3.3. Exposed The foremost murderer we have at this point is Neil, the mammoth craftsman who likes to mash people into little metal cubes. It’s important to note that he’s the person that our other killers all seem to be afraid of, and as we find out this episode, that’s with good reason. Not only is he skilled, he’s also efficient when he has to be, and after a little research and a game of good cop/psychotic cops, he’s on the lam from the Hardy gang. That’s one of the things this show does well. When criminals run, it typically ends up being watchable action television (helmed this week by Gary Love). Sure, they lean pretty heavily on the trope of rundown industrial complex shrouded in shadows and full of creepy dangling plastic, but there are a lot of fun car chases, shootings, and the like in the process. You never really know how a Following chase will end. The bad guy might get away, or he might be shot. Will he make it to a car and lead Ryan Hardy on a car chase? Unsurprisingly, Neil’s love of his father proves to be his downfall, but not before there’s a pretty fun car chase and a scene in which Mike follows a giant beeping dot via smart phone screen. That’s not a fault on writer Brynn Malone at all. The episode is fine; I liked that Kevin Bacon is getting to act a little more this year, and I like that the show has resisted, thus far, to put Mike and Max together—though that’s going to happen at some point. I also like that Ryan actually wants to keep Gwen around, rather than pushing her away like he has every other woman in his life. Ditto Mike avoiding Clarke’s memorial service. He misses the Kevin Bacon justice monologue, but it’s for an actual character-driven reason: guilt. The Following leans heavily on emotional repercussions to fill time between killings, and while Ryan is on the mend and Mike is shutting down, Max is the one actively struggling with her own actions, which is plan to see on her face when she helps the other two kill an armed and dangerous Neil. There’s some hesitancy on her face, and while she’s promised not to betray the other two, she’s also tired of secrets. Again, she’s gained distance from Mike, and she’s clearly trying to have a life outside of the Followers, short though it may well end up being thanks to her powerful, stabby enemies. It’s strange to see these characters struggling to deal with their actions; it doesn’t seem like a common thread on most procedural shows aside from the occasional Very Special Episode. Read Ron’s review of the previous episode, Boxed In, here. US Correspondent Ron Hogan is surprised to see Kevin Bacon doing some acting this season. After a season essentially shooting guns and quips, it’s weird to see a romantic subplot for Ryan Hardy. Find more by Ron daily at Shaktronics and PopFi. Follow our Twitter feed for faster news and bad jokes right here. And be our Facebook chum here.
