Being Human: Gallows Humor

[This is a review ofBeing HumanSeason 4 Episode 7. There will be SPOILERS.]

-

Tensions come to a head this week onBeing Humanas Aidan and Suzanna and Josh and Nora separately face off in tight spaces over the Aidans recent blood binge and Joshs inability to control his inner wolf with diverse and surprising results while Sally delves into magic once again in an effort to save her brother.

That Sally decided to embrace hubris and her big heart by helping Robbie is not a surprise, but Donnas mostly tame return was. The big bad last season, the writers have tried to give her depth while fleshing out her motivations during her infrequent pop-ups this season, but this time, it seems like they tried to fully pivot her toward becoming some kind of mentor for Sally. In doing this, Donna clued us in to what Sally is going through with the time travel, while also setting the stage for next weeks somewhat bonkers looking episode (more on that later), but Robbies exit was too tidy, and Donnas track record is far too spotty to not lead one to deduce that the two are linked, meaning nothing that Donna said can be trusted.

Speaking of trust, there appears to be none left between Josh and Nora following his wolf-transformation during his fight with Mark and his decision to lie to Nora. Weve said it over and over again, Noras desperation for normalcy has been a continuing theme all season, but she just keeps fending off defeat after defeat and she seems so exhausted and withdrawn in this episode. Sticking Josh and Nora in the middle of a fight with the ghost of Robbie while Sally goes hunting for a way to bring him back felt like the final straw.

Aidan is also a monster, and a proud one as he lays chained up in Suzannas hotel room. She is trying to dry him out and break him of his blood addiction, but while Sam Witwer comes close to over-cooked ham territory with his performance, ticking off the names of his actions and his misdeeds with gusto and the delight of a super-villain, he finally brings it down. Katherine Isabelle (Suzanna) is really just there for the show throughout the majority of the episode, but in the last moment, when she finally confesses her own sin, the moment between her character and Aidans, with a stake in his hand, is powerful and enhanced by his soundless screams over the ache and the betrayal that he is now aware of. Where do they go from here? That is a really good question.

Next weeks episode, this seasons 8th which is titled Rewind, Rewind, seems like it could be a fun divergence from the main path as Sally, who is stuck in time, jumps into herself to thwart Danny, setting off an alternate timeline. Thats what it seems like, but is it possible that the show might linger for a time? Right now, Josh seems virtually irredeemable to Nora who seems utterly shattered. Robbie is gone (somehow) as is Donna, and Aidan and Suzanna look like they may console each other. Is there a better moment to, at least for awhile, explore what these characters would be without each other? Could this even be a way to inject some adrenaline into the story overall, and if producers choose to do this in a more full way (lasting over the course of multiple episodes) would it be considered a bit of a shark jump? Only time will tell, but next week should be interesting regardless.

See the rest here:
Being Human: Gallows Humor