Grimm 2.8: "The Other Side"

This installment of Grimm was a real treat if you're as invested as I am in the "Renard comes undone" fallout from the pure heart potion (not to mention his jawline...that bone structure is so perfect it kills me...I am VERY invested in that respect). But before I go on and on about that, let's talk about the set-up for the crime of the week first.

We're introduced to a group of high school students competing in an academic decathlon, all vying for the coveted slot that will send one of them to the state level to represent their school. (I might as well go ahead and admit it, I don't think I knew such a thing existed prior to this show.) All of the kids are wickedly smart, but Pierce (Logan Miller) is a clear standout, time and again beating his classmates to the answer, sometimes answering correctly before the moderator can get half the question out. Pierce appears to have a mother (Mary Page Keller) who is a classic stage mom, tense, attentive, and prone to grimacing at every slight misstep. Clearly there is a ton of pressure on Pierce to perform and perform well (at this point I pegged Dr. Higgins as an overprotective Wesen mother). After the practice session concludes, Pierce persuades his mom to let him join his friends Brandon, Jenny, and Stan for a bite to eat. All goes well as the kids good-naturedly rib each other about their contest chances and then go their separate ways. Brandon (Titus Mankin Jr.) opts to walk home and is viciously attacked by some sort of creature -- the only question is, which of his teammates is a Wesen?

Meanwhile, Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) may still not remember Nick (David Giuntoli), but she's willing to play the role of his girlfriend in an attempt to recapture a sense of pre-coma normalcy, hoping to reawaken her memories of their previous relationship. Nick and any and all available members of the police force are attending a dinner where Renard (Sasha Roiz) is accepting some sort of award for his work in the Portland community. (I suppose it's a sign that Christmas is coming, because all this made me think of was A Christmas Story and MAJOR AWARDS! LOL!) Nick and Hank (Russell Hornsby) are all "AWWWW...look at the Captain being all statesman-like," which makes them COMPLETELY OBLIVIOUS to the fact that Renard and Juliette cannot stop DEVOURING EACH OTHER WITH THEIR EYES. Seriously how are they missing this?! Things get even MORE awkward when Nick and Hank are called to the crime scene where Brandon's body has been discovered, leaving Renard to oh-so-gallantly volunteer to give Juliette a ride home.

Now here's where things get...ahem...interesting, to say the least. They are all cute and awkward (or would be really cute and awkward if all of this unspoken tension was the result of genuine feeling as opposed to magical goop), and then Renard sees Juliette enter the house (okay, she's living with a COP, and she keeps a spare key UNDER A FLOWER POT ON HER PORCH...really?!?!) and he just can't drive away. While Juliette showers, Renard enters the house, climbs the stairs, and stands in her bedroom like a total creeper. (Here's the thing...I am adamantly anti-stalking, but I might as well go ahead and admit that I enjoyed this scene because it FINALLY gave us some forward momentum on the whole question of what exactly has this potion done to Renard?!) Roiz makes it patently obvious that he doesn't want to be doing this, but at the same time he can't help himself -- and that internal war results in him nearly getting caught by Juliette, who finds the glass in a photo frame containing a picture of her and Nick mysteriously broken. Whether it is a question of Renard fighting his attraction to Juliette, or his half-hexenbiest nature warring against the effects of the pure heart potion, or both is unclear -- but if this encounter is any indication, Renard is far nearer to a breaking point than I'd ever imagined. (Also, imagine the horrid publicity if it got out that the police chief was mowing down random citizens in his car...yeesh!!)

Okay, so leaving behind angsty Renard for a moment, as soon as Nick and Hank see Brandon's mutilated body they suspect a Wesen is probably behind the attack. This suspicion is reinforced when, after interviewing Brandon's teammates, they meet the coach (Han Altwies) who is so upset during their exchange that he transforms into a Lowen -- the vicious, temperamental  lion-like creatures first introduced in the "fight club." I love how Hank is acclimating to Nick's world, to the point that even though he cannot see most transformations, he is learning to recognize Nick's "Grimm look." :) Suddenly they have a suspect -- but it has to be hard when the crux of your investigation lies on a point of identity that most people can't see, no? 

Shortly after her interview with the police, Jenny (Tierra Valentine) calls Pierce -- she's rather shocked by the fact that he's actually with it enough to study (ostensibly under pressure from his mom). Again this seems to cast suspicion on his mother -- and after last week's episode about an out-of-control Wesen child, I was *sure* that this week would reveal a adult as the perpetrator (was I alone here?). Anyways, Jenny convinces Pierce to meet her at their school, but before he shows up she is attacked by the same creature that killed Brandon. Unfortunately for Pierce, his watch was found clutched in Jenny's hand, leading Nick and Hank to conclude that he is probably a Lowen like his decathlon coach. Deciding to apply a little "Grimm" pressure, Nick pushes Pierce during their subsequent interrogation, hoping he'll transform -- but he is baffled when his efforts are rewarded by Pierce and his mother morphing into Wesen the like of which he's never seen.

Nick and Hank head to Aunt Marie's trailer to research the creature, which turns out to be a Genio Innocuo (innocuous genius, ha!), an extremely rare turtle-type Wesen. Apparently some of Nick's ancestors took a trip with Darwin in the 19th century and documented the creatures' lack of fear for humans -- before promptly killing them (yeah...Nick is, thankfully, a very different breed of Grimm!). As turtles are pretty much essentially incapable of ripping out throats, Nick and Hank go with the assumption that the Lowen coach is behind the killings -- until they arrive at his house and discover that he has been killed as well. THE PLOT THICKENS!

Meanwhile, after his stalker freak-out episode, Renard visits the spice shop seeking a cure for his increasingly obsessive behavior. Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) and Renard are completely unaware of each other's identities or their respective connections to Nick, and that coupled with Renard's hilarious awkwardness at having to seek help make this one of my favorite moments ever in this show's run. Seriously this is comedy gold, people, comedy GOLD!! When Monroe manages to extract the tidbit from Renard that his obsessiveness is 1) for a HUMAN (very important, ha!!) and 2) the result of a kiss, his attempts to go all mano-a-mano relatable are just laugh-out-loud funny. I loved the shout-out to Rosalee (Bree Turner) -- one kiss was all it took? Excuse me while I swoon. :) With Monroe's promise of researching "cure" options, Renard beats a hasty retreat. (Side note: the leather jacket and sunglasses? I DIE. That outfit needs to make a reappearance!)

It turns out that Pierce has been suffering from debilitating headaches (the spate of murders would be enough to cause that, yikes!), and during one such episode he spills a drink on his pillow. When he goes to put the dirty pillow case in the laundry he discovers the machine is filled with blood-tinged water (ICK!). He has a completely understandable freak-out and calls Nick, only to be interrupted by his mother. And then things get REALLY twisted. Because as a genetics expert his mother had conducted experiments on Pierce in-utero in an attempt to give her son the added advantage of characteristics enjoyed by other Wesen -- namely, Lowen. So it is PIERCE who's the culprit -- and the tragic thing is, he isn't even aware of what he's been doing thanks to his mother mixing two strands of apparently VERY incompatible DNA.

This episode opens with a quote from "The Adventures of Pinocchio," which I suppose is valid insomuch as it speaks to Dr. Higgins's attempt to create a child to her personal specifications. Personally, I think the show should have gone for a direct Jekyll and Hyde tie-in, since even though Pierce certainly didn't choose to perform genetic experiments on himself, the result is much the same. All things told I thought this was a rather fascinating take on the idea of a split-personality disorder playing out in this dark fairy tale world.

