I think that in the midst of everything going on in Teen Wolf, we tend to lose track of where we are, who knows what, and the fact that characters like Lydia have zero idea about werewolves and other creatures. Teen Wolf has a tried-and-true episode pattern of setup, more setup, occasionally more setup, and then a massive payoff, and that payoff tends to make those setup episodes even better than they were at the time. I've been knowingly tough on the show's second season because I kinda need it to be better than the first, so the fact that "Venemous" is the best episode since the show's inception alleviates a lot of the worry that Jeff Davis is letting things spin out of control.
The first four episodes of Season 2 have been so expansive on everything—new characters, new villains, new alliances—and here we finally have an hour that centers all of that, really highlighting where we've been so far this season while paving the way for where we still have to go. The show is so good when it knows how to manage its characters, and even though "Venemous" has a major shortage of Argents (almost unreasonably so: it's as if they completely forgot about the fact that they're gunning for the Kanima), it seriously uses it's still-beefed roster as best as it possibly can: Isaac and Erica as Derek's in-school cronies couldn’t be going better as they target Lydia for killing (even Boyd gets in a good moment with Scott tonight), and Lydia's increased prominence and Jackson's big reveal all came without shortchanging Scott or Stiles or Allison.
We even gave Matt and Danny minor work with Jackson, and it all makes for an hour that makes high school as thrilling and tragic as weirdly aspirational as it always should be on television. Stiles gets in some jokes, Alison gets the last laugh, and Jackson finally gets all that deep dark power he's wanted all along, ironically so, since he has no idea he has it. I've said all season that I love where Jackson's character is going, and I'm pleasantly happy that despite all the talk about Lydia being the character to watch this year, Jackson is trumping every kid on this show as the most complex creature around. And yet and still, the Jackson/Lydia scene had a shocking emotional resonance; where the two passionately making up felt in part out of left field, everything about it was performed so well that it was hard to argue that you weren't in a room with two people who both despised and admired each other. I've never been too attached to Jackson and Lydia as a couple, but I do like the idea of these two drowning souls being able to relate to each other against all of the weirdness that's stricken their lives.
But specifically, "Venemous" is an episode that plays Gage Golightly, Crystal Reed, Holland Roden, and Colton Haynes to their strengths, four of the show's most versatile characters and best weapons in their arsenal. Each of them have a playfully coy side that directly contradicts the darkly delicious personas they bravely take on, and each of them—most notably Colton—are given scripting that brilliantly displays both of those dynamics. Tyler Posey has never been one of those weapons, but he steers the necessary moral ship against Derek with his You Can't Do That To Good People view of pretty much everything in life. The most interesting reveals to come now are the fact that—as long as the show sticks to its own rules—Jackson will have no idea that he's the Kanima, and nor will the rest of the Argents. Lydia won't have a clue about much of anything, but Matt is beginning to clue into Scott's shape-shifting abilities. More pieces on the board, more moves to make, more revelations to come.
SumOlogy: After my head stopped spinning, it was the best of the season so far.
Grade: B+
Leftovers
I can't say enough about how great I thought the entire classroom sequence was, even though Derek just outside standing there was stupid. Gage Golightly did more fantastic work this week than I can express in one recap.
Even though Jackson was the Kanima, don't forget that there was a lot going on with Lydia and Peter Hale tonight.
So why where Jackson and Danny benching in the dark? I mean, I get that Teen Wolf needs mood lighting, but really?
The Kanima's friend is clearly that douchey science teacher, but I love how even he knows that Erica is ridiculously hot.
Even though Lydia isn't the Kamina, there is still something very weird going on with her and Peter Hale, something I like very much. Even though a) the entire classroom apparently watched her write "Someone Help Me" at least 30 different times on the board and said absolutely nothing, and b) no one could figure out what it said until Stiles reversed it on his point, even though it was painfully obvious.
Apparently everyone literally knows that a Kanima can't be poisoned by its own venom. Which, what?
I loved Coach this week. But he also teaches math?
What's this obsession that both Jackson and Erica have for being everyone's type?
So wait, is this Danny/Matt thing actually gonna happen?
"Hey. Testicle left and right."
"I looked into the eyes of that thing and what I saw was pure evil. When I look into Lydia's eyes, I only see 50% evil."
"I was thinking I'd channel it into killing her. I'm not very good at writing."
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