First Things First…
After the previous episode focused heavily on Willow and Elora, I hope we get more from the rest of the crew here. Elora got snatched at the end of that episode, so at least it seems like a safe bet that we won’t be getting more wizard lessons. One thing I do hope we get is more info from Boorman about Madmartigan’s quest to find the Kymerian Cuirass.
7 Things I Like
7. Back to Nockmaar
After the battle, Willow tries to steer the group away from the “big, scary steps” Boorman decides to climb. But Boorman is right—if every other path out is flooded, the steps are their only option.
The problem is that Willow is the only one who knows where they are. And he knows those steps lead to Nockmaar—one of the scariest settings from the movie.
I like seeing them expand on the movie. And if there’s one thing I’m confident we’ll see at Nockmaar, it’s badass monsters.
6. Daring Rescue
Graydon has his talents. Like, he’s great with languages. But he knows he’s useless when it comes to anything physical.
Still, he tries.
And it’s hilarious when he tells Elora, “I’m rescuing you,” and she replies, “Was no one else available?”
Sure enough, he fails, and the bad guys get away with Elora. Nevertheless, it’s charming. And it continues to set up something potentially romantic between these two—even though he’s engaged to Kit and she’s engaged to Airk.
5. Petty Kit
At times, the writing hasn’t done Kit many favors. Her jealousy toward Elora has made her less fun to be around than the rest of the group.
But the further we get into the season, the funnier she gets!
When Willow asks where Elora is, and its apparent she’s missing, Kit’s reaction is just, “Seriously?” I think the next words out of her mouth were about to be, “This bitch is lost AGAIN?”
Then, as she’s looking for Elora and finds the little tree Elora finally managed to grow with magic, she says, “Aw, nuts. Really?”
I think Kit is actually disappointed to see Elora might be the real deal—y’know, the one person who will be able to defeat the darkness. Yet, despite how stupid it is to root against that, it’s really funny, and it doesn’t come off as malicious. So I guess it’s safe to say Kit grew on me this episode.
4. Wererats
These are the scariest mythical rats I’ve seen since the ROUS’s from The Princess Bride.
I already mentioned that the next episode should give us some badass monsters. But the wererats are pretty badass already. They’re big rats with slimy skin, beady red eyes… and, oh yeah—TWO HEADS.
I wish we got to see Kit and Boorman fight them more before escaping that cave and joining the battle with their friends. But either way, wererats are another cool creation to add to this world.
3. Fading Magic
This episode gives us the closest thing we’ve gotten to a definitive answer about whether or not Willow is a great sorcerer.
He does magic when he has to. And it’s powerful. But he says he only has a finite amount of magic left.
I don’t know if the magic within a sorcerer always comes with limits…
Or if his magic is only fading because he’s much older now.
Either way, it puts him in a predicament. His fellow travelers think he should be contributing more. And they question his abilities because, to this point, he refused to use magic. But he keeps saying he’s saving it for “when it gets worse.” And he’s convinced it WILL get worse.
2. Death of a Friend
“Don’t waste your magic. There is something you could do. Give this to Libby. Tell her that I wasn’t scared because I’ve had a great life and that I died doin’ what I was supposed to, protecting my best friend.”
Silas
I haven’t commented much up to this point—if at all—about Silas. And now he’s gone. But I enjoyed him the whole time he was around.
He gives a great little speech to Willow before passing. I just wish this happened later in the season so we could get to know Silas better. But this will make things even harder for Willow, and more adversity should lead to a better payoff in the end.
1. Death of a Father Figure
“You did good, kid.”
Ballantine
The evil that infected Ballantine is banished from his body during the battle, so he briefly returns to his wits—but his body is too far gone to survive much longer.
It becomes a touching scene as he tells Jade he’s proud of her, and that training and raising her is the best thing he ever did. I assume he’s unmarried and childless, so she really was like a daughter to him.
1 Thing I’m Mixed On
1. Strange Lady of the Forest
I knew Hannah Waddingham was going to be in this season, so I was excited to see her show up as Hubert…
But I don’t know what she’s doing.
She seems to be having a lot of fun playing against type. (This is NOT the type of character I expected from the owner of AFC Richmond.) But Hubert is completely ridiculous. Maybe on further viewings I’ll like her better. But as charming and kindly as she is, I just couldn’t get on board.
2 Thing I Don’t Like
2. Is Tony Stark in the Willow Universe
As Boorman bores Kit with the long, long history of the Kymerian Cuirass, we learn of the Lux Arcana—a magical key that activates the armor so only a worthy hero can use it.
My problem with it is that the Lux Arcana looks like the arc reactor that powers Iron Man’s armor.
Who knows—maybe as a fellow Disney property, it was meant as a nod to Marvel. But in this fantasy world—even with all the modern flourishes the show has added—it looks so out of place.
1. Why Is Willow Such a Dick Sometimes?
Willow feels inconsistent as a character so far. And not just compared to who he was in the movie, but even to who he was in the premiere.
When the group found him at the end of the first episode, there was something about his demeanor and the way he carried himself that felt right. We already knew he was such a brave, kind-hearted person—and now that he had (presumably) grown into a powerful sorcerer, too, this is who he would be.
At times, we still see that. At times, we’ve seen him get frustrated, as he did with Elora when trying to teach her. That was understandable.
But then, there are times he’s just mean and petty for no reason.
I’m thinking mostly of when Graydon explains how the evil infecting Ballantine and his men is rotting them from the inside. Graydon seems to actually know a lot about how this works. But Willow just cuts him down and throws around his own title of High Aldwin—as if that really means anything on the road, as they’re trying to survive—and acts as if he’s the only one who has any right to talk about magic or the supernatural.
At moments like that, he really doesn’t feel like Willow at all.
Tim Matassa
