look like it didn't matter. You know like it was all still going according to plan. You saw it didn't you?" I did Stiles and it worries me. Heading into the hospital, Stiles grabs a bat. Stiles: "What? You've got claws; I've got a bat." Ha! Doubt it will help much though. Melissa stops Scott in the hallway to inform him that two ambulances are coming soon. Cora needs to be on one. Or they could drive her themselves. Risky sure, but waiting to catch a ride sounds worse. Dramatic music soars as Melissa watches Scott and Stiles head into danger. It's not just teens who don't blink at terror here. In the elevator, Blake objects to being manhandled but seriously lady, they aren't letting a killer go solo. She eyes Scott tensed for a fight and Stiles wielding his bat, and shakes her head looking bored. I laugh. Except Cora's missing. Fight noises start next door and Peter flies out the door head first on his back. Peter: "Oh, we've got a problem. Big problem." Bwah! You think? The Alpha Twins superwolf, so first Derek and then Scott attack them to no avail. While SuperWolf chokes the life out of Scott, Stiles and Peter go for Cora and Blake just goes. Scott pleads for the twins to stop, but they want Blake. Too bad she's elevator bound. Meanwhile Deucalion and Shoeless join the fight right as Blake exits. Duke throws his cane sword at her and Shoeless tries to jump into the elevator, but Blake goes white-eyed and power forces her back. Very, very cool.
At the same time, Team Sane rushes to evacuate Cora before SuperWolf finds them as Stiles picks a terrible time to go brain dead. It's catching. Stiles hits Superwolf with the bat, accomplishing absolutely nothing except breaking the bat. Scott gives them a faceful of fluorescent lighting instead, taking us confusingly back to Beacon Hills High. Huh? That was abrupt. Allison and Isaac confirm they're out of the loop and Argent wants to take them both home. Allison says they're evacuating the hospital because they're afraid the backup generator won't last. Yep, it's ye olde hospital of plot device. Isaac wants to go there to help Cora, because hospital evacuations usually leave at least one patient behind. (eye roll) None of this makes sense but that's okay. It's Teen Wolf. The plot moves so fast you don't notice the holes. Plus it leads to the awesome Argent heading to the hospital action so win-win for everyone. Except Melissa, who finds the cane sword Duke threw. Duke takes it back and Mama McCall is no dummy. Melissa: "You're him aren't you?" Duke: "Him?" Melissa: "The bad guy." Duke and I: "You have no idea." Duke eyes glow red as the backup lights turn on. Super cool effect.
For an evacuated hospital, it's sure crowded. The Alpha Twins argue over Ethan's commitment to the cause and Aidan's self-preservation speech makes sense. Blake is trying to kill them. Stiles equally freaks over her disappearance and starts yelling. Never a good plan during hide-and-seek. Again I agree with Derek: "Shhh, quiet!" Plus no fair mentioning Derek's terrible taste in women during a crisis. Stiles: "Are you telling me what to do now when your psychotic mass-murdering girlfriend, the second one you've dated by the way, has got my dad somewhere tied up, waiting to be ritually sacrificed?" Ouch! Scott defuses the situation by asking Peter about Cora, who isn't well. Scott: "There has to be something that we can do?" Here's a suggestion - call that other druid who has answers. You know, your boss DumbleDeaton. Not only does he apparently know everything, but he's also a logical choice. No? Oh well. Blake strides through the other door, the one they didn't bother to lock (deep sigh) and restates that she alone can save Cora, while I roll my eyes. Blake will revive Cora and give Sheriff back if they help her escape the alphas. Derek goes to rip her throat but Scott stops him…again. Oh buddy, you know what they say about making deals with the devil. Stiles wants Cora healed as a gesture of goodwill while Peter prefers torture as incentive. Ha! The conversation ends as Melissa's voice breaks over the intercom. Duke wants Blake or Melissa dies. It's a perfect time for Argent to enter…and stand around doing nothing. No idea why that scene was thrown in.
