[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Director: Dan Etheridge
Writers: Deirdre Mangan & Graham Norris
Stars: Rose McIver, Malcolm Goodwin & Rahul Kohli
Summary
Team Z have to deal with the fallout of the massacre at the party last season. Additionally, Liv and her friends must face what will happen if zombies are discovered.
Positives
I like the basic premise of Vivian and her organization. It’s interesting to me that an entire subculture of zombies has been created without Liv’s knowledge. I like that there’s a bigger world and bigger stakes now. The writers have escalated the scale of the show well in a natural manner since the pilot.
Blaine is fascinating in this episode. Someone logically points out that Blaine could easily be faking his amnesia. And the episodes makes a good case for that idea but it’s ambiguous. I genuinely don’t know if he’s faking it or not. It certainly seems like he is at certain points especially when he’s trying to woo Peyton but he also seems very genuine at other moments. I love that I can’t tell.
I am glad Clive knows everything now. It allows for a stronger bond between Liv and Clive now that there aren’t any secrets. The two have a couple of really sweet scenes together that both Rose McIver and Malcolm Goodwin played very well. It’s a genuine friendship that helps ground the show despite some of its more comedic elements.
Negatives
There are too many subplots. A lot is happening in this episode and it all feels somewhat disjointed. It could easily all come together and work wonderfully but I’m a little concerned. This season is only 13 episodes; I’m not sure everything is going to get the screen time it needs. There are several scenes in this episode that are kind of boring because they don’t have time to really develop.
Verdict
This is a good start. I like that the episode breaks out of the formula; there is no case and there are no comedic high jinks with a brain. I love those elements but it’s nice to see the writers try something else as they have done before. This episode mainly sets up the new status quo as a result of the previous season and it works for the most part. I am intrigued. Goodwin gets some standout moments in his performance and I like where his character is going. The side stories are a little dull but not awful. If you haven’t seen the show before, this is probably not a good place to start but I recommend catching up on Netflix and checking this out. It’s a good time.
