During its first nine episodes, The Secret Circle almost played like a supernatural procedural. While there were obviously serialized elements in each installment, from the plan of the adults to steal the crystals to the matter of fate vs. choice set against angsty teen romance, there wasn’t anything tangible that the circle was fighting for an extended time. We’ve dealt with demons, witch hunters, and all types of shadowy figures lurking in the greater Chance Harbor area, a majority of the time, everything ended up wrapped up (somewhat) neatly at the end of the episode. What the group faced affected their dynamic, ratcheting up Cassie’s desperation for answers and pissing Faye off more than usual, but nothing quite stuck to the show’s ribs.
Going into a third episode of dealing with Cassie’s dark magic, it seemed like The Secret Circle may have found something to explore for a while. Though it may not be tangible like an actual big bad, something that the show would benefit from implementing in a second season, it’s something with pretty far reaching effects that are throwing each member of the circle a little off balance. Thankfully, part of that rampant fear of Cassie sending everybody to hell brought about some fun pairings in “Fire/Ice”, noticeably shaking things up in the process. The Secret Circle tends to lean on certain pairings (Faye/Melissa, Adam/Diana/Cassie), so getting a little Diana/Melissa or Faye/Lee was a nice break that allowed for a little character exploration. If nothing else, Diana/Melissa helped to frame why these people continue to hang out with one another and captured the human side of this group of superhumans; so much time is spent on magic talk that sometimes you forget that these are five lonely teenagers trying to figure themselves out and can grow apart in the process. As much as I like seeing all the horror movie-ish moments that The Secret Circle has or mentally filing one of Faye’s snarky comments to use at a later date, it’s stuff like Diana and Melissa reconnecting after letting boys and new friends gradually drag the two apart that makes me care about the members of the circle.
Of course, we still got our fair share of Adam/Diana/Cassie love-drama, complete with Robert Frost quotes and a weirdly lit kiss, but I can indulge in a little schmoopiness if I can check out something like Faye/Lee. It looks like Faye may have found her sarcastic equivalent in the “voodoo priest”, as the two took turns quipping back and forth and looking like they were restraining themselves from a round of boot-knocking in a smoldering storyline. I don’t know if Lee is legitimate, considering the spell messed up, but seeing him slip something with Faye’s blood on it into his pocket may spell trouble for the circle in future episodes.
However, the ending left a lot to be desired, mostly because it was all but identical to last week’s ending that had Jake standing outside the residence that Cassie was at, in a nod to how strong her powers were becoming. This time, after saving her from the fire Faye set at the dance, Jake followed Cassie and Adam to the basement of the abandoned house, cornering them as the episode ended. It felt like they were going for something shocking or a little unsettling, having the two main characters alone in a basement with someone that wants to kill them, but it didn’t do anything for me at all. Jake’s specter has been all over The Secret Circle‘s first two episodes, appearing in an opening dream sequence, beneath Cassie’s window, at school twice (once in Cassie’s mind), and now in the basement, with all this following a supposed exit in episode 9. It was a little expected and lacked any sense of danger, as Jake’s already saved Cassie once and she’s the main character, duh, hence he won’t do anything to her.
Plus, Cassie has been diving more into her family history, thanks to Jake’s suggestion that she learn more about Blackwell/dark magic for safety reasons, and I don’t see her doing anything to someone that could shine a light on everything.
Mainly, I liked how “Fire/Ice” seemed to be another step in the right direction for The Secret Circle, with a few answers being revealed (Blackwell lived in the house they practice magic in) and some internal strife that had been simmering for a little while finally boiling over. Although Faye has at least an ounce of love for the circle, i.e. her immediate move to reverse the spell, her asking how it’d affect Cassie beforehand, and her concern for Melissa, she may have finally gone too far this time by trying to tether herself to Cassie to “share” her magic. It’ll be interesting to see how deep Faye falls down the voodoo rabbit hole in order to either patch things up with the circle or wreak havoc on the other four members, especially considering her thirst for power has grown as the season has went along. While Faye dreams of a world of unlimited individual magic, Cassie has to find a way to control her (immense) abilities otherwise she’ll continue to stockpile “accidents” and the next one may prove to be fatal.
Thoughts, Quotes, & Observations:
-“Sometimes spells go wrong. And now I have an excuse to buy a new dress.”
-“Y’know, blondie, emo boy, girl scout.”
-“I guess you can’t judge a book by its lip gloss.”
-“When we have sex, it’s not going to be because of a deal.”
-“We’re hot witches. You said so yourself.”
-“How does this one get a free pass and I get burned at the stake?”
-Melissa playing wingman for Diana was cute and I liked the confidence we saw from her. I hope the two of them stick together and help one another heal from their recent heartbreaks.
-Adam’s dad saying “he didn’t start the fire” sent me into a giggle fit. It was always burning, you guys. It was always burning.
-You may have noticed that I’m not your regular reviewer, the inimitable spellmaster that is Mark O. Estes. He’s a bit under the weather, but he should be back next week.
-Adam’s dad is back. And sober!
-Here’s the poem that gave the episode its title (and that Adam and Diana mentioned): Robert Frost’s Fire and Ice.
-Next week on The Secret Circle: Jake returns to help Cassie find out what happened the day her father was killed, while Charles and Dawn try to woo Ethan over to their side and Faye gets in over her head dealing with one of Lee’s friends.
Follow Us