Back to the action monologuing, Blake calls Duke's threat a bluff and Scott agrees. She exposits true alphas forever and since we've heard this 3+ times already, only Derek, Stiles and Peter's reactions are interesting. Peter actually looks shocked, which is either great acting or a twist he can exploit. Scott says Cora is priority #1, so Derek and Scott plan to fight the alphas while the others get Cora out. No dice. Blake wants Derek, so Peter volunteers provided they find an advantage. Stiles: "Like what? You mean like a weapon?" Peter: "Something better than a baseball bat." BWAH!!!! The quartet rifles the hospital room. Stiles suggests a defibrillator but he doesn't know how to use it. Scott finds epinephrine and Derek knows pharmaceuticals. Derek: "That's only going to make them stronger." Peter: "How strong?" Ha! A plan. A wild-eyed, 'roided up Peter sees the Twins. "Alright boys, let's rumble." Bwah! Peter brings his A snark tonight. I can't be the only one thinking The Outsiders? He and Scott charge SuperWolf as the others get Cora in the ambulance, but Shoeless killed the driver and snaked the keys. She also calls Blake, "Julia." - they have history. Stiles locks Cora and himself in the ambulance while Derek and Blake run…to the elevator. Has no one taken emergency classes? Of course at this time, Duke and Melissa shut off the remaining power, trapping the elevator duo. Duke lets Melissa go to appease Scott, but Cora has stopped breathing. Stiles clearly never took CPR classes, but he gets emergency breathing down until Cora finally revives. Stiles: "You know the next time I put my lips to your mouth, you better be awake." Ha! In other news, Derek and Blake are still trapped, Scott and Peter are still running, and presumably the Argents and Isaac are still walking. For an action-filled episode, not a lot actually happens.
Since Peter's juicing didn't last long, Scott and he hide out in the laundry room. Scott asks how they'll get by SuperWolf. Peter: "Personally I think if we keep letting them beat the living cr** out of us, they'll tire and give up." Bwah!! Peter, my snark hero. Love him. Scott prefers going down the laundry chute - right on top of Peter. Peter: "You couldn't have waited like 10 seconds." Ha! Scott gets a text from Derek about turning the power back on and Stiles tells Cora Scott will get them out. Scott? My money's on Argent. Stiles monologues on how he used to be the plan maker but after Cora's riveting speech last week, he feels hopeless. Stiles: "I don't want to find my father's body." Awww baby. I feel for you; I really do but there's more walking to watch. The Alpha Twins walk past the ambulance while the Argents and Isaac walk around aimlessly. Argent hears something and cocks his gun. Isaac: "I'm going to take that as a sign you're a little worried." Ha! Isaac hears noise below and lies down on the ground to listen. Huh? It's Scott dropping off Peter in Stiles' ambulance nursery. He warns Scott about Shoeless and the Alpha Twins before Scott races off…right into SuperWolf's iron grip. They tell a dangling Scott, "We're trying not to hurt you." Scott: "Try harder." No need. Mama McCall to the rescue! "Hey, I'd like to try something." She's uses a defibrillator on the twins who pop right apart. Score one for Mama! Scott looks at her in shock but here's a woman used to emergencies. Melissa: "Sweetheart, get up." I like no nonsense!
Sadly everything grinds to a halt for more monologuing. Blake condemns superficiality while Shoeless and Deucalion disagree over Scott and soft spots. Then Blake's story comes via both herself and Shoeless. It's 2 unreliable narrators again, but this time we're supposed to trust their story. Blake was Julia originally. She kept her initials to keep her past alive and mourns the loss of her face. Derek doesn't care and splendidly tries to shortcut the speech. "You were an emissary. They tried killing you along with the rest of the pack. Mystery solved." Apparently not. Make that Shoeless' emissary, which isn't a shock until she adds, "And I was the one she couldn't kill." Hmm. Shoeless mauled Blake on Duke's orders as part of her initiation into the pack, but didn't want to since emissaries aren't a threat. Duke counters Shoeless joined the pack to be with Elevator Alpha, which does surprise me. Shoeless seems more leader than follower. He also questions Blake being harmless. Revenge will do that, as your own life attests. Shoeless says she thought Blake was dead and Duke picks up his cane. I honestly thought Duke was going to kill her right then. Shoeless admits she left Blake to die when she heard her heartbeat instead of finishing her off, so Blake could die in peace instead. Um, not sure mauled by werewolf and bleeding to death is peaceful. According to Shoeless, she left her because she loved her. Let's please NOT make them sisters. Duke: "My heart bleeds for you Kali. Apparently hers could have bled a little more." Ouch! That's cold. Blake picks up the story, crawling to the sacred tree, which had little power left until Derek sacrificed Paige on it. By the way, Blake confirms Derek, not Peter, loved and killed Paige. That episode was NOT unreliable in itself. While Derek is visibly shaken by the memory, Blake credits Derek for saving her life as the sacred tree allowed her to hold on. Shockingly given his conversation with Melissa last week, Sheriff is the one who found her a decade ago.
