S02.E08: Forsaken

[ShellSeeker]

 

Fear and anti-Returned rhetoric rises as the virus spreads; Bellamy and Sheriff Fred make every effort to track down the True Living members before they can do any more harm; and Maggie gets closer to finding a cure, but then a kidnapping and a hate crime bring her progress to a halt.

 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Is this show still going to be on by the end of November ?  Pulling it for two weeks in a row sure doesn't help.

 

It just makes me laugh how Maggie the family doctor suddenly becomes an antiviral specialist and expects to be able to "find a cure" when the cure is so difficult and complex that a gov't shadow organization can only make limited quantities -- and then for Maggie's research to be interrupted only by a kidnapping and a hate crime  -- that is even more ridiculous but something that would probably only happen on this show.

 

Since is Ray sick, I guess the rest of his semi-moronic anti-Returned (shouldn't it be anti-Resurrected) minions will be the ones who will be rising the rhetoric levels and probably doing all the kidnapping and hate-criming -- probably Deputy Carl, since the rest of them don't even really have names.

 

And what will Bitchy Grandma be doing all episode since she isn't even in the episode description -- banging Brian Addison to get a better investment deal for the factory ?  Because they have to re-open the factory.  Then again, maybe Grandpa Addison will kidnap BG because .... why not ?

[Blue Plastic]

So Maggie is quickly and effortlessly, without any apparent training as an infectious disease specialist, able to isolate magical baby stem cells that fight Returned Flubola and inject them into Ray, no FDA oversight required.  Sure, yeah, okay, uh-huh, whatever.  I guess she took the weekend courses in "How to develop a vaccine in your small-town clinic in one day" and "How to avoid questions from the FDA when using your new vaccine on human guinea pigs."

 

Well, I guess we know who "wouldn't survive the episode."  Is he going to get a chance to be Returned?  Maybe not, since he's the only one who knew where Religious Nut Wife took Rachel.

 

I really, really don't like the revive-the-factory plot.  It's boring as all get-out and makes Henry look like he's suffering from dementia.

[KaveDweller]

Well, I guess we know who "wouldn't survive the episode."

 

I kept laughing when I saw the promo saying that, because it's a show where people come back from the dead.  Who cares who dies if they will likely just show up again. Because I can't see how they'd explain him now coming back when everyone else has.

[The Mighty Peanut]

So Maggie is quickly and effortlessly, without any apparent training as an infectious disease specialist, able to isolate magical baby stem cells that fight Returned Flubola and inject them into Ray, no FDA oversight required. Sure, yeah, okay, uh-huh, whatever. I guess she took the weekend courses in "How to develop a vaccine in your small-town clinic in one day" and "How to avoid questions from the FDA when using your new vaccine on human guinea pigs."

.

I KNOW! Hey guys, I cured that plague you've been working on for 30+ years during my lunch break, no big deal.

Edited December 1, 2014 by The Mighty Peanut

[Spencer Hastings]

I had to cover my face in secondhand agony when Henry fell for NotDead Grandpa's good 'ol boy charm in like 3 seconds and then a new mortgage on his house. I'm no financial advisor but this isn't going to end well. NotDead Grandpa makes me swoon so there's that.

We all knew Janine was out of her mind. I'm guessing that Tom will be resurrected just in time to save Rachel before Janine rips a 12 year old from her hooha.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Ray is still sick -- yawn.  No one cares.

 

Everyone is in cleanup mode after the inverted red crosses appeared on doors of every household with a Resurrected (still not calling them the Returned out of principle, since that is a far superior show).  And all the frightened people who were 'crossed' off are dumping their Resurrected on Pastor Tom's doorstep since they are worried about the virus jumping to normal people.

 

Enough with the factory already -- Bitchy Grandma is on the case to find out who Brian Addison's grandpa is, and what his motives are.  And she wants him to kill the factory deal.  And, big surprise, Brian Addison kills the factory deal, per Bitchy Grandma's request ---- yay !!!!  But BG is a little too insistent that Henry not follow up with Brian Addison, but Henry doesn't figure out it that was all her doing and decides to meet with him anyway so they can open the factory together.  Yay !!

 

Lucille just stops by at Maggie's office with food and apology about her behavior towards mother because .... why not ?  She feels a little less empowered now that she's sober.  Maggie has a revelation looking at the model of a baby in her office -- so, was that entire scene with Lucille all a setup just to show Maggie's eureka moment ?  Because that's a lot of filler.  And now Maggie is just making up some bullshit about how the baby cured Rachel.  Sure, why not ?  Then again it could have been magic or nanites !!!!

