"The Reckoning
This week's captivating episode of Salem was by far one of the best episodes of the entire series in quite some time. I honestly wasn't sure how to react to the first two episodes of the new season due to the difficulty that I had diving back into this world. None of the new story-lines except for John Alden's truly stuck out to me making it difficult to fully invest myself with the show. However, not only did this episode threw me back into the series at full force but it also reminded me just why I enjoyed it so much in the beginning.
The supernatural elements presented here were some of the most fascinating that I've seen on the show such as Mary being trapped in a magical mental seal as well as getting her witch powers forcefully removed in the end. These moments were all visually amazing and a sign that this season has upped the scale of its production to fully deliver on the more fantastical elements presented this story.
Visuals aside, as opposed to my earlier thoughts on the season's first two episodes, I found myself completely engrossed in the different character stories taken place. You have a suspenseful thriller-like plot with Cotton attempting to secretly exorcise himself which kept me at the edge of my seat. There's a sense of desperation within the character as we see him highly determined to memorize and gather the ingredients needed to remove Anne's familiar from inside of him. This was definitely one of my favorite Cotton episodes as we see him playing Anne and everyone else around him while he embarks on his own secret quest to spiritually free himself. What follows after his self exorcism will be pretty interesting to see.
There's also John Alden's recon mission with a newly introduced young soldier tagging along which inserted a surprisingly light hearted touch to the episode. Not only did I really enjoy their brief interactions and chemistry together, but their mission also lead to a visually striking image of a distant town recently demolished from a mysterious attack previously alluded to. Suffice to say, this episode highly succeeds in its visuals.
As I mentioned earlier, Mary's removal of power is focused on here as well introducing a new and refreshing arc to her character. It'll be interesting to see just where this leads to moving forward considering her supernatural edge is now supposedly non-existent.
My issues regarding Oliver Bell's dull performance as the ultimate power of evil being presented as a child are also put to rest here (which I hope is permanent) as his scenes finally felt weighted and properly dramatic in context to his scenes.
My only nitpick with this episode comes with the character of Mercy Lewis who still doesn't feel as relevant as the show makes her out to be. There's just something about her scenes so far showing that she's growing in power that simply feels unnecessary when considering everything else taking place. Perhaps her character will have a significant position down the line, but as for now, I begin to question her current role on the show. Mercy Lewis is a character that almost completely fell off for me during the second season, so it'll take quite a bit of work to sell me on the idea of keeping her presence on the show.
Overall, this was by far the most compelling and intriguing episode of the show as it shined in presentation, engrossed in its storytelling, and paved the way for potentially entertaining stories with the aid of cliffhangers sprinkled in. This is the Salem that I fell in love with in the first season and felt that I lost a tad bit in the second. If this episode is any indication of a return to form, then I can safely say that I'm fully onboard for what's to come.
Episode Rating: 9/10
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