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Teen Wolf: Visionary

“Taking an innocent life takes something from you as well.”

As it’s growing, Teen Wolf is layering its preconceived mythology more and more. Season three has probably seen the biggest contribution in that respect, particularly because of its ever expanding cast. ‘Visionary’ was a necessary trip back to not only fill in the blanks, but to give us some insight that we never really knew that we wanted.

What struck me the most here was Derek’s love story. It’s not necessarily a game changing bit of knowledge, at least not at first, but it really helps to explain the man that he’s become. Heartbreak can tear a person up, but holding yourself responsible for hurting a person like he did is a huge burden for someone to carry, and now he’s being forced to relive it all again after what happened to Boyd. It still doesn’t explain why he chooses to live in old warehouses and burnt out apartments, though.

Though they weren’t necessarily linked in the most obvious way, I enjoyed how both the stories here intersected with one another so it didn’t feel like we were seeing two completely different flashbacks, but we were still being afforded the opportunity to look at it from two different perspectives; Gerard’s brutal and unreliable one, and Peter’s twisted, manipulative one.

What we learned on the other side helped Scott to discover Deucalion’s only possible weakness, and what turned him into the monster that he is now. It was a clever twist to make Gerard a huge part of this season’s story as well, using what we knew about Gerard’s violence to explain what happened to Deucalion. It makes sense that he would be disgusting enough to target the wolves like that, even despite their cries for peace.

We learned a few other bits about Deaton too, who we now know is some sort of adviser, along with his sister. And Derek’s mother was considered some sort of leader among different packs thanks to her ability to shape-shift, a talent I’d like to see explored further down the line. All of this knowledge is part of what is helping to shape the Teen Wolf  'verse, even though we’ve barely cracked the surface of what there is to learn.

4 out of 5 blue werewolf eyes.

Plus

No Lydia this week. :(

The blue that wolves can get are from taking an innocent life.

He Said, She Said

Stiles: “What changed him?”
Peter: “The same thing that changes a lot of young men: a girl.”

Also posted at PandaTV.

5 comments:

  1. Nice to see them finally explain the blue eyes thing. And it fits in nicely with the overall color scheme for werewolf eyes. Red for Alphas, fading to orange for Betas, losing even more saturation to yellow for Omegas, and draining completely of any warm hues for the ones that have taken innocent life.

    I love that we got our backstory told to us by what are probably the two least trustworthy narrators on the show, and our heroes were smart enough to realize that. This show reminds me a fair bit of Arrow in that respect. The writers treat both their characters and their audience as intelligent people.

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  2. I was just really happy that we got some Peter Hale, both young and current.

    I kept wondering why Peter's eyes were blue, and then I remembered season one.

    At least it now (finally) explain's why Jackson's wolf!eyes were blue in the S2 finale.

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  3. I really liked this episode. I think it might have been the strongest in the series so far. At least for me.

    The various eye colors have always been a bit confusing, and now we have a full explanation. Yet we got even more questions posed in this episode. I bet now that she's been cast, Mama Hale is gonna make a return as well. I hope she isn't the evil druid, warped and twisted by the house fire.

    Great review Panda, I'm so glad you got me into this show.

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  4. I thought it was a strong episode, too. I've only recently realized that Derek is my favorite character, and giving him a strong backstory was a smart thing -- and as you said, Panda, having two unreliable, negative characters telling the story was a great choice from a dramatic standpoint. I do have to say, though, that Mozart's Requiem and Ave Maria and the references to Oedipus Rex and Romeo & Juliet in one episode felt like they were a bit too much for a show called Teen Wolf. :)

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  5. Ooh, and I forgot to mention my strong resentment of the obvious Reese's Peanut Butter Cup product placement. :)

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