Reviews

This was one of the episode i was looking forward to the most coming from the game and granted it ended being probably my favorite one so far. There is so much great tension bottled throughout the episode; the opening line is "apocalypse" and the way the opening shot depict so emblematically the barren, cold landscape completely devoted of life really hammers the point that we are in hell. This is the darkest moment for the characters, Ellie especially. There's also little to no buildup. The pacing is perfect, the tension becomes nerve wrecking when Ellie is taken and has to fight David. The fire could symbolize Ellie's rage or another idea of hell, and the scene in which she kills him will probably be remembered as one of the most intense moments in tv this year. Shoutout to David too. I was really curious to see if the actor would have managed to keep that creepiness that made him work so well in the game, and man, you feel discomfort as soon as she enters a room. The banality of evil. Amazing.

Played the game so many times i lost count. I was going into this truing to manage expectations but i was immediately blown away by the mastery and care poured into the making of this. It treads the line between familiar and new beautifully, while still hitting home and staying true to the theme of the story. The atmosphere is incredible, and it pairs with the soundtrack perfectly. Pedro Pascal is perfect for Joel, communicating so much with his body language and silent stares. Bella Ramsey as Ellie is amazing, badass yet vulnerable. If they keep the level of quality throughout this will be amazing.

Superb twists all throughout. This isn't over. Kim might go to jail and Saul might die. The tension underlying the episode was through the roof, even though the shots were often long, slow, contemplative. So Intense. One more episode.

The knot in my gut, felt it all the way throughout. For Kim at first. Rhea acting was superb. Riveting. The crescendo of tension was almost mind altering until i saw her safe inside Gus's house.

Crazy to think now but after the unexpected death of Lalo i am even more scared. Because we have still five episodes left and i have NO idea where te show goes from here. Something else must happen, and maybe this is all paranoia but i am terrified at the idea something might still happen to Kim.

Episode is amazing when it comes to writing, dynamics and performance, Sadie's letter to billy actually made me teary a bit not gonna lie, but why does it feel like the more they continue with the seasons the worst the cgi gets??? I'm sorry but the finale scene in which Max runs out of Vecna's domain looks so fakee. I was on the edge of my seat and i still loved it, buttttt......

Even though Howard is a douche bag, seeing his downfall throughout the episode is uncomfortable, and brilliantly executed. You know that it's wrong, on every level, but you tend to dismiss those thoughts during the first half of the episode as you are hooked by the "plan and execution" of Saul and Kim. You wonder whether they will succeed, you even root for them to make it. And then Its the final minutes that beautifully express the dilemma that it is this show. The writers exploit the narration, using your engagement against you, a tool to put you in "front of a mirror" and show the ugliness of the characters you are rooting for. The payoff is huge, especially for the character of Kim, that for the first time is faced with the consequences of the choices she made. Howard was not that bad of a person to deserve that kind of death, just a flawed individual that found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. I'm so scared for Kim now. I am so scared for Kim.

Slow overall, yet still captivating. The strength of better call saul, same as it was in Breaking Bad lies in its characters and their characterization. This episode feels like the calm before after the storm, a big last full breath before the dive, dilated yes but still focused. The last minutes also turn up the tension beautifully. We're almost to the point of no return.

Slower, but still engaging. I'm honestly so afraid for Kim. This episode focuses a lot on her character dealing with this new aspect of the life of the "wicked", the paranoia and the constantly watching over your shoulder. Learning that Lalo is alive only makes this worse of course. The encounter between kim and mike is perfect in its swiftness and simplicity. The last scene where Kim watches over the shoulder as she walks in the night honestly gave me shivers. One of those instances when there is no need of dialogue to communicate what a character is feeling and where its "going". It's all there, in that look of paranoia.

An ominous, gothic slowburn that mount an erotic tension and turn the tormentor in the victim. Beautifully shot and acted, this is a master in suggestion and a movie that quietly lingers with surprising tenacity.

It s a shame because I saw the potential of it but as the movie sets up things keeping them hidden and only suggested - therefore augmenting anxiety - then resolves them in a very shallow, cringe, and really weird looking way that also kinda invalidates what has been shown up till that moment.

Also a shame because the main theme of parenthood isn't fully explored. The movie ends up resulting pointless. And at the end is not even scary.

Above all, above the great cinematography, directing and acting, what I think really separates this show from many other horror tv, including the last two works of Flanagan, is the fact that the horror genre is used here to talk about something else. And whilst that wouldn't be groundbreaking per se, the way the story unfolds, combined with the stellar writing and acting from every member of the cast elevates this to a masterpiece in horror television. It builds up slowly, with every ep taking its time to let us know the characters and the supernatural element jump in regularly to remind us that it is still there. Then, in the last two episodes, the story comes full circle, with possibly one of the best endings in recent memory.

And absolutely stellar episode that brings full circle a character ark that - while made me sad to see it end two ep before the the show's conclusion - makes perfect sense and goes to show the perfectly crafted, terrific writing and directing behind this show.