TV Review: Lovecraft Country - Episode 2
“lovecraft country” episode 2 is high on uneven pacing, lore, weirdness, and a cast that just keeps you invested
78/100 “sweet”
By: Keaton Marcus
In episode two of JJ Abrams, Jordan Peele and Misha Green’s Lovecraft Country, we get a brutally paced, beautifully-shot, occasionally in-cohesive episode that doesn’t quite answer our questions. The cast is all still doing a fantastic job, the cinematography is gorgeous, and it’s a mostly excellent continuation—but it really wavers while shoving loads of lore into our faces, losing some of the tension that its predecessor set up.
Dubbed “Whitey’s on the Moon”, this continues right off the bat of the mysterious ending of episode one, which led the trio: Atticus (Jonathan Majors), Letitia (Jurnee Smollett-Bell) and George (Courtney B. Vance) to some sort of mansion after the monster attack in the woods. We find that this house is the Braithwaite Estate in Ardham, the suspected location of Atticus’ missing father. After Letitia and George indulge in the luxury of William (Jordan Patrick Smith) and Christina’s (Abby Lee Kershaw) residence, Atticus’ suspicion grows after they explore the town in search for clues.
The trip into Ardham certainly builds plenty of suspense, enhanced by sublime camera-work and appropriately creepy residents, but director Daniel Sackheim fails to clarify the aggressive isolationist position of the town or the townspeople’s relationship with the Braithwaite family. Heck, maybe we’ll get answers in future episodes, although this is supposed to be a mostly anthology-type show. The rushed visit to the town leads to a very odd plot-point that also doesn’t seem to fit in. Atticus is horrified, and remembers last night’s occurrences with vivid detail, though Letitia and George can’t seem to at all.
Letitia becomes worried for Atticus, suggesting his agitation could perhaps be related to some sort of PTSD-related issue after the war. Sadly, Lovecraft skips over this potentially intriguing idea and drops it after about 10 minutes. My last lingering “flaw” with this episode is the encounter with Dell (Jamie Neumann), the “sheriff” of Ardham. The familiarity just hits you like a bullet. Remember that racist-old sheriff and his officers in “Sundown?” Remember how carefully set-up and harrowingly terrifying the scene was? In “Whitey’s on the Moon”, Sackheim shoehorns it in there to remind us that there was, in fact, racism in the ‘50s without building towards anything. All it does is push the episode forward in perfunctory fashion.
Besides these few mishaps, and the workman-like dialogue while tackling the lore of that inspired this series, there were many bright spots in the new episode. First of all, Majors plays the hell out of Atticus, and he continues to be a protagonist that we want to root for: a likable, nuanced character, and just a cool dude. Smollett-Bell is absolutely incredible, no doubt the shining star in terms of performances in the series, and Vance is by far has the least amount of development, but Vance did whatever he could in fleshing out his character. Additionally, I positively adore the fact that Abrams, Peele and Green are seemingly willing to embrace the certain silliness and oddness of their creation.
This is shown in countless scenes throughout the first two episodes, but the standout of this one occurs following their little happening in the village. While separated in their respective rooms, Letitia, Atticus and George face “nightmares” of a kind. For Letitia, her mojo is to have sex with Atticus, and despite everything going her way at first, he then precedes to pull down his pants…from which a snake emerges ready to bite. In George’s quarters, the most uninteresting character gets the most uninteresting dream, dancing with his late wife. However, down with Atticus, he must confront the horrors of war again by wrestling, and eventually killing, an enemy soldier. Seriously, what the hell were the creators smoking while making this beast of a series? I want to know, because it sure worked out for them.
I’m deeply sorry for all the heavy spoilers that are falling like bombs here, but I simply can’t review something like Lovecraft Country and not talk about all the weird stuff that happens! We eventually learn that Atticus’ great ancestor was a former slave of Titus Braithwaite, a distant cousin of Samuel (Tony Goldwyn), Christina’s father and leader of the so-called “Sons of Adam” chapter of the Order of the First Dawn. Since Atticus is technically “related” he’s as good as family to these eccentric people. But it’s most likely just a cover so that he can fulfill Samuel’s own ends. What are those? Well, he’s gotta complete some sort of sacrifice, which is most likely the most memorable scene in the episode.
This is generally due to the brilliant choice to pair poet and songwriter Gil Scott-Heron’s “Whitey’s on the Moon” with the dramatic climax is artful. His poem/song is a message that truly speaks to you…principally saying that the struggles of Black people were to the advancement and advantage of white people. “I can’t pay no doctor bill (but Whitey’s on the moon).” Not only does the song fuel this epic and smartly-made scene, but it also gives the episode its name. Literally! Besides all the issues I have with this thing, episode two still proves that this series isn’t playing around when it comes to sheer uniqueness, and it combines its originality with above-average performances and top-notch visuals. Although we didn’t get some questions answered, and exposition filled the hour, I am still invested, and watching next week’s episode.
Should you Binge, Browse, or Skip?
Although Lovecraft Country’s “Whitey’s on the Moon” can’t help but struggle with confusion and uneven pacing, it keeps audiences reasonably invested an episode that’s dripping in style, originality, brimming with high-class performances, and filled with eye candy. I would say…BINGE IT
IN THIS ARTICLE:
Rated: TV-MA (for nudity, language and violence)
Genre: Sci-Fi/Drama/Horror
Runtime: 59 minutes
Directed By: Daniel Sackheim