“I’m with heir. A blessed gift from my departed husband.”
Warning: spoilers follow for the episode below.
Better tuck that skin on your back and choke down those chicken bones, because this episode of The Bastard Executioner finally proved to us that this is a show worth checking out.
Following three episodes of story that focused on the weird, surreal relationship between Wilkin and Annora of the Alders, the story finally pulled back from the witchcraft stuff. OK, so maybe there was a teeny little warning about death etc., but I’m on board with that if it means Katey Sagal is used sparingly — as she should be with this role.
With the witchy stuff out of the way, that left plenty of time to focus on some of the early standouts of the show, namely Milus, Lady Love and of course, our leading lad Wilkin. For Lady Love, that meant visiting a very young version of King Edward II, one who was much more interested in sporting than ruling his people (as most young royal people tend to be on television). Watching her attempt to be the bigger person, first by not eating any of the spread that was set in front of her, and then by rejecting the advances from the King’s advisor, she brought forward a lot of the show’s issues around women trying to make it by in a man’s world. With the advisor not wanting to play fair and deciding to divvy up Ventrishire, she had little choice but to claim there was an heir in that beetle belly of hers. Now of course all she has to do is find an heir. Odds on her trying to seduce Wilkin? Pretty darned good.
Speaking of Wilkin, he continued raging out at the man he believed to have killed his wife during that battle scene, calling attention to the fact that he isn’t the punisher he claims to be. Unfortunately for the poor sop who recognized him, Milus had a plan of attack ready to go — blackmail. Because, what else does one of the show’s skeeviest characters do, aside from that and plot to become the new Lord of Ventrishire? Luckily, Moyer just happens to be truly great at playing a character you love to hate. While his lording Wilkin’s friends over him could easily grow to be annoying, for now it’s a great ploy to help Wilkin descend further into that moral madness. Sure, we’re going to need to see some sort of redeeming qualities from Milus soon, but for now we’ll take him as the villain.
Meanwhile, Wilkin’s home life continued to be a complex one. His own father issues came home to roost when he decided to take a fatherly approach to the boy he publicly claims as his son. But where he made headway with the kid, the wife continued to prove her insanity by pushing the ruse as far as it could go. She’s been so branded by her actual husband and is so far gone, it’s interesting to see her punish herself and the boy because that’s what she knows. Back then insanity wasn’t exactly the science it is now, and it’s a different take on a character who has completely lost her way. In the back of my head I’m still rooting for Wilkin to find a way to change her for the better, but we all know that in a Sutter drama it’s never that easy.
Finally, while all of this was going on in Ventrishire and at King Edward’s abode, there was another subplot being set up that will eventually lead even more blood and gore to the town — that of a man who is intent on torturing people in order to get what he wants, and isn’t afraid to use their skin for scrolls once the deed is done. Given the fact that Ventrishire was on his list following his latest torture tactics it won’t take long for him to arrive and kick up chaos, but that seems like a bloody battle that could be held until closer to the finale, when the blood budget is slighter higher than other episodes.
With less screen time on Annora of the Alders, the episode spent more time setting up some of the other characters and the battles they will have to face in the coming weeks in order to survive. For Wilkin, that meant compromising his morals while trying to find a way to salvage his home life. For Milus that meant ongoing blackmail and plotting. And for Lady Love it meant a little white lie that will eventually become a thorn in her side, unless she can find a way to turn in into the truth — asap.
