Gather around me my little pennies for we are dealing with a dark subject tonight. In last week’s episode of “Penny Dreadful,” we were finally given a chance to watch Dorian and Miss Ives get it on. Oh my manners! But, their plunge into passion had a few repercussions. Dorian, a man of many appetites and secrets, foolishly assumed he was bedding only Miss Ives. Foolish boy! Miss Ives carries her own dark secret and it waited patiently for her to drop her guard. Will her friends save her from her captor? Watch quietly from the corner of the room, and whatever you do, don’t draw attention to yourself.
Uninvited
No, Sir Malcolm, that isn’t Mary Poppins floating in your study. It isn’t Vanessa either, but her dark visitor who has taken control. Possessed Vanessa speaks of pictures of naked dead women and men’s pleasures, scaring the bejeebers out of Sir Malcolm when she calls him father and uses Mina’s voice. And, if that little act didn’t clue Sir Malcolm that it was no longer Vanessa speaking to him, the flying books, furniture and tea cups do. Holy hell hath no fury! How to shut up a demon? Sembene uses an old native method; right fist to the jaw.
Sir Malcolm calls for the troops. First to arrive is Dr. Frankenstein, but the young doctor soon realizes that his secrets are not hidden to the dark passenger inside Vanessa. While Victor checks her blood pressure, pulse, and respiration, Vanessa beguiles him with stories and insinuations all connecting to his monsters. Victor leaves the room, frightened.
Sir Malcolm asks for a diagnosis. Victor’s reply: Sexual frustration or psychosexual trauma due to a sexual encounter that brought on deep guilt. Yeah right, Victor and did you come to that conclusion because she’s a woman? But, Victor is right about one thing. Vanessa did lose control when she was with Dorian; kind of hard not to.
Next to be called in to help is Ethan. He brings his guns. These fools have no idea what they’re doing. Ethan tries to speak with Vanessa, but she or her dark passenger knows his secrets too. “Did you sleep with him?” she asks. “Did you sleep with the man that enchants both of us? And, did you know that Brona slept with him too.” The demon does not play fair and after Vanessa begins to freak out they have to sedate her.
The Waiting
Days pass and yet Sir Malcolm refuses to call in a priest. Each day, Vanessa suffers more. The demon is trying to scratch his way out. We are led to believe that it is the ancient Egyptian spirit that is in her. Ethan visits Vanessa’s room to check on her and give her water. She seems to be calm and less troubled when Ethan is in the room.
Vanessa asks Ethan to kill her, but it’s not the real Ethan. Say hello to Lucifer who wants Vanessa to rule the world with him as the mother of evil. Things go from bad to worse for our lovely Miss Ives. She is kept sedated and hogtied to the bed. She’s not the only one being sedated. It seems that Victor likes his morphine and introduces Sir Malcolm to cocaine.
The real Ethan is in the study arguing with Sir Malcolm and we finally learn how selfish a man Sir Malcolm really is. He left his sick son in a tent to go find the source of the Nile. His son’s dying words was to name a mountain after him, but Sir Malcolm is a bastard and he named the mountain after himself.
There is another who waits patiently, Caliban. He stands outside the house and waits for Victor to make him a mate. Victor knows his creation is there and yet he ignores him or does he have something else planned. He asks Ethan to teach him how to shoot a gun. The men shoot off their guns trying to release the pressure of the past few days while Miss Ives is upstairs dying. Just saying, I think we need a priest and soon.
Salvation
While Sembene and Ethan talk about soup and life in general, Sir Malcolm is trying to get Vanessa to contact Mina. She’s afraid and begins to cry. Sir Malcolm is a cold-hearted man who allowed the possession to go on because it was the only way for Vanessa to have the visions. What a jerk. Luckily for Vanessa, Ethan walks in and demands that a priest be sent for.
The priest doesn’t do exorcisms without permission, but he offers to do the last rites. The demon has other plains.
Conclusion
I did not expect Ethan to be the one that conquered Vanessa’s dark passenger. But, someone had to step in after Vanessa wiped the floor with the priest. After Vanessa goes all Linda Blair, Ethan cures her with Brona’s holy medal of St. Jude and some Latin prayers. We are left to wonder how Ethan knew Latin and what secret does he hold deep in his heart. Our Miss Ives is cured and her dark passenger banished and I think she really cares for Ethan.
I saw The Exorcist in 1973 and it scared the hell out of me. I refuse to watch any movies about demons because I know they are real. I go ghost hunting, remember? I was a bit nervous about watching tonight’s show because of the dark subject matter, but I survived and so did Miss Ives.
Next week is the season finale and maybe we will find out where Mina is, especially since Vanessa had a vision of her. “Penny Dreadful” has been renewed for another season which is absolutely grand because it’s so delicious to watch.
The actors are perfect for their parts and the stories are mesmerizing. But, there is only one more episode, my little pennies, and then… you must walk those dark cobblestone alleys without me, until we meet again next season.
