The second week of a new show is probably one of the most important weeks of its air-life. The pilot episode gives you the premise and does whatever it can to hook you in, but the second episode (or third in this case) resembles, more or less, the rest of the season and whoever sticks around after this will probably stay with it for most of the season/series. All in all, I think it went far and beyond in the hopes of keeping me hooked. And not just because I have to continue watching it for the sake of these recaps, but because I actually am in love with this show.

1960
Prisoner #AZ2046: Ernest Kit is sent to Alcatraz after being convicted in 1958 of three accounts of murder, all children. He would kidnap them on a Friday, kill them, and then return the bodies to their beds on Sunday. As is the way with prison hierarchies, Ernest was lowest on the totem pole (Robbers - Murderers - Rapists -- Child Killers), resulting in intense beatings from the other inmates. After having him treated at the prison hospital, the Warden decides that Ernest can no longer associate with any of the other inmates due to the fact that they'd probably kill him sooner or later.

Ernest's father decides to visit him and interrogate him on the circumstances surrounding his brother's death that took place when he was 11. He accuses Ernest of killing him out of jealousy because his mother loved his brother more. He hypotheses that because his mother didn't want a dark cloud always covering their family, she named cause of death scarlet fever. He asks again, "Son, did you kill your brother?" to which Ernest nonchalantly responds, "It was scarlet fever, just like Momma said." His father scorns him, declaring that he can die happy knowing that Ernest will be rotting away in Alcatraz.

Meanwhile, the Warden decides the perfect place to put Ernest: in a windowless, lightless cell. In the time of four lit matches, the Warden informs Ernest that this is his punishment because the Warden himself is a father of two, making Ernest's crimes even that much more repulsive to him. And during one of the creepiest monologues of the episode, Ernest confesses that he actually did kill his brother and he liked it while going into small, sickening detail. The Warden then leaves him to sit and wallow in this own perverted thoughts. That is...until he reappears decades later.

2012
A then-unidentified Ernest Kit sneaks into an unexpecting child's room and snatches him from his bed, only leaving behind a flower (a chrysanthemum to be exact). Doc (Jorge Garcia) hears this over his police scanner and immediately recognizes the pattern and goes straight to Rebecca (Sarah Jones) and Emerson (Sam Neill).

Ernest and the kid (who's name is Dylan for future reference) make their way to a lake to go fishing. It's previously known that Ernest likes to take the kids to do what they like to do. We learn later that this is false, but let's go along with it for now. Ernest tells Dylan to get in the water, and they both jump overboard. Dylan is told to dunk Ernest and keep him underwater for as long as he can. I can't count how many times this show has already made me tilt my head slightly and go "Whaa--?" Ernest comes back up and then says, "Your turn." God, can this guy get any creepier? Answer: Yes.

While talking to Dylan's mother, Rebecca and Doc discover that Dylan likes to be indoors and doesn't enjoy fishing or swimming or any of that outdoorsy nonsense (I'm with ya, Dylan). This causes Doc to reconsider their earlier thoughts and reveal that Ernest is actually doing things that he (actually, his brother, but we don't know that yet!) likes to do.

Meanwhile, Emerson calls off the Amber Alert on Dylan because since Emerson's face has recently been plastered on TV screens via news stations, someone is bound to recognize Ernest who is supposed to be kind of really old now. This causes a tiff between him and Rebecca and Doc, because if they plan on catching Ernest when he returns Dylan, Dylan is already going to be dead. Hence, a tiff.

Doc goes off of a "cherry pie" theory that I couldn't really figure out how he came to, but it appeared to fan out well. While indulging in his own slice at a diner, Doc comes in contact with Dylan and Ernest and attempts to stop them, failing rather harshly, even with the aid of Rebecca. This is the one scene in the episode that threw me off. I know you're supposed to do what the mad man says in order to protect the safety of the hostage, but handcuffing yourself to a railing? Really? (Off topic: but I actually had to Google "what do police carry?" because I blanked on the name. Don't judge. I'm just being honest.) She could have easily shot Ernest in the leg instead of throwing her gun (and cell phone, yikes) meters away.

After visiting Ernest's cell and finding boxes of expensive matches, Doc unearths checks that were made out to Ernest from C&C Cement Company, Ernest's previous place of employment. And as it turns out, C&C built bomb shelters, and there's only one nearby! I loved how simple this was. It was like, Bam! Bam! Bam! Found you.

While being kept in the bomb shelter, Dylan manages to be extra smart for an 11 year old and use his shoe as a way to break the only light source in the room. And as we know, Ernest hates the dark. Dylan hastily makes his way up the ladder and out into the woods, running full speed ahead. Ernest catches up to him, but he's not quick enough as Rebecca already has her gun aimed. She fires once, hitting Ernest directly in the head. 100 points.

In an odd turn of events, it becomes known that Doc was also kidnapped when he was 11, but he managed to get away as well. I don't quite understand the point of including this in Doc's bio. I appreciate the gesture, but it seemed a little gimmicky for the episode. Like, what're the chances? Maybe they'll go deeper with it and it'll tie in better rather than just being like, "Oh, yeah, this happened to me too."

The ending was ambiguous, as I like it. The body of Ernest Kit is brought to the Alcatraz coroner (?), and Emerson asks for the coroner's help with something that is "for a friend." So, I suppose we'll just have to wait and see.

SumOlogy: More procedural than serial, but effective nonetheless. It's the closest thing to come to Lost so far in the past two years, so that fills some of the void left in my heart.

Grade: 8/10

Leftovers:

I was a little sad that they didn't expand at all on last week's cliffhanger. I just want Parminger Nagra on my screen.

I'm pleasantly surprised at Jorge Garcia being able to run this show instead of being comic relief a la Lost's Hurley.

"Arrested development is what happens when we are traumatized as children." Hey, that's a name of another great show! 

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