The Alpha establishes his goals but there are still many surprises left to be had.
What They Say:
Co-Captain – Scott hustles to protect his loved ones; Stiles closes in on the mystery behind De-rek’s family.
The Review:
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)
After a solid episode last week and a preview for the final three episodes of the season that had me on the edge of my seat, Teen Wolf has managed to become the series of the summer that has me completely glued to the screen. What really made the last episode shine was Jackson himself as he became a supporting character that stepped up and really defined himself. It’s been a slow but steady trajectory for him but once he reached a certain threshold, he let loose and made it clear to Scott that he knows exactly what’s going on and is prepared to manipulate it in the best way possible to his own advantage. And Scott is simply caught up in all of it, unsure what to do as so many things are coming at him these days on top of the severe loss he’s experiencing after Allison kicked him to the curb.
What the last episode also introduced was the introduction of the Alpha in a new way, younger and rejuvenated and making it clear that he is definitely in control. So much so that he’s managed to subdue Derek after all that’s happened, even with the Alpha having killed his sister. The confrontation with him in the locker room after the game is unsettling and it’s something that definitely has an impact on Scott. Considering the way so many people could have been the Alpha, the revelation is a little uneventful, but it pushes things forward so that Scott has to deal with it now. And with Allison being kept alive as a threat to get him to join along in the new pack that he’s trying to create. There’s definitely some history here, as we see a brief flashback to when the Alpha was burned in his human form before, and it has some good, chilling moments.
Allison’s story here takes a really good turn, starting with a very amusing bit of dream time in bed where she’s fantasizing about Scott being a bit primal with her, in a very controlled way, and she definitely is unnerved by it when she wakes up. It’s this moment that puts her on the path even more to understanding what it is her family does, as she overhears her father and aunt talking and Kate realizes it, setting things in motion to get her a bit more connected to it as she makes it clear that her father isn’t intent on training her at all. When Allison tries to the arrowhead that Kate left out for her, it’s definitely a big moment. Allison really has the look and feel of a hunter here that’s starting to realize her potential and just how deadly she can be, which is amusingly shocking to Lydia whens he tags along for the trial run. The look on both of them is quite different, but equally well done.
Stiles actually manages to be a bit more useful than usual here, though he hasn’t been a slacker in the series in the slightest. His method of getting information isn’t the best, but he’s able to ply his father with alcohol in order to find out that there are definite connections amongst all the people that were killed by the Alpha, though it doesn’t make much sense to his father at this point since he’s missing the real binding aspect, and Stiles is missing part of it as well. Painting the picture of how they were involved with what happened to the Alpha that put him through the fire gives it all a good feel, the right kind of ties that does bind it together well without being over the top such as sacrifices for some grand supernatural plan or anything. At least not yet, since there are a few more episodes left. Keeping it grounded in simple revenge, however, works very well.
With the greater focus on the Alpha here as he starts to insert himself more into Scott’s life, working some amusing angles in his efforts to bring him into the pack, the show definitely is taking shape even more. Scott’s finding himself in a very bad position across the board as there are so many people he’s trying to protect and keep an eye on and it just keeps getting worse. The Alpha is heavily involved now, Allison is bringing herself slowly back into Scott’s life, Derek is at a distance and Jackson is making it obvious who he is the Hunters which panics him even more. Seeing all these things come together, the various orbits all the characters are on edging ever closer, is really exciting to watch. They’ve managed to capture a very good feel for this series and when it hits its key moments of intensity, it builds them up well without actually overdoing it. And as Scott has to face off against the Alpha more, it’s definitely good to see him starting to go on the offensive as well.
In Summary:
Teen Wolf manages another episode where it doesn’t feel like there’s all that much in the way of wasted space here. Everything has a reason and it all serves to move the story forward across multiple subplots with various characters that interact with each other. Much like past episodes, each of those arcs has a lot of good material to it and all add to the whole. Jackson continues to be the standout for me at this point in terms of his story and his reaches an interesting area this time around as he truly gets into the thick of it. It’s another game changer for the series both in the way certain people will interact with each other, but also for the relationships themselves. Teen Wolf doesn’t exactly surprise me with every episode in how good it is as I’ve come to expect it to be good, but it definitely delights me and continues to be a thoroughly engaging show that should be getting a hell of a lot more attention from genre fans. The final minutes of this episode alone are fantastic, and that’s just building on the rest of it.
Grade: A-
