Grimm Episode 221
“The Waking Dead”
Written By: Jim Kouf & David Greenwalt
Directed By: Steven DuPaul
Original Airdate: 14 May 2013
In This Episode...
Wu and another officer, Franklin, are called in on a domestic disturbance. Arriving at the home, they find a blond woman, dead, and an enraged man destroying the house. Franklin shoots him in self defense. The man, Robert, has no apparent connection to Lily, the dead woman, unless he was her john - she has a long rap sheet for solicitation. But here is the weird: Lily appears to have absolutely no signs of trauma, and when Robert is shot, his eyes are puffy and red, and bright green goo oozes out his nose. When the toxicology report comes back later, Robert has datura in his system, a plant that can cause a person to appear dead, then suddenly “come back to life” several days later, often accompanied by erratic and violent behavior. Weirder still, Robert was pronounced dead at a local hospital three days ago, with death certificate and all. A visit to the hospital morgue shows that Robert is not where is supposed to be. But it’s not like he just got up and walked away! Oh wait...
The medical examiner begins her autopsy on Lily, but the moment scalpel touches flesh, Lily sits up on the table, eyes wide, clearly alive. She is taken to the hospital, but by the time Nick and Hank get there, she is gone. The security footage reveals she was smuggled out by a mysterious man in a top hat and cane. Hank had noticed him earlier at the hospital, and saw him in the crowd outside the Robert/Lily crime scene. This is Baron Samedi, a Creole Wesen, who is creating an army of zombies, keeping them in a shipping container, and telling them to rest, “their Mardi Gras is coming.”
Stefania visits Adalind with a contract written in Romani. Adalind refuses to sign in until she understands what it says, but Stefania insists that she isn’t meant to understand - always a bad sign. Stefania forces Adalind’s hand onto the parchment. The veins grow dark and swollen and throb. When she pulls her hand away, there is a bloody handprint, making the contract iron-clad. Frau Pech spies on this, then goes to Adalind, warning her to be careful and not trust Stefania. Regaining her powers - especially after they were taken by a Grimm - is not easy, and she needs to take care of herself. If anyone found out that she was carrying a royal fetus, she could be worth more dead than alive. Pech then meets with a royal spy and warns him that someone outside the family is carrying royal blood. Havoc could ensue if word got out, and she wants to know how much Eric would pay for the child. The spy immediately calls Sean Renard with this information. He doesn’t know who is carrying the baby or who the father is - he doesn’t even know if Pech is telling the truth. Renard advises him to find out fast. Knowing his brother, Renard assumes Eric will place a bid for the baby, then steal it and pay nothing. At the very least, he will need to put in a bid. Adding another wrinkle is the fact that Eric unexpectedly shows up in Portland - even Renard’s spy didn’t know he was planning a trip to America. Renard is worried that his brother has some sort of ulterior motive, other than just “burying the hatchet,” as he told his brother when he arrived. And in fact he does. He is there to meet with a close friend - Baron Samedi.
Also: Juliette has another favor to ask of Monroe. She wants him to show her whatever it was that Nick wanted to show her the night she fell into her coma. Monroe is very nervous, and Bud, who is fixing Monroe’s fridge, is terrified. Bud protests a lot, in a manner that I think is supposed to be humorous, but is really just grating. They go to the spice shop to have Rosalee help. Monroe is tired of lying and thinks Juliette deserves the truth. Rosalee starts. Juliette marches right out the door - then comes right back. Next is Bud; she thinks he is kind of cute. Monroe is the only one who startled her. But despite all of this, she still wants to be part of Nick’s life. Aw.
Dig It or Bury It?
There was a lot going on here, and no filler. I love that the zombies are rooted in the old school, Haitian and Creole lore. The Baron is such a perfect villain - debonair and gentlemanly, but dastardly through and through.
Big Bad...
Cracher-Mortel. The Baron is a blowfish-type Wesen who spits venom on his victims, turning them into zombies, essentially. These are zombies in the Voodoo tradition, not The Walking Dead tradition.
Prophecies?
This is a two-parter, so next week’s season finale will continue all these stories. More zombies, and more black-market baby shenanigans.