Prodigies, welcome back to the seventh installment of Nerds Rewatch Prodigal! If you’re not familiar with this series, every Tuesday night at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, we’ll be pressing play on Twitter to rewatch and live-tweet an episode of Prodigal Son. Last week, we put our rewatch goggles on for episode 6 of season 2, “Head Case.” This week, we delved into the events of the season’s seventh episode, “Face Value,” with a new perspective now that we know what events unfold in order to point out some of its most striking moments and features. Without further ado, let’s jump into what we noticed in episode 7!
Edrisa’s Little Misunderstanding
Edrisa must be protected at all costs. A little misunderstanding makes for a very embarrassing moment for Edrisa. After Malcolm tells Edrisa he needs her help with something and that he’ll swing by the lab later that day, Edrisa tells Malcolm, “It’s a date.” Though to her it was actually a date while to Malcolm, he just needed some help. When Malcolm shows up to the lab, however, Edrisa is lacing up her boots, music is playing, and she comes out wearing an outfit that is fit for date night. There’s flowers on the table and date night is cut short when Malcolm gives Edrisa a DNA sample to analyze and he leaves. It’s second-hand embarrassment but also makes you feel for Edrisa. She dressed up all nice and wanted to have this night for her and Malcolm, but also makes you yearn for more of their relationship. Platonic or otherwise.
A New Player Enters the Endicott Game
Although we were previously aware that Endicott’s body was in Estonia, this episode takes us to Estonia for the first time due to the discovery of his head, which leads to the introduction of one of the season’s best guest stars: Alan Cumming. Cumming plays Europol Agent and acclaimed true-crime author Simon Hoxley, who is the head of the Endicott investigation. Upon seeing Endicott’s severed and waterlogged head, Hoxley immediately confirms that his theory was correct and Endicott was killed elsewhere, meaning he will be traveling to New York. The man is obviously far too excited about the prospect of solving this murder, and the glint in his eye says he has a good idea of who he thinks committed the crime. So, as if Ainsley’s little joke this episode was not enough stress on Malcom now he has an eccentric British Europol agent coming for him.
Enter Dr. Capshaw
This episode introduces us to perhaps the best recurring character on Prodigal Son: Dr. Vivian Capshaw. Watching her entrance with her full arc in mind, it’s incredible to witness how Catherine Zeta-Jones built this character. Capshaw has so many layers to her, and we see so many of them in just one episode. From her take-no-prisoners attitude towards Martin to her clear “Angel of Death” motivations, she’s instantly intriguing. Zeta-Jones and Michael Sheen are clearly having the time of their lives playing opposite each other and it shows on screen. Zeta-Jones in particular gives a go-for-broke, soapy performance that had viewers asking for more every week. She added a lot to Prodigal Son, and this is the episode that started it all.
Martin Whitly: Working Man
From the moment Martin excitedly regaled Malcolm with the news that he was joining the workforce in Claremont’s infirmary, we knew things were going to end badly. And seeing as how the infirmary was the place where the cursed romance of Vivan and Martín began, we’d have to say we were right. Not only does the infirmary serve as the start of this dreadful romance, but also a site of ironic placement. I mean, come on. Who made the decision to place The Surgeon in a medical setting? Even if he was just scrubbing bedpans, you’d think someone would bat an eye at that choice of assignment. Hindsight’s 20/20 I guess.
Ainsley’s Prank Revealed
Prodigal Son is full of ruthless moments what with it revolving around death, but Ainsley’s prank might take the cake for worst moment of the season. Malcolm spends the entire episode believing she’s killed again and he’s stressed beyond belief as he tries to get ahead of it before the NYPD finds out. We watch as he’s jumpy and downright frantic, with even Dani and Gil noticing he’s even more wound up than usual. And who can blame him? He loves his sister which makes it all the more painful when in the final moments of the episode, it’s revealed the entire thing was a prank. In Ainsley’s eyes, Malcolm has been trying to control her by lying to her about Endicott and this is her (rather vicious) way of making sure he never tries it again. It’s a cold and calculating mode and Ainsley is utterly emotionless as she calmly explains it to Malcolm who is on the verge of tears. We get some shocking twists and turns in this show but this moment really felt just as horrifying as that season 1 finale.
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Make sure to join us next Tuesday for our live-tweet event under the tag #NerdsRewatchProdigal and the Twitter account @Call4BackupPod as we press play at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on episode 8. Additionally, you can listen to our corresponding commentary for this week’s episode on our podcast Call For Backup here. Make sure to stay up to date with all of the news concerning Prodigal Son and the campaign to save the show here. Until next week, Prodigies!
