Pulling off a reveal can be a tricky thing for a series like The Secret Circle to do. If you put in a certain amount of time into gathering information on something vital, there’ll be innate tension that arises the closer you come to an answer. It can get you more into the narrative by having progress to track and speculation to make as to the direction things are going. However, having all that time to speculate could lead the actual reveal to be a bit of a letdown. The more something is poked, prodded, and built up, the more expectations it has to live up to and if your mental picture of events doesn’t quite match the actual event in the show, you can’t help but feel a little deflated.
The Secret Circle had put many weeks into developing John Blackwell, one of the most powerful witches Chance Harbor had ever seen, holder of some serious black magic, and Cassie’s biological father. His reputation had certainly preceded him, as any mention of his name inspired fear in the toughest of adversaries the circle had faced. However, now that Cassie’s activation of the medallion brought him out of hiding, I have to say that I’m a tad disappointed. Blackwell had been built up to be an awe-inspiring magical entity that having him be without any magic and often times at the mercy of Cassie (both magically and emotionally) didn’t do his reputation justice. Blackwell had been neutered to the point that I wondered if he, too, would be another one week guest star like so many visitors to Chance Harbor have been this season. I didn’t need him to come lumbering in and taking over, but there was no menace, no danger, no edge to the character that had been predicated on menace, danger, and edge. Ethan’s fear for Adam and Cassie seemed to have no real purpose, as we’ve only had a tiny glimpse at what primo Blackwell can do and the Blackwell before us is certainly not the Blackwell who made it off the boat.
Having him team up with Jake, already on the fringe of the circle, could make for some morally ambiguous fun, but otherwise, Blackwell’s first romp through Chance Harbor was a bit of a bust.
However, “Return” had some elements that I rather enjoyed, including the first real group magic that The Secret Circle had done in a while. For being magically bound, the circle haven’t really done much when they’re altogether, so having everybody save Cassie from the mind control serum that Eben administered to her was a nice reminder of just how powerful they can be. That power was exposed on an individual level with Melissa continuing to hang with the wrong crowd and almost getting herself hurt at Callum’s party. There may not have been a whole lot to Melissa’s plot, with the Buffy-at-the-Bronze vibe doing most of the heavy lifting, but Jessica Parker Kennedy got some much needed time to shine, showcasing a little toughness to what has easily been the most vulnerable character on The Secret Circle. Melissa’s current lack of direction (and need to be liked) may have brought her to the warehouse, but once she got herself in a bind, she snapped out of it, likely thanks to Callum knowing how powerful she can be.
Where does Callum go from here, though? He’s a more legitimate voodoo man than Lee, so could the show be setting up another plot where someone tries to take the group’s magic?
But most impressively, I think The Secret Circle has figured out their proper per-episode romantic mixture. The show had, at times, gotten too reliant on sticking three pretty teenagers in a room together and allowing them to have a total brood off, so the minor touches of Cassie/Adam in the past couple of episodes have been downright refreshing in comparison. I’m not head-over-heels for the pairing yet, but they have gotten back a little spark they lost in the whole Diana/Jake mess and Adam, in particular, has gotten to stretch a little bit now that Jake is attached to Faye. He’s still a wet blanket and she’s still too impulsive for her own good, but brief moments like the ending of “Return” in the booth are the type of simple, sweet romantic gestures that’ll keep their plot from going too melodramatic. I don’t mind watching these two emotionally damaged misfits find comfort in one another’s company; just keep the angst down about 10 notches.
The addition of Cassie’s new job at the Java Brew can help the romantic balance, as well. It’ll help build the world of Chance Harbor (outside of the woods, the abandoned house, the dock, Cassie’s house, and school) while giving Cassie a more rounded identity and something to do outside of The Secret Circle activities. Plus, having her interact with “normal” people can maybe bring up issues of identity (is she really okay with being a witch, does she want to have “normal” friends, etc.) that a supernatural-leaning teen drama can really play with.
“Return” was an interesting choice as the final pre-hiatus episode, as the overarching plot shifted gears after achieving some resolution and the subplots were open-ended, with Lee’s former girlfriend waking up once he destroyed the power totem. I assumed that they’d have a major cliffhanger relating to Blackwell and dark magic, but I think that having the distinct change in goal for the circle is a fairly good way to go out. Now that they’ve found Blackwell, The Secret Circle has to press him for answers regarding the boat fire while ascertaining if he’s as good and clean as he intimated. The circle has made the mistake of trusting people too soon before and Blackwell’s reputation didn’t come from nowhere, so there has to be a certain amount of caution going forward. “Return” may not have been on the level of “Valentine”, but there’s enough there that I’m interested in seeing how the show handles the new presence of “wanted man” Blackwell and if there’s more to the previous generation of witches than anyone knows.
Thoughts, Quotes, & Observations:
-“Why do all the men in my life like you more than me?”
-“It’s adorable how clingy you are in relationships.”
-“Put it away, Lee. This isn’t a booty call.”
-“That’s big magic for a small girl.”
-“Your father said nearly the same thing before I slit his throat.”
-“Nothing says ‘I love you’ like a power sucking totem.”
-No Dawn, no Jane. But Charles’s new haircut is here.
-How long will it be before Eben comes for his revenge?
-Question: In the show’s timeline, how long has it been since Jane disappeared? If she’s been gone for a while, how is Cassie paying bills and whatnot?
-Ballsy Ethan > drunk Ethan.
-The scenes in the snowy woods were typically gorgeous, particularly Cassie making the circle of fire erupt around Blackwell.
-Speaking of, Blackwell being petrified to come out of hiding and then returning to his hometown to stay seemed a little…fishy.
-Cassie getting held down and having her eyes held wide open was very A Clockwork Orange, no?
–The Secret Circle is now on a one month hiatus and won’t be returning until March 15th. With the season finale scheduled for May 10th, look for seven episodes in nine weeks once it resumes.
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