Lost Girl review – 4×05: ‘Let The Dark Times Roll’

Oh Bo (Anna Silk) – you didn’t really think that reversing your allegiance to the Dark would be easy, did you? Needless to say Dark Bo is here for the foreseeable future.

Let’s bitch it out…‘Let The Dark Times Roll’ is an example of what I can a “settling” episode. Last week’s episode (one of Lost Girl‘s more vital outings ever) doled out a number of game changers. It’s up to this week’s episode to see those game changers played out: what does this revelation mean for Bo, how does it affect her standing in the Fae community (as well as with her friends) and, most vitally for her, can it be reversed?

It would be unlikely to drop a bomb about Bo’s allegiance to the Dark and then simply undo it the following week (this isn’t S2, folks), so much of the episode feels like we’re waiting out her inevitable discovery that she can’t simply backtrack. The attempt to track down Vex (Paul Amos) – absent since ‘Sleepy Beauty School’ – is essentially a distraction to give Bo time to soul-search and realize how much she wants things to return to normal with Lauren (Zoie Palmer). This way when things don’t at the end of the episode, it hurts even more.

This delayed gratification/broken heart syndrome is very much in keeping with the narrative of the show, which hinges its plot on a series of hero quests designed to emotionally wallop Bo and her close relationships. Watching the show often makes me wonder if we’re all masochists? We, like Bo, want things to work out. The writers make it seem as though the things we want are possible, but keep them juuuuust out of reach so that it doesn’t happen and we keep coming back for more. Rinse, lather, repeat. It’s 50 Shades of Succubus

Case in point: Trick’s (Rick Howland) declaration that he’s been made Acting Ash for the Light, ironically timed just as Bo becomes the most “celebrated” Dark Fae. More significantly, we see this same rule applies to Bo’s relationship with Lauren, which hit the pause button last year but returns tonight for some hot and heavy action (the kitchen make-out is hilariously on the nose for the lovers. Bonus points for leaving the tray of mini-quiches). And yet, since the writers can’t bear for Bo to be in a happy relationship, Lauren declares herself a Dark Fae free agent because it’s the most attractive of her various crappy options. Naturally this ruffles Bo’s feathers, who despite her previous protestations that she’s “unaligned”, clearly identifies herself more with the Light. Her deluded belief that Lauren would simply return to the way things were belies a naivety Bo has always had when it comes to Lauren’s precarious position within the Fae community (this has come up with Ksenia Solo’s Kenzi increasingly this season, as well). Bo wants her friends nearby, but she fails to understand the implications of being human in the Fae community.

The precarious human position is most clearly demonstrated in the B-plot where we learn that Evony’s (Emmanuelle Vaugier) former bodyguard, soft-hearted (headed?) lug Bruce has been sold into bondage to a mean-spirited Fae for helping Kenzi escape in last season’s finale. His slavery is clearly played for laughs when we first see him as a human sushi platter, but the low status Evony and the other party-guests afford him is clear. They’re more interested in the body on the floor following Tamsin’s (Rachel Skarsten) dance-off to the death than the fact that Bruce has traded in owners. All of this and I haven’t even mentioned the dead bodies of the bride and groom whose wedding has been destroyed for the Dark Fae party.

The subjugation of humans has always been one of Lost Girl‘s interesting undercurrents, though it has always presided below the show’s more obvious interest in non-traditional families and the acceptance of diversity. I’m unsure if the human stuff been more prevalent this season or if I’m just more aware of it, but as the conflict between the Fae community and the Una Mens grows, I can’t help but feel that The Keeper’s (Caroline Horne) threat about the painful deaths of the human doctor and the terrorist pet are likely going to be a contributing factor in the Una Mens’ downfall.

Other Observations:

• I’ll admit that I didn’t actually think that Vex would go through with amputating his own hand (RIP “Ginger”). The scene when he tells Bo the extinction of the other mesmers is brief, but full of impact. Amos may give good bon mots (and leather outfits), but he’s also proved rather adept at handling the emotional stuff, as well.
• Bo on Lauren’s cocktail = silly, uninhibited and confessional. All we needed were some giggles and this would have been perfect.
• Now that we have the name of Bo’s Dark Fae ‘sponsor’, we have two mysterious males for Bo to search for: Rainer and the Wanderer. Any chance they’re one and the same? This might explain why the Una Mens have such an adverse reaction when they see Rainer’s name in the King’s Book of Records
• Our valuable Fae information for this week is the news that Trick is to thank for the Una Mens. His blood writings led to their creation, though the fact that the blood mage kept back one of the papaya seeds from them suggests he wasn’t fully on board with their no feelings/judge, jury, executioner approach. Now that the final seed is in play (it’s been stolen), is it safe to assume that someone will consume it and take the sixth – and final – space so that the group can rule “unchallenged”?
• Finally, it appears that the show’s budget restrictions remain in full effect: No Kris Holden-Ried or K.C. Collins this week.

Best Lines:

• Evony (glancing over Bo’s outfit): “Look at you all edgy and shit”

You’re up: did Bo make a poor decision to take responsibility for Vex’s actions? Is the human storyline more prominently on display this season, or is it just me? Are the Una Men doing it for you as villains? Do you disagree with Lauren’s rationale for sticking with the Dark Fae, or does this feel like an arbitrary obstacle to keep her apart from Bo? Sound off below

Lost Girl airs Sundays at 10pm EST on Showcase