The Strain - The Third Rail - Review: "Mortui Viventes"

"I don't care who's right or wrong
I don't try to understand
Let the devil take tomorrow
Lord tonight I need a friend
Yesterday is dead and gone
And tomorrow's out of sight
And it's sad to be alone"
- "Help Me Make It Through The Night/Everything I Own/Let Your Yeah Be Yeah" - Ken Boothe/Jimmy Cliff/Desmond Dekker/John Holt/The Pioneers

Two weeks ago, The Strain aired its tenth episode of the season with 'Loved Ones'. In this hour, we learned what happened to Eph's ex-wife and Zach's mom, Kelly, through well-placed flashbacks. The episode was probably my least favorite of the season, but still was entertaining. The scene with Kelly standing in front of The Master was a powerful one as, I'm sure, it will play into future episodes now that he can control her. She will be after Zach, her Dear One, which should make for an interesting arc for Season Two. I'm sure they will touch on this for the final episodes this season, however.

This past Sunday aired episode number eleven of the season, 'The Third Rail'. It was a much more energizing and intense episode and, to be honest, I felt The Strain needed an hour like this. 'The Third Rail' was full of great scenes with The Master finally confronting our gang of heroes and the one with Eph in his grip was incredible. I also loved the scene with Setrakian destroying The Master's coffin.

The episode had some great effects and is easily one of my favorite episodes of the season. After a few lackluster hours of The Strain the past few weeks, I was glad to see an episode like 'The Third Rail'. Any episode where we get a full view of The Master coupled with some interesting dialogue form him is a definite bonus. Eph looked terrified, naturally, to be in The Master's grip and it was gratifying to see Fet come to his rescue. I was hoping for something to happen, sooner rather than later, where Eph and Fet could become closer as friends. The way Eph has been depicted thus far, as an obdurate and arrogant scientist, is not very appealing. If his character is to be the main focus of the show, along with Setrakian, he needs to be more likable and becoming friends with Fet, a fan favorite, would be a great start.

Although I don't care for promos much, if at all, I did see the one for tonight's episode, Last Rites, and it looks to be a great hour for The Strain. There are only two episodes remaining this season and, overall, it has been a great first chapter for this series. 'The Third Rail' ended with our group of four peering over an ocean of strigoi and unnoticed. The Master has escaped their clutches, yet again, and Setrakian has destroyed his sleeping chamber. They do have The Master on the run and it appears he is close by, for now. However, the 'light-bomb' that Fet activated barely did anything to his physical body, so there is that question we need an answer to. Is The Master so powerful and strong, due to his age or any litany of circumstances, that it will take much more to eradicate and destroy him than the average strigoi? Hopefully we will get answers to this question and much more in tonight's episode.


Thoughts and Discussion

- Did you notice...Zach is flipping through a book in one scene that references "Mortui Viventes" - The Living Dead in Latin. It also references John Polidori. John William Polidori (7 September 1795 – 24 August 1821) was an English writer and physician. He is known for his associations with the Romantic movement and credited by some as the creator of the vampire genre of fantasy fiction. His most successful work was the 1819 short story, The Vampyre, the first published modern vampire story. Although originally and erroneously accredited to Lord Byron, both Byron and Polidori affirmed that the story is Polidori's. - Wikipedia

- I am still not fully sold on the look of The Master especially after seeing him up close in the latest episode and speaking. The rings still bother me and I couldn't help but notice the Dracula-like collar and cape. He looked like a demonic fish. Lol, I'm just venting...maybe everyone could express their thoughts on this subject in the comments section. I would love to know what everyone thinks of The Master's look.

- I loved the scene where Gus breaks down at the sight of his turned mother. It was very powerful and the actor did a great job in my opinion. I was glad to see what could be the beginning of him joining our main group of heroes when he met and spoke to Zach. Hopefully this will happen soon.

I apologize for the late Review everyone. For the final two Episodes I will get them out in a more timely manner as I love this show and equally love reading all of your thoughts and comments about the episodes and the series as a whole. Please comment below so we can discuss the episode a little more. Have a great weekend everyone!

About the Author - Geo N

My name is George and I am from Detroit, MI. My favorite shows are The Blacklist, Hell On Wheels, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, LOST, The Leftovers, The Strain, Sons Of Anarchy, Sleepy Hollow and countless other shows. When I'm not watching tons of TV, I enjoy reading, playing hockey, comic books, weightlifting, and writing. Thanks for checking out my post.

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