S04.E04: The Night Market

[formerlyfreedom]

The vampires take a trip to the secret Night Market, where all the supernatural creatures gather to barter and haggle.

Airing Tuesday, July 26th, 2022.

[voiceover]

Tonight, Advantage: Nadja.  She’s pretty clever — and brutal — at the business end.   Pissed I didn’t see the Valkyries/IKEA joke coming a mile off.  Laughed anyway.

The Nandor/Guillermo battle was entertaining.  If I heard right, the MC did a car ad during one of the familiar fights? If so, holy crap!  That’s so exactly sports announcing.  And it was a background noise, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it, thing.  Much like the entire Night Market: little jokes seeded everywhere.

[edhopper]

I particularly loved Lazlo ruining fairy tales for CR Jr. 

[Galileo908]

I absolutely loved this episode. I loved everything about the Night Market. The look, the demons that were there, the booths (loved Guillermo teling Nandor they didn't need any more baskets. Very married couple bickering energy). I loved how they got there. That subway performer had to be an energy vampire, right? Colin Robinson was enamored by him. Loved that he farted to, of all songs, Pennsylvania 6-5000.

I, too, should've expected the IKEA jokes with the Valkyries coming, but didn't. Also loved that lawn gnomes act like Weeping Angels: they only move when you don't look at them.

8 minutes ago, voiceover said:

If I heard right, the MC did a car ad during one of the familiar fights? If so, holy crap!  That’s so exactly sports announcing

Caught it on the second watch: Dodge of the night! Sponsored by Dodge Ram Trucks!

I loved Nadja's look tonight. Loved her hair, her outfit, even her glasses. I didn't catch it at first, but Laszlo dyed his hair to match Nadja's.

Speaking of Laszlo, he spent the last few episodes beating the childlike wonder out of Colin Robinson, I expect that he'll be the reason the boy turns out boring. I mean, reading him Truman Capote before bed certainly won't help.

Edited July 27, 2022 by Galileo908

[voiceover]

2 hours ago, Galileo908 said:

Also loved that lawn gnomes act like Weeping Angels

Yes: hands up to them for the Doctor Who reference.  This ep is where Easter eggs go to die.

[Vermicious Knid]

Also a callback to the semen-stealing witches!

So relics of the Ottoman Empire are only worth one small cup of Swedish meatballs? Which are worth a misogynistic t-shirt, which in turn is worth a rare drug that appeals to Wraiths. Too bad it was all derailed by the others killing Xerxes. I was really expecting them to unionize, but Nadja only has to build five more closets.

Guillermo was telling whomever was on the phone "I love you"....

[libgirl2]

6 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

Also a callback to the semen-stealing witches!

So relics of the Ottoman Empire are only worth one small cup of Swedish meatballs? Which are worth a misogynistic t-shirt, which in turn is worth a rare drug that appeals to Wraiths. Too bad it was all derailed by the others killing Xerxes. I was really expecting them to unionize, but Nadja only has to build five more closets.

Guillermo was telling whomever was on the phone "I love you"....

Yep, heard that! I really am quite curious about this. I still wonder if he is a vampire? 

[possibilities]

There has to be a twist with Guillermo's new love. I don't know what it will be, but I can't imagine it will just be some simple happy match up.

[tennisgurl]

I am really going to need to watch that one again, there was so much going on at the Night Market. So many easter eggs, little bits of continuity. the designs of the demons and booths, you can really tell the show was going all out. I loved this episode, it might be my favorite so far (and every episode has been great) of the season. I loved the Night Market, how they get all the normies out of the subway to get there, Nandor and Guillermo bickering like an old married couple about baskets, Nadja as the queen of bartering, every bit was working perfectly. I especially loved the bits with the lawn gnomes that never move when you look at them and the call back to the semon stealing witches. 

Of course all of the sleazy garbage fairies all know Laszlo. He's going to accidently make kid Colin Robinson boring again, a true self fulfilling prophesy of boredom.

