He Said/She Said review – Bitten 2×07: ‘Bad Dreams’

With the compound  firmly in the rearview mirror, Bitten‘s second season moves into its last act. Raise your hand if you hoped that it would involve the Alpha Council. <crickets>

Let’s bitch it out…

cinephilactic (C) and his sister, Stonehaven Groupie (SG) continue to hash out Bitten‘s second season via text message. Here’s what they thought of ‘Bad Dreams’.

C: Despite the title, I wouldn’t describe this episode as a bad dream at all. I actually – gasp – kind of liked it. What did you think?

SG: I did, too! I wasn’t sure I would with the Alpha Council coming back, but I liked the power struggle, especially all the hidden ones. I really liked the way they circled each other while talking. I even liked the return of Karl (Pascal Langdale)

C: Yes – I noticed that the actors’ framing and camera movement was deliberately evoking an animalistic confrontation, too

SG: Kinda cool

C: So this episode was really ALL about family. Blood family with Nick (Steve Lund) and his mom, Lily (Shauna MacDonald), Pack loyalty between Elena (Laura Vandervoort) and Jeremy (Greg Bryk) and new familial bonds like Elena and Savannah’s (Kiara Glasco)

SG: Yes, and that idea can even be extended since each Pack is their own family within a family. What did you think about Savannah’s sudden appearance (I guess it is a few days later) without Ruth? Like, hello, primary caregiver? Your ward has gotten away twice now….Someone call child protective services

C: Yeah narrative logistics and the timing of events have never been Bitten‘s strength. In this case, however, it felt like a good way to tie the “threat” of the witches to the Alpha Council (Ruth definitely would have messed that up). Plus it anticipated Aleister’s (Sean Rogerson) return. Witches really ARE dangerous!

SG: That was pretty good! The last scene left me frantic about next week! Aleister really did convince me that Savannah had done that bleed-from-everywhere trick on the Spanish wolf henchmen guy

C: Oh yeah, that cliffhanger was delicious. Body swaps/take-overs are always a great source of narrative conflict! As for the bait and switch with Savannah killing that guy: yes – it made sense given what we were led to believe about her burgeoning powers

SG: What did you think of the Nick/ Lily story?

C: It felt a little out of the blue, but it was in keeping with the theme of the episode. It might have been nice to tie it into Logan’s story (though I’ll confess I didn’t miss him or Rachel this week)

SG: Who?…Oh right! Lamey and his girlfriend whiney 🙂 I didn’t miss them either.

C: I kinda liked that Paige (Tommie Amber Pirie) and Nick spent some time alone so that they can bond since the show clearly wants to explore this relationship. I was surprised at the fairly chaste sex scene this time around

SG: It’s not something really touched on in the books. Nick’s mom is referenced a couple times, but never by name. It was a storyline I always wondered about – if he knew about her, wanted to meet her and if she had known about Antionio (they were super young when she got pregnant and Antionio hadn’t had his first change yet)

As for chaste sex, well, that’s because Paige sucks 🙂 (She’s still not growing on me)

C: Ha ha. Yeah, I think it was important to explore the human casualty of this werewolf lifestyle – especially in an episode that was all about secrecy and protectionism. With that said, Lily’s random kidnapping but felt SUPER cliche and unnecessary.

C: Is it Paige or the actress (or both) that you’re not liking?

SG: Actually both. I’m not a huge Paige fan in the books, but I just can’t seem to get a real feeling for the actress in the role.

C: I was hopefully some distance from Ruth would help her stand out more but she’s still kinda vacant

SG: Like Elena’s haircut? Do you think Laura get tired of the wig?

C: Ha ha. I was wondering when you would ring that up! I do like it, yes. Haircuts are very symbolic in TV and film, so this is her “closure” from the events of the compound

SG: And a nice bum shot from Clay (Greyston Holt)! Hello!

C: You’d almost forgotten about his body hadn’t you? Lol

SG: Nope 😉

C: So Aleister is in possession of Clay’s body. What’s the likelihood he sleeps with Elena next week?

SG: Very high. Plus he hasn’t gotten any since crazy Sondra!

C: In hindsight I’m still angry that Sondra was turned and killed so quickly. The Alpha Council’s interest in Elena proved how unique Sondra was…

SG: Meh. Sondra was pycho. She didn’t really survive her changed, her mind was mush) and I think the Russians hinted the same thing happened with their female experiments.

C: Oh fine! So Eduardo (Mishka Thébaud) is basically done, Roman (Daniel Kash) has cowed to Jeremy, Karl is suddenly back on the scene and Clay has been taken over by Aleister. Where do we go with only 3 eps left?

SG: A mega showdown! Who figures out Clay’s not himself first: Elena or Jeremy?

C: It really depends on Aleister’s agenda. Is he after Savannah (Side Note: does he even know she’s there)? If he’s there for Savannah, then Elena figures it out first. If he’s just there to stir up trouble, it might be Jeremy

One other possibility: a minor character finds him out and winds up dead. We’re overdue for a major death

SG: I think Aleister does know she’s there. He’s almost protecting her… I think we’ll end with more big fights and I agree, a death

C: Who gets your vote, book lover? I think Nick is in trouble (family closure is usually a kiss of death)

SG: I’m going with Logan and/or Ruth actually. And a possible injury to another character

C: All right, you’re on!

Your turn: what did you think of the post-compound episode? Happy to see the Alpha Council storyline wrapped up? Did you enjoy spending time with Nick, Paige and Lily? Surprised that Savannah snuck away so easily? Excited for the Clay/Aleister possession piece coming up? And what really prompted Laura’s haircut? Sound off below!

Bitten airs Saturdays at 9pm EST on SPACE