 

Pastor Tom's wife is concerned about Tom's feeling for Rachel -- again -- and only has concerns for Rachel's baby that I'm pretty sure she is going to steal.  

 

Elaine and Sheriff Fred are totally going to bone at some point -- he brought her dinner and saved her from the crispy crackers in the vending machine.  And according to Elaine everything in her life is all Ray's fault.

 

I wonder what those potatoes did to Bitchy Grandma as she was really taking out her frustrations on them.

 

Ummm, how long did Tom and Rachel sit at that light with no one honking at them -- because they sat there for a while, and there was a guy right behind them.

 

How does Ray think that Maggie can control if Ray can comeback as a Resurrected ?

 

Janine: Dear diary, when will this beyotch Rachel give birth so I can steal her baby already ?

 

Bellamy is all verklempt about Jacob's drawing of his family.  Awwwwwwwwwwwwwww. And then takes out his anger on my pal Joey.

 

Speaking of my pal Joey the cross painter, he was not so subtle with his glance at Deputy Carl during the questioning by Sheriff Fred in the diner.  And Bellamy outs himself as a Resurrected in the diner -- I'm sure that will end well.

 

Oh Janine, you are such a terrible liar -- sure Tom wants Rachel to go to her sister's house, sure he does.  And she already has Rachel's bag packed, how nice of her.  But Janine makes a two big mistakes in her baby-napping caper -- she keeps the sheep (that Rachel just had to have) and leaves her Pregnancy Journal drawer ajar for Tom to checkout. Those diary entries were beyond creepy -- My Baby !!! How dare she endanger my baby !!  Unless it's an emergency, what kind of ob-gyn takes new patients late in the evening -- that's a terrible lie, Janine.

 

So, Arcadia is a single industry town -- who knew -- and the factory re-opening will make that large of an impact. Why not ? Henry is going all in on the factory with Grandpa Addison's blessing (you just know he wants to burn it down with Bitchy Grandma in it).

 

And why isn't BG going to Pastor Tom's church to cast out some more demons, since the Resurrected seem to be collecting there -- I figure BG would know that, she knows everything else. Since it is the Bitchy Grandma show.

 

Tom declares his twu wuv for Rachel -- so you know someone's going to die soon.  Maybe again in Rachel's case.  But no, Pastor Tom gets run over by a black pickup truck driven by Deputy Carl.  This is priceless -- who writes this crap ?  I laughed when that happened because Deputy Carl came careening into the church parking lot for no apparent reason (was he trying to scare people ?), other than it was convenient to hide the hit and run from everyone that went out the front door.  We know Pastor Tom will be back, but in the meantime Janine can go a baby-stealing.  I bet no one noticed his truck, or heard the impact or saw him speed away.  That was just bad.

 

Why didn't Bellamy just pick up the canister and whip it back out the window ?  It wasn't a grenade.  But no, we have to evacuate for the sake of plot convenience.  Why didn't Pastor Tom go out the front door like everyone else -- again, plot convenience.

Edited December 1, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[Blue Plastic]

Why didn't Bellamy just pick up the canister and whip it back out the window ?  It wasn't a grenade.  But no, we have to evacuate for the sake of plot convenience.  Why didn't Pastor Tom go out the front door like everyone else -- again, plot convenience.

This is what I want to know.  Seemed like it should be fairly easy to get rid of the canister.  And why didn't Pastor Tom know the way around his own building and go out the front with everyone else?  I guess the stupid deputy was trying to go around the back to get away from the scene of the crime (throwing the tear gas), but it doesn't make sense for Tom to go out that way.

 

If this show isn't going to be on for several weeks over the December break, that can't be good for it.  After missing it for just 2 weeks I was already less enthused about it tonight.  Two weeks ago I was still "okay, I'm gonna watch it."  Tonight I was more like, "Hmm, I don't know if I wanna watch it."  They need to come to a rousing conclusion instead of futilely trying to drag everything out, IMO.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Blue Plastic

[Latverian Diplomat]

So Maggie is quickly and effortlessly, without any apparent training as an infectious disease specialist, able to isolate magical baby stem cells that fight Returned Flubola and inject them into Ray, no FDA oversight required.  Sure, yeah, okay, uh-huh, whatever.  I guess she took the weekend courses in "How to develop a vaccine in your small-town clinic in one day" and "How to avoid questions from the FDA when using your new vaccine on human guinea pigs."

