Sunday, April 1, 2012

Grimm, Season 1, Episode 15: Island of Dreams




“Soon her was so in love with the witch’s daughter he could think of nothing else. He lived by the light of her eyes and gladly did whatever she asked.”

Another quote I don’t recognise, though I suspect a theme here – femme fatale incoming? Evil seductive women? Oh dear, Grimm, you don’t have the record with women to pull this off methinks


Police Chief Captain Renard (Reaper-Maybe-Evil-We-Don’t-Know-Because-We-Never-Get-Any-Damn-Meta-Plot) examining a painting (and dropping the hint he has been around for several centuries) and talking to Adalind the Hexenbiest they saved waaay back in the beginning of the series and a semi-almost recurring character. Renard wants her to seduce a police detective – they want to control Nick and to do that they’re going through Hank.

She takes his blood (obtained by Renard from a police physical) and goes shopping at the Fuschbau’s pharmacy (the only wesen shop in town it seems) for more ingredients (and she’s scary enough to get her shopping for free). She makes these into cookies for Hank (giant cookies at that. Hey, I don’t care if it’s evil black magic – chocolate cookies get me on side). And yes, she starts dreaming of Adalind. He also doesn’t share his cookies with Sergent Wu forcing him to resort to cookie theft. Hank also starts hallucinating about her and then asking her out on a date.

Meanwhile 2 wesen are inhaling fumes then go rob that same shop for some white powder referred to as “J”. The shop keeper manages to bite one on the leg before being shot. In comes the Grimm team. Nick, hank and Sergent Wu turn up and find the flesh in the Fuschbau’s mouth he has ripped off his killer (uckies uckies).

Nick, of course, knows the place and they check the basement and Nick gets to inform the deceased’s sister, Rosalie, who gets to come down and answer all the sad questions the surviving relatives have to at these times and Nick takes her to the shop where she goes all fuzzy Fuschbau and sad over the blood stains. She also recognises Nick as a Grimm and has the obligatory moment of panic (y’know, if I were Nick I’d severely question the activities of my fellow Grimm if this universal panic is the automatic reaction) and they discuss the illegal trades her brother has done in the past and what else he could have been involved in.

To the Grimmopedia, Eddie! Unfortunately, Eddie may know what some of the things in the shop are – and whether Vesen would kill for them –but not by the chemical names that the police labs have given them. Going to the shop he recognises J – poisonous for humans, but an incredible painkiller for wesen – and a narcotic taken for its high.

And the wesen who did the stealing come back for more J – Rosalie cuts one and escapes and then gets to come to the police to ID the thieves. Eddie goes home with her to help protect her (and because he’ll be able to smell them).


There’s some policework and a bit of a gun fight which is distracted by Hanks’ cookie hallucinations allowing the bad guys to get away. And the cookie thief Sargent Wu arrives at the apothecary shop to collapse and need some wesen medicine. They identify that Sargent Wu has taken an obsession spell meant for someone else – but then they kind of drop it. When he wakes up he starts eating the foam that fills his sofa cushions.

Nick, Rosalie and Eddie start looking for the drug thieves in an Island of Dreams (a crackhouse, basically. But Island of Dreams sounds way cooler). Rosalie, as an ex-addict, has the contacts to find one and in Eddie and Nick go. Nick catches one and Eddie is saved by Rosalie from the other (And THAT I liked, yes yes I did. That’s the first pro-active woman who wasn’t evil on this show I think). Rosalie is now moving to Portland, taking over her brother’s shop and, it seems, becoming Eddie’s love interest


Meta-wise:

In ongoing relationship drama, Juliette wants to learn how to use a gun – due to Nick’s Grimmy life encroaching into their home and on to her safety (last episode she was upgraded to victim). And Beaver man, the Eisbiber, arrives at their home with a present which further ratchets up the tension between Nick and Juliette. The Eisbiber keeps coming back with gifts (including a really nice looking pie. Honestly, this episode? Do not watch when you’re hungry). She does turn out to be a crack shot with a gun, though

Hank is not only sidelined repeatedly in most episodes but now when he does get involved he is an active liability. In fact, the Vesen are now targeting Nick through Hank – this is actually a step down from sidekick. And Wu can join Juliette in the being upgraded to victim department.

The bright side to this is a vague hope that this must be pushing towards a big reveal and we’re definitely in meta-plot territory since Juliette, Hank and Wu are all in established storylines that MUST continue next week. But all three of them are also major liabilities in Nick’s life now, they put him at risk, make him vulnerable, damage his investigations and are generally his weaknesses.

On the plus side on people getting stronger – Juliette is apparently a crack shot with a gun and Rosalie looks like she’s becoming a regular character with some strength to her. I’d have preferred if Rosalie could have been part of the plot without her having to be a love interest to one of the male leads, but it’s something and a step in a better direction

On the minus side – yes we are getting Adalind (and, y’know, despite being a semi-regular character this episode is like the second time her name has been used) playing the dangerous seductress for Hank which just about completes the set of bad women tropes.