S01.E09: The Disappeared

[SlothLoveChunk]

Did anyone else see the musical Bat Boy?

Because I think The Master has a future in the touring company.

I thought I was the only one who loved that musical more than life itself.

[Gregg247]

Forget them, I'd never have so much as sat down in that house where there might be stray vampire-making worms from New Boyfriend's body wriggling their way over the furniture, let alone taken my clothes off and gotten horizontal for any length of time! Even they way they were right down next to the body while wrapping it up in plastic made me think they were taking a big chance of getting infected.

 

NORAH: Eph, is that a vampire worm, or are you just happy to see me?

[beedub]

I couldn't help but think the Master looked liked a villain of the week from Buffy the Vampire Slayer!

 

Speaking of which, The Master from Buffy would be an improvement:

 

 

For that matter, the "bat" version of Dracula from Coppola's film from '92 was even superior:

 

[islandgal140]

The WTF sex in the ex-wife's bed while awaiting to see if the ex-wife would arrive home either in human or vampire form was some annoying shit but I also have to say that Fet and Dutch seemingly lounging around her apartment like they had all the time in the world while they let the old man and the kid stew in a bread truck at night while vampires roam the streets in roving bands with a fatwa on the old man's ass was pretty fucking terrible too. Was the driver side door even locked?  No idea how much time had elapsed but it seemed like more than a little which is too much for me.

 

I don't hate or strongly dislike Nora but I seriously wanted to brain her for mouthing off to Fet the way she did. Yeah, Jim should've been killed by his friends but his friends wouldn't and couldn't and time was of the essence so please STFU!!

 

So funny to see Nora and Eff give a semi eulogy to Jim while roasting Matt on an open fire. LOL! Had to laugh at them saying Jim always put others before himself. I guess that was in between him selling out humanity for what amounts to chump change in retrospect.

 

I'll chime in and add that yes, the Master's appearance was disappointing. It looks like something the FX department picked up at Party City, which probably came with the wig they have poor Corey sporting. Two birds 1 stone.

 

Bring back the Vamp SWAT!!!

Edited September 9, 2014 by islandgal140

[bosawks]

I don't know, I get what Fet was trying to say but, dude, maybe you should wait longer than a 1/2 hour before you get all "I was right and you were weak".  Heck, just wait until their tears have a chance to dry.  Fet's game seems a little rusty...........

 

I did love Nora's "Should we say something about Matt?" and Eph's "Naw, I'm good.", way to hold onto a grudge. I really hope they go full asshole with him.  I think it'd be interesting.

[Sofie Fatale]

I think Nora needs to get her head in the game. That shit would annoy the f**k out of me

"So we're thieves now?". Ugh yes! There's a vombie apocalypse happening woman!!"

[chad0h]

why did they add this blonde hacker chick? she's not in the book.. they must have a hot blonde because it's TV? not only is she a hot blonde but she's a super elite super hacker and "took down" the internet for 3 days... LOL what a joke. at least make it believable ffs.

Edited September 9, 2014 by chad0h

[lulee]

I think part of the problem with the Master's appearance is how yellow his eyes are. Distractingly fake.

[Rhetorica]

I think part of the problem with the Master's appearance is how yellow his eyes are. Distractingly fake.

As soon as I saw him, I thought of an eliminated Face Off contestant. No way Ve Neil, Glenn Hetrick, Neville Page, or Michael Westmore would approve. 

[Tippi Blevins]

I could have gone the rest of the series without seeing the Master's dorky face. His face was the Eph's wig of faces.

 

I don't understand why giving someone worms would be so... ecstasy-inducing. 

 

Speaking of slipping someone the worm: I can understand that life-and-death situations make you horny. I understand that being horny makes you throw caution to the wind and decide to bone. I can even kind of understand taking off most of your clothes in the middle of a vampire apocalypse to bone. But I cannot understand cuddling up for a snooze afterwards! At least get up and put your clothes back on first! 