 

 

 

It just makes me laugh how Maggie the family doctor suddenly becomes an antiviral specialist and expects to be able to "find a cure" when the cure is so difficult and complex that a gov't shadow organization can only make limited quantities 

I guess it helps that she doesn't appear to know how placentas work, or stem cells, or the immune system, or the flu. 

 

All those fancy government specialists just have too much book learning. Maggie doesn't know the meaning of the word impossible. No really, she doesn't actually know that either.

 

So the minister's confession to Rachel that he always only loved her, really lost my sympathy. His 2nd marriage was a complete sham? What a guy. 

 

I realize that Henry is an old-fashioned guy in a backwater town, but can he really re-mortgage the house without Lucille's signature as well? Is that legal? Don't they own it jointly?

 

A business partnership is one of the most trusting relationships there is. Your partner can get you into tons of legal and financial trouble. Henry is an idiot, is what I'm saying. 

Edited December 1, 2014 by Latverian Diplomat

[Spencer Hastings]

I realize that Henry is an old-fashioned guy in a backwater town, but can he really re-mortgage the house without Lucille's signature as well? Is that legal? Don't they own it jointly?

Since BG had an endless supply of clothes already there, knows where everything old is stored, and was offended by the changes Lucille made to the dining room walls, maybe it was originally owned by his parents and therefore Lucille doesn't need to be let in on this? I was wondering the same thing and just rationalized that it was passed down through the family. Edited December 1, 2014 by Spencer Hastings

[Mrs OldManBalls]

I had to cover my face in secondhand agony when Henry fell for NotDead Grandpa's good 'ol boy charm in like 3 seconds and then a new mortgage on his house. I'm no financial advisor but this isn't going to end well. 

 

His wife is going to be pissed, but not as pissed at his mom! 

[Latverian Diplomat]

His wife is going to be pissed, but not as pissed at his mom! 

Honey, you won't believe this great deal I got in my email this morning. It was from an honest-to-gosh prince. From Nigeria of all places. Anyway, all I had to do was put some money down, and I got in on this can't miss opportunity...

[chlban]

I kept laughing when I saw the promo saying that, because it's a show where people come back from the dead.  Who cares who dies if they will likely just show up again. Because I can't see how they'd explain him now coming back when everyone else has.

This. It's not like any other show where a dead character means they are gone. Is it wroing that my initial reaction to his being hit by th car was that I just wished the two look alikes were with him? Then I thought it through and realized it doesn't mean he's gone.

 

Gee, so I guess the wife wasn't actually so happy that the ex girlfriend is having her husbands baby with no ulterior motives? Who'd have thunk it?

[ottoDbusdriver]

Gee, so I guess the wife wasn't actually so happy that the ex girlfriend is having her husbands baby with no ulterior motives? Who'd have thunk it?

 

And with Tom no longer in picture (at least temporarily, who knows how long it will be before he resurrects and comes back to town -- my guess is a couple of days), that gives Janine free reign to steal Rachel's baby (and probably kill off Rachel in the process).  But if she kills Rachel, that means Rachel will probably resurrect and come looking for her baby, Rachel will kill Janine in the process then Janine will resurrect and come after Rachel and accidentally kill the baby while trying to kill Rachel.  Then the baby will resurrect (again -- he's already done it in utero twice) and get found by Bitchy Grandma, who will want to raise the baby as her own in order to manage the Factory when he grows up.  Then Bitchy Grandma will have to kill off Rachel and Janine in order to keep the baby, because both Rachel and Janine will be too emotional about the baby and not be able to 'let go'.  But they keep coming back -- much like back in the 30s.

 

I don't think the writers have truly thought things through now that they have diverged so significantly from the source material.

Edited December 1, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[luna70]

I do not know if the Pastor will come back.

B*tchy Grandma, in a previous episode, had said that all those who have returned, were not Saints. Coming back was NOT a 2nd chance at living, but possibly, a punishment for what they did in their 'real' lives. (I do not remember what episode, nor who she was talking to.)

Most of the 'returns' do seem to have problems, or 'sin'-B.G. -if the 'Dreams' are true-she skipped around the factory while a dozen men burned to death, among other things, Henry seems to like killing birds and I suspect his and Barbara's deaths are not fully explained. Barbara was committing adultery. Janine-committed suicide-a sin in some religions. Ray's father-too many wrongs to list. The Deputy's brother-killed his parents, tormented the deputy.

