And lo, half the fandom didst raise their hands and say: "Called it."

[the_deep_magic]

H'oookay, I'm not sure I got all of this right, so feel free to correct me if I misinterpreted something.

• Items of "Continuity": there's a hierarchy within the alpha pack (duh); the twins used to be omegas of a brutal pack, but were werewolf-tutored by Deucalion and killed their whole pack; gay twin is good, straight twin is bad (no, I can't remember which is which); the emissaries of all the alphas' former packs are supposedly dead, with the exception of Morrell; Cora isn't healing for some reason; Lydia is a banshee, because why not?


• This gets its own bullet point: Jennifer is the Darach.  Ten years ago a woman was "slashed up and left for dead" by werewolves in the woods in Beacon Hills, but seems to have lived, in part due to the sacrifice of hundreds of birds.  Either she was able to regenerate a new body (the "Jane Doe" in the hospital file -- which, how did they get a photo if they didn't know who she was? -- shows an older woman, plus the horrible Darach makeup) or Jennifer is that woman's daughter (which would make more sense, but wouldn't explain the horrible Darach makeup).  [ETA: Never mind, I just remembered her whole "faking death" bit; it's the same woman.] It's implied (I think) that she was an emissary for one of the alpha's packs.  My bet is on Deucalion's original pack, because Morrell is only emissary for the alpha pack.  It's also implied that the Darach absorbs the traits of the groups of people she kills.  I don't know how "virgins" fits in, unless that's what allowed her to regenerate a new body or get her youth back, but Jennifer shows up before the virgins are killed.  I assume her endgame is to become powerful enough to get revenge on the alpha pack.


• First thought at the beginning of the episode: finally, someone is patrolling BHHS!  But, no, she answered a 911 call (alone, because that's a good idea after the many, many deaths that have taken place at the school) from the Darach.


• Second thought: "Wow, Ms. Blake recovered quickly."  Well, yeah.  Also, did that look she gave Stiles seem disturbingly flirty?


• Okay, I know we've never gotten much of Morrell's personality -- she's supposed to be all ~mysterious~ and shit -- but why the sudden hostility toward Scott?  Why not, I don't know, help him if Deucalion is ten steps ahead?  More withheld knowledge for the sake of keeping the plot going.  Sigh...


• Why would Deucalion want a "true alpha" in his pack?  Is this a "gotta catch 'em all" thing?  Wouldn't a "true alpha" threaten Deucalion's leadership?  And why's he dicking around with Derek?  Did I miss something?


• I thought Isaac's response to Allison's question about the blood was interesting: "I don't know; I'm not that good at this yet."  That's something that gets glossed over both in canon (after the first few episodes of season one) and fanfic, that there's a learning curve for bitten wolves not just for control over the shift, but for the ability to use their new senses.


• The family stuff was the best part of this episode.  The Sheriff trying to keep everyone straight and Stiles color-coding the chess pieces was fantastic, and their argument, while painful to watch, felt real.  (A lot of the hostility on the show -- like the earlier scene with Morrell -- seems forced just to crank up the drama.)  I hope there's more to the "Mom would've believed me" line and not just Stiles taking a cheap shot (though I can understand why he would, given that his father wasn't listening to him).  This is one of the few relationships on the show that comes across as both dynamic and continuous from the first episode -- this is, sadly, the payoff of Stiles lying to his father so often.


• And it was really good to see some actual affection between Derek and Cora, though it seemed to be at least partially an excuse to have Derek away from the school.  Still, we finally get to see a little bit of the Derek that fandom assumes is there, the part that cares about family above all else.  And really, I'm glad he wasn't at the school to see his girlfriend go murder-y, because we all know he's in for a world of hurt soon.  Y'know, even more hurt.


• I'm beginning to think that Derek is a stand-in for somebody in Jeff Davis' life, somebody that fucked him over and now he wants to torture as much as possible.  I would rather believe that than just have it be lazy writing and cheap drama.  But, well...


• Did I mention the Darach makeup was fucking horrible?  She looked like Flukeman.  I'm not gonna link to a picture if you don't already know who that is, but Google at your own risk.

So THAT happened.  For the first time this season (the first time at all, really, since I watched the first two seasons all at once), I really want the next episode to be on already!

