NOS4A2 Episode 7
It is a family affair this week on NOS4A2.
Vic
A Call from ChristmasLand
Vic starts off a long day of hell with a ringing phone her mother can’t hear. She thinks she just overtired and needs to take her medication. It turns out to be a phone call from Haley in Christmasland. Her and the other kids want to know where “Father Christmas” is since he’s been gone for a while.
She tries to tell Haley that he is not Father Christmas but she doesn’t listen and says she likes it in Christmasland because she has lots of friends. While Vic tries to get her to listen another little girl comes on the phone asking where her father is. Vic once again tells her that he’s not Father Christmas but the girl continues.
She asks Vic where he is since he was looking for her and her bridge. Vic said he was hurt and the girl says she’s a liar and that no one can hurt him. In the end, she tells Vic that he’s coming for her to bring her to them and their going to play Scissors for the Drifter and hangs up.
Mom and Daughter Explosion
The next morning Vic says she’s going to take her bike out and that’s when her mom drops the bomb she sold it. Upset, she calls Maggie who insists that she can’t help her. A rightfully so pissed off Vic storms out of the house and heads to where her bridge should be. She tries to use it but it doesn’t work without the bike and she breaks down.
Calling her dad, she learns he knew and didn’t stop her mother. She also tells him that she wants to go to bike week and look for a new bike.
A Date with Drew
Vic and Drew are out enjoying each other’s company, even holding each other’s hands. They are until Vic says her dad is picking her up. Well, Drew shoots off his mouth and things go south. After telling Vic she owes her dad nothing and says she deserves better. When she mentions that he was sent off to boarding school he comes back and says that his parents just wanted the best for him and have always been there for him.
And in another amazing scene, the creators again highlight real-world issues, and Vic goes off on him and says that it’s easy to be there when there’s food on the table, there is money, and the heat stays on in January. That it’s easy when you get married and have kids after college and med-school instead of getting married due to teenage pregnancy and then serving two tours in the Gulf.
This show isn’t afraid to touch the tough subjects.
Bike week
Vic and Chris look over the bikes and Chris tells Vic he bought her “Big Red” because she lit up like a Christmas tree when she rode it.
After looking at a really nice bike, Vic doesn’t feel an attachment to it. They go to their favorite eating place, a bar. Chris orders two beers for himself and when Vic asks him about it he just says that the service takes a long time there. He’s proving to not a very good recovering alcoholic.
Chris apologizes about being a bad father, but he’s already sort of tipsy.
A Second Call
After storming off, Vic walks past a payphone and once again it rings with no one but her to hear it. This time it’s not Haley but her friend. The girl tells her to visit them in Christmasland because they are hungry. She also tells Vic, in rhyme, that she is going to end up with a child at an early age and no husband unless she gives thanks to her new friend and savior, Millie Manx.
Seriously this child is as sadistic as her father. I can’t wait to hear her story.
A Father/Daughter Explosion
Shaken and distraught, Vic heads back to the table where low and behold Craig is there.
Vic has had enough and allows all hell to break loose as she downs a beer. She tells her dad he lies about the story. He only got her the bike as an apology gift for abusing her mother the night before in a drunken rage. She tells him he has always chosen booze over her.
This is an incredible scene.
At that moment I think Chris is starting to see what he has done. He makes it worse by asking her if she feels like an adult by drinking and shouting. She retorts she isn’t an adult and it isn’t her job to be one. And in a surprising moment of good advice, Chris tells Vic “I hope that you never have to feel what it’s like to disappoint people that you love. You keep drinking like your old man here, I guarantee you will find out.”
This is one of Ebon’s best performances on the show, I think. He is a master at these kinds of scenes. I think the fact Vic laughs, showing how young she really is was a good parallel to what she said. Her dad finally gives her an opening to be the child and she takes it.
Connecting with Craig
After storming off with Craig and complaining about her knife and her dad and Haley, Craig grabs her and tells her that he doesn’t care about any of that, he just wants to know if she’s ok. Reality hits Vic for the first time. Her childhood friend is the only person who really cares about her. You can see a change in the way she looks at him.