It does not explain why Agent Bellemy came back the 1st time-other then Babies are born w/o sin-He had no idea he was a 'return' until the 2nd time-The 2nd time-We see flashbacks of him and a young black boy dying. His sin?

While Arcadia has had hundreds come back, MOST of the population has not come back-i.e. the young woman who brought her FIL to the church in this last episode. She was a widow-so, why didn't her husband return?

I had no doubt if Pastor Tom's wife dies, she will be popping up all over the place!

AND.. I suspect, and did right from the beginning, the RAY.. is a returned.. He is so.. 'out of it' he would not realize if he died. Also, his sister did say, for the 1st time, she left him alone, once. Maybe he died off in the woods, returned right there in Arcadia?

I didn't see/know who hit Pastor Tom with the car .. He better pray that P.T. has sinned and will return. (My Theory). Can you see the murder/homicide trial? Right in the middle of it, Tom shows up! 'But your honor, his body is in the morgue!' 'But your honor, your see he is right here, before your eyes! And No, he is not an identical twin!'.

 

Arcadia will be the place where you can murder and get away with it because no one dies forever! I do not know if you can even be charged with assault /battery-because the 'returned' body is in better shape then the previous 'real living body'-I.e. B*tchy Grandma-no trace of cancer!

Edited December 1, 2014 by luna70

[North of Eden]

Sadly the end is nigh. Ratings were .08 &under 4 million viewers. This is going to be another REUNION where we get no answers or resolution to the mystery if cancellation happens.

[millennium]

Pop Tards, anyone?

[chlban]

Sadly the end is nigh. Ratings were .08 &under 4 million viewers. This is going to be another REUNION where we get no answers or resolution to the mystery if cancellation happens.

Yes, I saw that. Those two weeks off were a mistake. Although the end was inevitable as the story meandered into UTD territory anyway so it was just a matter of tine. I just wish the writers would rush back in and give us a wrap up. Except the would have to have a direction to do that, and clearly they don't. 

 

I am giving up on this type of show. It's like "Lost" where they start out with a mystery that really seems interesting. You get al linvested and then, just like here, realize that all they ever had was mysterious elements. Not a realy mystery, which would ultimately lead to a resolution. Like "How to Get Away With Murder". There are tons of unbeliebable plot contrivances in that show, but there actually appears to be a solution so people tune in.  In droves. So, I don't think it has to be all that beleivable, just have a direciton and a solution. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

I rolled back to the top of this thread to the episode description and can't believe how far off it was from what actually happened.

 

Fear and anti-Returned rhetoric rises as the virus spreads

 

So far, Ray is the only human with the Resurrected virus.  And the virus didn't spread to anyone else during the episode.  Fear spread and that's why people were dumping the Resurrected in the church, but the virus didn't spread.

 

Bellamy and Sheriff Fred make every effort to track down the True Living members before they can do any more harm

 

Every effort ?  They checked out one guy.  And neither of them put together the connection between the True Living guy and Deputy Carl after that lingering look he gave him in the diner. So Bellamy and Fred have pretty shitty observation skills.

 

Maggie gets closer to finding a cure, but then a kidnapping and a hate crime bring her progress to a halt.

 

By the end of the episode, Maggie didn't even know that Rachel was missing so how did that bring her search for the cure to a halt. And Maggie didn't know about the hate crime at all since it was the last thing that happened in the episode, so how Maggie knew about and how it affected her research I have no idea.  The ABC promo monkeys for the show who write the episode descriptions really do pull shit out of their asses sometimes.

Edited December 2, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[jhlipton]

The opening of an old furniture factory doesn't quite do it for me (my reaction to all things factory: why should I care?).

 

If I lived in S Carolina, I would hate this story-line even more than I do now. Dozens, if not more, family-owned furniture makers have gone under, not because of malaise or whatever happened to Henry, but because most people would rather buy crap from China or India (and not give a fig about slave labor) than buy quality.

BG and Henry thinking that just rebuilding the factory is going to be enough is just plain offensive.

 

 Why didn't Pastor Tom go out the front door like everyone else -- again, plot convenience.

I thought that Bellamy told him to go out the back to create a draft so as to air out the church.

 

 

The ABC promo monkeys for the show who write the episode descriptions really do pull shit out of their asses sometimes.

They get their cue from the writers (see "Miracle Maggie", above).

