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Wow, okay, this was one messed up episode, probably one of the most brutal, and one that made our heads spin with all the major twists. That and we got a little more of Kai’s backstory, the real backstory, that gives us a little more insight into just what makes him tick. But first, those twists!
Right at the top of the episode we basically got the identities of all the clowns we’ve seen so far, and a theory I tossed out there last week was proved to be true — Ivy IS part of Kai’s cult! And all because (a)Trump was elected and (b)Ally voted for Jill Stein. And the whole thing with Winter pleasuring Ally in the bathtub was a complete set-up so Ozzy would see it and Ivy had a reason to storm out, leaving Ally in that “house marked for death” all to her lonesome. That loneliness has led Ally to start imagining holes opening up in her skin, but a visit with Dr. Vincent has helped her focus on only the things she can control, and one of those things is not Ivy.
But Ivy also does not seem to know what she’s gotten herself into. With Winter’s encouragement, she believes that their radical agenda will be the only way to get things done, and that seems to be getting Kai elected to the city council, but no one is paying any attention to what they’re doing because Beverly’s boss Bob refuses to run her “fake news” stories … and just why is it that Beverly is always the first reporter on the scene? The only way to make the public believe there is a serial killer at large is to show them, so Kai and his gang decide Bob will make the perfect sacrifice, especially since he won’t be around to block the footage (and he refused to show the footage of Serina’s murder because her parents have filed a lawsuit). Bob also threatened to fire Beverly, but she knows he was screwing Serina and would be happy to make that information public so she kept her job.
So into Bob’s house they go, catching him off guard in his kitchen, chanting “Ave Satanus” because Latin is frightening, and before they can deal the killing blow he reveals there’s a “gimp” in his attic. A what? They restrain Bob with duct tape and go up to the attic where they find a man hanging from the rafters by hooks through his skin, all up and down his body. The man is masked and can’t hear so he has no idea the clown posse is there. One of the group, R.J. (Who? Is this the first time we’ve seen this guy?), just wants to let the guy go but Kai decides plunging a dagger into his heart is best, which then causes all the hooks to rip from his skin. I literally curled up in my chair watching that … or not watching it because I’m pretty sure I looked away for most of it. Yikes!
And then it’s Bob’s turn. They bring him up to the attic, turn on the camera, chant in Latin and then Beverly reveals herself (off camera) before ending it all for Bob with an axe to the cranium. And, surprise, Beverly Hope is first on the scene to report the news and broadcast the gruesome footage … which has the desired effect, causing Kai’s poll numbers to shoot up 10%, putting him ahead of the others running for the council seat. But it’s not enough because without more than 50% of the vote, he’ll have to do a run-off vote and Kai does not want to do a run-off. Expect more grisly videos to hit the news and scare people into voting for him.
Back at Ally’s house, she hears Harrison coming home and goes all Rear Window on him with Ozzy’s telescope, and who does she see but Detective Samuels and Harrison making out. But she’s determined to see what Harrison is up to, so armed with a baseball bat she marches over to the house and in the backyard she finds … a hole. A deep hole with a not quite deceased Meadow inside begging for help. Not able to go near the hole, Ally runs back home, locks all the doors and calls 911, which is busy so she calls Ivy who is less than pleased that she called. But the panic in Ally’s voice seems to give Ivy concern, especially when a loud banging starts on the front door. Cowering on the sofa, Meadow appears at the window begging for help, yelling that there is a cult behind everything, everyone including the police are involved and so is Ivy. And then someone puts a bag over her head and drags her away. Ally is stunned, to say the least and hangs up the phone. I’d been thinking that Ivy was part of this cult and that they were gaslighting Ally, but to what end? Simply because she voted for Jill Stein? Ivy has quite a lot of rage in her heart about that.
And things are becoming clearer about the cult. It seems Kai is reeling in the right leaning members while Winter is in charge of the left, and why she’s so friendly with Ivy. But after Bob’s murder, it became clear to Kai, thanks to Beverly’s nudging, that there is a weak link in the group … R.J. Poor R.J., we hardly knew ye. Kai feared R.J. would weaken their group or turn them in if he just let him go, so it was a round of nails to the head with a nail gun. And Ivy got to go first. Not wanting to do it, but not wanting to be the next person in the chair with a nail gun to her head, she regretfully took the shot, followed by the rest of the cult (only Winter showed as much remorse), ending with Kai finishing him off.
But Beverly’s reporter instincts and strong personality are coming into play, and dare I say she just may be angling to take over the group? During one of Kai’s truth pinkie sessions, he asks her the usual question about fear but she turns the tables on him to get his real story, not the various different ones he’s told everyone else. She’s seen the family photos so where are the parents? Dead, of course, but it was a murder-suicide. After Kai’s father was paralyzed in an accident, he became a monster toward both Kai and his wife, and accusing his wife of having an affair. After dinner, Kai went to his basement room and could still hear them arguing until there was a loud bang. Running upstairs he found his father shot in the stomach and mom with the gun saying it was the only way out. Then she blew her brains out.
Not knowing what to do, Kai didn’t call the police, he called his brother. Who, it turns out is … Dr. Rudy Vincent! Okay, so I thought he might have been a part of the cult, but he’s Kai’s brother? Holy cow! And he’s a bit deranged himself, insisting they keep the bodies there in the bed and cover them with lye so they decompose naturally, and that way they don’t lose any of the million dollars dad got in his accident settlement nor mom’s pension. Screw the government! But there is another sibling too, one who is away at college and comes home later to learn the news of her parents’ deaths and that would be … Winter! So now we know why she’s been so close to Kai.
The episode closed on a chilling note as Kai was sitting with the corpses of his parents, holding his mother’s hand, telling her how much he missed her — but not his father — and assuring her that one day he would “be somebody.” That day may be coming.
What did you think of this episode? Did you see the sibling twist coming? Sound off in the comments below!
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