[lulee]

I could have gone the rest of the series without seeing the Master's dorky face. His face was the Eph's wig of faces.

 

I don't understand why giving someone worms would be so... ecstasy-inducing. 

Well, I guess it is a form of reproduction ...

[Sofie Fatale]

Also why would the best friend barge into her bedroom? It could have easily been Kelly and her boyfriend boning. That irritated me as well.

[bluebonnet]

It was also so contrived that the friend came to the house at that point.  The lady didn't even have the courtesy of walking bad child actor to the door when she dropped him off.  Who does that?  Even when things are hunky dory, if someone doesn't come to the door, you walk the kid there.  At the very least, you tell the kid to go in and grab a parent to come to the door so you know everything is ok, especially when the parent isn't answering their freaking phone.  If she was too lazy to ensure the safety of her best friend's kid to begin with, she should have been too lazy to come round later just to make sure.  

[meep.meep]

So underneath that tattered brown bathrobe was a giant wearing the worst makeup ever. Ooooh scary!

I watched on demand. When the episode ended, I was startled to hear a clear voice say, "We'll, now that we've seen The Master ....." Until I realized that I'd been watching HDTV.

[Jordan27]

Good episode and I liked that the kid seemed to get it a lot quicker than Eph and Nora, who continues to bug.  In fact, I don't really see any use for her character other than to be annoying. 

 

She tells Fet he should be more human about him killing vampire creatures?  There are no longer human Nora!!!  Why don't you get a clue and grow up!  And complaining about stealing?!?!  I don't think the authorities will mind if you wipe out the vampire plague.  Worst character on the show. 

 

If she was on my team, I would have dropped her off long ago.

 

Abraham and Fet continue to impress.  And I really liked the flashbacks. 

[Milaxx]

why did they add this blonde hacker chick? she's not in the book.. they must have a hot blonde because it's TV? not only is she a hot blonde but she's a super elite super hacker and "took down" the internet for 3 days... LOL what a joke. at least make it believable ffs.

And yet she only has one backup of her files that her roommate conveniently stole. I am probably the least tech savvy person I know and I have 2 backups of my PC.

[Sofie Fatale]

I have no problem with her being a hot blonde female genius hacker (I mean all those things don't have to be mutually exclusive lol), I just find her meeting up with the team way too coincidental, verging on ridiculous. Of all the gas stations in NYC to stop in and pick up a burrito she ends up at the one with our crew. Lol.

Also uh Nora, you're a side chick. Stay in your lane.

Eph is always going to love the mother of his son on some level. Enjoy the vombie apocalypse sex for what it was and move on. Yeah I just can't stand the character...

[Bruinsfan]

I think this episode convinced me that I'd like the show better if it were a high concept comedy like Bewitched or I Dream of Jeannie rather than a horror/thriller show:

 

Abe and Fet come home from a hard night of vampire hunting to be yelled at in comedic fashion by Mrs. Martinez (this week she thinks she's an angry fry cook in El Paso!), Zach acts out a Home Alone sequence versus Mom's vampire boyfriend, Eph and Nora participate in a slamming door farce trying to hide their indiscretions from a midnight home invasion by a nosy neighbor (sight gag: Nora's head peeking around a doorjamb, then Eph's above hers, then the toupee puppet above his), and Gus brings the social awareness when he's arrested for jaywalking while the cops ignore the extra-white vampires tearing people's throats out in the background. Be sure to tune in next week when Mrs. Martinez mistakes the preserved heart in Abe's study for dry-aged beef and serves a spaghetti dinner the gang will never forget!

Edited September 10, 2014 by Bruinsfan

[Nutjob]

My favourite of his lines here was when the gang arrived at the pawn shop only to be chewed out by Nora's bitchy mom, and when someone says, "That's Nora's mom" he says, "Obviously".  ;-)

This was my favorite, too. Made me laugh out loud.