[margol29]

Why does Fred need a partner to rebuild the factory? When this cornfuzzled storyline started, Fred just up and decided to reopen the factory. Period. Only when he took Henry to the factory to look around did he see Not Dead Grampa's grandson and they talked DEAL. SoOoOoOoOo over it!!!!

 

I also think that Ray is returned and did not know it. Look at Belamy...he did not know either. Also we don't see Belamy taking anymore shots of majik fluid to keep his returned flu at bay. That shit should be used up by now. I swear the writers can't remember from one episode to the next.

[Canada]

I forgot this show even existed.  Watched this episode... and I remembered why.  Ridiculous.

 

All I could focus on this episode was how ill the pastor's wife looked.  She looked quite haggard.  Is the actress ill or something?

[jhlipton]

All I could focus on this episode was how ill the pastor's wife looked.  She looked quite haggard.  Is the actress ill or something?

 

Sick and tired of being in this mess of a show...

[shapeshifter]

...Why didn't Bellamy just pick up the canister and whip it back out the window ? It wasn't a grenade....

This is what I want to know....

I begrudgingly accepted that Maggie is the miracle worker doctor because I've seen that on other shows so many times, from Bones on Star Trek to Drs. Anne and Lourdes on Falling Skies. But announcing it's tear gas and not throwing it back out the window--that I have a problem with. If I were an editor for the show, it would have been that Belamy either has asthma or the sickness has effected his respiratory system. But I guess it wasn't deemed important.

I do not know if the Pastor will come back.

B*tchy Grandma, in a previous episode, had said that all those who have returned, were not Saints....

I had a feeling that he was really dead; maybe that's why. That is one plot point the writers seem to care about keeping consistent.

...I didn't see/know who hit Pastor Tom with the car...

It was the cop with the evil brother that kept returning. Edited December 6, 2014 by shapeshifter

[Blue Plastic]

I also think that Ray is returned and did not know it. Look at Belamy...he did not know either. Also we don't see Belamy taking anymore shots of majik fluid to keep his returned flu at bay. That shit should be used up by now. I swear the writers can't remember from one episode to the next.

Yeah, and what about Bellamy planting a cell phone at the secret facility so he could sneak back there later and get his sister and maybe more doses of the magic serum.  That plan had enough holes to drive a truck through, plus wouldn't the cell phone have been discovered by now or worn down its battery?  They don't follow through on anything.

[jhlipton]

B*tchy Grandma, in a previous episode, had said that all those who have returned, were not Saints....

 

 

I don't accept ranching BG says as truth.  To many diverse Resurrected, staying or going in different ways.. Barbara unserrected because the writers didn't know what to do with her -- so **poof**.  I am so not buying the sin thing.

[anstar]

There are also several returned children and didn't Bellamy return the first time as pretty much a toddler?  What could a child that young possibly have done to qualify as "not a saint"?  BG may absolutely believe her theory, but I don't accept it as gospel.

[shapeshifter]

There are also several returned children and didn't Bellamy return the first time as pretty much a toddler?  What could a child that young possibly have done to qualify as "not a saint"?  BG may absolutely believe her theory, but I don't accept it as gospel.

My operating theory/fanwank has been that some innocents (especially small children or babies) return because they are a part of a larger situation that arose because of some evil doing.

[jhlipton]

My operating theory/fanwank has been that some innocents (especially small children or babies) return because they are a part of a larger situation that arose because of some evil doing.

What about the black family?  Even if they'd tied to Bellamy, there's no reason for the whole family t return.

 

And what about Caleb?  There's no way he even acknowledged his sins much less atoned for them.

[shapeshifter]

What about the black family?  Even if they'd tied to Bellamy, there's no reason for the whole family t return.

 

And what about Caleb?  There's no way he even acknowledged his sins much less atoned for them.

The black family could have returned because of some unfinished business from some evil doer. Of course, in that case, nearly all African Americans, Native Americans, Japanese Americans, and a host of others would return. So, yeah, my theory has holes.

Caleb seemed to be driven to find the money, and once his daughter rejected the money, he went poof--so it was more like he didn't need to be there anymore--which was similar to BG talking Barbara into believing she didn't need to be there anymore either.

[jhlipton]

Caleb seemed to be driven to find the money, and once his daughter rejected the money, he went poof-

 

But he didn't go poof as soon as his daughter rejected the money -- he returned to the jail before going poof.  The reason for this was PLOT -- if he had just gone poof, no one would know (or care) that the Resurrected could poof.