So, wrapping this up, Nick and Hank chase after Pierce who went all Lowen-ed out on his mother and now that he realizes he's been killing people wants to jump off a bridge. His frenetic morphing between the Genio Innocuo and the Lowen is pretty intense -- at one point I thought he might just implode. In a nifty piece of stuntwork Nick manages to save Pierce's life, and one hopes he can get some psychological help. But the final scene of Pierce in prison seems to suggest that the Lowen is fighting to become the dominant and uncontrollable aspect of his personality.

As I was typing this I realized I almost FORGOT TO MENTION that Adalind (Claire Coffee) and Eric (James Frain), Renard's royal brother are back! I loved this -- not only because they were supposedly in Vienna (I mean a swanky set in Portland dubbing as Vienna...ha!), but James Frain was wearing a tux! And he was dropping a few clues about my favorite enigma -- namely, that when it was discovered that one of their father's mistresses was a hexenbiest, she made for America with her son, a.k.a. the Captain (do you think we might meet his mother at some point? or get a flashback episode?! that would be awesome!). I loved watching Adalind's expressions as Eric was bad-mouthing hexenbiests...it seems like she doesn't want to admit that she once was one, since I'm thinking she wants to use Eric to facilitate some sort of revenge against his brother and Nick, perhaps even regain her powers -- but you can tell she just wanted to wallop him for disparaging her kind. Definitely looking forward to that alliance's development!

The episode ends with Renard returning to the spice shop only to get the bad news from Monroe that unless he's willing to bring in the "object of his affliction" so they can undertake a joint cure, the best he can hope for is "dampening" his obsession. But since his "affliction" is the result of dark magic, Monroe warns that it will only get progressively worse, leading him further desperate behavior, i.e. removing any barrier that stands between him and Juliette. Renard really did look so despondent for a second that I REALLY REALLY wanted to give him a hug. But I didn't. I left him to wallow, because I enjoy Renard angst too much. *wink* It's coming at an incredibly slow burn, but we appear to be seeing the groundwork for some much-needed tension between Renard and Nick, which will be especially interesting considering that Renard's plans and goals relative to Nick have never been fully spelled out.

Bonus Renard Being Devastatingly Handsome Photo:

P.S., AGAIN: I forgot to mention the brief appearance of Bones "squint" Michael Grant Terry as the eager new intern Ryan, who is apparently a big fan of Nick and Hank's work. My guess is he stumbles dangerously close to the truth of Nick's Grimm identity -- Terry is slated for a return appearance in episode ten on Nov. 2nd. (Yeesh, there was a LOT going on in this episode, wasn't there?)

Grimm 2.6 "Over My Dead Body"

This week's episode of Grimm was flipping awesome (as Monroe-centric episodes are wont to be). The episode opens with a quote from the Brothers Grimm story "The Three Snake-Leaves" -- "Whilst he thus gazed before him, he saw a snake creep out of a corner of the vault and approach the dead body." I see two ways in which this episode possibly relates to this story -- more on that in a bit. :)

The episode opens with the arrival of a private jet and the arrival of a beautiful woman in Portland, one who immediately calls Renard (Sasha Roiz). Said mystery woman is played by Alice Evans, a.k.a. Mrs. Horatio Hornblower (married to Ioan Gruffudd), who I find incredibly annoying. This was not helped by the revelation that she apparently has some sort of romantic past with Renard. (Gag!) But I shall try to put that aside -- because her arrival in Portland does drop a few tantalizing clues about my favorite enigma. Their dinner date conversation is fascinating, as she drops the comment that she didn't feel he was treated right by his family, and attempts to find out his plans for "reclaiming his rightful place." It's clear (gag) that Renard is attracted to her, but also equally clear that he doesn't trust her as far as he can throw her -- that tension from a long-time acquaintance promises an interesting dynamic.

The structure of the first half of this episode is really well done as it contrasts four very different "date nights." The first date unexpectedly involves Nick (David Giuntoli) and Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch). As I mentioned last week, I loved seeing Juliette recognize her connection with, her attraction to Nick, even though she doesn't remember their collective past. When she finds a recipe marked with "Nick loves" in her handwriting, she prepares the dish and insists he stays for dinner -- because while she may never remember their past, she wants to get to know him now. I LOVE THAT. And the look of tentative joy on Nick's face was just priceless. They are so adorable. :)

The next date takes us to Monroe's (Silas Weir Mitchell) house, where he's listening to classical music, cooking what I'm sure is a gourmet meal, and wearing a bowtie and vest (ADORABLE!!) -- all for Rosalee (Bree Turner). Between their mutual admiration society ("you look beautiful" "so do you"), Monroe showing off his clock collection, their shared love of virtuoso zitharist music -- could they be any more adorable? I think not. The next scenes promise to throw a bit of a wrench into their happiness as we see the return of Monroe's ex Angelina (Jaime Ray Newman), ever the loose cannon, having drinks with some skeevy guy at a bar who seems to think drinks means she should sleep with him. Angelina takes exception to this and goes all wolfish on the guy, killing him -- but her victim turns out to have been working for a King Cobra or Konigschlange, who demands she complete the job, which just happens to be killing Monroe (this is allllll kinds of awkward, no?).

Now, to Angelina's credit, when she finds out that Monroe is the target of the hit, she goes to his house to warn him and interrupts him and Rosalee, just as they are about to kiss (boo!! hiss!!). Rosalee leaves to let Monroe hash out all the awkwardness with his ex-girlfriend, who urges him to flee -- but Monroe refuses to run and calls Nick, interrupting the latter's dinner conversation with Juliette where they're being all adorable talking about how they first met. The Nick/Angelina tension is interesting, since she refuses to trust him because he's a Grimm, and he is a bit peeved about letting a murderer run loose -- but concern for Monroe TRUMPS ALL (as it should!).

Monroe crashes at Hank's (Russell Hornsby) house while Nick and Angelina become reluctant partners, going to the bar to investigate where she received her "commission." The Hank/Monroe scene was priceless! While tossing back some beers, Hank takes the opportunity to ask a mellow (ha) Wesen how the transformations work, and even talks Monroe into giving a demonstration. His reaction -- indeed, the whole dynamic between the two during this scene -- was SO FUNNY. I also rather unexpectedly enjoyed watching Nick being forced to work with Angelina, especially when she passes herself off as his partner and basically gives a blow-by-blow recitation of how she killed her victim at the bar, impressing the investigating officer from the next town. *wink* When they trace the last call on her victim's cell phone to a nearby hardware store, Angelina uses her wolfish "charms" to convince one of the thugs to explain why there's a hit out on Monroe. Someone (at this point I half wondered if it was Renard?) wants to send a message to the Grimm and the Wesen world in general -- anyone who allies themselves with Nick is in danger of getting killed. (Loved how Nick felt so palpably guilty while Monroe refused to renounce his friendship!)

Meanwhile, Rosalee has had to leave town after receiving a call from her mother about a sick aunt (I suspect at this point Bree Turner was close to giving birth in real life). Monroe comes up with a plan to draw the mastermind behind the hit on him out in the open -- he'll take a potion inducing a "dead faint," inducing a deathlike sleep of suspended animation. So once Nick brings Hank up to speed on the need to cooperate with Angelina (he isn't happy about THAT either, but to his credit he's really embracing the whole working off-the-books thing with Nick), they head to the spice shop and call Rosalee for instructions. She's suitably horrified by the idea, as the potion is incredibly risky, and if the drinker stays under too long they'll die -- and Grimm without Monroe would not survive!