[ttgreif]

Yeah, the sex in the ex's bed was beyond tacky. Would have been much better if the ex-wife had come in while they were doing it as a vampire and attached them both.

 

...or maybe join them.... :-)

 

And I sure miss the SWAT Vamp team too...

Edited September 10, 2014 by ttgreif

[Totale]

I think this episode convinced me that I'd like the show better if it were a high concept comedy like Bewitched or I Dream of Jeannie rather than a horror/thriller show:

 

We have Under the Dome for that.  I don't know if I can handle two of them.

[Hanahope]

The problem with seeing the master finally, is that we already saw Eichorn as a vamp and the master was really just a bigger version of that.  So it wasn't really anything 'new' or shocking.  About the only real difference, that I recall, was the hands being significantly larger. 

 

I assumed the "orgasmic" face the master had when he gave the worm to Eichorn was because he was using some of his 'power' to ensure Eichorn kept some of his faculties and not become a mindless vamp.

 

I also don't understand what the point was of crushing Abe's fingers, rather than just draining and killing him like the other camp victims?

 

I will assume that Eph/Nora didn't expect his ex-wife to come home, since it appeared someone fought with Matt, mess up the house, so presumably she got away and wouldn't come back (though I would think any mother, if she was alive, would have gone searching for her son to protect her child), so they felt "ok" to have sex.  But it made no sense that the friend would barge into the bedroom.  And why come back anyway?  Why not try calling if you were worried after you let the boy into the dark house without actually confirming a parent is there?  There was no indication that regular telephone lines didn't work.

 

Lesson of Dutch - never show your lover all of your secret cash caches.  And keep a second back up.

[MissDMeaner]

The Master has no nose either. You'd think he'd be able to grow one. Oh well.

[Rickster]

For those interested, the operatic background music used towards the end of the episode was a famous bass aria from Mozart's "The Magic Flute". It is a prayer to the Egyptian gods Isis and Osiris.

[Gregg247]

I didn't find the flashbacks as compelling this episode as they were in the others, for some reason.  There just wasn't the intensity of previous flashbacks.  Also, when Eichorn was in the bunker, waiting for The Master to show up, he had so many candles burning I thought I had accidently switched over to an episode of The Bachelor".

[fliptopbox]

As soon as I saw him, I thought of an eliminated Face Off contestant. No way Ve Neil, Glenn Hetrick, Neville Page, or Michael Westmore would approve. 

Agreed. Whoever's in charge of the makeup for The Master seriously missed the mark, if they were going for any kind of creep factor. The minion vombies are a lot less laughable and terrifying. Master looks like a crappy Halloween mask!

[MDKNIGHT]

I agree that the Master was a big let down.  ANY of the top 4 contestants in any season of Face Off could have done a hell of a better job in  3 days.  I always figured that the people who do the hiring for sci fi and horror movies just watch the last ep of Face Off and take down the names.  If the people behind this show had done that we wouldn't be mocking the Master now. 

 

That being said I'm enjoying the show.  I DO however NEED the show to eventually spell out why we have vombies, Nazi fops AND Vamp Swat teams.  Is it genetics interacting with the worm parasites (they are parasites not a virus) so some people maintain a sense of self and their memories and faculties, or what?  In Dusk Till Dawn the preacher being a man of God was able to hold back turning after being bitten for a while although he eventually succumbed.  I doubt however they'll go that route here.  Once though (not in this show necessarily) I would like the answer to some ridiculous coincidence actually be Devine Intervention.  Or at least have one character believe it to be DI.  Then somebody would say something like "Wait you think it is just coincidence that we are battling vampires and run into the hacker who brought down the internet so she can help us?  In NY?  A city of HOW many people?  It HAS to be DI,"  I thought it could tie into Abraham saying something like "oh God"  and the Master mocking him that God would not be helping him.  What if God HAS been helping him.  I mean how many times can a 90 year old go up against such deadly creatures as Eichorn and his Master and not die?  It is kind of miraculous when you think about it. 

