(1,369-word review) The most prominent theme here seemed to boil down to the act of building: Tandy began to warm up to Greg and had genuine interactions with him (= building a relationship), and Tyrone's father received slight development beyond being a necessary but background character, which manifested through their father-son dynamic (= building further layers to a relationship) while all of the scenes with Tandy and Tyrone of their meaningful, impactful conversation - in more ways than one - was split up and inserted amid everything that was happening in present time (= building a firmer connection through emotional, personal and power-related relatability, on top of the mutual vulnerability of being honest, open, and outspoken), and the ending signified the built-up confidence on his part to ask for Det. O'Reilly in the police station compared to getting cold feet the first time with his initial course of action, in addition to the build-up of her will to live, her hope, and the additional strengthening and solidification of the reconstruction and rebuilding she only began undergoing earlier in the episode regarding facing her fears instead of running away/setting her sights on the Roxxon Corporation, topped with the control building of her powers.
Speaking of which - and this can't be ignored, let alone understated - that first proper interaction/conversation between Tandy and Tyrone was fantastic; it was unquestionably one of the top highlights. They're able to talk openly and honestly with each other about their respective experiences concerning their powers - which their actual first interaction activated in the premiere, though it, and the ones since that one barely had any substance and depth; certainly not to this degree - and the things weighing on them that they've kept internalized and buried. Both of them needed someone like that, as they didn't consider anyone in their lives, from Tyrone's parents and Tandy's mother to Evita and Liam, as appropriate people to share such intimate and personal information with.
Furthermore, the structural placement of those scenes into the episode, mixed in with everything else/every other scene within present-day events, was great, especially how there is a semi-puzzle for us due to the apparent non-linear storytelling. For us to follow along properly, we must determine the chronological order of what's happening in real-time as it all progresses and more pieces are presented; however, you still have to assign them to their rightful place in your head - getting all that straight while having enough brain power left also to be paying attention enough for the total absorption of the story. The non-chronological structure seems to be another favorite storytelling technique of those behind that facet of this show besides their other favorite - visual storytelling.
The climax with that blow-up of emotions and the demolishment of the initial, persistent amicable mood and tone between the two characters was also fantastic but super unfortunate because it sucks seeing them hurl such harsh words at one another - being at odds and pushing each other away like that, especially after seeing how wonderful they are together in all of those previous scenes beforehand, showcased so well, and delivered extra effectively due to Olivia Holt and Aubrey Joseph's chemistry; acting-wise, she gave a superb performance, particularly at the end, and he did a pretty good job himself. You're already on board with that relationship, whether platonically or romantically, and you want them on good terms ASAP.
On top of that, it was well-written enough to make you torn on who to root for the most; more importantly, the writing delivers and showcases both perspectives/realities naturally, not to mention the hasty (as this can be achieved but with a calmer and more empathetic mindset) lack of understanding the other's genuine struggles due to who they are.
Tyrone, a black man in a country filled with one-too-many people who aren't fond of that, sometimes to a violent degree, mainly in a subtle, condescending, and disrespectful manner, particularly in the south; Tandy, a woman in a world that, while it has improved quite a bit since the semi-far past concerning women and the general view on women, it's almost like it hasn't improved because of the ridiculous, prevalent, and persisting s**ism (especially in the healthcare apparatus - how, even now, there are frequent instances of doctors and people in other fields within the healthcare world (mostly men but even other women) who don't take a woman's concerns seriously), being seen as lesser or not as human beings, the belittlement and temporary but permanently desired extermination of their rights/seeing their rights as a joke and something to use as a means to control women, the terrible pandemic of s**ual harassment directed at them throughout their lives, and sometimes daily, in addition to the s**ual a**ault many have experienced and endured, topped with the pathetic scarcity of proper, long-term justice - then there is the patronizing/trivializing/minimizing/dismissing/vilifying, and so on.