Angelina proves to be unexpectedly classy about seeing her ex move on with another woman (and really Alice Evans annoys me more than Jaime Ray Newman, so the latter fares positively by comparison). Rosalee's anguish over the risk of losing Monroe, and his bravery -- oh they just killed me, I nearly cried (no exaggeration). It was really quite moving to watch the expression on Angelina's face as she listens to Monroe and Rosalee's intensely personal conversation -- I LOVE how the show is handling their developing relationship. So, once Angelina gets the call from Arbok (Matt Gerald), also known as the cobra, Monroe drinks the potion and Nick and Hank make plans to follow the two blutbads to the meeting site.

The meeting turns tense and Angelina tries to hide her worry over the physical signs that the potion may be killing Monroe -- pale skin, clenched hands. After Arbok confirms that Monroe is "dead," the mastermind behind the hit drives up -- and it turns out to be Renard's erstwhile lady love (blech!!! like I needed ONE MORE reason not to like Alice Evans). She assesses the situation and confirms that Angelina has earned her payday, and once she turns to leave, Angelina throws caution to the wind and attempts to resuscitate Monroe to the shock of the thugs, who think it's some sort of weird blutbad thing, until Monroe wakes up and all heck breaks loose. Monroe and Angelina morph into wolves, while Nick and Hank rush to the scene -- they take out the thugs but not before one of them fatally shoots Angelina. Nick takes off after the Arbok, who transforms into his cobra form, and just when it seems  like Arbok may get a killing blow, Hank arrives and shoots him (having Hank in the know is proving handy, hmm?).

It will be interesting to see if the show explores the fallout from Angelina's death on Monroe in any depth (I liked that she used her final breath to warn Monroe that "the woman" got away). However it plays out, and nevermind that I actually sorta liked Angelina this go-around, I'm kind of glad the show ruled out a return appearance with her death, because it speaks to the writers' commitment to move the Monroe/Rosalee relationship forward.

Now, to talk about this episode's Brothers Grimm inspiration for a moment...obviously the it takes its cue of for a new creature-of-the-week from the tale, and I have got to say I was incredibly impressed with the King Cobra special effects. But if you read the summary of the story, it references a young man whose extraordinary bravery allows him to marry a princess, who only ends up betraying him. Now I'm pretty sure Renard isn't married to the blonde mystery woman (BETTER NOT BE!! Ha!), I wonder if the writers' use of this story is intentional, perhaps suggestive of Renard's past before he left his family, or was kicked out -- and why he can't fully trust his one-time lover. The final scene, where Renard meets her at the airport, and demands to be told everything seems to suggest he's going to take a dim view of her machinations in his territory, ordering hits on Wesen, etc. For whatever reason, Renard is rather protective of Nick -- I can't wait to find out WHY!

Wrapping things up -- while Monroe takes care of burying Angelina in the blutbad tradition, Nick calls Rosalee to tell her that Monroe is safe -- loved that. :) After he hangs up, he's thrilled to find a note from Juliette thanking him for the new memories -- and this is where things should get even MORE interesting, if the preview for next week is any indication.



Next week is going to see the return of Adalind (Claire Coffee), who has somehow regained her powers -- and I suspect that has something to do with Juliette's claim that she's starting to remember Nick. But, along with Nick, she's ALSO remembering Renard's kiss -- and next week promises to bring their first face-to-face meeting. Now, let me refer any interested parties to my post on the first episode for this season, where I  called the possibility of a Renard/Juliette/Nick love triangle. People, this could be fun -- especially when you consider the following deleted scene from this episode (the relevant moment is about fifty seconds in):



Interesting to see where Renard's head really is, hmm? *wink* It will be interesting to see how much the connection between Juliette and Renard is due to the "pure heart" potion -- and if it ever develops into something more, at least on Renard's side. Ultimately I am ALL about Nick and Juliette, but I think the idea of Renard falling in love with a Grimm's significant other, and how that could impact his plans -- the dramatic possibilities are endless! Discuss? :)

Grimm 1.22: "Woman in Black"

Grimm's first season finale was a thoroughly enjoying cap to a show that has gotten progressively stronger week-to-week. And while the finale didn't really answer any burning questions (i.e., WHO EXACTLY IS FRIGGIN' RENARD?!), so many of the key pieces sprinkled throughout the season, clues to Nick's role as a Grimm, fell into place in a way that felt completely pitch-perfect and natural, advancing character story arcs in such a way that I cannot wait for the show's return in "late summer" (how exciting is that, late summer instead of "fall"?).

The episode opens with Nick (David Giuntoli) and Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) meeting for coffee (how adorable is THAT?!) to discuss the problem of Hank and his recent Wesen sighting, when he caught a glimpse of Monroe in his Blutbad form. Nick is really worried about Hank (Russell Hornsby), as he's edgy and not sleeping, but he's limited in how much he can help his partner since seriously, who is gonna believe the whole Grimm business?! Unbeknownst to them, a private investigator is tailing their every move, taking photographs as they leave the shop and then calling to report to an unseen employer. Among the PI's things is a newspaper clipping detailing the death of Soledad Marquesa, killed during the "Three Coins in a Fuchsbau" episode -- and also one of the men behind the attack that took the lives of Nick's parents. The employer turns out to be Akira Kimura (Brian Tee), the fourth man Nick recently discovered who also participated in the hit on Nick's parents. Kimura is after the Coins of Zakynthos, and armed with the PI's intelligence that Nick, Hank, Renard, or Monroe were involved in the Marquesa case, and one of them most likely has the coins, he morphs into a Schakal and kills the investigator. After he leaves, a mysterious woman in black (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) enters the abandoned room, finds the mangled body, and then leaves. (So I have to ask, who at this point suspected her identity?)

Meanwhile, Adalind (Claire Coffee) makes a reappearance sans her Hexenbiest powers (side note: I really hope she appears in season two so her role as a Wesen "outcast" can be explored further). Apparently the day of reckoning has come for Nick since he succeeded in making her "normal." After feeding her cat Magick (sp?) milk laced with some sort of potion that turns his eyeballs into freaky black orbs, she takes him to Juliette's (Bitsie Tulloch) office (yay for seeing Juliette at work two weeks in a row!). As Juliette examines the animal, it leaves three deep claw marks on her hand -- and this is where the fairy tale inspiration for this week's episode comes into play. The episode opened with a quote from "Sleeping Beauty," which is BEYOND awesome because it is my all-time favorite fairy tale. I suspect -- hope, rather -- that this inspiration will be revisited in the season two opener. The cat's scratch is obviously the enchanted "hand prick," Adalind's revenge play. But this show being what it is, a twist is all but guaranteed. *wink* More on Juliette in a second...

While investigating the PI's murder, Nick and Hank are pretty taken aback  to say the least when they discover that the investigator was tailing them (as well as Renard and Monroe). Before they can warn Renard (Sasha Roiz), he's arrived at his apartment to discover it ransacked and his poor housekeeper murdered. Kimura gets the drop on him and starts beating the you-know-what out of Renard. This whole sequence of events is packed with pretty much unbearable levels of Renard-hotness, and I'm not gonna lie when Kimura was threatening Renard's perfect face with a gigantic kitchen knife I was getting pretty tense. :P Kimura lets drop the fact that he is looking for the coins, but before he can harm a single hair on Renard's head (thank goodness), Sgt. Wu (Reggie Lee) shows up, shortly followed by Nick and Hank. The mysterious woman in black is also seen loitering outside Renard's building (VERRA interesting, hmm?!). After returning to the station (with Renard in a sweater and khakis, be still my heart the man looks amazing in  casual clothes!), the captain reveals that it was Kimura who was in his apartment, and he's after the coins -- and suddenly more than ever Nick is invested in getting to Kimura first. OF COURSE if he's going to do this he needs Monroe's help -- and despite the possible danger, Monroe is more than willing to help Nick gain a little "Grimm time" with the baddie. 