Speaking of Melissa, Scott can't believe Duke just let her go. I did, but I shouldn't have. Morell was right. Duke is always 10 moves ahead in this chess match. Melissa: "Well if that means I should continue to be profoundly terrified, then don't worry about it. I've got that covered." I'm worried for you too and usually I think you're safe. They head around a corner and bump into the Argents and Isaac, still walking around. How big is this hospital? At least it's more exciting than a complete filler mistletoe history lesson. To sum up, Balder was the favored Norse god so Frigga, or Freja in my students' reader's theatre, got everything to promise not to hurt him but she forgot mistletoe. Loki was jealous and killed Balder with a mistletoe dart. This apparently inspired Balder's mom to associate mistletoe with love so it wouldn't be a weapon again. Sorry lady, but mistletoe is the weapon of choice this year. The myth's moral is watch what you overlook. Blake claims emissaries were overlooked; I counter that Lydia and parents are the overlooked players here. Blake blathers about revenge oaths, comparing Derek killing Paige to end her suffering to herself murdering 12 innocent people. Say what? There's no comparison, but Blake lives in her own la vida loco. Blake: "I'm not asking you to save just my life. I'm asking you to save everyone they'll ever hurt again." And the 3 you plan to kill? Derek says she can't win but boom; she's got a plan. Werewolves lose all power during a lunar eclipse so if she can create one, she can kill the alphas then. Who knows if this includes Derek and Scott? I'd really like this plan…except she is killing people to do it. She needs to be stopped as well.
Blake isn't the only one with a plan. Argent and Scott brainstorm with help from Isaac, Allison, and Melissa. Argent: "I don't think I know which teacher this is." Isaac: "She's the one with the brown hair. She's kind of hot." Ha! Thanks Isaac! Allison's input is actually beneficial - she plays bait. It's the alphas' turn to walk and wait as Team Sane prepares. Allison runs down the hall, attracting Shoeless and the Alpha Twins. Isaac drives to the ambulance, Melissa turns the power back on, and Allison and Argent go trigger happy on the alphas. Awesome! Peter and Stiles get Cora in the car, then Stiles figures it all out. Parents are guardians. Darach has 1 already. Melissa's next. He runs to warn Scott, who finds Derek in the elevator unconscious and alone. Darach is gone. Scott also realizes his mom's in trouble and takes off before Stiles gets there. In the car, Isaac hesitates to leave Scott but Peter says it's Scott or the Argents. He peels out as the Alpha Twins enter the ambulance bay, narrowly getting away. Scott's not so lucky. His mom is gone, but Duke is still on the roof. He spouts about how he would have told Scott what guardians were if he were in his pack. If I were Scott, I'd try to toss him off the roof. Scott instead listens. If Scott joins Duke in hunting Blake, Duke will get Scott's mom and Sheriff back. Slowly Scott heads toward Duke, but Stiles calls out, "Scott, don't do this. Don't go with him." Scott: "I don't know what else to do." Stiles: "No just…Scott there's got to be something else, okay? We always…we always have a plan B." Scott's eyes well up: "Not this time." Scott promises he will find Stiles' dad and walks off with Duke. Those two will be the death of me. It may end up brother against brother in this fight, with Duke and Darach pulling the strings. I just hope Melissa and Sheriff aren't caught in the middle. I can't handle either dying. As Melissa wakes up, Sheriff says they are in the root cellar of the sacred tree. Seriously? A+ for lore, Blake. D- for surprise. If Derek or Deaton don't figure it out immediately, I'll be shocked. And disappointed.