The Nandor/Guillermo fight was quite entertaining, no surprise that Guillermo still managed to win, he has had a lot more practice fighting vampires than Nandor. I definitely caught him secretly telling someone on the phones he loves them, Guillermo is definitely seeing someone in secret. Is it someone we know? I cant wait to see Nandor's reaction.

[iMonrey]

Quote

I am really going to need to watch that one again, there was so much going on at the Night Market. So many easter eggs, little bits of continuity. the designs of the demons and booths, you can really tell the show was going all out. I loved this episode, it might be my favorite so far (and every episode has been great) of the season.

I agree, there was a lot to love and a lot to take in, it definitely needs a re-watch. I would also love a "behind the scenes" tour of the Night Market, there was just so much going on. This show must have an enormous FX budget. 

Quote

Guillermo was telling whomever was on the phone "I love you"....

Quote

There has to be a twist with Guillermo's new love. I don't know what it will be, but I can't imagine it will just be some simple happy match up.

Agreed - there's no way Guillermo's going to get a happily ever after, there's got to be some twist. I think he's being catfished by another vampire but we'll see, this show is so unpredictable.

"Laszlo guess what?"

Previews for next week look hilarious too.

[meep.meep]

Guillermo could have been calling his mother.

[libgirl2]

3 minutes ago, meep.meep said:

Guillermo could have been calling his mother.

The voice on the other end sounds male. I agree that there will be a twist. 

[ShelleySue]

I wish that I could see the Djinn's tally sheet of the wishes Nandor has wasted used. How many could he possibly have left? Married life with Marwa is not going to go smoothly if he can't just wish change things with a wish.

I was dreading young Collin Robinson because I thought it would be a stupid gag.  But it is hilarious and a bit sympathetic at the same time. We're actually seeing a nurturing side of Laszlo, but he's still being Laszlo.

[thuganomics85]

There is no way that Nandor's going to have any wishes left by the end of this season.  Blowing through them for the most trivial reasons ever.  Classic Nandor!

Loved the concept of The Night Market and how it all played out.  The production design was spot-on and I liked seeing glimpses of all of the various types of characters that populated this world.  Wouldn't be against exploring more of this at a later date.  Especially the gnomes!

Nadja shows herself to be a hell of a haggler, but union busting wraiths is a lot easier said than done.  Especially when the wraiths are willing to just kill their union leader if things don't go according to plan.

Not surprised Nandor would let his pride cause him to have Guillermo join a familiar fighting ring.  Equally unsurprising is Guillermo not only winning, but even getting to take Nando down a peg or two as well.

Laszlo telling Baby Colin the "real" versions of fairy tale stories was great.  Still loving this duo.

[Catfi9ht]

Welp, I didn't like this episode so I'll be brief.

Nadja story was fine. Nandor story was fine. No out loud laughs. Kinda saw most of the jokes coming about the Valkyries and the fight to the death.

I thought Lazlo was going to let Colin be a kid after Lazlo's growth last week, but instead he regresses and actively tries to ruin a kid's childhood which just feels like punching down.

I wish they would have leaned into the real Brothers Grimm fairy tales and made that plot more Addams Family-esque.

Lazlo: fairy tales?

Colin: yeah. I'm reading this story about fairies. They live in the woods and dress in flowers.

Lazlo: How fucking boring. Where'd you learn that bullshit? Let me tell you about real fairies who steal children away in the middle of the night...

What a wasted opportunity. All the creatures in the night market were sad and pathetic instead of weird or creepy or gross, etc.

I did like Marwa suddenly appearing from behind Nandor. There was also a Velcro? Or zipping sound when she popped out like she was too clingy. That was unexpected and funny.

[Galileo908]

17 hours ago, Vermicious Knid said:

I was really expecting them to unionize, but Nadja only has to build five more closets.

My understanding was that they DID unionize, they just gave Xerxes the Jimmy Hoffa treatment.

[Vermicious Knid]

They just found a third body in Lake Mead. I'm semi-seriously expecting Hoffa to show up. Guillermo calling his mother would be way too prosaic and normal for this show.

I have a compendium of the oldest known English translations of the traditional fairy tales. They are pretty hardcore and not at all what Disney has spent nearly a century peddling to impressionable kids. Not to mention the Celtic tales. Redcaps, man. You don't want to meet that in a dark alley.