Back to Juliette -- when Nick returns home it seems like he might be in for a romantic evening until he discovers the deep scratches on Juliette's hand, and then proceeds to have a proper freak-out when he learns the scratches came from Adalind's cat. Juliette of course thinks he's being completely unreasonable and refuses to go a doctor until he explains exactly why he's been so weird (since last October, ha!). With Juliette's life in the balance, Nick decides to take the plunge and explain everything, taking her to Aunt Marie's trailer. This is actually kind of a painful scene. On the one hand, I loved seeing Nick's passion for his work as a Grimm -- he's really and truly getting into this twisty work and all that it entails, and I loved seeing that. But on the other hand, Juliette's heartbreak at what she views as insanity underscores a heartbreaking reality -- the lonely life of a Grimm. Nick is so desperate to let her into this part of his world, so hopeful she'll understand -- and at this point that is completely out of the question. So he takes her to MONROE. :)

Monroe is unbelievably shocked that Nick wants him to transform into his Blutbad form in front of Juliette, especially considering Hank's recent issues with seeing a glimpse of the Wesen world. I loved Monroe's reaction to Nick's sudden request -- he's so unassuming, lol! Just as he transforms, Juliette faints, falling into the "deep sleep" of the Sleeping Beauty legend. Now it just remains to be seen what type of poison Adalind utilized, and how her "spell" will be reversed. After seeing Juliette admitted to the hospital, Nick gets a call from Wu, who'd followed a lead to Kimura's hotel room. The catch is, he didn't find Kimura, but the woman in black, who is a kick-butt martial arts fighter. The working assumption is that she's a dangerous Kimura associate -- but Juliette is Nick's priority now, so he and Monroe head to her office to quarantine Adalind's cat. 

Now this poor cat has either been made evil by Adalind's poison, or it just has an unusually strong reaction to Monroe -- if it's the latter, well Monroe's awkwardness around a cat was hilarious. *wink* They take the cat to the spice shop, where Rosalee (Bree Turner) makes a welcome reappearance (I have a feeling this was written in when it was announced that she is going to be a season two regular -- thank goodness). I love how Rosalee is the go-to person for Wesen drug analysis and medical care...it's like she was going to be a doctor but her career got derailed by her drug issues or something (possible backstory? you can have that one for free, writers -- ha!). Unfortunately for my inquiring mind, this episode doesn't reveal Rosalee's discovery (but how cute are she & Monroe together? I mean seriously, I can hardly stand it!) -- but Juliette is clearly facing some Wesen issues in season two since she wakes up with the same freaky all-black eyes Adalind gave that poor cat. Any theories on what she's been transformed into -- and if it can be reversed??

Poor Hank will be in desperate need of therapy in season two, especially after discovering that Kimura has completely trashed his house. I don't see him carrying the level of tension he exhibited in this scene for very long without some sort of breakdown, so I'm very curious if the writers are going to have him just "come to terms" with his "visions" or if somehow he'll be looped into Nick's Grimm-ish world. (I've gotta admit, the final view of Hank sitting in his trashed living room reminded me of Deliverance or something...or maybe the Hatfields & McCoys? I have that on the brain since I've seen so many previews for the miniseries. :P)

Nick realizes Kimura will be coming to his house next, and when he arrives at his home the place is trashed. He's very conveniently alone, so he gets his Grimm crossbow ready with arrows dipped in a solution designed to subdue Wesens so Grimms can extract information (forgot to mention that is what Monroe & Nick discovered during the earlier trailer research session). It takes a while for Nick to get his game on as his first shot misses, giving Kimura time to transform, and resulting in the biggest, baddest fight of the series. Seriously I had NO idea Nick was capable of this level of awesome. I have to wonder if, when he's really "inspired," if you will, by a Wesen threat, that something comes out in Nick -- some essential Grimm quality that transforms him into an expert in hand-to-hand combat. Just when Nick seems to be getting the upper hand, the woman in black shows up and he starts fighting her, Kimura comes to and nearly offs one of them with Nick's abandoned crossbow, she kills Kimura, and then Nick gets the drop on her -- and the show drops its season finale bomb. SHE'S HIS MOTHER!

At this point I started laughing like crazy because this is the second show I've seen this YEAR that ends with the lead guy's mother coming back from the dead (anyone else watch Hawaii Five-O?). I mean seriously, WHAT ARE THE ODDS??? But I like this -- once Nick gets over the initial shock of his mother letting him think she's been dead for eighteen years, I'm sure she'll prove to be no end of useful getting Nick up to speed on Grimm things. Thoughts on the finale? Personally I cannot WAIT for season two. This show, while not perfect of course, has gotten so much stronger over the past year -- and that's instilled a lot of confidence in me as a fan that the writers and team will deliver an equally thrilling second season. Bring. It. ON. :)

Grimm 1.17: "Love Sick"

I know it has been a terribly long time since I've done any sort of episode review (those went on hiatus while I ordered a new computer and waited for it to arrive), but per my (usually late) norm I'm resolved to catch up on them, since season finales are fast approaching and all. :) And people, Grimm has been getting ridiculously good. RIDICULOUS. I loved this show pretty much out of the gate but as the season has progressed the quality of the episodes and storytelling and characters has gotten so much stronger -- it's just been a joy to watch it all come together. The team has set the bar VERY high for season two!

This episode opens with Nick (David Giuntoli) searching Aunt Marie's trailer, attempting to find the object or cabinet that the oddly shaped key she gave him before her death unlocks. Frankly, Nick, it's about time (just sayin'!). Since he's so fixated on the key, he (finally!) notices carvings on the case, and makes a "stamp" impression on a scrap of paper. Before he can investigate this new mystery any further, Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) calls to remind him that Hank (Russell Hornsby) is expecting them to join him for dinner tonight so he can introduce his new girlfriend. Two things: 1) apparently there is NO fallout from Juliette refusing Nick's proposal in the previous episode (out of sight, out of mind?) and two) why oh why is Nick surprised that Hank's new girlfriend is Adalind (Claire Coffee), the Hexenbiest? I suppose I should cut Nick some slack for being all distracted by his Grimm side-life, but I thought it was kind of funny that he was so checked out as far as Hank was concerned, seeing as they're partners and all. :P Nick is, of course, immediately hostile towards Adalind, which is hilarious because Juliette is all "what the heck is wrong with you?!" and Hank is fairly happily oblivious thanks to Adalind's "magic cookies" (HA). When Adalind steps away from the table for a moment, Nick follows her and warns her away from Hank, while she basically laughs in his face because she knows he can't go all Grimm on her in public. I have to say I was quite impressed with this first exhibition of Nick really stepping up and copping a "take no prisoners" attitude as relates to his Grimm-self. He's apparently coming to terms with things, hmm? *wink*

Meanwhile, Renard (Sasha Roiz), looking unbearably hot as usual, meets unexpectedly with an acquaintance from his past who takes him at gunpoint to meet his cousin (I know Renard is some sort of royalty, but they sometimes this old family connections just relish in acting like the mob, don't they?). Anyway, apparently THE FAMILY isn't very happy with the progress (or lack thereof) that Renard is making regarding the "Grimm situation," a.k.a. Nick (I realize that Renard may in fact have something very nefarious in mind for Nick, but the fact that he's spent a good part of the season shielding his detective just makes me like him more, moral ambiguity be hanged!). Renard is all "leave me alone to handle my business" and his cousin is all "forget you" so Renard is all "no, FORGET YOU" and shoots them both. Again, I should not like the fact that the man is so good at taking care of business like this but I do (apparently my weakness for tall guys with good bone structure in sharp suits is really a fatal flaw in my makeup).

