Nick and Schanke navigate Toronto's forgotten tunnel system on the trail of a madman who is carrying one of the only weapons Nick is afraid of.
This episode is fast-paced and tightly written. We meet the villain right away, and moments later our heroes are on his tail, hoping to catch him before he torches an innocent homeless encampment.
The flamethrower is a frightening weapon, giving this episode a dramatic flair as well as scaring Nick to death. Before "The Dragon," Nick is just as vulnerable as anyone else.
Episodes like this show us how brave Nick is. It's easy to be brave when you can't get hurt. This time, Nick's own life was on the line, but it didn't slow him down a bit.
Flashbacks:
Somehow in America (don't try to work it out) the vamp trio is stuck in a cabin with a pair of runaway slaves. La Croix thinks they are lunch. Nick wants to save them. It's not clear if these three ever have fun hanging out or if they just spend every trip arguing.
The moral of the story ("You have to face your fear") seems hard to swallow given the situation. Facing your fears is very important throughout life... but how is that helpful when you're facing a wall of deadly fire? Seems like gumption isn't enough to overcome that obstacle.
Little Bites:
-Vampire Lore: Vamps are especially scared of fire.
-Familiar Faces: Our villain is played by Randy Butcher, who shows up as five different characters on separate Forever Knight episodes, and he's done a ton of stunt work and bit part acting. Chances are, this isn't the first time you've seen him.
-This straightforward action-driven plot is a welcome relief from watching Nick act sad.
-Schanke's dad was a sewer worker, and he's a little embarrassed about it.
Final Analysis: Excellent adventure, but the flashback feels like an after-school special. Four out of five clever references.
Adam D. Jones is a writer, historian, and undefeated cat wrestler. He's also something of an urban hero himself, having recently saved his city from noise pollution by having his catalytic converter replaced.
"It's not clear if these three ever have fun hanging out or if they just spend every trip arguing."
ReplyDeleteLmao.
This episode was really only notable to me for being the only one after the first handful of the season to having matching production and broadcast order, which is a scrambled mess otherwise. The flashbacks were white savior fluff, which I do still legitimately enjoy but there wasn't anything particularly unique about them. Enjoyable, but also kind of lazy... a shame because I like underground "mole people" shenanigans but the concept of roasting the homeless alive was so baldly monstrous that I emotionally checked out. I needed a more brutal retribution than Nick offered.