GRIMM Makes Up Its Own Rules

3.02 “PTZD”

[photos: Scott Green/NBC]

Again this episode started with a recap. I’m not sure if it was necessary but they recapped part of last season, not just last week. I totally understand the need to bring the audience up to speed since last week was a cliff hanger but I’m not sure we need to again revisit the end of last season.

Last week there were more or less three story lines to follow: the battle with the hordes of zombies, Nick’s journey and then chase to get to Nick the third story line was Adalind and her gruesome ritual to get her powers back. This week there are only two story lines but that’s plenty to cover in one episode. To be honest I sort of feel like Adalind’s story is getting the short end of the stick. If her character is important enough that we follow her whole process of getting her powers maybe we should have a bit more background on her and other things that are going on in Austria.

* Spoilers Ahead *

On the one hand I really enjoyed this episode and on the other I have a real problem with the story. Actually I have two problems with the story. I’ll cover them both when we get to them.

It’s nice to have the lead characters so settled into their roles. The production style, look, camera work are all so much more consistent. The special effects and makeup are better and much more consistent so far. I recall in the first season and even into the first half of the second season there were all kinds of inconsistencies with everything from continuity to production style. It seems that those have been worked out now that we are in the third season.

I rather like the way these first two episodes go back to something that we saw part of and then more is revealed. In the last episode Renard paused in the bar and goes back. I wondered at the time what he was doing. This week we find out what he was up to. He noticed the surveillance cameras and goes into the bar office and destroys the surveillance system and takes the flash drive with him. Smart move Renard, smart move.

Zombie Nick terrorized everyone in the bar then he stumbles off to a house and attacks the family that is just returning home. It’s at the home that Monroe tracks him down following both his scent and then the screams from the house. Hank and Monroe get Nick to follow them out of the house and they temporarily trap him in a stall when he fell through the floor of the hay loft in the barn. But now he’s definitely been seen by the family there. Not to mention that he threatened all their lives and destroyed property in their house. But maybe worse is that the home owner saw Hank, Renard, and Monroe and Hank identified himself as a police officer.

The problems I have with the story are really how the characters are behaving differently in this episode than they have before. And the story that they put out that Thomas Schirach may have been the source of the contagious epidemic. Really? How is that even remotely believable? Why not go with the truth, that the Baron was the source, and that he infected Thomas Schirach, A.K.A Nick Burkhart. That would explain things much better than trying to say Thomas was the source of the infection.

The second problem I have is Nick’s reaction to learning that one of the guys he attacked in the bar fight later died at a hospital. Everyone including Nick acts like this is the first time he’s killed someone. Oh how quickly they forget. He decapitated two guys sent to assassinate him and sent the heads back to the royal family. He had Monroe shoot the troll that would have killed Hank. In one episode last season he killed what, four people that he had Monroe lure out to a carnival grounds. Do you see what I mean? This is by no means the first time Nick has killed someone and yet this time he grows a strong conscience about it. This time, when all his friends have stuck out their necks to protect him he wants to turn himself in and in the process throw all of them under the bus. Is it because this was a regular guy and the others were Nick as a Grimm against Wesen? Or is it because he didn’t do it on purpose and was out of his own mind when he attacked the people in the bar? I can’t figure out why this case is so different.

Again Grimm has entered that uncomfortable place where real police would not be able to tread. But then again I’m pretty sure that real police don’t have to deal with or explain the same sort of level of weird that these guys do. In season one I remember a fan being really upset about the skewed morals in one of the episodes. That trend has continued. For better or worse Grimm has this strange twist of real police procedures and made up things that only happen in the world of Grimm. It gets tricky trying to figure out what rules they are playing by.

Adalind is still doing icky chores given to her by Stefania. At each step she turns up her nose, protests and comments on the disgusting aspect of what she must do.  Unless we are supposed to believe that Adalind is grossed out because she doesn’t have her Hexenbiest powers it just doesn’t make any sense to me. She’s done some violent and gross things herself. Why is she such a wimp now? And does anyone else think she’s going to change her mind about selling her baby when the time comes? I wonder if Sean Renard will swoop in to save her and his possible heir.

This episode did not end with an actual cliffhanger but there are so many things still left in the air that it sort of felt like one. The writers have given themselves lots of material to continue to develop for the remainder of the season. The promos for next week look exciting. It looks like a return to the format of the first season and a half, sort of. It doesn’t look like a new Wesen is being introduced. It looks like a return to previous Wesen and an ancient grudge from tales of old.

[Official Show Site at NBC]     [Previous recap: “A GRIMM Return to Zombies”]

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