“That’s right, you gave it up, now you’re no longer a virgin!” – Stu Macher, “Scream”
For most TV show teenagers, having a sex tape of their first time “Exposed” to the entire school would be about the worst thing that could happen to them. But on “Scream,” that’s the least of poor Emma’s problems.
Like Audrey before her (who’s empathetic, but also can’t help noting the “cosmic justice at play”), Emma faces the stares and whispers of the student body. She’s embarrassed, but manages to hold her head high, mostly upset that she let the killer trick her into releasing the video. And indeed, nuGhostface is reveling in her humiliation, with taunting phone calls (there’s a classic “Scream” moment where Emma scans the crowd of classmates on their cells when the call comes in), a picture message in her locker likening her to her “whore of a mother,” and a mass text containing a mocking meme.
But things really get bad when the sex tape causes a guilty Brooke to make a confession. It turns out that Emma’s romance with Will started because of a “Cruel Intentions”-style bet between Will and Nina that he could get her to sleep with him inside of a month. Finding out that her relationship and her friendships were built on lies – just like nuGhostface said – devastates Emma. As an aside, I thought Carlson Young added some lightheartedness to this serious scene, with jittery Brooke sliding a hot cup of coffee away from Emma before speaking and peeking through her hair after inviting Emma to hit her.
One of the things I really like about the character of Emma is that while she’s the “good girl” in this horror story, she’s not a “pristine Pollyanna type” like Nina thought. She drinks and has sex like the other teens, she has a sense of humor, and, while she’s scared, she’s also strong and has a spine. So when Emma confronts Will, she’s not all weepy. She slaps the crap out of him, sarcastically thanks him for giving her permission to be pissed, and then dumps him with a scathing remark (“We didn’t meet-cute, we met-sick/twisted”). And later, she doesn’t hesitate to make out with Kieran in Will’s line of sight just to spite him.
About Kieran. Of the two pairings for Emma, I vastly prefer this one (I find Will overall to be a bit of a drip). Willa Fitzgerald and Amadeus Serafini definitely have chemistry and the kiss – as well as the hookup that ends the episode – were pretty hot. But everything Kieran says and does in this episode has an edge of suspiciousness to it, right? His vague explanation for his absence, “attacking” her outside the school’s self-defense class (a nice touch, by the way), luring her out into the dark woods. Is it all a red herring or should we seriously consider him a suspect? I’d also keep an eye on that gun; guns always seemed to show up in the third act of the “Scream” movies.
Speaking of people with murky motives, Piper is also ringing that bell with me. She keeps conveniently popping into situations where she can act the big sister to Emma, providing comfort and advice, sneaking her a shot of bourbon. Even her offered origin story – her father was murdered and the killer never found, inspiring Piper’s career in true crime journalism – seems calculated to manipulate and strengthen their bond. But she’s also trying to plant ideas in Emma’s head, here suggesting that Audrey might not be trustworthy. So is she being sincere? Is she just trying to scoop the story and thinks Emma is the key? Or does she have a more sinister agenda?
Meanwhile, while Emma wants to leave it to the police from now on, Audrey and Noah are still investigating what they found in the killer’s lair. Noah is able to trace the sex tape from Nina’s computer back to malware that allows the user to hack into webcams, security systems, and phones. It’s linked to the school’s server, specifically the language arts homework. Ahhh. Mr. Branson. Later, when they snoop on his laptop, they learn that Tyler and Riley also had access, giving Mr. Branson a motive for murdering all three. And it would explain his choosing to teach “The Scarlet Letter” on the day of Emma’s public shaming.
Jake spends the hour playing nuGhostface games of his own. With Will as his reluctant partner, they proceed with their plot to blackmail Mayor Maddox, donning white skeleton masks to hide their identities. But when Will balks at Jake’s use of violence (he bashes the mayor’s nose and then threatens him with a blade) and bails on him, Jake decides he wants retribution. He goes to Brooke and gives her the video, claiming that Will was the one trying to blackmail her dad. The footage, to Brooke’s horror, shows the mayor seemingly disposing of a corpse. Did he kill her MIA mom? Mayor Maddox also overhears Jake blaming Will. Could he use the masked murders as a cover to rid himself of his blackmailer?
Finally, Sheriff Hudson is dismayed, for personal and professional reasons, when the governor sends in the state police to take over the case. Now in charge is Detective Lorraine Brock (Sophina Brown, "Ravenswood”), who once worked with “Hud.” He confesses to Maggie that she “brought out the best and the worst" in him, alluding to an affair and a problem with pills, which might explain his estrangement from Kieran. Her presence does push Sheriff Hudson to plant one on a receptive Maggie so there’s that.
As for the competition, Detective Brock gets nothing from Emma (nuGhostface silences her by creepily and effectively using Snapchat to show her how close he can get to her and her mom). Her tech guy, however, discovers something on Nina’s computer, but we won’t find out what until next week.
I’ve “Exposed” my thoughts on this week’s “Scream,” won’t you do the same in the comments section?