Comments

[creampuffsteph.livejournal.com]

Oh man, let me tell you. When the officer on call just told the students to leave because there was a 911 call I kind of lost it. No. She wouldn't let them off on their own in a potentially hostile environment wtffff.
But the "gotta catch em all" part? Hahahaha
The sheriff and stiles continue to be my favorite parts of this show. I really need more o their family backstory. Though I'm sure I want get it. Since it seems Jeff doesn't care about suh silly things like character development and shit. I mean, think of the potential with Boyd after motel California? Then he just died and we never got more. Or! Missing out on important scenes between derek and Cora. We never got to see any heart felt conversations as they got to know one another again. They're barely ever seen together. Now it's mostly stiles with Cora. Which...hmmm
And while I think we all called the darach thing, I really want there to be an awesome twist. Like she really does like/love derek. Or Derek's known all along and is using her to get rid of the alpha pack. Wouldn't that be great? His only rule is no sexing with her ugly face on. It's a deal breaker.

[verizonhorizon.livejournal.com]

Re: Derek/Jennifer - have you seen those funny pics of her on the set in that stupid mask, esp playing around with tyler? heheheh.

[creampuffsteph.livejournal.com]

yes! they are at once both hilarious and frightening.

[the-deep-magic.livejournal.com]

There have been people talking about a Lydia/Stiles kiss... which I would have been all for before this season. Now it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense. But I would be okay with some Stiles and Cora smoochin', and Derek getting all angry about it and being totally in denial about why.

[verizonhorizon.livejournal.com]

I'd watch that so hard.

[creampuffsteph.livejournal.com]

yes but to the kiss i thought i heard someone from the show say it's more like a friend/comfort type kiss rather than the start of something between the two.
i am one hundred percent okay with stiles and cora (even if the endgame isn't sterek). just. yes. i approve!

[rhodynne.livejournal.com]

*raises hand* Called It!

~I liked Lydia finally just...accepting there's something going on with herself and leaning into it. All those moments ~at the beginning, with Jennifer (that's right, I said it) and then with Scott~ were great because she's just done with messing around. Now if we get to see her decide to be the best damn Banshee in the continuous United States, I'll be happy.
...except, what I know about banshees tells me they don't work this way. I guess I'll just Wikipedia like Jeff does and see what comes up.

~Yes, Jennifer. Questions...why did she organize a festival to honor all the people she killed? just for expediency? why did she make the orchestra/chorus into her coven? chanting doesn't work without intent. did she heal Derek? does she actually love Derek?is Stiles the embodiment of all the sacrifices? if the birds sacrificed themselves for her the first time, presumably so she could heal, why did they the second time? why is she so strong?
How long does Jeff have to live if he kills off Sheriff?

~Speaking of, NICE with him and Melissa...except absolutely NO institution of any kind would have closed case records from 10 years ago.

~Disturbingly flirty look to both Scott and Stiles. Nice reference to the whole situation with "see the whole board".
Also, NO ONE would teach in those heels.

~Dammit, Morrell, you freak show. Be helpful or be quiet.

~Allison, Isaac, and Papa Argent. Well...I like the Allison/Isaac thing, I hope they do something with it, but I also don't want Scott and Isaac to suffer, so I guess I don't know where I want it to go. hmmm...
I would like to see something in Allison from having been so sure Papa was the Darach. Crystal can handle the nuance and Jeff seems to be willing to give her those moments.
A Laurel, and Hearty Handshake to J.R.'s moment with the guns. It's not politically correct, but I feel things when nice men to manly things with phallic objects.
So Shoot me. :-D

~"Oh my God she's a Hale" followed in the very next breath with "I better walk her home" was super cute. :-)
But the Cora/Vengeance for Boyd and Cora/Hospital!Derek is a bit too little too late for me. Although I'm willing to hear Jeff out if he wants to make it up to me.

~I deeply appreciated the softer Derek moments. Even knowing its all going to get worse before it gets better, I liked to see them.

~Ethan is clearly heading for a break with his home team. Notice that Aiden said "Kali" killed Boyd and Ethan said "we" killed Boyd,
his conscience is getting to him.
And, Aiden dear, there are some immutable facts about Beacon Hills you don't seem to be embracing...

1. Derek can't have nice things.

2. EVERYBODY likes Danny!

that naturally includes your brother. Get over it.

Good to find out that they both became alphas because they were Voltron when they killed theirs. One question answered. 400 to go.