[Bruinsfan]

Come to think of it, it's pretty miraculous for a 90 year old to be able to tail someone through Grand Central Station without getting winded and having to sit down. The nonogenarians I know have to use walkers and/or move very slowly and carefully.

[beedub]

The nonogenarians I know have to use walkers and/or move very slowly and carefully.

 

But are they badass vampire slayers? ;-)

 

I think we can assume special dispensation. Or maybe there's more to that heart soup in his batcave than we think.

[Sofie Fatale]

I just think he's a badass who's driven to kill off this master vamp and his scourge lol. No time to stop and think about how old you are. I always believed in the theory of "use it or lose it". My grandmother stopped taking walks regularly in her early seventies, and as a result has gotten progressively less mobile as the years passed.

[fliptopbox]

My great grandmother lived to her mid nineties, despite raging dementia. The only thing that took her out was her poor eyesight, she fell and broke her hip trying to get to the front door. My dad was supposed to be home with her, but he wasn't. Anyway, from that point on she was wheelchair or bedbound. She was like that for about a year before she passed. But anyway, my point is...dementia aside 90 year olds are capable of being pretty damn mobile.

[lulee]

My great grandmother lived to her mid nineties, despite raging dementia. The only thing that took her out was her poor eyesight, she fell and broke her hip trying to get to the front door. My dad was supposed to be home with her, but he wasn't. Anyway, from that point on she was wheelchair or bedbound. She was like that for about a year before she passed. But anyway, my point is...dementia aside 90 year olds are capable of being pretty damn mobile.

and sword-swinging beheadings?

[MDKNIGHT]

and sword-swinging beheadings?

Yeah my dad is pretty spry for a 91 year old and he could WALK through Grand Central Station but he couldn't run after a vamp who can dodge like that and beheadings I THINK are probably a no go.  So I'm sticking with Abraham being "special" in some way other than just obsessional devotion to (justifiable) revenge.  Hey he's Jewish, maybe among the "Chosen" he's been especially chosen.  The more I think about it the more I'd like the Master's taunting Abraham about God to come back and bite him in the a**,  if he has one, assuming it hasn't fallen off too.  Heh.

[Happytobehere]

First and foremost, can I say that half way through the episode I could not take Nora any more and started hitting the mute button anytime her lips moved. It truly makes the show exponentially better. I have truly reached the point where every time she opens her mouth I just want someone to tell her to shut up before she gets two words out.

Second, if the show were trying to portray her as a viable love interest and not the side-piece whore, they blew it with the screwing in the house where his ex-wife, who might be in mortal danger and son live. Eph may have initiated it but if Nora had any class, character or values, she wouldn't have allowed it, but since her sole purpose on the show up until this point has been to be the pathetic side piece, I guess the issue of morals and character were never really issues with the showrunners.

Third, I loved when Eph not only said he loved his ex, but still referred to her as his wife in front of Nora. I did an internal, Haha. Not even a millisecond of sympathy for her. Yeah, my dislike of Nora has officially turned to hate and I would love to see her killed off Post Haste. At this point, my feelings for her are on par with my feelings for the Abby character on Ray Donovan.

Fourth, I love the fact that Fet said, "Of course," when informed that the shrill, harpy is Nora's mother -- Awesome. The only thing on par with it was when he pointed out to "Lord Mistress Run Her Mouth For No Reason Known to Man" that for all her talk of Sean Astin's character being killed by someone who loved him, that she had no intention of doing it. It actually shut her up. If for no other reason, but these two scenes, and we know there are so many other reasons, neither Fet, nor GoT guy can be killed. Everyone else can die at anytime.

Wonder how the kid is going to fit into to the Fighting the Vampocalypse Gang?

If ex-wife is alive and uninfected, I think we can assume that Nora and Eph will not be end-game. If that pairing does come to pass, I'm out.

Wonder when Gus joins our heroes now that he has seen what is happening to people.

