Last week, The Strain aired its second episode of the season with, "The Box", a much more mellow display of horror than the first episode. That is not a crack at the production of the show, but it had me thinking about when we would see another action-packed hour of this series that is, so far, doing great in the ratings department. I am enjoying the show immensely as well as the hard work of all the actors involved. It makes all the difference when you can see in their work how much the actors care about the story and their character counterparts. Although the horror scenes and action have diminished since the premiere, I believe it is a necessary component to get the audience familiar with the cast and the plot before events get more complex in the middle of the season and beyond.
The Strain airs its third episode of its freshman season tonight with, "Gone Smooth". It is similar in a few ways to the second episode with regard to how much action and horror is displayed throughout. The Box felt as though it was only about ten minutes in length, which, I suppose, is a testament to how great the story is displayed. I got the same feeling when watching tonight's episode; "Gone Smooth" seemed to roll the 'end credits' before I even got comfortable on the couch. So, while the episode does lose some (definitely not all) of the action sequences we loved from "Night Zero" it makes up for in other ways.
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We are still in the 'learning' phase of the season so we get some more info on the characters and their involvement in everything, especially one of my favorites, Vasily Fet, the rat exterminator. He provides the show with the slightest amount of comedic relief necessary in a show as grim and gruesome as The Strain. Eph is still proving himself to be the relentless anti-hero and you can't help but wonder if anything will ever transpire romantically between Nora and himself.
Overall, it is a great episode and I think fans will enjoy this episode the most out of the initial three. Their are definitely some eerie and frightful scenes sure to make any fan of horror shows excited to watch and tide them over for a week until episode four. Bolivar's story is the one I pay special attention because he appears to be the most interesting out of the four 'survivors' from the plane and they do not disappoint. One scene in particular, I'm sure, will be one of the most talked about this coming week.
Things to Notice
- What is Jim Kent up to?
- Will there be a relationship forming between Eph and Nora?
- Try to figure out what the title of the episode, "Gone Smooth", means.
I hope everyone enjoys the show tonight! If you have any questions for me, I would be glad to answer the best I can without spoiling anything for you or everyone else. I do get a lot of questions regarding characters, so please feel free. I look forward to discussing the episode with everyone after my Review this week.
