A lot has happened since my last review including the revelation of Kirsten’s half sister, Ivy Brown. Now, when I first heard that Kirsten had a half sister my hope beyond hope was that Camille would be revealed as that half sister. Even though I knew there was no way that was ever going to happen I did spend a few moments really hoping for it. Alas the show did the smart thing and made someone else Kirsten’s half sister so Camille and Kirsten will just continue to have a relationship that is sister like in origin minus the extra drama of actually being related. It was nice to hear Kirsten tell Ivy that she feels like Camille and the other members of the team are like her family. From someone who is just learning to express and understand emotion that was a big statement for her.
Even after watching the entire episode I still sincerely have no idea what to make of Ivy. I spent most of the episode not trusting her and even after the help she gave Kirsten I still don’t really trust her. It can’t be a coincidence that Liam was murdered not long after Kirsten and Ivy parted paths. Besides we have no real definitive proof that Ivy is indeed who she claims to be. I think it was a bit premature for Kirsten to hand over any information regarding the program even though she was smart enough to leave out the more critical top secret bits of information. It could turn out that Ivy is above board and really just wants to have a relationship with her dad and now possibly her sister but I’m going to reserve trusting her until she’s actually earned that trust.
While I have a primal distrust of Ivy her portrayer, Sarah Davenport, was brilliant at capturing similarities between her character and Emma Istha’s Kirsten. Certain movements such as the hand under the chin and certain tones of voice definitely helped sell the blood connection between the characters. They have a lot in common yet are still very different people. If they turn out to not be siblings then props to Ivy for definitely making it easy to believe they are related. Should the series get picked up for a Season 3 (which I really hope it is) and should Ivy prove to be Kirsten’s actual half sister then I’d be supportive of Davenport joining the cast as a series regular. I think Istha and Davenport have a nice easy chemistry that allowed both actresses to play around with the uncertainties surrounding their characters first meeting. It would seem like this relationship has a lot of story potential especially with Stinger still in the wind and Ivy potentially knowing his whereabouts. I feel like this episode was a nice way to introduce Ivy because the whole episode was built around these two women getting to know each other and made it easier for the audience to get to know Ivy. I want to believe Ivy really is just misguided by Stinger and is actually a good person but this show has taught me to trust a character only when that trust has been fully earned. I look forward to seeing how this relationship further develops in the season finale. Ivy is as smart as her sister and as equally gifted with computers so should these sisters end up working together that would definitely put Stinger at a disadvantage. Though, for now, I think Stinger has Ivy blind to the truth and until she can see the truth Kirsten is telling her this sisterly relationship is going to have some struggles to overcome.
I’m glad that Camille’s spy work is out in the open now because it greatly helped fix her relationship with Linus. That’s very important given all that is now going on with his dad. He needs Camille more than ever and I’m glad to see his family still as enamored with her now as they were when they first met. No matter the relationship status of Camille and Linus his parents always embrace Camille as a part of their family. It’s a lovely relationship and given Camille’s tumultuous upbringing it is nice to see her get to be a part of a kind of loving family. If Theo is any indication of her family Linus’ family was a massive upgrade to the one she was born into.
I must take a minute to commend Ritesh Rajan for the reality he brought to the way Linus was feeling regarding his dad. He was doing his best to be strong for his family and Rajan showed the struggle Linus was going through. It’s a moment every adult child feels when their parent is in distress. Our parents spend our entire lives loving us and taking care of us and to most people their parents are superheroes who can’t get sick or hurt. Then when they do and the reality that parents are human and susceptible to sickness and pain sets in it can be a hard thing to accept. Rajan brought reality to this very real situation and he should be commended for the gut wrenching and powerful performance he gave. I must also give major respect to Allison Scagliotti for supporting Rajan’s performance while also delivering her own emotionally powerful performance. Linus’ parents may not be Camille’s parents but that doesn’t mean she can’t love and support them as if they were. I love that Camille knew what Linus’ dad needed and knew that Linus needed her to be there for him. Even if there was nothing she could do she was able to be a rock during a very hard time and I hope that helps solidify these two back together.
Things with Cameron and Nina are on the outs which I guess is okay by me because while I really like Nina I think the story has played to a point where Cameron and Kirsten can start to find their way back to each other. It will be sad because I know the destruction of this relationship means Nina will likely never be seen again, but if it means Kirsten and Cameron reunite I guess it is a worthy sacrifice. I would love for the show to find a way to keep Nina around because I love the energy her portrayer brings to the show. Though, I know the reality is once Nina and Cameron break up that will be the last of Nina. This was a fun relationship for Cameron to have while Kirsten figured her stuff out, but as Nina pointed out she’s just as awesome a person as Kirsten is and deserves to be treated in the same way he treats Kirsten. In Nina’s defense Cameron was kind of using her as a surrogate to what he couldn’t have with Kirsten and the way he was treating her wasn’t fair. I must admit that I will miss the constant references to comic books because the
Jessica Jones reference in this episode was spot on. That is definitely something Cameron could never have with Kirsten, but it’s really the only thing he could have with Nina that he can’t have with Kirsten which isn’t much of a reason to stay together. It’s in the best interest of them both to move on from their budding relationship so that Nina can find someone who loves her for her and Cameron can pursue the woman he has been in love with since the moment he met her.
This was a very unique episode for the series as a fair majority of it was told from Kirsten’s point of view as she gave Ivy the breakdown on the program and everyone she knows. Once it was apparent how this episode was going to be portrayed I was a little hesitant to believe it could work for the whole episode, but it worked brilliantly. The episode was masterfully crafted in a way that every story point flowed perfectly together. I started off skeptical and ended up very impressed by the storytelling choices made to provide optimum character and story development.
With only one episode left in the season the show still has a lot of ground to cover. We still need to know more about Stinger and figure out who murdered Liam. The why is quite obvious given that everyone who knows too much and is about to talk to Kirsten usually ends up as Liam did. I doubt any fan of the show will greatly miss him given what he's put Kirsten and Camille through but it would have been nice for him to deliver some tidbit of information before meeting his end. What that does mean is it’s almost certain he’ll be the big season finale stitch and I’m sure he has plenty of information to offer post mortem. Unfortunately the show doesn’t have the best ratings right now and its future is anything but certain so I hope we don’t get left on a major cliffhanger like last season but I suspect we will. I hope the network will realize how special this show is and at least give it another season to tie up the storylines and give fans a much deserved proper ending. I don’t want the series to end anytime soon, but it’s hard to not see the ending coming when you review the ratings. It’s sad too because this is a unique show with great storylines and incredible character development with a standout cast and insanely brilliant writers.
During the season finale be sure to take to social media and make it known that fans want #StitchersSeason3! Ratings are a big part of the long term fate of shows but vocal fans can sometimes help make a difference.
Tune in to Freeform on
Tuesday, May 24th at 10/9C for the season finale!
Hit the comments with your thoughts regarding this episode. I didn’t have time to go back and review the two episodes I missed so please feel free to discuss those episodes in the comments section as well.
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.