I am so happy they are pushing her to get with Craig. She goes back to his place and spends the night with him and finally getting some real sleep.
Chris finds his truth
Chris goes back to Tiffany’s and finds beer cans and bottles of alcohol everywhere and her passed out on the couch.
We see the reality of Vic’s words hitting him like a ton of bricks. He cleans it all up, throwing it all away. I feel this is a turning point for Chris. I have a feeling him and Tiffany are done and maybe he will find his way back to Linda after getting help. But we shall see.
Maggie
Joe who is helping Maggie get to her rehab and doctor appointments is worried she’s slipping back to her drug habits. Maggie swears she’s not. He cares about her deeply, as we can see in this scene.
Later, he finds her on a bench, where he tells her the junkyard lady came through and cops are going to her Wraith. She is unresponsive but conscious and he finds the pills she was hiding in her pocket. Maggie wakes up to a note from Joe that says “I know times have been tough. You’re staying here till you’re better. I believe in you”. He is such a great surrogate dad to her but you know with this kind of show, this isn’t going to end well.
And it doesn’t. She heads downstairs to find the water and his police car running, with the lights going. When she goes out to the car she finds a candy cane and Joe’s sheriff card Joe had given to Mrs. Meyers leaving Maggie in distress. Even though Maggie doesn’t know what happened, we do and that brings us to…
Bing and Manx
Manx has become really old since Jolene and Vic took down the Wraith. He hitches a ride with a father and son and we learn that he doesn’t think kids have to learn any manners or listen to their parents. He calls Bing from a car shop and tells him to fly to Colorado immediately. Now we know where Charlie lives.
He talks to Bradley, the little boy’s father and gives him a candy cane behind his father’s back. We may have Charlie’s next victim here.
Meanwhile, at the school Vic confronts Bing and tells him about Peter Ives, the man Manx killed in the first episode. She warns him he’s dangerous and he could kill him next. In a shocking twist, Bing proves he’s just as dangerous, slamming Vic against the lockers and tells her she’s lying. Thankfully, the bell rings and he has to let her go.
Fixing the Wraith
Bing and Charlie go to Mrs. Myers, the old lady who Maggie and Joe visited seeking out a water pump for the 1938 Wraith. Bing asks if he is going to hurt him like he hurt Ives. He tells him if he remains on his nice list, he will make it to Christmasland. Manx questions where the questions have come from and Bing admits he’s spoken to Vic.
Recognizing the car and Manx, she says she’ll check and when Bing leaves she calls the police. Bing gets to work putting the hose in and Manx gets anxious as he’s getting older plus he hears the approaching police cars. Bing finishes in time but refuses to put the oil in until Manx promises not to kill him like Ives. Mrs. Myers wants to stop him, but it’s too late.
Manx promises and Bing puts the oil in the car. Manx gets younger before our eyes as the shock kills Mrs. Myers. When the police arrive they totally ignore Manx and Bing who are sitting in the Wraith. Bing mentions they can’t see them and Charlie replies that they didn’t notice them and drives off.
Scissors for the Drifter
Dropping Bing off outside the gate, he heads into Christmasland. The place looks just like it sounds, Christmas lights and snow everywhere with Christmas carols playing twenty-four seven. No wonder the kids have become little monsters, that would drive me crazy.
Letting Joe out of the trunk, Charlie honks his horn, and the kids come out. Daniel runs up and hugs Joe and tells him now the can play scissors for the drifter and stabs him with scissors. All the other kids join in and start eating the poor guy except for Millie, who goes and stands next to her dad. Father/daughter psychopaths forever.
Final thoughts
I love the fact the show isn’t afraid to tackle hard to talk about topics.
Ebon Moss-Bacharach’s performance in tonight’s episode was amazing. His ability to make this monster of a dad have a sense of humanity is spot on.
I also enjoyed seeing Jahkara Smith bring out Maggie’s vulnerable side. It was brilliant and I’m guessing with Joe gone we shall see more. I can’t wait to see how Vic plans to take down Charlie without her knife. And will she be able to get Maggie back on her team?
To find out continue watching NOS4A2 on AMC Sunday nights at 10/9c.
With contributions from Ariel B.
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