'Crooked Steps' chronicled Van Helsing and Scarlett's search for the third elder.
The episode revealed some juicy details about the Van Helsing line as we find out that the third elder is Jacob Van Helsing, brother of the infamous Abraham Van Helsing. Basically the great uncle of Vanessa and Scarlett.
Jacob is played by Michael Eklund most recently seen as Bobo on Wynonna Earp. Eklund is so damn likeable as that creepy anti-hero as we had seen in his previous role and he really nailed the role of the Elder vamp in this episode.
The older Van Helsing reveals that, like the two sisters in present day, he and Abe fought the Dark One whereupon Abraham fell into a portal where he still lives to this day.
Jacob, meanwhile, was seduced by the dark side and turned into a vampire and the third elder.
The episode drew some interesting parallels to the sisters - two siblings fighting evil with only one, as we find out in this episode, destined to survive.
The episode also explained one of the more detrimental aspects of this show - Vanessa's anger - which had made her a hard character to empathize with. All of that anger led to the events of 'Crooked Steps' where we see Vanessa, just like Jacob, finally seduced by the dark side.
Poor Jacob though. They made it really easy to sympathize with him. I was hoping they'd turn him back into a human as he did seem to want to redeem himself. Instead he gets the exact opposite fate as Vanessa tears him into pieces finally letting all of her rage consume her.
Vanessa would even go on to murder that innocent man in the trailer where they stole the boat from as the fourth elder, presumably, looked on.
I love this turn to the dark side and I hope it is a story line that plays out over an extended period of time. The show has done a good job in making us not empathize with Vanessa, while Scarlett has become the perfect protagonist. It would be quite the twist if this is how the show continues to play out.
Although, it looks like Scarlett will be stranded on the island for quite some time - the perfect way to explain actress Missy Peregrym's absence as she shoots FBI.
'Crooked Steps' was a fabulous episode thanks in large part to the awesomeness of Michael Eklund, but more importantly, the deepening of the mythology.
The fact Abraham Van Helsing is still out there in some kind of other dimension was a juicy reveal and Vanessa's turn to the dark side was an unexpected, but welcome twist.
Van Helsing often feels like a different show from episode to episode.
Vanessa and Scarlett's search for the elders and their quest to defeat the Dark One has been so damn intriguing. Less intriguing has been the Denver story line, while the Sam and Mohammad bit has that same kind of tone of the past two seasons, which is not a good thing.
Axel, as well as, Ivory, SCab and the Sisterhood has been entertaining, but there nevertheless needs to be more time dedicated to Vanessa and Scarlett. Episodes like 'Crooked Steps' really stand out just because of how so interesting the mythology is.
9/10
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