Renard then goes to visit Catherine (Jessica Tuck), who turns out to be Adalind's mother. APPARENTLY Adalind has been helping Renard because her mother is in debt to him (would love to know why) -- the plan loosely being that she will seduce Hank to get to Nick and get the key (this seems like somewhat dodgy logic but whatever, if Renard thought it up it has to be brilliant right?). *wink* I get the feeling from this exchange that one or both women have a past with Renard -- or maybe they just want to have a past? because I really want Renard to be classier in the love department than hooking up with witchy women. Ha!

So while Renard's been yakkking it up at witch central, someone called in the two dead bodies he left laying about and of course Hank and Nick are called to investigate BECAUSE THEY ARE THE ONLY HOMICIDE DETECTIVES IN ALL OF PORTLAND. The scene looks like the two men shot each other, but Nick smells something fishy -- plus he's a little distracted trying to convince Hank that his lady love isn't THE ONE. Also, he finally notices Sgt. Wu (Reggie Lee) eating things he shouldn't, like an ENTIRE FRIGGIN' CHAPSTICK, so all told it is a weird evening for Nick any way you slice it. Wu may SEEM perfectly normal since he got the plague from eating one of Adalind's magic cookies, but clearly his eating habits say otherwise, as he proves when they return to the station and he eats COINS. This type of abnormality kinda whigs Nick out, but there's not much he can do about it since Wu is in denial -- but then he passes out. In the hub-bub of waiting for emergency services to arrive, Renard takes the opportunity to cop the phones from evidence just in case one of his loser family members had his contact info saved in there. Renard, you bad, bad boy. :P

Following her visit with Renard, Catherine goes to visit her daughter -- and it's interesting that they go all Hexenbiest on each other before transforming into their "normal" selves. Clearly this lifestyle promotes hostility and paranoia to some degree. Anyways, Adalind takes the opportunity to whine about her assignment to seduce Hank -- and I'm torn. Because Hank is really very nice and he totally needs and deserves a decent love interest, but on the other hand I can totally relate to Adalind's obsession with Renard. In the alluring bad boy contest Renard trumps Hank every single time. Interesting that the magic cookie stalking side effects are still in full swing as far as Hank is concerned -- he calls to invite himself over while staring in Adalind's window, and she counters with a dinner invitation for the following evening. THINGS ARE PROGRESSING.

At the hospital with Wu, Nick gets a quick lesson in the eating disorder known as pica, which involves the compulsion to consume non-edible items. Hopefully Wu finally has this out of his system. ANYWAYS, Nick calls Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) to consult about this Hank/Adalind situation, and Monroe consults Rosalee (Bree Turner), which is of course ADORABLE because she seems super smart and he has SUCH A CRUSH ON HER. I love it. :) Nick's Wesen BFFs deduce that Hank has fallen victim to an extraordinarily powerful love potion -- and Wu's strange symptoms are probably food anointed with a potion not formulated for his body chemistry. So all of this chemistry class stuff boils down to a race against time to keep Hank from sleeping with Adalind, because that, my friends, is the point of no return. AWKWARD, hmm??

Back to Renard being a BAD BAD BOY for a second. He actually does more than simply STEAL potentially incriminating evidence, tampers with it by replacing the sim card in the phone with a useless, clean one. Devious, I know. But dang it he is so smart...and smart is very attractive, no? *wink* When Nick discovers that the cell phone is useless, he starts theorizing IN FRONT OF RENARD that a third man was involved. Dangerous game, Nick, dangerous game. On the plus side, though, now that Nick is really starting to embrace his Grimm-ishness, he seems smarter...or is that just me? :P

Rosalee, because she is BRILLIANT and which goes a LONG WAY towards making her worthy of Monroe's everlasting love and affection, has of course managed to uncover the exact love potion that was used on Hank, and whips up an antidote. Seeing as this is Grimm, the patient can't just swallow the cure, it has to be inhaled through the nose using something that looks like a bizarre neti pot. They decide to test the cure on Wu, whose hospital stay only put off his random and disgusting eating habits, as they find him eating his shag carpet in his boxers (MORE AWKWARDNESS). It's a bit of a tense moment, but Wu recovers (of course) and is hilariously mortified that he's surrounded by a co-worker and strangers while he's in his underwear. Poor guy. :P

Bolstered by their success, they track down Hank to his witchy lady love's house where he'd arrived earlier for a romantic rendezvous with Adalind. This is bad on multiple levels, because 1) Adalind is AWOL and 2) now that she's slept with Hank the cure is worthless. OH THE STRESS! Apparently now that Hank is completely in Adalind's thrall, the only possible save is spilling the blood of a Grimm, NOT the blood of the Hexenbiest who crafted the potion (because that, my friends,would make too much sense). Nick is a bit put off by this knowledge, but he's game because HE'S NICK THE GRIMM for goodness' sake, so he heads off the woods to meet a gloating Adalind for a knock-down, drag-out fight.

Now this fight was unexpectedly awesome, because Adalind is so sure that Nick has agreed to the meet to hand over Aunt Marie's key, but instead he's all "LET'S GET VIOLENT RHYMES WITH WITCH," and they proceed to beat the you-know-what out of each other. Seriously Nick, I had no idea you had that in you. I guess you just need to be properly motivated. :P So onto the save -- Nick distracts Adalind by kissing her, she responds by biting him, and that releases his blood into her system. Honestly given who he was kissing the whole thing was especially gross. But the results were fascinating -- not only did the release of Nick's blood end up curing Hank, but it actually removed the Hexenbiest powers (spirit?) from Adalind's body. This raises the question are Hexenbiests born or made? And are they the only type of Wesen who can have their powers/abilities extracted where they become normal humans? OH THE POSSIBILITIES. Now that Adalind is all depressed that she's normal, I hope the show brings her back occasionally -- given her knowledge of the Wesen world, I have to think normal life would be stressful to say the least. Her now powerless perspective could bring some interesting spice to future episodes. And I will admit that I felt just the tiniest bit bad for Adalind when her mother and Renard kick her to the curb now that she's a regular human -- that was more than a little cold.

So Adalind's heartbreak aside, the episode is pretty much all's well that ends well, bringing to a conclusion the "Donkey Cabbages" inspired storyline that was first introduced in the "Island of Dreams" episode. Side note: Monroe's awkwardness at how to explain his and Rosalee's presence in Adalind's bedroom when Hank wakes up was hilarious. :) I absolutely loved this episode -- Nick being all decisive and Grimm-like, Renard being shady whilst wearing amazing suits, and Monroe making googly eyes at Rosalee (especially the latter). Looking forward to seeing how Renard starts to cope with the more assertive Grimm on his hands, Nick 2.0. Also, any ideas about the key? :)

Grimm 1.16: "The Thing With Feathers"

Two things: I love this show, and how how HOW does it keep getting better and better week after week? AMAZING. Last week's episode of Grimm saw Nick (David Giuntoli) attempt to enjoy a romantic weekend getaway with Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch). Sadly for Nick, now that he's a Grimm the job goes everywhere with him...there is no turning that part of his brain off. Also, no offense to any perfectly nice places called something along the lines of "Whispering Pines," but seriously in films and TV shows going some place with a name like that is never, EVER going to end well. ANYWAYS, remember that engagement ring that's popped up a couple of times? Well apparently Nick's finally decided to pop the question to Juliette, sure that an idyllic weekend away will be the perfect antidote to the Grimm-related stresses that have been plaguing them lately. En route to the rented cabin, the pair stops to ask directions at the home of Tim (Josh Randall) and Robin (Azura Skye), the latter his clearly terrorized wife. Nick barely hides his consternation when he sees the caustic Tim transform into a catlike Wesen -- newsflash to Nick, just leaving Portland doesn't make you any less of a Grimm, okay? :P

Juliette is extraordinarily disturbed by a glimpse she catches of Robin through a window, an unsettling impression she can't shake and is later reinforced when she witnesses Tim manhandling Robin and then forcibly dragging her inside their home. She gets Nick to call the local police department, but when the sheriff arrives nothing is done -- seriously did anyone not get a bad vibe from the sheriff's appearance? Ick. Anyways, Juliette's response to Robin's plight makes me wonder if perhaps the show has something planned for her in relation to Nick's work as a Grimm. She's proven time and again over the course of this season that she can keep a cool head in a crisis, and I think there's a lot of potential for her as some sort of partner in the Grimm-related work. Thoughts?

