Sleepy Hollow: “I, Witness” Review

So how does season 3 differ from the first two so far? Well, after the Headless Horseman is sidelined within the first minute or so it soon becomes apparent that just about anyone with a haunted past has bailed out for one reason or another: Katrina, the series’ most problematic character from the start, met her end in last season’s finale. And while it hurts to lose the marvelous John Noble, Henry Parrish had run his course. After killing off Moloch in the midseason finale the show struggled to find a purpose for him, so much so that his death wound up being a bit anticlimactic.

Then there’s Irving, whose absence is quickly explained away as him needing to go into hiding to protect his family. Not the most graceful exit but certainly a quick one, and considering that his existence on the show since the end of season one was always set to “tortured soul”, it’s the smart move for a series trying to simplify things. Also MIA is Hawley, who had already left the gang in the middle of last season as well as Captain Reyes, an authority figure who never really figured into the action.

Joining the series are Shannyn Sossamon as Pandora, a potential big bad responsible for that Headless takedown that looked so easy. Sossamon doesn’t have much to do here other than play coy, confusing a local cop and acting ominous in general, but it’s a long season and no doubt we’ll get to know her more. It’s harder to see how Nikki Reed’s Betsy Ross fits into the show. Sleepy Hollow has always had ridiculous elements, starting with its premise, but it’s somehow easier to accept supernatural elements than it is an amped-up Betsy. It also reminds me of the season 1 problems with Katrina, who was never physically in the modern-day action. But the show has earned the benefit of the doubt, so we’ll have to wait and see how the coming weeks handle the addition of another character that’s not (yet) in the Sleepy Hollow of 2015.

Instead of the new cast members making a memorable splash, we had a welcome C.Thomas Howell as Abbie’s new mentor. Or, at least, we did for a minute there. Just as the pilot did with Clancy Brown, their relationship was filled in wonderfully with quick beats—Howell smiling to himself after giving Abbie some tough talk and Abbie fondly explaining to Ichabod how their dynamic works. It made his death hit harder, even if it didn’t come out of nowhere—Abbie’s mentors have a high mortality rate. Also introduced in a terrific scene was Dani (Alex Sgambati), the FBI’s forensic specialist. After her thunderstruck reaction to seeing Ichabod for the first time I’m hopeful that we’ll see more of her in the future.

But the main attraction of Sleepy Hollow remains Nicole Beharie and Tom Mison as Abbie and Ichabod. Their comfortable, lived-in chemistry has been a constant throughout the run of the series and they pick up in the premiere right where they left off. (although it’s inexcusable that we didn’t see Ichabod’s first plane ride!). Even when they’re arguing there’s a feeling of respect and admiration, not mindless bickering. And they’ve become close enough that Abbie now knows just how much rope to give Ichabod’s bouts of pompous pontificating before cutting him off, as we see in the I.C.E. detention center. Her laid-back manner is the perfect foil for him, especially when he’s exposed to a new modern atrocity like the Colonial Times restaurant.

As for the main plot of the premiere, involving Pandora setting loose a demon attracted to conflict and gunpowder, it was an appropriately minor story. With so much to set up (and reset), keeping things simple was not only necessary, it was welcome. We’ll see how the season shapes up, but it promises to be one with far less baggage than last year. And that seems to clear the way for the whole point of the show: to be fun.