First Things First…
The second half of this season has been trending in the wrong direction. I’d love for them to turn it around in this finale. But knowing the show got canceled, it’s gonna be a bummer if they held back a lot of stuff and left questions unanswered because they were going to address it in Season Two.
But here’s why I’m optimistic…
Even though I disliked Episode 7, which is about 90% flashback, the scene at the end intrigued me. Annabelle told Dan and Mark that Melody is in the Otherworld, and Dan has to save her. I’m excited to see the Otherworld, and to see Dan and Melody finally together in reality, not just dreams and visions.
3 Things I Like
3. REVEALED! Groundskeeper Bobbi’s True Identity
I predicted all along that Bobbi was more than she appeared…
But I’m not sure I ever landed on her being Melody’s mom. At least, not until three seconds before Dan figures it out.
It’s a clever little twist that explains why she’s been working for Virgil and, more importantly, why she gave up Melody in the first place. She thought she’d keep her safe by never brining her into the world of the Baldung.
Didn’t quite work out that way, though.
2. Saving Jess
Dan and Melody have equally been the two protagonists. So I’m glad it’s not just Dan who gets to play the hero. Melody gets her time to shine by saving Jess from the cult. It takes some convincing, and some harsh truths no one should ever have to say to a 12-year-old, but she does it.
And she obviously does it even though it puts herself in peril. John Smith is terrifying when he busts into the apartment right after Melody gets Jess to go out the fire escape. And this is how Melody winds up part of the ritual and gets sucked into the Otherworld.
1. Saving Melody
I’m surprised how long it takes to get to the Otherworld in this episode. But it’s suspenseful once we go there so Dan can try to save Melody.
Bobbi/Julia warned Dan ahead of time that Kaelego would try to keep him there. Her warning comes true before Dan even begins searching.
It’s sad watching Dan see his family as he remembers them before they were all killed in the fire. He wants so badly for this to be real. But he knows it’s not. And he doesn’t get caught up in the illusion too long.
From there, I didn’t know what to expect. As Dan walks down a long, empty hallway with many doors, I kept wondering if Kaelego would just jump out from one of them, fully materialized.
Finally, Dan’s first real meeting with Melody — even though it’s in another dimension — is good, too. She’s a bit disoriented and confused, but she recognizes Dan and is touched he came for her.
Despite the way my enjoyment of the show has gone down in the later episodes, their brief time together makes me wish I could see more of this pairing.
1 Thing I’m Mixed On
1. Stuck in the Past
I don’t mind the idea that Dan is now stuck in the Otherworld. If they would’ve gotten to do a second season, that would be a good hook to start with.
What I like less — and don’t really understand — is how he’s back in time.
Is it just an illusion from Kaelego that he’s stuck in 1994? And that he seems to have escaped the fire at the Visser, as if he was a resident?
Also, can we please retire the use of the Twin Towers as a clue that we’re in pre-9/11 New York City?
3 Things I Don’t Like
3. What’s Virgil’s Deal?
Virgil’s motivations don’t add up.
He says he spent 20 years researching the Otherworld. And he had Dan restore all those tapes so he could find out what happened to his brother.
But now that he finds out Samuel is trapped there, he decides he’s just going to leave him???
And he’s willing to kill Dan to keep him from opening that door???
Virgil isn’t a believer one way or the other. He’s not a Baldung or an idealogue who’s desperately trying to prevent Kaelego from entering their world.
So why is he so adamant about not letting Dan try this? And why is he indifferent toward Samuel’s imprisonment? He says Samuel made his own bed and shouldn’t have been trifling with this stuff — but then why did he spend two decades of his life researching it?
2. Convincing Mark
Mark is also adamant that Dan shouldn’t try to rescue Melody, and for a much clearer reason. He’s looking out for his best friend’s safety.
But all it takes is Dan telling him to go home, and suggesting Mark might’ve only been helping him all along to get a good story for his podcast, and Mark suddenly changes his mind. Not to mention he has some cheesy dialogue about caring about Dan.
Mark is really good in most of his scenes all season. But everything about this scene, including their hug, feels so off.
1. Samuel’s Role
Two things about Samuel in the Otherworld…
Where is he when Dan finds Melody? How is it that he’s already by the door back to our reality?
And since he grabs Melody and gets her to the door, why doesn’t he come back through with her?
I’m so confused about everything that happens with him here.
Tim Matassa