When Nick gets a Juliette-free moment he calls Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) to try and identify Tim. Monroe's reaction to Nick's call is priceless -- I just love how he whines about getting called, but as he proves later he really wouldn't have it any other way. :) It turns out that Tim is a Klaustreich, which is basically an EVIL alley cat. Klaustreichs are users, love 'em and leave 'em types -- and Monroe knows all of this because he ran afoul of one in his high school years (Monroe may have lost his girlfriend at the time, but the Klaustreich lost the battle with Monroe -- my cello playing, vegan Blutbad is a secret badass -- love it!). Tim's treatment of Robin is absolutely horrific -- preparing disgusting, worm-filled "protein shakes" that he actually force-feeds multiple times. This ranks as one of the most disgusting, chilling crimes in the show to date. The worm shakes are a revealing clue to Robin's Wesen identity -- she's revealed to be a Seltenvogel, a birdlike Wesen that produces a gold stone egg once in their lifetime. Between Robin's less than original name and the force-feeding thing, clearly Tim is controlling her with an eye to acquiring the stone. Robin's casting is one of the best as far as guest spots go this season -- Skye nails the mannerisms of a frightened, flighty bird, and her transformation scenes are among the most natural and likely in the show's history.

Back in Portland, poor Hank (Russell Hornsby) is becoming increasingly obsessed with the Hexenbiest Adalind (Claire Coffee) -- apparently her magic chocolate chip cookies turn people into stalkers. Poor Hank. *sigh* At least he's not eating like a goat like the recently recovered Sgt. Wu (Reggie Lee). (When is someone going to notice THAT mess??) Curiously enough, Adalind doesn't seem all that interested in manipulating Hank -- everything she does is at Renard's (Sasha Roiz) direction. Is she just a puppet, or is she involved with Renard? I cannot WAIT to find out what Renard's end game is, and what exactly his relationship is with Adalind -- who he is in the Wesen world that gives him the apparent position of power that he seems to possess. The writers have done a brilliant job building interest in Renard's character...and given how this show has improved week-over-week since its premiere, I have a great deal of confidence and excitement in seeing how everything plays out. (Side note: was Renard not the HOTTEST THING EVER in the above scene? I mean seriously?! *swoon*)

In other Portland-set news, Monroe is hanging out with Rosalie (Bree Turner), and while I don't think they are officially dating (yet), Monroe's crush makes me SO HAPPY. Seriously, just when I think he couldn't get more adorable HE DOES! When Nick calls Rosalie to ask her questions about Robin's Wesen identity, I LOVED Monroe's fake outrage (all to cover, I'm sure, that he's hanging out with Rosalie...like I said, ADORABLE!). Monroe's budding relationship with Rosalie is setting up -- I hope -- both a personal and professional partnership that this show will carry into its upcoming second season. Nick is in desperate need of another sensible, smart, broad-minded (in that they don't mind he's a Grimm) ally in the Wesen community. And so far, Rosalie seems to fit the bill perfectly. :) Side note: who has some theories on Rosalie's brother's stash of fake passports? Her brother had a history of some shady dealings as far as his business went, but nothing that to my mind required multiple passports. Is he some sort of spy, or in league with Renard somehow? 

So, back to the action in Whispering Pines -- Robin sees an opportunity to run from Tim and takes it, but doesn't take Juliette up on her earlier offer of help. Nick follows her to make sure she's okay, and at this point I'm hoping he realizes how awesome Juliette is because she is game -- I love how she's willing to put herself out there, doesn't let fear determine her reaction to the current situation. In the woods, Nick misses Robin by mere moments -- after killing the one man who had agreed to try and help Robin escape from Tim, he drags her back to their home. Nick discovers the body and calls the local sheriff again -- and this is where everything starts to get all Deliverance-ish. When Nick beats the sheriff to Tim's farmhouse and rescues Robin from yet another forced wormshake feeding, she reveals that the sheriff is Tim's cousin and they're both in on the plot to control her until the "egg" in her neck is ready to hatch.

The whole "bird in captivity" aspect of this episode takes its cue from a Hans Christian Andersen fairy tale -- "The Nightingale." In this story, the Chinese emperor keeps a nightingale captive in order to enjoy the bird's song whenever he likes. The story resolves a bit more happily for the nightingale and the emperor -- interestingly enough for this episode, it isn't the nightingale's song but it's egg that is what's valued. And that alteration to the Andersen fairy tale seems a bit reminscent of "Jack and the Beanstalk" and the giant's goose that layed golden eggs, no?

On the run in the woods, Robin starts to pass out because the "egg" is blocking her windpipe, ready to "hatch." In yet another example of Rosalie's awesomeness, she talks Nick through "delivering" the egg by cutting it out of Robin's neck. (I suppose this is the Grimm version of an emergency baby delivery -- ha!) Tim and the sheriff show up after the delivery, leading to an interesting moment -- Nick talks about how he cut the stone out of Robin's neck and two seconds later Juliette shows up with her gun -- don't you think she overheard that? Case-wise all's well that ends well -- the delicate gold egg shatters but Tim and his worthless and corrupt cousin are hauled off to jail. Personally Nick is in for another blow, though, as Juliette turns down his proposal. That moment KILLED me. I know why Nick feels like he must protect and shield her from his Grimm life, but secrets like that do not a sustainable relationship make, hmm? I mean how hard must that moment of raw honesty have been for Juliette? I respect her so much MORE now, you know? I really love Nick and Juliette together, and I hate the thought of trouble in their relationship -- but to the show's credit I think Nick/Juliette relationship stress is being handled extraordinarily well.

Grimm 1.15: "Island of Dreams"

Last week's episode of Grimm is one of the best things ever! Seriously! Heading into the home stretch of season one, this episode revisits Renard's (Sasha Roiz) connection to the hexenbiest Adalind (Claire Coffee), who hasn't been seen since "Danse Macabre" (episode five). The episode opens with a fascinating scene between Adalind and Renard discussing the merits of a classic painting -- Renard lets drop the tantalizing clue that he, or his family, used to own the piece, leaving his statement just vague enough that it's unclear if he's referring to himself or his family in the general, historical sense. Between this conversation and the exchange between Renard and the parole officer in "Last Grimm Standing," it's clear, I think, that the Captain hails from some group that is considered royalty in the Wesen community -- perhaps they still are. I'm dying for some specifics, though -- I need the who, what, when, where and why of everything involving Renard, but at the same time gah!! -- the mystery is part of his appeal. Thoughts on Renard? Is he some sort of immortal, just long-lived, and what kind of royalty? Because this guy's got class, even if he is morally ambiguous... :)

So anyways, Adalind's back and she's still supposed to make Hank (Russell Hornsby) fall in love with her, because according to Renard, HANK is the key to neutralizing Nick, who is the THREAT. Go figure. (I thought the way to a man's heart was through his stomach? Apparently in Grimm it's through his friends... *wink*) So she goes off with a vial of Hank's blood, and cut to the crime of the week -- two junkies (who turn out to be Skalengeck, which are freaky lizard people) are inhaling their current drug of choice which sends them into an absolute frenzy. High on whatever it is lizard people get high on, they head to the Wesen spice shop to raid the owner's supplies. The smash and grab robbery does not go well as the owner, Freddy (Randy Schulman) fights back, morphing into a fox and taking a piece out of one thief's leg before getting shot. When Hank and Nick (David Giuntoli) show up to investigate (because at this point I think they are the only detectives in Portland), the violence of the robbery and murder suggest more than just a theft gone awry -- perhaps the owner was dealing in black market goods (of course I think Hank would be pretty horrified to discover the shop owner used to deal in human gallbladder, etc.!).