Edited September 14, 2014 by Happytobehere

[paramitch]

For a moment each week in the Nazi flashbacks, I find myself weirdly shipping Abe/Eichorst. First off, the two just play their scenes super-intensely and always way into each other's personal spaces. And the Eichorst actor has become one of my favorite actors on the show -- he has a lot of presence, and he does manage to infuse some conflicted humanity and cameraderie into Past-Eichorst -- like his visible regret at consigning Abe to be killed due to the state of his hands.

 

But yeah, it's weird. I realize Eichorst is pure evil but with every flashback, at some point, I almost always yell out, "Kiss him!"  (It's worth noting that I don't think we're done with the flashbacks -- at some point we know past-Abe and Eichorst will meet again soon, and that Abe's wife (or the heart-jar person) will become infected. So more homoerotic Nazi subtext still awaits me! Yay!)

 

That kid is a horrible actor. Is he related to someone famous? He can go at anytime.

The kid's horrendous acting actually took me right out of the scene. In the scene where he questions Eph, you can actually see him simply waiting for his cue to respond. There's no acting there at all. He's awful and I was really hoping Vompie Stepdad would chomp him. He must be a producer's kid or something.

 

Also, what is the point of them having sex if Cory Stoll doesn't get at least a little naked?

I was really annoyed and angry that the show continues to trot out the tropes, which is that of course the chick got naked, while the guy did little beyond unzip. It just felt egregious here. Yet again. What happened to Nora, the tough-chick of the pilot episode? She does not resemble the character we see now at all (like bleating about becoming thieves to get the lights they needed for protecting themselves -- sigh).

 

Speaking of twisted, my husband cheerily informed me that if I presented with the virus, there'd be none of that sentimental hesitation--he'd dispatch me speedily.

 

I felt like that scene was a missed opportunity and badly written. I thought Sean Astin did a lovely job with the moment, reacting as both a scientist and as a scared friend ready to die as the right thing -- all ruined because of Eph's anger and Nora's perpetual screamy cryface. It would have been more moving to me if one of the two had hugged him, acknowledged him, and then stepped back and shot him in the head. It would have been especially moving (and resonant) for Nora to do so.

 

The sex scene was totally out of no where wasn't it?  I mean if they needed to have a gratuitous sex scene do it with Fet and Dutch or Nora's mom and Abe would have even been better than that scene.  And why in the movies/TV does the guy always have to pick the girl up to bang her?  I like my nice soft bed and if my man picked me up (well it would put his back out) like that I would tell him to knock it off and lets get back on the BED.

 

First off, I'm still laughing at the image of that first sex scene. Excellent!  Secondly, yeah, this was bad. I just thought it was clumsily acted and terribly choreographed. As you pointed out, him picking her up off the bed and tossing her against the wall just came off as ludicrous and cliched. Although I was hoping that when the scene came back to them, that they'd completely wrecked the room in a  Mel Brooks movie kind of way.
 

The Master has no nose either. You'd think he'd be able to grow one. Oh well.

 

1: The Master has no nose.

2: How does he smell?

1: Terrible.

 

Sorry. I had to do it.

Edited September 14, 2014 by paramitch

[Latverian Diplomat]

Ew at how aroused the evil-clown-faced Master looked when implanting a worm in Eichorst.

 

 

I assumed the "orgasmic" face the master had when he gave the worm to Eichorn was because he was using some of his 'power' to ensure Eichorn kept some of his faculties and not become a mindless vamp.

 

 

 

For those interested, the operatic background music used towards the end of the episode was a famous bass aria from Mozart's "The Magic Flute". It is a prayer to the Egyptian gods Isis and Osiris.

It's not just any old prayer, it's a blessing for a pair of betrothed lovers. So, maybe they just picked a moody song with German lyrics and a nice bass solo, or maybe they were trying to say something darker and more cynical about the imminent "consummation." With a show this uneven, it's difficult to know.