Festive frights have descended upon Purgatory: from pumpkin demons, to mystical fog, to Wynonna naked on the stage of The Glory Hole. This Monster of the Week episode was a sister bonding romp with a healthy mix of chuckles and heartbreak.
Spoilers ahead. You have been warned.
Happy Halloween!
As previously mentioned, the episode opens on a naked Wynonna on the stage of The Glory Hole, Amon’s demon bar. She quickly wraps herself in a curtain and hurries to the Black Badge Division (BBD) office, texting Waverly to bring her “pants.” Nicole is off to the city with Rachel and Jeremy is off to BBD Headquarters, so it’s time for some much needed Earp sister bonding.
Meanwhile, Amon has set up a “wheel of death” with a livestreaming camera and a setup to track bets with, as the demons have found their own Halloween entertainment. Every year on Halloween a once rumored demon named Rotten Jack, named for his pumpkin head, comes to life and goes on a killing spree. He starts by killing two BBD agents, followed by a Purgatory resident. He doesn’t seem to have much motivation other than “I am demon, must kill,” and the other demons are elated by the bloodshed.
Meanwhile at BBD, Waverly has arrived in an adorable lady bug costume, and Black Badge has an assignment to capture, not kill, Rotten Jack. They head out to search for “The Extractor,” but not before Wynonna gets into costume too as full “Baby One More Time” Britney.
The Extractor turns out to be Casey, a half-demon who last appeared during the chili cook-off in season 4, episode 3. Less than interested in helping, Casey stuns them and leads them into a mystical fog while he dons a gas mask. The more time Wynonna and Waverly spend in the fog, the more they seem to forget – why they’re there, what they’re doing, and eventually who they are. They exit the fog rather quickly, but with full amnesia, and leave Peacemaker behind at Casey’s RV.
The Spookiness Continues
Jeremy continues to play nice with the suits, and one suit in particular — a man from accounting who is generally pretty friendly, albeit kind of foggy and confused. Then, someone calls him Robin. As in, supposedly Jeremy’s boyfriend, Robin. Except this isn’t Justin Kelly, who has played Robin up until this point. This is Jim Watson, another actor entirely. Throughout Season 4 Jeremy has been cagey about Robin’s whereabouts, and it seems this week is when Jeremy will reveal why. Before he can, BBD goes on red alert that someone has entered the fog, and it’s up to Jeremy to save his friends once again.
Speaking of friends, a Wynonna and Waverly with no concept of demons or Rotten Jack are on the loose in Purgatory on Halloween, which means pulling on an actual demon’s tail and being thoroughly freaked that Doc is a vampire. Luckily, Amon seems like a very nice, normal man, and offers them a ride, and he’s able to offer assurance that he knows them by showing he has Wynonna’s lingerie. Unsurprisingly, this is a trick to get them to The Glory Hole where betting on Rotten Jack has become an auction for the Earp heir and her sister, who are now dressed like a superhero and and, ironically, an angel. The bidding climbs higher and higher from $1,000 to $10,000 to $30,000 until a masked bidder emerges from the shadows with a bid of $50,000. Unmatched he wins the bet and hops on stage to claim them, at which point he shoots them both with some kind of magic serum, and reveals himself to have been Jeremy the whole time – huzzah!
Wynonna and Waverly’s memories are restored, and with perfect timing as in that exact moment Doc, Casey, and Rotten Jack all arrive at The Glory Hole. Rotten Jack continues with his predicted slicing and slashing while Casey tries to escape and realizes Amon fled the scene and locked everyone in with Rotten Jack. Despite BBD’s orders to capture and not kill, Wynonna pistol whips Mr. Pumpkin Head in the back of the head, causing him to freeze as a glowing light bleeds out from the hole. That’s when Casey reveals what it means to be The Extractor as he’s able to pull the candle from Rotten Jack’s jack-o’-lantern head. Waverly blows out the candle and Rotten Jack collapses, leaving nothing but pumpkin goo.
Back at BBD HQ…
Wynonna delivers the bag of pumpkin guts to the suits at BBD, who are less than pleased, but Wynonna doesn’t really care. Then she meets … Robin. And she’s as utterly confused as the rest of us are. Then Jeremy explains: the fog, Robin, everything. He believes the fog to be a product of the Garden, and it surrounds the Ghost River Triangle. The serum he dosed Wynonna and Waverly with was able to reverse the affects because they had only been exposed to the fog for a short while. Meanwhile, Robin had been lost in the fog for weeks. When they found him, he had torn his own face off. (Hence, Jim Watson.) Jeremy goes to these meetings with the suits each week to slip Robin some of the serum, hoping in small doses it won’t be lethal and he’ll remember who he once was. But in the meantime, he has a different boyfriend and no recollection of Jeremy, their relationship, or any of the adventures with the gang. It’s heartbreaking. And even as Wynonna promises to help Jeremy any way she can, he’s more concerned about the bigger picture: the mind-fog is spreading.
Back at the Homestead, Waverly and Wynonna finally get that Earp sister bonding they’ve been waiting for, sitting outside and roasting marshmallows. Waverly assures her that her and Nicole’s engagement won’t affect their relationship, saying, “Nicole’s my person, but you’re my sister. Nothing will ever change that. You are, have always been, my hero.” To which Wynonna sincerely replies, “It’s easy when you know exactly what you’re fighting for.” Nicole comes home and sweeps Waverly off her feet, bringing her inside for some fiancé time, with Wynonna’s blessing. Wynonna sits by the fire a while longer, thinking about how to balance all the happy with all the gut-wrenching sad.
Coming up next on Wynonna Earp
This week’s episode was a pretty solid Monster of the Week episode, meaning it didn’t build on any of the cliffhangers from last week, particularly Cleo and Billy Clanton.
It did however in its final moments see Doc dragging a chained up Amon into a hoard of demons. He reminds them that he was more focused on taking bets than their lives, that he rigged the game, and that he locked them in with Rotten Jack. Doc leaves Amon, restrained and defenseless, and the rest of the demons attack him mercilessly as Doc walks away. The insinuation is that the now uncontrolled demons have killed Amon, but without a kill or body onscreen, I’ll believe it when I see it.
With three episodes of Wynonna Earp to go, there’s a lot left to wrap up — the Clantons, the fog, Jeremy and Robin, Doc and Wynonna, and hopefully a #WayHaughtWedding. These last three episodes are sure to go out in a blaze of glory.
Season 4, episode 9, “Crazy,” premieres March 19, 2021 at 10/9c on SyFy.
