S03.E06: The Myth of the Ensnared Hunter

[Bort]

The Drew Crew goes on the hunt for an underground prison that may hold answers to the Frozen Hearts killings – all while following a lead on a relic that could cure George of the paranormal affliction that’s shortening her lifespan. Ace tries to enlist Amanda Bobbsey in bringing her father to justice.

Airdate: 12 Nov 2021

[Lady Calypso]

I really liked this episode. I didn't comment on last week's episode because I was frustrated by it. But this episode was a lot better, especially in terms of the aftermath of the fights that happened between Ace and his dad, as well as George and Nick.

The Ace stuff was good. I don't love him separated from the rest of the crew, but the Bobbsey stuff seems to be concluded at last, including the breakup between Ace and Amanda, so hopefully this brings him back to the main plot stuff. I can kind of see why Amanda was upset with Ace, but at the same time, she knew what her father was capable of and her calling Ace a bad guy was definitely over the line. Ace isn't perfect, but he definitely is a good guy. I guess we had to see that Amanda does, indeed, take a bit after her dad and brother, even if she still is the better of the three. 

George and Nick making up was good. George acknowledged that she should be sharing more, and Nick acknowledged that he should have told her how proud he was that she went to go confront her biological father. I like how George didn't apologize necessarily for not being ready to share, but more about holding their fight against Nick, and how she was going to try Nick's method. 

And I love that we could be getting back to the George/Odette spirit entanglement and trying to find a way to separate them for good. I was wondering why George was so accepting of her fate, so I'm glad to see her fight for her own life.

Ryan and Nancy go on a mission together! Ryan injures himself! They find a secret passage through the Historical Society! Oh, that plot was a great one. I love seeing Ryan get involved more. 

So, it seems like Hannah released the entity, but why? We know she's done a lot to protect the town from entities and spirits and supernatural occurances like that. I can't imagine she did it without a good reason, or if she wasn't doing it by choice. 

[thuganomics85]

Amanda Bobbsey returns and... basically shows herself to kind of suck as much as the rest of her family.  At least Ace is finally done with all of that.  Even if I can understand her initial reaction, I thought she was still off the mark with her whole "you think you are a good guy, but you're not" spiel.  Honestly, if anything, I think Ace can actually be too hard on himself at times and doesn't think he is a perfect person.  And, yet, while he does have flaws, he really is a good guy in my book.  And can really, really, really do better than Amanda.  At least it was fun seeing the actress one last time, who is really good in the role.

Look at Nick and George actually having an open, honest conversation with one another and finding a way to move past their argument!  I thought having good communication wasn't allowed for couples (or anyone, really) on television.  You're suppose let things fester or miscommunicate until it becomes full-blown melodrama!

Oh, Bess!  Nothing wrong with some casual flings and hook-ups, but maybe don't talk about that in front of the kids at the youth center (although I imagine they've heard much worse.)  But it at least allowed Ryan to show off some impressive "earmuffs!" skills.

Ryan and Nancy working together was fun.

So, it looks like Hannah from the Historical Society was who unleashed the Frozen Heart Killer onto Horseshoe Bay.  Like with most things on this show, I have to imagine there is more to this and she wasn't doing it just for shits and giggles.

I already want it to be next Friday, because next week's episode looks like it's going to be all sorts of fun!

[quarks]

Much less emotionally wrenching than last week! And more jokes! Double yay!

1. Ok, I'll admit it: I'm kinda hoping that Ryan keeps playing games with the chore wheel because every mention of it, right down to using it to distract him from shoving the dislocated shoulder back in, is comedy gold. (Also, Ryan, I realize your finances suck right now and we have absolutely zero idea of what sort of health insurance you have, if any, but....go get X-rays and an MRI of that shoulder instead of just using an ice pack. Trust me on this one.)

2. I'm kinda amazed that there's this whole huge tunnel system under the town that nobody - utility workers, the people who built the new housing development, Nancy - has found before this point.

3. Loved the bit where Bess and George initially thought Nancy and Ryan might be hallucination, especially since this came right after everyone's casual "oh, sure, George and Bess are doing supernatural things and Nancy is just going to go hunt down a serial killer and Nick....will tutor kids to make sure that they can read about this later." Not to mention Ace's casual assumption that the supernatural/serial killer crisis was still ongoing and he could just jump back in after dealing with his own plot. Speaking of which -

4. Amanda remains the best of the Bobbseys, but let's face it, that's an incredibly low bar, and she almost sank under it in this episode. I don't exactly blame her for not turning her father in - but trying to make Ace look like the bad guy here? Amanda, apart from running around dealing in stolen goods, your father just assaulted someone, and Ace was looking at possibly spending time in jail because of something your father did - a situation that happened because of you. And Amanda, you just used Ace so that you wouldn't have to feel guilty about turning in your own father. And on top of all that, Amanda, the reason Ace thought you wouldn't do the right thing is because, you told him that you wouldn't do the right thing. 

