Mysteries deepened and relationships were tested in this episode. Things are getting very interesting as the Stinger mystery grows and the identity of the boy in the red cap was finally revealed. So many things took unexpected turns this week as each character was forced to deal with unexpected bumps in the road. Camille and Cameron were both put in awkward positions regarding their relationships with Camille maybe getting a little too close to her target and Cameron being torn between two women he deeply cares about. Fisher got bested in the field only to find a kindred spirit in Mei Ling. A lot happened in this episode culminating in another piece to the puzzle being delivered to Kirsten in the final seconds.
Kirsten’s obsession has been obvious since the start of the season, but the full extent was revealed as both Cameron and Camille made points to discuss it with her. I loved the scene with Camille and Kirsten at the house because it was such an innocent scene between friends. Allison Scagliotti and Emma Istha always bring a light and fun quality to their scenes. I love to see two friends who are supportive of each other despite a television landscape that loves to pit female characters against each other. Camille worries about Kirsten, more than she wants people to realize, and it showed in this scene. Even though she hides her worry behind sarcastic jabs, which Scagliotti delivers with perfect timing and sideways remarks the worry for her friend is still very real. I do wonder why she has obviously kept Kirsten’s obsessive Striker wall to herself. Not even Cameron knew about it and of everyone on the team he’s the one I would think she’d tell for sure that Kirsten had turned her wall into a giant case board.
Even Nina noticed Kirsten’s obsession but her fascination was much more curiosity than anything else. I really enjoyed that Nina wasn’t shocked by the wall but was instead impressed by just how smart Kirsten is. I was also surprised by how well that dinner went between all of them especially since I expected things to be way more awkward than they were. Don’t get me wrong, things were a tad bit awkward and uncomfortable for Cameron, but they all handled the situation with a lot of grace and respect to one another. When Kirsten asked Cameron if Nina makes him happy she seemed genuinely happy to find out she did. She knows she’s got too much going on in her life to be able to give him what he needs and I think it was a great story choice to allow Kirsten to be happy for him instead of jealous and bitchy towards Nina. I also love that Nina didn’t really seem jealous of Kirsten, in fact she seemed a bit awe struck by her given all Cameron had told her about Kirsten.
I know everyone wants Cameron with Kirsten, I’m one of those people, but I really like Nina. She’s good for Cameron and much like him I appreciate her love of sci-fi and comic books. He can connect with her in a way he can’t with Kirsten at the moment and there is something wonderful about the way Nina makes Cameron smile. It’s not the same smile he gives Kirsten, but it’s still nice to see him happy. The show has made it very hard to not like Nina and Cameron together and it helps that Kyle Harris and Jasmin Savoy Brown have a really easy and fun chemistry. The scenes where they are geeking out over comics and television shows make me smile every time for how innocent the scenes are. However, I do believe this is the calm before the storm given the way the Striker mystery was ramped up this week. I suspect upcoming events will pose a challenge for Cameron’s relationship especially as the need to keep secrets will surely grow. Nina is an understanding woman, but at some point his need to keep secrets will cause trouble. His inability to share with her anything regarding his work will inevitably be the downfall of this relationship. When that does happen it will be sad but I hope the timing will work out for Cameron and Kirsten to actually give a relationship a try. Though I would really like for the show to find some way to keep Nina around because I really like the energy Brown brings to the show as Nina.
While I’m talking about Cameron I have to address the topic of Young Cameron being the boy in the red hat causing the anomalies in recent stitches. Now that we have the big reveal I’m anxious to find out who was behind his creation. It has to be someone who knows Kirsten encountered him during her trip into Cameron’s mind and that’s a very small select group. Who is trying to warn Kirsten and what about? Surely it isn’t Cameron himself and I don’t think it’s Linus so of the team capable of a hack like that it more or less leaves just Camille as a prime suspect if it’s an inside job. The question then would be why couldn’t she just come out and tell Kirsten whatever message it is Young Cameron was designed to deliver? If I’m wrong, and I probably am, then whoever it is has gone to some great lengths to reach Kirsten in a secretive way and I suspect the reveal will be big and game changing.
