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| Pellegrino as Papa Coyotl, courtesy NBC |
Opening quote: "Then she began to weep bitterly, and said 'What can a poor girl like me do now?'"
This is a disturbing little episode full of squirmy topics like inbreeding and rape. Fortunately, there is a payoff in the end. NBC has been asking us if Nick is ever going to tell Hank the truth. Well, the wait is over, folks. Tonight we got our answer.
We open in a kitchen, but not just any kitchen. This kitchen contains the excellent Mark Pellegrino of Supernatural and Being Human. Here, he is a doting father to a teenage girl. It's a classic story. Girl goes up to bed, only to be kidnapped by redneck dog boys in her bedroom. The leering boys drive her to an abandoned farm and lower her into a well. Say hello to the Monster of the Week.
Juliette is still in the hospital. She has no memory of Nick, who tries desperately to be remembered. Nope, she's not having it. She remembers everyone but him. Do we think, maybe, that was Adalind's plan all along? Poor Nick even brings Monroe to the hospital to see if that will jar her little head. Alas, she remembers Monroe. More importantly, she remembers the delicious honey-pepper-cedar-plank-vegan-salmon she made for their dinner party.
Meanwhile, Hank's ongoing failure to cope with the oddness that lurks around him is interrupted by an old friend. Jarold (Pellegrino) shows up begging Hank to help find his daughter, Carly. During this emotional moment, Nick catches a glimpse of Jarold's own inner dog. This, of course, necessitates a trip to Aunt Marie's trailer, and reveals that Jarold is a Coyotl. You get the idea, right? A nasty inbred vicious dog pack? Good. Back in the trailer, Monroe finds a nice diagram depicting a fertility rite. In answer to Nick's general state of confusion, Monroe delivers "Well, Nick, when a mommy coyotl and a daddy coyotl love each other very much..." You get the picture.
Turns out Jarold took his wife and daughter away from the coyotl pack back in Texas and they've come back for little Carly. Which they tell her all about with the charm of an impending gang rape. I have to wonder if they killed and ate all of their own womenfolk. Did I mention that they are all family? Add incest to the gang rape. Ick. Poor Carly is forcibly bathed by two redneck boys and dressed in some attractive sackcloth for the big ceremony. Nothing says "you'll like it here" like a forcible bathing. Inevitably, Nick, Hank, and Jarold arrive to save the day.
While the rednecks hackle up at Nick, Jarold and Hank run off looking for Carly. Instead of the girl, they find the oh so very quaint rape-alter erected for the occasion. Much to my disappointment, just when we think Nick is going to go all Grimm on these scumbags, Hank interrupts him for a little chat. This, fortunately, results in the discovery of the well where Carly has once again been dumped. The rednecks pull out their guns and open fire on the threesome, who seek shelter in a barn. Unfortunately, this is when Carly realizes that Nick is a Grimm, and freaks out in full view of Hank. This leads to the moment we've been waiting for! Dum ta da dum! Nick tells Hank he sees the monsters too. "It's a family problem."
Hank handles all this extremely well and settles down quickly, ready to whoop some rednecks. Through a little trickery, they manage to subdue the redneck pack of coyotls without killing them - which, personally, I found dissatisfying.
All in all, we get our happy ending. Well, sort of. Hank is happy that even though he might be crazy, at least he's not alone. While Nick is sadly left alone with a girlfriend who doesn't even remember him. Do you think Hank being in on the secret is going to help Nick? What about when he finds out about Monroe? Do we even care if Juliette's memory returns? I, for one, would really like Juliette to grow a backbone.
Sgt. Wu sums the day up exceptionally well: "So, let me get this straight. In the last six hours you've arrested six felons, saved a damsel in distress, and reunited a family. While I have filled out three dozen overtime reports and scrubbed out the coffee maker. Yeah. We've all put in a rich full day."
The next episode of Grimm, "Quill" airs Monday, Sept. 3 at 10 pm ET