Thursday, October 24, 2024

My Review of Grotesquerie: "The Stinging Aroma Of Sulfur"


Written by Ryan Murphy And Jon Robin Baitz And Joe Baken 
Directed by Alexis Martin Woodall 

Lois (to Megan): "Did I bring this monster back with me?"

Into the penultimate episode and for Lois, dreams are becoming a reality and maybe she's a prophet after all. Just not one who sees good things but the worst of them.

Remember the Burnside family in the first episode and the grotesque way they were killed? Yeah, well Megan got to stumble into that particular scene and brought Lois out of retirement in order to get her opinion on the matter.

Lois didn't particularly want to get involved but once she did, she was convinced that her dreams were coming true. She feared she had brought a monster into the real world. It also a little weight to her therapy session with Witticomb and his colleague, Dr Milton Smythe. Those made for some interesting scenes.

Then there was Lois's altercation with Megan's abusive partner, Justin. I was happy when Lois killed that guy but at the same time, even he started parroting stuff about the dream and waking worlds. How much did Megan tell him? Or was Lois right about still being in a dream? Just one more episode to go before we get the answer. 

Speaking of dreams, Lois had one to leave town and go to Tarpin Springs in Florida. She even served Marshall divorce papers but her scene with Marshall only made Redd realise she didn't want him either. Marshall really did come across as particularly venomous with Lois, even when she gave him an out to their marriage.

As for the brief scene with Merritt - of course Lois returned that slap and gave Merritt some harsh home truths. Meritt likely needed both if those things. Will she ever forgive Lois? Does she even love Ed? Also was Marshall more ashamed of Merritt's weight gain than Lois? I think he was.

- Witticomb attended a "de-evolution" seminar in New York about people losing their empathy/also prophecising future events. 
- Merritt has had a slew of shirty boyfriends and was in a cult. Lois's father was the gas station attendant from earlier in the season.
- Standout music: Peggy Lee's Is That All There Is at the start of the episode.
- Chronology: Not long from the previous episode.

For a penultimate episode, The Stinging Aroma Of Sulfur didn't feel like it was as big as it could've been but it certainly had some good moments. Next week's episode really does have to stick the landing.

Rating: 7 out of 10

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