And while things are getting progressively more complicated for Kirsten life isn’t much easier on Camille right now. She has to forge this faux relationship with Liam in order to protect her best friend all while risking not only that friendship but her relationship with Linus in the process. The problem is it seems like Camille may be allowing herself to get a tad too close to Liam and I hope that doesn’t blow up in her face or cause major trouble for the team. Going into this mission she understood the risks but she did it because of the potential risk Liam still could pose to Kirsten unfortunately I don't think she took into account the emotional toll it would cause to her and those around her. I wonder how long she can maintain her work pertaining to Liam before both Kirsten and Linus find out about him. It may not matter much regarding Linus because I think after her deception in this episode their relationship may be heading towards another painful breakup which is unfortunate because I really like this couple. I think at some point Maggie will have to intervene and let some of the others in regarding Camille's work but by that point the damage will already be done for Camille's relationships with her friends and Linus. Both of Camille’s relationships have survived deceit and lies before and I believe they could recover in time but it would certainly be a lonely time for Camille. I hope she doesn't get herself into trouble with Liam because there is absolutely nothing I like or trust about the man and the fact she met him without even Maggie knowing about it isn't a good sign.
Fisher finally got a fun storyline with Mei Ling and there was definitely some flirting going on. I absolutely loved the scene where she bested him and managed to handcuff him. I bet Fisher won’t be living down that encounter anytime soon. It was nice to see Fisher get a storyline with someone outside of the team and to have that story be given real development that helped progress what we know about him. I really liked Fisher and Mei Ling working together and wouldn’t be opposed to her popping in again someday. This was a great episode for Damon Dayoub and it seems like he really had fun doing it. I hope that as the season progresses Fisher gets more moments to shine like this episode because Dayoub is a really diverse actor who is fun to watch. I love the core team but I am hoping to see Fisher start to get a bit more screen time.
I enjoyed the case of the week because of how it allowed Fisher the opportunity to break out from his normal place in the program and be a really active player in the case. Surprisingly the case of the week didn’t play as heavily into the overall story arc as I suspected it would. I enjoyed that it was a bit of a different case and it was fun to watch it unfold. I love that while this show is billed as a procedural that isn’t always the main focus of the series. The characters drive the narrative and not the cases which makes
Stitchers a special kind of procedural. I am curious about that package that Young Cameron’s mystery creator left for Kirsten and what it means. Hopefully we’ll start to get some definitive answers in the next couple of episodes because I’m anxious to find out who is covertly trying to guide Kirsten and what this person is guiding her towards. This was a great episode that did a lot to progress the story and nicely built on all the character relationships for better or worse. It is great to watch a show that doesn't have any filler episodes and uses every moment of screen time to develop the story.
I will be away on vacation and won’t be able to review the next two episodes. I’ll try to do a couple catch up mini reviews when I get back but if time gets crunched I may just have to skip reviews on them all together and move on to reviewing the May 17th episode. I will be back to enjoy this show with all of you in a few weeks. Be sure to keep the Stitchers conversations going strong because we need to draw as much attention to this amazing show as possible to help ensure it gets a much deserved Season 3!
Tune in to the next episode on
Tuesday, May 3rd on Freeform at 10/9C.
Hit the comments with your thoughts about the episode.
About the Author - Aimee Hicks
Aimee works for a newspaper in North Carolina and has a BA in Broadcasting and Cinema. She has been a TV lover since before she really understood what TV was. She has a long list of shows that she loves to watch and can be found on twitter (@ahicks83) live tweeting about each new episode whenever she can. If the show is sci-fi, fantasy, comic book based, drama, or action the odds are good she watches it or has at least watched a few episodes of it. She also has a love for comedies 2 Broke Girls and Mom. She was the original creator and co-founder of LOST Video Island (lostvideo.net) which is still operating under the management of the very capable and skilled group she turned it over to.
You can email her at aimee@spoilertv.com.