The shop owner's next of kin turns out to be a woman named Rosalee (Bree Turner). She claims to know nothing about any illegal substances her brother may have been selling on the side, but agrees to examine the inventory and let Nick know if she finds anything suspicious. When Nick escorts her back to the shop he discovers she's a Fuchsbau (fox) like her brother, and she realizes that he's a Grimm, and is completely taken aback by the idea that he'd want to help a Wesen get justice. I love how overall she's so unfazed by the reveal of Nick's identity -- cautious, to be sure, but more curious than freaked out. It's about time Nick started building some useful bridges in the Wesen community (don't get me wrong, having the refrigerator guy & his ilk falling all over themselves to stay on Nick's good side is a humorous development, but I seriously doubt the skittish, rodent-type Wesens would be useful allies in a fight). *wink* 

Apparently the Adalind/Hank portion of this episode is loosely based on the fairy tale "Donkey Cabbages" (yes, really). This is the riveting tale of some guy who falls in love with a young witch who emotionally manipulates him in order to steal his fortune (and then he ends up getting turned into a donkey). In this incarnation of the story, Adalind bakes Hank some very special cookies, cookies that only HE can eat. Hank is of course flattered by Adalind's apparent interest, and gigantic cookies are always a win, right? The more he eats them, the more he becomes obsessed with Adalind, seeing her everywhere, to the point that it impacts his work. It seems that in short order she'll be able to get him to do anything she wants -- the only question being, what exactly is Renard's end game here in wanting to control Hank?

So the Hank plot is all well and good but frankly, the least interesting aspect of this episode -- I'm all about Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) meeting Rosalee. :) Nick recruits Monroe to help identify any substances in the spice shop that a Wesen would consider worth killing for -- this of course necessitates meeting the dead shop owner's sister, and Monroe is positively GOOGLY-EYED over Rosalee because he thinks she's so pretty. Excuse me while I SWOON. She of course is a little more reticent seeing as she's not used to the idea of Wesens pal-ing around with Grimms. But forget about the meet cute for a second -- there IS a drug in the shop, something Wesens like to smoke called "J" (???) that's highly addictive. So Nick and Monroe leave, the latter all "nice to meet you" and she's all "whatevs I'm GRIEVING and STRESSED," but she's about to get more stressed because the lizardy robbers return to the shop and she barely escapes with her life!! This results in a call to Nick requesting police protection -- he offers to send an officer to her house, she REQUESTS Monroe (since he gets the whole Wesen-hidden-identities thing). Monroe is ADORABLY eager to help and she's all about his nose (since Blutbads have renowned super-smellers) -- AND I LOVE THAT SHE ISN'T FALLING ALL OVER HIM. I gotta give the girl props for self-control.

At this point the Adalind's EVIL PLOT to ruin Hank collides with the spice shop murder, as Sergeant Wu (Reggie Lee) has stolen one of the magic cookies! I don't talk about Wu a lot because, let's face it, I'm distracted by MONROE, but he's always been a reliable supporting player. Anyways, since the cookies are magical HANK food, when Wu eats one he falls deathly ill with something disgusting that looks like the PLAGUE! Thankfully he was already headed to the spice shop where he meets Rosalee and Monroe, and she KNOWS AN HERBAL REMEDY. WIN!! She is one smart fox lady. :) So once Wu recovers enough to be left at his apartment, Nick and Monroe get some of Rosalee's backstory -- apparently she used to be addicted to "J," but has since resolved to stay clean (considering how wild Monroe used to be he should empathize, hmm?). She offers to help with the investigation because she wants justice for her brother (and, I think, because she's generally a good egg like Monroe!!), and leads Monroe and Nick to the Wesen equivalent of a crack house, called the Island of Dreams.

Now I completely didn't expect to be thinking of Sherlock Holmes while watching Grimm, but sometimes that's just how my mind works. The "den" is a collection of red tents -- private chambers where Wesens are all strung out on their favorite recreational drug. The atmosphere, the set-up, it all reminded me of opium dens in the Holmes stories and their film adaptations. Now Nick is no Sherlock (sorry Nick!), but I don't think it's out of line to liken Monroe to the very best kind of Watson, hmm? *wink* Anyways, Nick and Monroe find the crazy lizard people and there's all sorts of insanity and gunfire and MONROE GETS A GUN IN HIS FACE...but this is the best part, Rosalee saves him by clocking the EVIL PERP on the back of the head with a brick! And the look on Monroe's face is just PRICELESS, seriously I wouldn't put it past him to be all "marry me NOW you are AWESOME" -- but I'll take his look of shocked adoration. :)

So all's well that ends well, or is it -- Wu has apparently recovered, but after Nick leaves he starts eating sofa stuffing. I'm thinking that little twist is a nod to the whole "Donkey Cabbages" thing. But who the heck cares about magic cookies and poor Hank getting poisoned by that shrew Adalind, when you have awesome things happening like Monroe BRINGING ROSALEE FLOWERS TO THANK HER FOR SAVING HIS LIFE. And he's all adorable and slightly dorky and sweet AND DID I MENTION ADORABLE?! *happy sigh* She's decided to stay in Portland for a bit and give running her brother's shop a go -- which of course makes Monroe very happy. All I've got to say is, Grimm writers, play this one RIGHT. If she breaks Monroe's heart I don't know if I'll be able to take it. That said, I love the possibility of Monroe in love :) and of Nick gaining a second sensible ally in the Wesen world. Here's hoping this is a storyline/idea that gets more play in Season 2! :)

Grimm 1.5: "Danse Macabre"

Grimm is a show that is just MADE of one awesome thing after another, isn't it? Seriously, this show rocks. After being sadly absent and sorely missed due to the Thanksgiving holiday, Grimm returned last night with the first of two new episodes this week. This episode took its cue from "The Pied Piper of Hamlin," which is another fairy tale that has always rather creeped me out (hello?? charismatic stranger luring away children by the truckload??), and the Grimm writers translated the gist of the Piper's story just brilliantly into a modern-day setting. The episode opens with the murder of a strict music teacher at an exclusive prep school -- and the whole getting eaten by rats while trapped in your car thing is easily the show's grossest case yet. I'm talking Bones levels of grossness. But that aside, this show starts to depart from the formula of previous episodes, and in doing so introduces Nick (David Giuntoli) to a whole  new aspect of his life as a Grimm, namely how Grimms are perceived by those they have historically "hunted."