~Loved the Stillinski Men moments. I did expect Sheriff to wonder aloud if Stiles brought Cora over to tell him she was pregnant, but that would have been too light for Jeff. :-)
"Mom would have believed me" was heartbreaking, I'll have a tough time if they throw it away, especially since Sheriff clearly does come to, well, trust if not believe, in the end.


Current tumblr theory I love:
Peter, as we now know, knows what a True Alpha is. He said in Visionary that Derek was "a lot like Scott" and he instigated Derek's ultimate murder of Paige...because DEREK could have been a True Alpha? :-D

[the-deep-magic.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the banshee thing feels kind of like a cop out, because while it does explain the screaming and finding of dead bodies (this season), it doesn't explain why she was able to be possessed by Peter and bring him back. So... did she just suddenly become a banshee? I mean, it's nice to finally have an explanation, but it feels pretty tacked-on.

Re: Jennifer questions: she probably organized the concert as a distraction to kill her third philosopher (maybe she orchestrated [HA!] the snapping piano wire or maybe she had planned to pull another teacher away but decided on Lydia when she figured out the history teacher's disappearance). I don't know what the deal with the orchestra and the chanting was. I don't think she directly healed Derek because she hadn't killed the healers yet, but she could have indirectly helped through the power of ~belief~ or whatever. I think the birds were completely gratuitous so the Sheriff would be able to make the connection. She's strong because of the warriors, I think. And Jeff would MAYBE make it 24 hours if he offed the Sheriff. Which he won't, because being white and male makes you pretty much safe on this show, with the exception of poor, poor (t)Ennis.

Also, NO ONE would teach in those heels.

She DOES have the power of healing now, so blisters and plantar fasciitis are no longer a problem.

Dammit, Morrell, you freak show. Be helpful or be quiet.

This made me laugh a lot harder than it probably should have.

It's not politically correct, but I feel things when nice men to manly things with phallic objects.

Nah, you're not the only one. ;o) Except I kept thinking, "Have you ever fired two guns whilst jumping through the air? Have you ever fired one gun whilst jumping through the air?"

Yeah, the too-late, squeezed-in character development was a bit shoddy, but at least it was THERE. And soft, squishy Derek requires ALL THE CUDDLES.

Somebody pointed out in a fix-it fic that "Mom would have believed me" is the last thing Stiles said to his dad. Excuse me while I go smash my hand in this waffle iron.

And I need to to back and rewatch all that "true alpha" crap, because apparently I kind of zoned out.

[rhodynne.livejournal.com]

This made me laugh a lot harder than it probably should have.

I'm glad it gave you a laugh, its nearly a direct quote from my brain from about halfway through that scene. :-)

Somebody pointed out in a fix-it fic that "Mom would have believed me" is the last thing Stiles said to his dad. Excuse me while I go smash my hand in this waffle iron.

I would like a link to that fic...I haven't used my waffle iron in a while.

[the-deep-magic.livejournal.com]

It's this one: http://archiveofourown.org/works/906828

[rhodynne.livejournal.com]

*waffle iron!*

[the-deep-magic.livejournal.com]

I TRIED TO WARN YOU

[verizonhorizon.livejournal.com]

Re: Deucalion and Scott, yes it was pointed out in Visionary that he is going after the True Alpha not to have Scott in his pack but to get I typed Spock first lol Scott to murder an innocent and lose his chance to be a true alpha. E.g., how dare Scott try to be more powerful than Deucalion, so better to ruin him by absorbing him into the pack as a regular alpha. ALSO, it was talked about how Deucalion had the makings of a true alpha as well before he became corrupted, so there's a personal level of jealousy that makes him want to prevent Scott from achieving true alpha status.

[the-deep-magic.livejournal.com]

I need to rewatch that conversation with Deaton, because I guess I was too busy rolling my eyes at the whole "true alpha" thing to be paying very close attention. But then why is Deucalion trying to get DEREK to murder a member of his own pack, and what has he done to try to get Scott to murder an innocent (other than trapping him with Boyd and Cora, which seemed like it was mostly aimed at Derek, anyway)? I'm too headache-y at the moment to remember anything specific.

[verizonhorizon.livejournal.com]

Supposedly his attention on Derek was a false lead. So I think we can ignore it, save for the fact that Derek will probably try to get his strength up and team up with his crazy gf and go after Deucalion. Again. Hopefully this time they don't botch it up! :)