At first glance, this episode is an A. It has an intricate plot, combines all the key players (except Lydia), and has enough action to keep the plot rolling. On rewatch, it is a B because for all the action nothing really happened and the slow monologuing and walking parts stick out more. Also, the key players are there but most have nothing to do the majority of the time. To be honest, in any other show this would be a finale's load of action but I've come to expect more from Teen Wolf. It's still a very good episode, just not excellent like last week. The best thing about the episode is it sets up the last two for the midseason finale and puts two beloved characters in danger. They better not kill Sheriff, Melissa, or Argent though. They're part of the reason I love this show so much. Take Cora instead. She's doesn't add much to the story. I also loved Peter in this episode. He was even more snarky than normal, an awesome treat. Peter has to make it to the end too. There's lots to love in this episode but they could have easily cut out the mistletoe myth when they already had so much important monologuing with Darach's back story. We don't need a lesson every episode. At least they didn't tell us its word origin. Maybe it got cut out for all the walking.
Grade - B
Best scene - everyone on Team Sane working together to get Cora and Derek out alive
Best cliffhanger - Will Sheriff and Melissa make it?
Worst cliffhanger - Will Cora make it?
MVP - Peter on snark alone
Most Valuable Object - Blake's shoes (apparently that's all it takes to make people think Allison is Blake)
MIA - Lydia / Deaton / Morell
Best acting - Blake and then Stiles
Biggest momentum kill - tie - talking about Scott as true alpha AGAIN / mistletoe story
Best facial expressions - tie - Blake in the elevator / 'roided up Peter
Best reaction to a formerly dead guy - Melissa
Best playing dumb - Derek when Blake comes to him
Best Awww moment - Stiles defeated (doesn't want to find his dad's body) in ambulance
Best action moment - Melissa defibrillates SuperWolf
Best strategy/plan - Scott throws mistletoe at Blake
Worst strategy/plan - tie - Stiles hits SuperWolf with a bat / Team Sane locks one set of doors but leaves the other set open for Blake to walk right in
Most unnecessary scene - tie - the Argents and Isaac enter the hospital / Blake talks mistletoe
Best twist - Lunar eclipses make werewolves lose all their power
Best surprise - No word of the day, not even nematon
Worst surprise - Darach is relatively powerless although she wasn't nearly this powerless last week
Biggest disappointment - Duke did not kill Shoeless
The "Are You Kidding Me?" Award - No one, not even once, called Deaton about anything
Best fight scene - tie - Derek and Scott take on SuperWolf / Scott and Peter take on SuperWolf
Lesson from episode - If people ever stop dying or going missing at Beacon Hills High, they really should offer emergency training to their students and community.
Lesson from screencaps - green emergency lighting flatters no one
Best confirmation - Derek loved and sacrificed Paige, not Peter. I knew they couldn't make the episode unreliable as well as the narrators.
Best Peter lines -
1. "Personally I think if we keep letting them beat the living cr** out of us, they'll tire and give up."
2. "Then I'll do it, but I'd prefer to be out there with an advantage." Stiles: "Advantage? Like what? You mean like a weapon?" Peter: "Something better than a baseball bat."
3. Melissa: "You're supposed to be dead." Peter: "I get that a lot actually."
4. "Oh, we've got a problem. Big problem."
5. "I'd like to volunteer a different method of persuasion. Let's torture her." Derek: "Works for me."
Best Other Lines -
6. Melissa: "You're him aren't you?" Duke: "Him?" Melissa: "The bad guy."
5. Scott: "I'll distract them." Derek: "You mean fight them." Scott: "Whatever I have to do." Derek: "I'll help you." - I like Derek and Scott working together instead of rivals like they are being positioned to be
4. Stiles to Cora: "You know you're a lot easier to talk to when you're completely unconscious."
3. SuperWolf: "We're trying not to hurt you." Scott: "Try harder."
2. Melissa: "Well if that means I should continue to be profoundly terrified, then don't worry about it. I've got that covered."
1. Stiles: "I don't want to find my father's body."
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