It goes on as far as the list of things is concerned but also the occurrence of those things themselves. My point is that they both have broader battles in the grand scheme of things and the grand scheme of life - instead of being on one person's side, both sides are valid, minus the extreme things said. But hopefully, their separation and the current inharmonious state of their relationship will subside and dissipate quickly.
Unlike how, in the second episode, Tyrone's story arc was more engaging and compelling than Tandy's story arc, it was the opposite here. I wasn't as engaged in whatever that whole thing with Otis and the other guys was about, besides being a vehicle for conveying the lesson about control - an additional theme, only to a lesser extent, aiding the most prominent one that I mentioned in the beginning - through the, in all honesty, intriguing but most certainly terribly tedious and maybe even slowly dying art/craft and concept of beadwork/its creation process. A semi-apparent correlation would be its potential relation to the culture of New Orleans, but that wouldn't hold/instill a deeper meaning and connection for me because of my lack of understanding and knowledge of its real-life history. It was alright, though I'm uncertain how to feel about it right now, especially if it's not over and continues further.
An equally significant takeaway was the cloak reveal, which I liked - specifically, it was the sentimental value and significance attached to it, and there may have been more than in the comics. I never read them; therefore, I could be wrong, but there may not have been any substantial layers like that, both the origin and the sentimental value, or at least anything similar to how the show's writers went about those aspects. My sole critique is its look. While a bit of an eye-catching nature seems to envelop it, necessary components seem to be lacking. It should look more imposing and be a primary precipitant that produces a powerfully commanding presence unto Tyrone. But his darkness itself probably accomplishes that.
But the most significant, front-and-center takeaway was Greg's death. It was as tragic and saddening as it was when I watched this roughly two months after it aired in June 2018. I vaguely remember it being my only takeaway; more specifically, I remember it being super effective, possibly to a greater degree now due to me being older and adequately understanding its complete effect - from him and Melissa and how their final interaction was, to her changing her mind and realizing her mistake right afterward, with the maximum tragic thing being that it was too late and his last memory of them before dying was likely the break-up; he died with that on his mind, and it wasn't even 100% literal. It was all so tragic - though, in the midst of that, I especially liked the perfect symbolism and symmetry of Tandy witnessing his death, then switching the scene back to her and Tyrone's conversation at a point where a few seconds into it, he mentions survivor's guilt, followed by the final line of that section of their conversation/those scenes said by her - wishing she was the one who died. And that's when they chose to switch back to present-day Tandy, who's undoubtedly feeling that all over again.
Speaking of which - and this can't be ignored, let alone understated - that first proper interaction/conversation between Tandy and Tyrone was fantastic; it was unquestionably one of the top highlights. They're able to talk openly and honestly with each other about their respective experiences concerning their powers - which their actual first interaction activated in the premiere, though it, and the ones since that one barely had any substance and depth; certainly not to this degree - and the things weighing on them that they've kept internalized and buried. Both of them needed someone like that, as they didn't consider anyone in their lives, from Tyrone's parents and Tandy's mother to Evita and Liam, as appropriate people to share such intimate and personal information with.
Furthermore, the structural placement of those scenes into the episode, mixed in with everything else/every other scene within present-day events, was great, especially how there is a semi-puzzle for us due to the apparent non-linear storytelling. For us to follow along properly, we must determine the chronological order of what's happening in real-time as it all progresses and more pieces are presented; however, you still have to assign them to their rightful place in your head - getting all that straight while having enough brain power left also to be paying attention enough for the total absorption of the story. The non-chronological structure seems to be another favorite storytelling technique of those behind that facet of this show besides their other favorite - visual storytelling.
The climax with that blow-up of emotions and the demolishment of the initial, persistent amicable mood and tone between the two characters was also fantastic but super unfortunate because it sucks seeing them hurl such harsh words at one another - being at odds and pushing each other away like that, especially after seeing how wonderful they are together in all of those previous scenes beforehand, showcased so well, and delivered extra effectively due to Olivia Holt and Aubrey Joseph's chemistry; acting-wise, she gave a superb performance, particularly at the end, and he did a pretty good job himself. You're already on board with that relationship, whether platonically or romantically, and you want them on good terms ASAP.