Prior to this episode, the fairy tale creatures Nick encountered were almost always baddies, guilty of perpetrating crimes against other creatures or regular humans who, unlike Nick, can't recognize their true nature. In this episode Nick meets Reinigen, ratlike creatures who are among the lowest of the low on the fairy tale creature "food chain." Roddy is a bullied teenage musical prodigy, kicked out of his exclusive prep school after being framed by fellow students who looked down on his blue collar antecedents. Roddy is a reinigen, from a family of the same, who all just happen to be rat catchers -- of course. I loved how the show transformed rats into social outcasts, complete with the edgy mannerisms you'd expect from...ahem...rodents. I was fascinated with the idea of making Roddy as a human "Piper" an underground DJ -- of course it is completely beyond my capacity to understand how calling yourself Retchid Kat while wearing a giant pink cat head to raves makes you cool, but whatever.

So of course based on the pattern of previous episodes, and knowing the Pied Piper storyline, I expected Roddy to be some sort of sociopath rat. I was pleasantly surprised by the way the show subverted those expectations, by making those who'd bullied Roddy the guilty party, having staged the disgusting prank that (accidentally) killed their teacher. It brought to mind the warning from Nick's aunt, that as a Grimm he as to hunt down the bad ones. The reinigen are textbook examples of creatures who are easily victimized in the creature world. As are the hamsters, or whatever it was the refrigerator repairman transformed into when he saw Nick at his home (that was a hilarious scene!). Both encounters introduce Nick to the reality that some of the Grimm-creatures he's going to meet will fear him just because of who he is, not because of anything he's done. I hope the show reveals either more Grimms or delves into Nick's family history -- that could be fascinating!

This episode was a nice break from the more mythology-heavy introductory episodes this season. It was chock-full of the humor and chills I've come to expect from this show, and a great example of how Grimm can deliver an enjoyable, interesting hour featuring an investigation that  is turned on its head by a fairy tale, sans the Grimm mythology the show has been working to establish. (And I've enjoyed that, just to be clear -- but this episode is a great indicator of the longevity the show's concept is capable of sustaining.)

My favorite part of this episod was when Nick asks Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) to meet with Roddy, creature to creature, to try and convince the teen that despite the fact Nick is a Grimm he doesn't mean Roddy any harm. Any scene with Monroe is guaranteed to be an episode highlight, and Mitchell delivers in spades here. I like how Monroe seems to really enjoy shocking fellow fairy tale creatures by revealing that yes, he IS in fact on friendly terms with Nick the Grimm. His "pep talk" to Roddy is an exercise in self-help hilarity -- the blutbad and the rat whisperer. LOL!

I also thoroughly enjoyed the continuing "buddy chemistry" between Nick and Hank (Russell Hornsby), especially when Nick surprises Hank with a rubber rat squeaky toy in their pizza box -- that moment had me rolling. I think it is interesting how Hank subtly envies Nick's relationship with Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch). His longing for a relationship opens the door for Captain Renard (Sasha Roiz) to send the witch woman Adalind Schade (Claire Coffee) in his path. Which brings up the whole question again of who the heck is Renard? Some sort of hexenbiest pimp (ewww, right?)?? ENQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW. And speaking of Juliette, this episode starts to play with the idea that given Nick's "Grimm aura" she's going to start suspecting that something is up with her boyfriend -- all that remains is to figure out when she'll start asking serious questions, and will Nick own up to his secret life or lie, blowing up his happy home life?? Oh the possibilities... :)

Grimm returns tonight with another new episode -- NBC is seriously spoiling fans this week! I'd love to hear your thoughts on Grimm's return!

Grimm 1.3: "BeeWare"

Grimm's third episode, BeeWare, draws its inspiration from a more obscure Grimm story ("The Queen Bee") and interestingly enough a 1955 Joan Crawford film, from which the show borrowed its opening quote -- "She'll sting you one day. Oh, ever so gently, so you hardly even feel it. 'Til you fall dead." It was a bold move, in my opinion, to delve into more obscure Brothers Grimm territory in only the show's third episode -- but the resulting product more than compensated for any doubts I may have had by delivering a wonderfully intriguing, deliciously creepy hour.

The episode opens with a group of presumed strangers boarding a streetcar, where the lamest flash mob I've ever seen on film breaks into a rousing rendition o the "YMCA." When the dance is over, a well-dressed professional woman lies dead with a large puncture wound in her neck, all signs pointing to anaphylactic shock. An autopsy finds ridiculously high levels of bee venom in her blood -- the only questions remaining, how was it administered and who wanted her dead? The victim, a lawyer for a prominent local firm, was working on a case that shut down a "family-owned" paper mill company. While Hank (Russell Hornsby) and Nick (David Giuntoli) interview the flash mob witness pool, one of the members -- who all suspiciously have the same story (lemmings, much?) -- is so edgy he can no longer hide his identity and morphs into a giant bee-like insect.

What's fascinating to watch play out in this episode is the relation of the bees to Nick and their role in the Grimm universe. Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) explains that the bees are mellifers, messengers in the world of fantastical creatures that Nick is now seeing every where he turns. The mellifers only have one natural enemy -- the hexenbiests. This raises an interesting question -- why are all three hexenbiests in this episode lawyers? Is that their only job in the "real" world? The mellifer/hexenbiest animosity also raise a VERY interesting dilemma for Nick, one I hope and expect will play an ever larger role in his life now that he's aware of his calling as a "Grimm." As his aunt instructed him in the first two episodes of the series, he's supposed to hunt down the bad creatures -- but what happens when creature on creature "warfare" counters the law Nick as a police officer has sworn to uphold?

This concern comes into play when Nick discovers that the final lawyer who worked on the paper mill case is Adalind Schade (Claire Coffee), the hexenbiest who attempted to kill his aunt in episode one. In the short amount of time he's been aware of his Grimm powers, Nick's come to realize that hexenbiests aren't creatures to feel any sympathy for -- but his job calls for him to protect Adalind, in spite of the fact that the mellifers are actually on his side. The scene where she baits him with this knowledge, essentially blackmailing him into protecting her, contains a nice amount of tension -- especially since Nick isn't well-versed enough in the Grimm world to know or understand what the mellifers are trying to warn him about/protect him from.

Speaking of Adalind, I am more curious than ever about the hexenbiests' relationship with Nick's boss, police Captain Renard (Sasha Roiz). If Renard is wholly invested in the fairy tale world, why hasn't he made a move against Nick? Is he hoping to turn him, running a bigger game, or is something else at stake, a secret that has yet to be revealed? Theories? :)

The buddy chemistry between Nick and Monroe is a highlight of this episode. Mitchell is just hilarious and I'm loving his very dry sense of humor. It was especially funny to see the "dog jokes" play out, as Nick bribes Monroe to employ his blutbad sense of smell with a bottle of Bordeaux. Monroe's all offended until he realizes he has something to gain. *wink* I'm really getting curious about his backstory -- for someone who comes from a long line of Grimm haters, one gets the feeling he's really enjoying his "work" with Nick though he'd probably die before admitting it. It was also nice to see Nick's girlfriend Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) have something more to do than just welcome Nick home -- she doctors Hank's bee stings and offers some veterinary insight into the habits of bees. It was a limited scene but a welcome expansion of her role.

Grimm has quickly become one of my favorite new shows of the fall season, all the more so because I didn't expect to like it as much as I do AT ALL. The fairy tale/police procedural mash-up is just genius so far in the show's run. The Oregon settings are lush and almost otherworldly at times, the perfect backdrop for fairy tale monsters to come to life. I am loving the excellence with which each episode is filmed and the shots are framed, very reminscent of film noir -- intense and absorbing but thus far not *too* creepy. :) But most of all, the cast is clicking unbelievably well -- especially Nick and Monroe. The humor sets the show apart, and coupled with an intoxicating, suspenseful atmosphere -- well, with fairy tales turned on their heads what's not to love?