Previously on ‘The Mist’, Eve didn’t trust Jay. Kevin shouldn’t have trusted a doctor and Mia dealt with the ghosts in the mist.
Who do you trust?
This episode played out a lot of the new character dynamics brilliantly. Finally, after seven episodes, there was real tension. Starting with Nathalie and her defying the faith of Father Romanov. Everything that happened in the church portion of the show was fantastic. Connor finally managing to exert some form of power brought the character back to life! His faith in Nathalie and her message turned him into the very thing he was against from the priest. The final battle of faith was creepy and prophetic, Nathalie’s decision to face the mist naked vs Father Romanov full church attire spoke volumes. The show has worked hard to show the mist as an almost psychic entity, by using the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse they cemented the argument of Mist vs Faith. Naked Nathalie won and started her reign as leader of the church with a lie.
Who Is Jonah?
Fake Bryan’s arc this week also fed into the paranoia of the episode. Who are you if you don’t even know your real name? Thankfully, due to Mia’s screaming during her detox, he now has a memory. Sadly it’s not a good one, it seems that Jonah has been used as some type of test subject for something. I’m hedging my bets that this will tie into what the mist is and how Arrowhead is connected to it. His decision to trust Mia and help her through the harrowing detox. It’s added a deeper level to both of them, Mia chose to come back and Jonah has chosen to trust in someone other than himself.
How long until we find out Adrian raped Alex?
At this point, they’re not even being subtle about it. During Kevin’s dark and detailed description of what he would do the rapist, the camera all but put a spotlight on Adrian’s terrified face. Even with the attempt to soften Adrian through his burgeoning relationship, I’m not buying it. There’s a reason that Nash picked him as the only one with evil inside him.
The fact that all of Kevin and Co’s segment was set in a psyche ward really set the tone for the episode. Kevin has continued his downward path to darkness, he’s even admitted it to himself. He said very early on there was nothing he wouldn’t do to get to his wife and daughter. This week he proved it.
Why isn’t the mall interesting?
I’ve been patient, I’ve waited and now I’ve officially given up. The mall had so much potential, especially with them diving into two camps quite early on. Sadly it’s just not living up to the hype. Gus stashing food wasn’t even interesting, neither is the paranoia directed towards Eve’s camp. Speaking of Eve, she desperately needs something to do. At the moment she’s serving no purpose other than to snarl at Jay. Another character they’re desperate to portray as a good guy, which goes against the allegation that he’s the rapist. The biggest issue with the mall is the safety they have. There are very little threats and or danger. I imagine they’re going to go down the “people are the worst monsters” route with the mall, the pacing for the story is just dull.
Verdict
Despite my moaning about the mall segment, this was another strong episode. The danger of the psyche ward and the battle in the church brought some genuine tension. Frances Conroy finally had something to do this week and she excelled at it. Every scene with her in, she dominated. The pay off was a spectacular battle of faith. The fact that the mist has let both Alex and Nathalie survive is obviously going to play out over the next few episodes and I for one can’t wait to watch it!