On top of that, it was well-written enough to make you torn on who to root for the most; more importantly, the writing delivers and showcases both perspectives/realities naturally, not to mention the hasty (as this can be achieved but with a calmer and more empathetic mindset) lack of understanding the other's genuine struggles due to who they are.
Tyrone, a black man in a country filled with one-too-many people who aren't fond of that, sometimes to a violent degree, mainly in a subtle, condescending, and disrespectful manner, particularly in the south; Tandy, a woman in a world that, while it has improved quite a bit since the semi-far past concerning women and the general view on women, it's almost like it hasn't improved because of the ridiculous, prevalent, and persisting s**ism (especially in the healthcare apparatus - how, even now, there are frequent instances of doctors and people in other fields within the healthcare world (mostly men but even other women) who don't take a woman's concerns seriously), being seen as lesser or not as human beings, the belittlement and temporary but permanently desired extermination of their rights/seeing their rights as a joke and something to use as a means to control women, the terrible pandemic of s**ual harassment directed at them throughout their lives, and sometimes daily, in addition to the s**ual a**ault many have experienced and endured, topped with the pathetic scarcity of proper, long-term justice - then there is the patronizing/trivializing/minimizing/dismissing/vilifying, and so on.
It goes on as far as the list of things is concerned but also the occurrence of those things themselves. My point is that they both have broader battles in the grand scheme of things and the grand scheme of life - instead of being on one person's side, both sides are valid, minus the extreme things said. But hopefully, their separation and the current inharmonious state of their relationship will subside and dissipate quickly.
Unlike how, in the second episode, Tyrone's story arc was more engaging and compelling than Tandy's story arc, it was the opposite here. I wasn't as engaged in whatever that whole thing with Otis and the other guys was about, besides being a vehicle for conveying the lesson about control - an additional theme, only to a lesser extent, aiding the most prominent one that I mentioned in the beginning - through the, in all honesty, intriguing but most certainly terribly tedious and maybe even slowly dying art/craft and concept of beadwork/its creation process. A semi-apparent correlation would be its potential relation to the culture of New Orleans, but that wouldn't hold/instill a deeper meaning and connection for me because of my lack of understanding and knowledge of its real-life history. It was alright, though I'm uncertain how to feel about it right now, especially if it's not over and continues further.
An equally significant takeaway was the cloak reveal, which I liked - specifically, it was the sentimental value and significance attached to it, and there may have been more than in the comics. I never read them; therefore, I could be wrong, but there may not have been any substantial layers like that, both the origin and the sentimental value, or at least anything similar to how the show's writers went about those aspects. My sole critique is its look. While a bit of an eye-catching nature seems to envelop it, necessary components seem to be lacking. It should look more imposing and be a primary precipitant that produces a powerfully commanding presence unto Tyrone. But his darkness itself probably accomplishes that.
But the most significant, front-and-center takeaway was Greg's death. It was as tragic and saddening as it was when I watched this roughly two months after it aired in June 2018. I vaguely remember it being my only takeaway; more specifically, I remember it being super effective, possibly to a greater degree now due to me being older and adequately understanding its complete effect - from him and Melissa and how their final interaction was, to her changing her mind and realizing her mistake right afterward, with the maximum tragic thing being that it was too late and his last memory of them before dying was likely the break-up; he died with that on his mind, and it wasn't even 100% literal. It was all so tragic - though, in the midst of that, I especially liked the perfect symbolism and symmetry of Tandy witnessing his death, then switching the scene back to her and Tyrone's conversation at a point where a few seconds into it, he mentions survivor's guilt, followed by the final line of that section of their conversation/those scenes said by her - wishing she was the one who died. And that's when they chose to switch back to present-day Tandy, who's undoubtedly feeling that all over again.