The witch is back!
Mary Sibley has risen from the dead, thanks to the Essex witches. The first thing Mary does is try to find the man she died for – John Alden. After realizing he is not there and she is among her fellow witches, Mary threatens to leave. Oh, but her “sisters” reveal the truth: She is bounded with the primordial tree of Salem, so she can never leave Salem. At first, Mary refuses to give into the demands of the witches. But, it is only when Tituba shows her the future that her beloved John Alden and those in the town of Salem are burned by the Devil that Mary comes to terms with what she must do. She must kill her son Little John aka The Devil.
Knowing she may not win this battle against her son, Mary visits John one last time and spends the night with him and then leave. It’s a really heartbreaking scene, especially since it took a whole season for them to finally be reunited. It is such a sad love story between the two. Can’t they just have a moment of happiness? I mean, one night of passion is fine, but the two truly love each other. Of course, John wants to fight alongside her, but with Tituba’s intervention, he decides to fight the outside forces (the Indians and French) while Mary works on the devil.
After attempting to train some men to fight, John pretty much gives up on them, except for a kid who shows some spunk. The fact that the kid kicked John in the crotch made me laugh so hard. Then, we find out the kid is actually a woman. I have NO idea what’s up with that. They did not provide enough story for this kid – let alone a name, which they probably only said once. Could this be a potential new, weird love story for Salem? Who is that kid/woman?
As for Cotton, he is still unhappy with his life with Anne. Obviously, he is stuck in a marriage with a witch who is under the thumb of the Dark Lord, but details. Things become a lot worse for Cotton. The Dark Lord wants to use him to calm the tensions between the people of Salem. The calmer the people, the easier it is to rule them. Cotton is totally not okay with this but is given a choice: If Cotton agrees, he will be able to live his life with Anne in peace. But, if Cotton messes it all up, he becomes the martyr for the cause. Basically, a lose-lose situation. In the end, Cotton preaches on behalf of the Dark Lord. His reason? Because he loves Anne. Anne falls for it because this is what she’s dreamed about, and they make love finally. This could finally be a major moment for the #Cottanne fans, but in the end – he faked it. He plucks a piece of her hair as she is sleeping, which probably means he will attempt to cast a spell to free himself. I do have to say, Cotton is a pretty damn good actor – even deceiving John – for being able to fake his happiness.
We are finally introduced to Marilyn Manson’s character Thomas Dinley, the barber/surgeon/diener, who inspects the body that Isaac found on the ground in Knocker’s Alley. Completely unrecognizable without his signature eyeliner and fully coverage makeup, Manson has transformed into a straight-laced Puritan who knows his stuff about dead bodies. We don’t get to see much of his character in this episode, but he does give off a creepy vibe and it’s not because he’s Marilyn Manson. I think I need more scenes from him to fully judge who Thomas Dinley really is.
As for Mary, she finally returns to the Devil and pretends to return just for him. He is ecstatic and promises her happiness, but his brother, The Sentinel, is suspicious of her actions. After interrogating her for several hours, including involving one of his bodily functions – a bug – to be implanted inside her to find out her true intentions. After finding nothing, the Devil and Mary continue their mother-son relationship with her giving him a bath. It is then, she tries to kill him, only to find out it was all a trap. She had failed the Devil’s test.
During this time, we found out more about the Sentinel. We knew he was the Devil’s brother who fought alongside him in the war against God, but we did not know he was there all along when Mary was giving birth to Little John. The swarm of bugs around her body was the Sentinel. I feel like the Sentinel knows the truth about Mary’s return, but is just watching and waiting for her to do something. Sam Roukin is officially the scariest character on the show – including beating Oliver Bell (as creepy child) and Marilyn Manson. With just his eyes, Roukin could cause you to shiver like a serial killer watching his next victim. That’s a compliment in the Salem world.
The most interesting storyline in this episode – other than Mary-Devil-Sentinel – is Mercy’s newfound negotiations with Hawthorne. After attempting to coerce a financial agreement with Mercy for his “protection” against his militia, Hawthorne is cast under a spell by her. Not a random spell. Just boils growing rapidly on his body, causing him to beg Mercy for the elixir to save him. It looks like a start of a beautiful partnership. I’m loving this Mercy – she’s sassy.
Meanwhile, Tituba seems to have found a new familiar, which has given her new sight. Tituba now has cat eyes. Okay… that was it for her storyline. I wish I had more, but that’s it. She got cat eyes. I mean, she still looks gorgeous.
Overall, the episode gave us a little more insight into the Sentinel’s backstory and how he has been a part of Mary’s life this whole time. I feel like he’s even more dangerous than the devil, which I am excited for. I am also excited to see more of Manson. Salem’s guest stars have not disappointed me the past two seasons. Stephen Lang and Lucy Lawless were absolutely amazing additions to the cast. And, now with the Dark lord himself, Marilyn Manson, joining the team this season, it’s going to continue that streak.
Salem airs every Wednesday at 9pm on WGN America.
from Nerd Reactor
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