Americans are yelling 'Bat!' at Matt Berry, because of course they are.

[Cherpumple]

I loved this episode, but one thing that would've made it even better for me was if the cat familiar from previous seasons had been part of the fight scene. Not as a fighter (because I don't want him dead) but in the crowd.

And Guillermo had a similar phone conversation in a previous episode this season, so something is definitely up with him.

[libgirl2]

9 hours ago, Cherpumple said:

I loved this episode, but one thing that would've made it even better for me was if the cat familiar from previous seasons had been part of the fight scene. Not as a fighter (because I don't want him dead) but in the crowd.

And Guillermo had a similar phone conversation in a previous episode this season, so something is definitely up with him.

That would have been good! 

[iMonrey]

Quote

Americans are yelling 'Bat!' at Matt Berry, because of course they are.

I love this. But if I ever have the fortune of meeting Matt Berry I'm going to yell "Laszlo guess what?"

[GaT]

On 7/27/2022 at 12:37 AM, Vermicious Knid said:

Guillermo was telling whomever was on the phone "I love you"....

On 7/27/2022 at 8:27 AM, possibilities said:

There has to be a twist with Guillermo's new love. I don't know what it will be, but I can't imagine it will just be some simple happy match up.

On 7/27/2022 at 8:48 AM, iMonrey said:

Agreed - there's no way Guillermo's going to get a happily ever after, there's got to be some twist. I think he's being catfished by another vampire but we'll see, this show is so unpredictable.

MARWA! He's in love with Marwa! That would be a great twist. There's definitely something going on with her, why did she decide to stay home instead of going to the night market? I though that scene was very strange at the time, something we don't know about is going on with her for sure, & I be it's Guillermo.

[sistermagpie]

6 minutes ago, GaT said:

MARWA! He's in love with Marwa! That would be a great twist. There's definitely something going on with her, why did she decide to stay home instead of going to the night market? I though that scene was very strange at the time, something we don't know about is going on with her for sure, & I be it's Guillermo.

She changed her mind because Nandor went over to Djinn and wished she didn't want to come. That's why she's looking blank afterwards.

Edited July 28, 2022 by sistermagpie

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 7/27/2022 at 1:38 PM, ShelleySue said:

I wish that I could see the Djinn's tally sheet of the wishes Nandor has wasted used. How many could he possibly have left? Married life with Marwa is not going to go smoothly if he can't just wish change things with a wish.

If he runs out of wishes and wants to get rid of her, he'll have to drain her, or delegate the job to someone else.

[qtpye]

So, Lazlo is trying to make Colin less boring.

However, he is an energy vampire. If he can not drain energy then won't he die for real this time?

I'm probably thinking too hard about this.

[iMonrey]

Quote

However, he is an energy vampire. If he can not drain energy then won't he die for real this time?

Laszlo doesn't think he's an energy vampire though. He ran all those tests on him.

[MrPissyPuppy]

55 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

Laszlo doesn't think he's an energy vampire though. He ran all those tests on him.

Maybe the onset is at puberty or something like that?   

[possibilities]

Right now he's just a child, but aren't all children energy vampires?

[MisterGlass]

I think Lazlo is going to make Boy not boring to Lazlo.  And when he grows up to be a full fledged Colin Robinson he will be all set to bore everyone else with half century old true crime stories.

Loved the gnomes and all the rest of the weirdness.  Did not see the Valkyries selling furniture and meatballs coming.  The fight announcer was good at it right down to the car commercial.  Poor Guillermo.  He was trying to be so gentle giving the elderly familiar back her glasses.  And apparently he can pass for an orc.

I was bemused by the wraiths communicating by card.  They had such a magician's flair for delivering them.  And the Djinn has an expressive flourish when clicking his pen to strike out a wish.

Edited July 30, 2022 by MisterGlass

[qtpye]

7 hours ago, possibilities said:

Right now he's just a child, but aren't all children energy vampires?

