#213 was what Lost Girl needed, and "Midnight Lamp" was a damn good follow-up to it. Genre shows become infinitely better when the show-runner commits to the serialized side of the show. Inevitably, a genre show will embrace its serialized side, and fandom gets more passionate and involved and attached. #213, which had a title I know but I prefer referring to the production code, was a huge download. It brought up the old war between light and dark fae, brought the grouda and the naga to the forefront, made Bo a champion of heroic proportions, contextualized Lachlan's behavior and motives. Generally, it provided focus for a season that has lacked focus.
Around episode ten or eleven, I wondered where exactly season two was headed. The continuing storylines were Dyson and Ciara's relationship and Bo and Lauren's weird relationship, which became complicated by the existence of her comatose and cursed girlfriend, Nadia. The Lauren storyline allowed the show to explore the servitude aspect of the light fae. Bo had problems with the fact of Lauren's role as slave to both Ashes. The Bo-Lauren storyline worked on two levels: the tortured lover level and the selfless hero level, meaning Bo wanted to help Lauren wake Nadia, but helping her would cripple whatever they shared between each other; however, helping her could bring Lauren freedom. The arc concluded during Bo's birthday episode; she succeeded in freeing Lauren and waking Nadia, but the night ended with her, alone. And then Lauren left town. Bo and Dyson dealt with their issues in the early part of the season in a series of episodes that dragged whenever Bo and Dyson dealt with their issues.
Kenzi and Hale always bantered in Trick's bar. The chemistry built every single week. Things seemed bound to escalate when Kenzi got a look at Hale's abs. Season 2 seemed to be about people in love and people not in love. The stakes weren't high or even present. Any weekly case dangers Bo faced would be averted by episode's end. Such a theme isn't the most engrossing to watch. The characters are well-written, well-drawn, and worth watching on a weekly basis. I didn't actively hate the focus on love; I simply wondered where the season was going because it seemed to have as much purpose as a rock falling down a hill.
Trick's trip through a trance gave the season definition and direction. The Blood King past of Trick's returned in furious fashion. In the real world, Dyson fully understood the extent of the deal he made with the Norn, which plunged him into even deeper melancholia. Bo found the heads of the Ash and learned about the side no one knows about him. Kenzi's childhood crush swooped into town, swept her up, got her to curl her hair, be as tender as we've ever seen, and then put in the position to follow the boy she wish never moved away. Bo learned she needed to save the world. Trick learned tapping into blood magic leaves a trace the hungriest grouda uses to become again. In 42 or so minutes, Lost Girl had a season on its hand that didn't hinge on courtships or heart-breaks but on the fate of the world and saving it; you know, embracing what every good genre show embraces.
Earlier, I read TWoP's forum about Lost Girl and learned how Lost Girl prepared for a 13 episode season and received 22 episodes instead. #213 did feel especially like a finale, with its cliff-hangers and promise of Bo the champion. I felt curious about #214. Would the narrative move forward or stall? The narrative moves forward but with the speed of a snail. The episode's really, really cool. The take on the 'genie lamp' from lore is an example of Lost Girl at its best: when it re-invents what we've seen so many times before in new, imaginative and innovative ways. Once Upon a Time aims to re-imagine what we've seen before and disappoints most of the time in their re-imagining; Grimm is much closer to Lost Girl in successfully re-imagining what we've seen before.
Lost Girl's creativity is my favorite part of the show. Their characters possess a quirkiness not seen often in American TV. I'll watch random procedurals and think the principal characters are copies of procedural characters that came before. Ryan, Bo's new love interest, is the type of character only a genre show could create. He makes things like magic lamps and straps that make him indestructible. His personality is as large as the province of Alberta. A flaw in the episode was Boxen's reliance on romantic comedy tropes, of two attractive people who have obvious chemistry being held apart because one of them is too neurotic or inexplicably put off by the other person. Bo treats the idea of time spent with Ryan as unbearable, but Anna Silk's never had more chemistry with an actor, besides Ksenia Solo of course. Watching her and Kris Holden-Reid together is never fun. Bo and Ryan, though, are explosive together. They're brought together inside of the magic lamp, the coolest magic lamp ever I'll add. This lamp revealed Ryan's character and was a catalyst in the impending war. So, it wasn't just a cool play toy; it was a great addition to the mythology.
I'm going to write about the Lost Girl season finale in two months. I wanted to check in. Had I done so two weeks ago, I might've criticized the show a bit more, but the last two episodes were great.
An added bonus: I review shows on a daily basis pretty much. If you stumble on this review, you can review and criticize my movies. Tell your friends. Watch below!
THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK
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