The Strain S01 E09: The Disappeared

Holy UV Lamp! I know working a convenience store can be dangerous, but if you had to choose between an armed robbery and a blood sucking vampire, I’d go with the thief. Poor Jim is dead; the wormectomy a failure. Setrakian’s team has escaped, but I’m not sure how fast that Bread Truck can go. Will Ephraim save his family in time? Will Gus have to make a prison break?  Will Stoll get a new hair piece? Find out after the jump with my recap of this week’s episode of “The Strain.”

Zach

While Ephraim races to his ex-wife’s house, her infected boyfriend, Matt (Drew Nelson) attacks Zach. No worries, Ephraim arrives just in time to get rid of Kelly’s boyfriend permanently. Ephraim and Nora stay behind to clean up the house while Zach (Ben Hyland), Dutch and Fet go to Setrakian’s shop to hide.

Why is Ephraim so worried about Kelly freaking out over a messy house? I would assume she’d be more upset over her headless boyfriend than an overturned sofa, and what would Kelly have to say about Ephraim and Nora making love in her bed. I love Kelly’s friend, Diane (Inga Cadranel). This lady is tough, Brooklyn tough, and I think it will be a sorry day for any vampire that tries to snack on her. I loved her reaction when she walked in on Ephraim and Nora. If you watch BBC America’s “Orphan Black,” then you’ll recognize Inga Cadranel as the rascally Detective DeAngelis.

Gus

While Ephraim and Nora play house, Gus has his hands filled with a sick friend. Felix (Pedro Miguel Arce) has been infected and it won’t be long before he is a stinger shooting vampire. The guards are in no hurry to call for a doctor, and instead, ship Gus, Felix and a few other prisoners to another prison.

Dutch

The internet and cell phone service is down and Dutch Velders (Ruta Gedmintus) is to blame. Her lover, Niki not only made it safely away from the convenience store, but she’s taken all of Dutch’s money and her lap top. Dutch admits her role in the collapse of the internet to Setrakian, but she might be able to fix it.

Flashback

We see through flashbacks that Herr Eichorst had a soft spot for his prisoner, Setrakian. That is until he saw what the master had done to Setrakian’s hands. The advance of the allies saves Setrakian from a firing squad and has Eichorst running for his life

Conclusion

Vasiliy Fet gets no respect from the ladies on this show. When he tries to explain to Nora why he took the initiative and killed Jim, she tells him to eat his baloney sandwich; her way of calling him a loser. Dutch is just as quick with the put downs when she tells Vasiliy he’s too old after he explains that he has no friends with benefits. Then the Exterminating Terminator saves her from vampire Ronnie, proving that even losers can be knights in shining armor.

I love Dutch’s reaction to Setrakian’s secret headquarters, “Whoa, he has a Bat Cave.” Yes, he does! Setrakian has everything except the Batmobile, but they do have a bread truck filled with tasty bread. “There is power in naming a thing,” Setrakian explains to Zach. The devil is in the details and a blood sucker is always a vampire. Gus has learned this lesson the hard way when he had to kill his best friend, Felix.

Nora’s worried that Kelly’s disappearance is similar to that of the Desaparecidos; the disappearance of thousands of families during the nightmarish military takeover of Argentina during the 70’s.  But, the people in New York are not disappearing; they are changing into something much worse; nightmarish minions.

We finally meet the master face to face as he takes his trusted servant, Herr Eichorst, one step closer to hell by infecting the Nazi Commander. Sometimes it’s better not to remove the hood. The imagination plays havoc with our fear as we wonder what the master looks like. With the hood removed, the master only resembles a flawed Herman Munster.

See you next week, my little zombie snacks, and remember that we all have the potential to be monsters and  history has shown us how easily it is to do monstrous acts against our neighbors.