[Ohiopirate02]

I am anxious to see how Lazlo's experiments on "the thing that crawled out of Colin Robinson's body" turn out.  I do not doubt that we are looking at an energy vampire here. I have a feeling we are going to find out Lazlo's skills as a scientist are on par with his skills as a barrister.  We are seeing the whole "nature vs. nurture" debate playing out in front of our eyes.  Lazlo is going to either create a more interesting energy vampire or Colin Robinson 2.0.  I think he can succeed in his endeavors,  I don't remember the energy vampire played by Vanessa Bayer being as boring as Colin.

[MisterGlass]

Vanessa Bayer was an emotional vampire, a more advanced subspecies according to Colin Robinson.  Of course Colin Robinson 2.0 could go that direction.

[Lantern7]

Fun episode. The series is great when they go big . . . . like giving us a hidden market for creatures of the night. You guys overthought a few things about the episode, and I'm not different. I'm thinking that the Night Market is in Lower Manhattan. Assuming there weren't any cuts between the gang boarding the train and their arrival, maybe the train only had to go one stop. Also, they started at South Ferry, and now I'm thinking that they took the Ferry from Staten Island. They could have also have driven in, but the Ferry would be easier. Also, if they went the direct route, they'd have to carry Guillermo while they were bats. And probably Young Colin as well.

*exhaling* Sorry about that. Also, that did not look like the interior of a New York City subway car. Okay, NOW I'm shutting up about nits.

Familiar Fights FTW. Vampire on the mic was gold. I wonder how much of it was scripted. "Kill you friend! Kill your friend! Hey, that was MY friend! What the fuck?!?" Guillermo kicks ass as usual, and it's obvious that he could kill Nandor if he wanted it . . . or at least achieve a draw. Those other familiars made him look good, though, because they SUCKED. Who fights and smokes at the same time?

I still think Lazlo is a blowhard and someone who only makes friends for the pretense of showing that he has friends . . . but he's pretty good as a father figure to Young Colin Robinson, even when he's trying to disprove fairy tales in the grossest ways possible.

Oh, Nadja. She didn't think the other Wraiths would turn on Xerxes. She was good at haggling, though.

Edited August 1, 2022 by Lantern7

[iMonrey]

"If you can read this the bitch fell off." I'm certain that's a real shirt somewhere, not something they made up for the show.

[Gobi]

8 minutes ago, iMonrey said:

"If you can read this the bitch fell off." I'm certain that's a real shirt somewhere, not something they made up for the show.

It definitely is, I’ve seen it in stores.

[movingtargetgal]

On 7/29/2022 at 1:55 PM, MrPissyPuppy said:

Maybe the onset is at puberty or something like that?

On 7/29/2022 at 5:46 PM, possibilities said:

Right now he's just a child, but aren't all children energy vampires?

Nothing sucks the energy out of you more than pre-teens and teenagers.  They are not only Energy Vampires they are Demons.  

[HDJulie]

12 hours ago, iMonrey said:

"If you can read this the bitch fell off." I'm certain that's a real shirt somewhere, not something they made up for the show.

Indeed. I see them all the time at bike events

[Dixie Sugarbaker]

I think G’s secret love is the vampire killer turned vampire that he saved last season.

[Iseut]

This episode was awesome, and yes, definitely need to rewatch. I don't have the money or artistic skills, but I would love to make up my house like the night market for Halloween.

Kind of disappointed in Nadja for giving all of the vials to Xerxes...she would have had more leverage if she'd kept some behind to keep all of the wraiths in line. But also, union strong! Go wraiths!

I love how they keep finding new ways to play with Nandor's "Thees faaacking guy" catchphrase. 

[TV Anonymous]

Well, it was a disappointing end. I wanted Guillermo to 'accidently' stake the bitching Ringleader.

[Milburn Stone]

On 7/29/2022 at 11:08 PM, MisterGlass said:

Poor Guillermo...apparently he can pass for an orc.

He even smells like one! 

This episode was so good. The preceding ones this season haven't done it for me, but this one was up there with the best. I feel like the writing room was out of practice due to a Covid delay or something, and finally hit its stride.