Grimm: Octopus Head review

This Grimm review contains spoilers.

“A man’s real possession is his memory. In nothing else is he rich, In nothing else is he poor.”

Episode two of Grimm season four picks up with Renard’s death, but wait, there is hope for him when the leggy blonde stops time and resuscitates him with a magical double-headed, two-hued, snake. The mysterious woman from last week is Renard’s mother, who looks more like his sister than his parent. I’ll have a bowl or two of whatever she had for breakfast, please.

The royals in the Viennese castle seem far removed from the people in Portland. For all intents and purposes, they ought to, but not so much so that they feel foreign to the show. Cultural differences, geography and language aside, I would appreciate a more seamless integration with Oregon. In previous seasons and the start of the current one, the European segments break the illusion of a cohesive unit.

I look forward to Trubel maturing as a character, and not sticking out like a sore thumb. I understand her role as a rebel, however, if Nick is unable or unwilling to recover his abilities over the next few episodes, her recklessness might cause more harm than good. The young Pat Benatar lookalike as stand-in Grimm works on some levels, primarily with adolescent boys and rock fans. When there’s an unripe character, viewers cheer for a rapid learning curve and maturation.

Good and great supernatural books, movies and shows make the unbelievable tactile to a specific audience. Grimm is one such example that succeeds when others have failed because of over-the-top characters, story premises. and plots. Viewers expect and accept creepy crawlers and creatures that live in remote wooded locations. Isolated locales play on our fears of people and things that keep us awake at night. New York, Chicago, or Boston have too many things and people competing for our attention. The monsters would surely feel lonely and leave town. Better a smaller stage where the bogeymen can star in their demented dramas. Portland is an ideal setting that allows enough anonymity and opportunities to strike.

The episode is entitled, “Octopus Head”, and the character appears throughout the hour, but it would have been better to have him around for only one episode. The counter argument would be that he’s a memory thief, and Nick’s current predicament feeds into that due to the loss of his abilities. If he doesn’t regain his gifts, he’d be left with his memories. Remembering that he once was a Grimm, and unable to help local law enforcement, would be torture. I wouldn’t want those memories haunting me, rendering me powerless.

Where are we going with Special Agent Chavez’s character? She didn’t confiscate the family journals last week, but is poking around Nick’s precinct and keeping tabs on Trubel for a yet unknown reason. We’ve just had a character arc with an errant FBI double-agent. What new storylines will keep viewers interested this season? I’m all for complex stories and odd characters that are interconnected, but not tossing random ideas into the air to see what sticks. Screeching dark vans, black hoods over heads, and abductions is too easy of a go-to on TV and in the movies to create mystery. Let’s see what happens with Chavez and her team of kidnappers.

What’s up with the mind and eye link between Nick and Adalind? I wonder if it’s a side effect of her spell.

Anticipation is a good thing if it pays off in the end. If it’s a shell game designed to trick or distract us, it could result in viewer disengagement. Grimm isn’t a cult or fringe show because it’s grounded in an alternate reality. The success is that the Wesens’ change is primarily on the face, neck and hands. No full body transformation into bad CGI monsters, thank you very much!

We all have rage and fear swirling around inside of us. Fortunately or unfortunately, Wesen can’t keep their emotions hidden. What a different world we’d live in if our inner selves, beasts and fairies materialized on our faces. Where do I sign up? Will you join me?

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