I am also kinda questioning just how quickly she returned from the whole Road to Santiago thing, given that supposedly none of the Bobbseys have money to pay the ridiculous fees airlines, and in particular a U.S. airline whose name starts with the letter A....I'm getting off track here. And possibly projecting. I'll move on.

5. I gotta say, I know this show isn't interested in my childhood memories in the slightest, and that's fair, but I did like the Bobbsey Twins as a child and this portrayal of one set of Twins has been mildly crushing. So I am kinda hoping that the younger set of Bobbsey Twins will make an appearance at some point and heal that wound.

6. Thom, this was a fairly good start with Ace, but you didn't make the kugel, and, well. You kinda need to apologize here. 

7. Though, uh, it's been all of one day and Ace has been mildly busy - what sort of job hunting were you doing, Ace? Besides setting up the long term plotline of you either starting up an official detective/computer business or heading off to college at the end of the season.

8. Ryan hastily trying to cover up that kid's ears, heh.

9. And now we learn that Hannah, too, is Doing Suspicious Things. Let's see where this goes. 

 

[Alice Mudgarden]

Ryan in the Youth Center scene at the start of the episode was gold. Listening in confusion to Bess' rant, putting earmuffs on the kid, saying "I'm sorry I sat here" as the camera panned away, trying to sneak close enough to listen to what Nancy was saying... all gold.

[jewel21]

It's so funny how I started off hating Ryan in the first season and now I just adore him. I loved his adventure with Nancy and I agree that the scene at the community center when Bess was freaking out was comedy gold. 

I also loved Nancy bringing up the chore wheel to distract him before setting his arm, heh. 

More Ace with the group, and less Ace on his own, please. 

Next week looks like fun!

[AnimeMania]

It looked like Nancy and Ryan had the opportunity to close the cell door and pad lock it and capture the Frozen Heart Killer.

[UnknownK]

The original cell lock key is missing the end that locks and they didn't bring a new lock. I would assume you need a supernatural cell and lock to keep a supernatural entity locked in there anyway.

[Diapason Untuned]

It's a criminal shame how much this show is being slept on by people. It's just awesome.

17 hours ago, quarks said:

I'm kinda amazed that there's this whole huge tunnel system under the town that nobody - utility workers, the people who built the new housing development, Nancy - has found before this point.

Did they say that the utility workers know nothing about it? It wouldn't actually surprise me though, especially in a small town.

 

Quote

Amanda remains the best of the Bobbseys, but let's face it, that's an incredibly low bar, and she almost sank under it in this episode. I don't exactly blame her for not turning her father in - but trying to make Ace look like the bad guy here? Amanda, apart from running around dealing in stolen goods, your father just assaulted someone, and Ace was looking at possibly spending time in jail because of something your father did - a situation that happened because of you. And Amanda, you just used Ace so that you wouldn't have to feel guilty about turning in your own father. And on top of all that, Amanda, the reason Ace thought you wouldn't do the right thing is because, you told him that you wouldn't do the right thing. 

I actually got the impression that Ace did trick her, she just acted like it was part of the plan to downplay the whole thing. 

[quarks]

49 minutes ago, Diapason Untuned said:

Did they say that the utility workers know nothing about it? It wouldn't actually surprise me though, especially in a small town.

 

I actually got the impression that Ace did trick her, she just acted like it was part of the plan to downplay the whole thing. 

They didn't specifically mention the utility workers, but they did show Nancy studying detailed city maps that she got from the police, all of which failed to mention HEY, HUGE UNDERGROUND TUNNEL NETWORK, and I just kinda have to assume that if utility workers had found these tunnels, they would have alerted the cops.

With Ace/Amanda - Ace didn't tell Amanda that he would be following her and telling the cops where she was once he saw her contacting her father, so....in that sense it was a trick, but then she also said, oh, I knew you'd do that and it means I don't have to feel guilty, so, great! 

Grr.

I think some of my frustration here is that Amanda's cute, usually likeable, and has decent chemistry with Ace, and while I didn't expect them to last, I was kinda hoping that they would break up for less hypocritical reasons. 

[AnimeMania]

2 hours ago, UnknownK said:

The original cell lock key is missing the end that locks and they didn't bring a new lock. I would assume you need a supernatural cell and lock to keep a supernatural entity locked in there anyway.

The open lock was still on the chain, all she had to do was attach the other end of the chain and snap the lock closed.

[tennisgurl]

I loved watching Nancy and Ryan investigating together, they really have come such a long way from where they started. Ryan is clearly still pretty freaked out by all of this magical murder shenanigans (especially how his daughter is so often running towards them) but he is totally game no matter what. Also, Ryan's reaction to Bess's ramble was hilarious, especially trying to cover a nearby kids ears as she went on about the amount of saliva that she has shared with her new crush. Then when he was awkwardly trying to listen in on the Drew Crews conversation until Nancy told him to just come over because his hovering is getting weird. Its great to see him more involved in the mystery plot...and not just the mystery of the chore wheel. 

