Courtesy of FOX
The “haunted house episode” is a compulsory storyline for every sci fi TV show, and Sanctuary is Sleepy Hollow’s. It’s executed perfectly. After an initial eye roll at the, for lack of an official name, Tree Monster, there are lots of legitimately scary moments as well as continuing ties to the past.
Let’s bitch it out…
Billionaire socialite Lena Gilbert (is the name an homage to The Vampire Diaries perhaps?) disappears in Sleepy Hollow. After learning Lena (Erin Cahill) wrote “Katrina C.” in her notepad, Crane (Tom Mison) and Abbie (Nicole Beharie) are on the case to find out what her disappearance has to do with his wife.
Eventually our heroes discover that Lena is a descendant of Lachlan Fredricks, a man whose Sleepy Hollow home was considered a safe haven for runaway slaves and others seeking refuge. The house, however, has taken a turn for the worse. When Abbie and Crane arrive, Lena’s body guard has been murdered and she has been captured by the Tree Monster <snicker> that’s taken over the house. When Abbie and Crane try to escape, they are locked inside (because that’s how haunted houses roll, y’all).
As Abbie and Crane search for a way out, Grace Dickenson, Fredericks’ house matron during the Revolutionary War, appears to Abbie in visions to show her the past, in which Katrina gives birth to Ichabod’s son (!). Katrina was the final guest of the house (hence her name in Lena’s research) and once she gave birth, the Tree Monster broke the protection spell and attacked the house. No one knows what happened to Crane’s son.
By episode’s end, we learn that Abbie is a descendant of Grace Dickenson (Side note: I was actually pretty surprised by this turn of events, I thought it would be discovered that Crane’s son was found and assumed to be Fredericks’, making Lena Crane a relation).
After Abbie relays what she sees in the visions to Crane, he is pissed. After escaping the house with Abbie and Lena, Crane immediately doubles back with an axe to hack the s*#@ out of the Tree Monster, warning Abbie “heed my words, do not follow me.” It’s the first real time that we’ve seen Crane go dark and it’s pretty thrilling.
Meanwhile, Jenny (Lyndie Greenwood) visits Irving (Orlando Jones) to return the guns she stole from him during the last demon fight (cute). Then the writers try to set up romantic tension (meh). We get a glimpse into Irving’s home life, which involves a disgruntled ex-wife, a spunky daughter in a wheelchair, and a tease of Irving’s past transgressions. While I’m really not sold on any foreshadowed romance between Jennie and Irving, I do love their banter and how tentative she is when she invites him to Thanksgiving. We’ll put this into the “wait and see” category.
Courtesy of FOX
Other Observations:
- I was a bit dismayed by the “black guy dies first” formula in the beginning when Lena’s bodyguard immediately bites it and the cute white heiress survives. What a wasted opportunity to turn the cliché around!
- I love the way Tom Mison drops “Lieutenant” when he’s emotional. In his soft, tortured voice: “Abbie…what happened to my son?” Heart strings = tugged.
- Fish out of Water Scene o’ the Night: Ichabod hating McDonalds. Doesn’t taste like Scottish food at all! Also, stop ruining my Thanksgiving with tales of sugarless cranberries and venison!
- Characters in sci fi shows are always skeptics at the weirdest times. Like how Lena is incredulous when Crane mentions her ancestor might have been part of a coven. COVEN?!? You just got captured by a Tree Monster and you’re trying to wrap your head around the fact that a coven exists? Priorities.
- Am I the only one that jumped when Crane, thinking he was grabbing Abbie’s hand, pulled the Tree Monster out of the wall? Anyone? Bueller?
Best Lines:
- Crane (to Abbie): “Your company holds the greatest value to me” Sigh.
- Crane (to Abbie, after attacking the Tree Monster): “I should like to go home now”
What did you think of ‘Sanctuary’? Are you as happy with the pacing and weekly reveals into Crane’s past as I am? Are you going to make venison on Thanksgiving now? Sound off below!
Sleepy Hollow hits the pause button and returns in two weeks, Monday December 9 at 9pm EST on FOX
I both loved and disliked Sanctuary.
Pros:
1) I enjoy the relationship between Abbie and Crane, as each week they grow and nurture a very strong and loving platonic bond between them. When Crane actually called her by name, it shows a vulnerability and progression in their friendship since he comes from a time when formality was the rule not the exception.
2) Having Abbie see Crane’s son being born shows how much their paths are entwined and destined because there’s a reason her ancestor was a freed slave on the same plantation as Katrina’s coven member.
3) Even if you don’t really like the whole religious/magic realism angle of the show’s plot, the truly chilling atmosphere in the house was very well done. I actually commented to my boyfriend about how odd the Thanksgiving episode was scarier than anything from Halloween.
4) The scene between Captain Irving and his ex-wife. I liked how they gave us more background information about him and the reasons for him coming to Sleepy Hollow (I was actually shocked he didn’t have magical powers or didn’t have inside information about anything given the expressions he had after conversations with Abbie, Crane, and especially Det. Morales). It was especially profound when he’s arguing to keep himself in his daughter’s life, but can’t exactly explain what’s keeping him from her – it’s an interesting angle because he’s the only one of the four who actually has ties that bind. Both Abbie and Jenny are single, and Crane is new to this century so they have no one to answer to unlike Irving.
Cons:
1) I too thought it was distasteful about the token black bodyguard dying on behalf of his white employer, though I wonder if that was the point. This place had been a sanctuary for black slaves fleeing their white masters, but with the magical wards broken by evil, it in turn became a death trap that recoiled upon the very ones it was originally supposed to protect. Or maybe I’m reading too much into it and it was just an unconsciously racist entertainment trope we’ve become accustomed to.
2) I like the Captain and I am starting to like Jenny (her improbable background is more at fault than her acerbic personality – I actually understand why she’s so angry at her sister), but I don’t like the idea of them hooking up just to give their characters more credence to the plot. Maybe I’ll like them in the future, but here it just seemed shoe-horned in, especially given the Captain’s distaste for her in previous episodes.
3) The scene between Jenny and Macey was groan inducing. I get it was meant to deepen the Captain’s character arc now that he’s in on the know and no longer a mysterious figure, but Jenny isn’t established enough to be giving advice to his estranged daughter.