We meet up with Amanda again, and while I can get that it would be hard to turn her own father in, the guy really was a scumbag and she should probably be a bit more upset about the fact that her dad manipulated her boyfriend into being an unwitting accomplish to his many crimes. She was pretty harsh with Ace about it, even after admitting that this was the best outcome for them all, none of this makes Ace the bad guy here. Its too bad that Amanda and Ace broke up like this though, I did like them together even if they are obviously not endgame.

I am really glad that George is still trying to find a way to get Odette out of her and that she hasn't just accepted her ten year fate. I also really liked George and Nick talking, both of their issues were very understandable and it was great to see them actually talk things out.

Is anyone remotely surprised that Horseshoe Bay has a massive underground serious of tunnels featuring ghosts, secret passages, and creepy cursed dolls'? Hannah usually has her reasons for doing what she does, I think there is more to the story then her just letting a force of evil out onto the town.

[secnarf]

Anyone else think Hannah looked vaguely "possessed" when she was getting that key? I'm probably just reading too much into it, but it almost looked like when everyone else was having those waking nightmares - blank and purposeful.

I did enjoy this episode, with all of the Nancy/Ryan, Nick and George making up, and Ace and Amanda breaking up. I wonder if Ace's dad told Ace's mom about his other son - they didn't touch on that at all. Good to see that Ace's dad has cooled down a bit though.

I hope we get to see Carson chew Ryan out for outsourcing his chores.

[akg]

On 11/13/2021 at 8:48 PM, quarks said:

4. Amanda remains the best of the Bobbseys, but let's face it, that's an incredibly low bar, and she almost sank under it in this episode. I don't exactly blame her for not turning her father in - but trying to make Ace look like the bad guy here? Amanda, apart from running around dealing in stolen goods, your father just assaulted someone, and Ace was looking at possibly spending time in jail because of something your father did - a situation that happened because of you. And Amanda, you just used Ace so that you wouldn't have to feel guilty about turning in your own father. And on top of all that, Amanda, the reason Ace thought you wouldn't do the right thing is because, you told him that you wouldn't do the right thing. 

I didn't really understand Amanda's thought process. What was her plan if Ace had "trusted her" and not tipped the cops off to follow her to Bobbsey Sr? Her plan required Ace to use her which means she doesn't trust him either. So I agree they needed to break up but she really needs to take responsibility. And that's not to mention everything here dad has done and the position he put her boyfriend into.

A couple of questions on that plot:

1. The guy Mr. Bobbsey assaulted disappeared, right? So what exactly were the cops charging Ace with? As far as they could prove, the guy found a way to sneak out of the cannery and went on the run. Even with Ace's statement, the police didn't have evidence a crime had been committed that night
2. I need to rewatch (yay! I love this show) but my (fuzzy) memory of why Ace was doing favors for Bobbsey was that Amanda had asked for some kind of interaction (look out for him, help him out...) so I was surprised when Ace said he'd gone to Bobbsey on his own. Was that really what happened? I'd still be annoyed with Amanda but a little less so

On 11/13/2021 at 8:48 PM, quarks said:

5. I gotta say, I know this show isn't interested in my childhood memories in the slightest, and that's fair, but I did like the Bobbsey Twins as a child and this portrayal of one set of Twins has been mildly crushing. So I am kinda hoping that the younger set of Bobbsey Twins will make an appearance at some point and heal that wound.

I'm right there with you, quarks. The Bobbsey Twins were the only books in this genre that I read growing up and this interpretation hurts. Nan would never treat a boy this way. And Bert would have been a much better boyfriend. I'll join you in holding out hope for awesome Freddie and Flossie addition

On 11/15/2021 at 7:05 PM, secnarf said:

I wonder if Ace's dad told Ace's mom about his other son

I would hope so. I can't imagine overhearing that, watching your husband react that way (including throwing your son out on the street), and not insisting the guy explain once you got home. I think I'd have thrown him out and asked Ace to come back if I didn't get the full story

 

[bettername2come]

Okay, Bobbsey, saying Ace always thinks he's the good guy has me thinking "in fairness he's very often a good guy. "

Nancy/Ryan bonding time is always fun. 

On 11/13/2021 at 10:26 PM, Alice Mudgarden said:

Ryan in the Youth Center scene at the start of the episode was gold. Listening in confusion to Bess' rant, putting earmuffs on the kid, saying "I'm sorry I sat here" as the camera panned away, trying to sneak close enough to listen to what Nancy was saying... all gold.

This was such a great scene, the earmuffs especially.

No, Hannah! You can't be doing evil things!

And between this and the previous episode the Chime product placement became obvious. 

Edited December 15, 2022 by bettername2come