In this week’s episode of A Discovery of Witches, Matthew and Diana are shocked when they’re reunited with Jack. Father Hubbard had stayed true to his word, protecting him, which went so far as turning him into a vampire when he was dying from the plague. However, they soon discovering disturbing secrets about Jack. Meanwhile, the search for the cure for blood rage continues.
Jack is back where he belongs
We open on the vampire Father Hubbard, who still oversees London in the current day. He calls out, “I told you to never come back,” as Benjamin approaches him. The other man smirks, and Hubbard tells him, “He’s not here, I haven’t seen him for months.”
Hubbard’s promise to Diana from hundreds of years ago clearly still holds strong, because finds her and Matthew in a parking garage and blocks their path. He tells them that they left something in his keeping, and out of the car steps Jack, back where he belongs. He’s slightly older than the young boy that the couple first rescued in the 1590s.
They bring Jack back to Fernando’s, and we learned that Father Hubbard had to turn him because he had caught the plague. Through this conversation, Matthew finally learns that Diana gave Hubbard a drop of her blood in exchange for protecting Jack, which allowed him to learn some of her secrets. Matthew isn’t pleased, even when Diana assures him that she used her magic to prevent him from learning too much.
Satu the weaver
Peter Knox tells Satu about Edward Kelley’s letter, which says there are missing pages from the Book of Life. Three of them. Knox proposes that they try to find the pages together, but Satu has no interest in working with him any longer. He can’t control her anymore, she’s a weaver. Peter realizes that perhaps the prophecy was about her, not Diana … “Beware the witch with the blood of lion and the wolf, for with it she will destroy the children of the night.”
Finding the cure
Finding the cure for blood rage with a team of two is just too much work for Miriam and Chris, and they share as much with Matthew. And the issue isn’t just that they’re understaffed, they also don’t have enough DNA from the de Clermont bloodline. Right now, they only have samples from Matthew, Ysabeau, and Marcus. Miriam suggests that Marcus should go to New Orleans, which is where his vampire children are. Chris tries to explain to Matthew that if he wants them to do this, he’s going to need to let his students assist in the research. But after what happened to Philippe, Matthew is far too distrusting of the idea of humans studying vampires.
Later, after everything with Jack, Matthew decides that he has to do something before leaving for New Orleans. He agrees to let Chris involve his students in the project, and he stands up in front of them all in the lab and reveals that he and Miriam are vampires. And Diana is a witch.
Baldwin discovers Jack
Baldwin arrives at Fernando’s to speak with Matthew and Diana, and he finds Gallowglass and Jack in the garage. He coldly tells Jack to leave, calling him one of Hubbard’s strays and remarking, “It’s family only in this house.” This brings Jack’s blood rage boiling to the surface, and he attacks Baldwin viciously.
Matthew hears the scuffle, and he and Diana rush downstairs to find Baldwin furiously holding Jack down. He bites him, and by drinking his blood he can see Jack’s memories of Matthew and Diana in the 1590s, but he also sees something much more disturbing: the bodies of those that Jack has killed. He is the blood-raged killer.
Baldwin wants to kill Jack, and Diana snaps. Using her powers, she wraps a chain around Baldwin’s neck and tells him to take his hands off of her son. Matthew, however, falls to Baldwin’s feet as he promises his brother that he had no knowledge of Jack’s blood rage. Baldwin orders Matthew to kill Jack, but the boy runs off.
The truth about Jack, Hubbard, and Benjamin
Matthew and Diana confront Hubbard about Jack’s blood rage, and he tells them that Jack begged him not to tell them. After all, as long as he’s kept safe and happy, it’s not an issue. Matthew is confused how Hubbard is a carrier for blood rage in the first place, at which point the other man reveals that Benjamin is his sire. He had resurrected him from the brink of death with hopes that he would infect him with blood rage. He wanted him to stand with him against the de Clermonts and their allies.
Hubbard explains that Benjamin’s surprise visit the other day is why he brought Jack to them. When Hubbard sired Jack, he was still young, malleable, and infected with blood rage. Benjamin took advantage of that and taught him how to hunt and kill for pleasure, convincing him that he needed to prove he was really of Matthew de Clermont’s blood. Even though Jack promised Hubbard he wouldn’t kill, it became an addiction for him, and Matthew and Diana are his last hope.
Matthew and Diana are at odds as they discuss what to do about Jack. Diana can’t fathom killing him; he’s their son. Matthew wants to end his suffering and give him peace. Sarah reminds him that they’re currently looking for a cure for blood rage, but Matthew is worried about what will happen to Jack if the Congregation, Baldwin, or Benjamin get to him first. And the thought of disobeying the head of his family in order to save Jack is something Matthew cannot fathom.
Matthew makes a decision
Matthew eventually finds Jack, who reveals to him that it was him who stole the miniature paintings after all. He may have had to kill a man to get them, but it was all he could find of Matthew and Diana. Jack lowers himself to the ground as he tells Matthew that he didn’t want to live anymore when he realized that he couldn’t control himself, but Philippe told him to wait, because Matthew would be the one to teach him to ignore the blood rage. Matthew is surprised to hear this.
As Jack sits on the ground in front of Matthew, defeated, he tells him that he won’t fight him. Something shifts, and Matthew changes his mind. They both return to the house the next morning, and Diana comes running from the front steps, relieved.
Gallowglass has a secret
Jack asks Fernando about how he helped Matthew learn to control the blood rage. When they’re finished chatting, Gallowglass pipes up and reminds Jack that he also has Diana, she would do anything for him.
After the boy is gone, Fernando rounds on Gallowglass and says, “Don’t let Matthew know.” Gallowglass acts clueless, and he continues, “Your feelings for Diana, you can’t hide them from me.” We learn that after Matthew and Diana timewalked back to the current day, Philippe charged Gallowglass with looking after Diana. The vampire has spent Diana’s entire life keeping her safe. Fernando reminds him that Diana is with Matthew now, and one day he will have to walk away from her … but not today.
Off to New Orleans
Matthew, Marcus, and Jack head to the airport to take a trip to New Orleans. It’s bound to be difficult, because only five out the 20 children that Marcus has sired are still alive. Matthew had to kill the others by order of the Congregation, because they were all infected with blood rage. The cull was necessary to prevent them from exposing vampires to humans, but it’s a touchy subject nonetheless. None of them will be happy to see Marcus with Matthew.
Matthew gets a phone call from Benjamin — who is now in league with Gerbert — while they’re waiting, and he tells him to check his email. He sends him a video of him and Jack, in which they have two people tied up in the back seat of a car. Benjamin tries to manipulate Jack, saying that he’s going to show Matthew that he’s worthy of his love and respect, but Jack doesn’t want to. Benjamin gets him riled up anyway and exits the car as Jack’s blood rage takes over.
Calmly, Matthew asks Benjamin what he wants, and he tells him that he wants the whole family together … him, Matthew, Jack, and Diana.
Don’t miss the next episode of A Discovery of Witches next Saturday, January 22 on AMC+, Sundance Now, and Shudder. Follow along with all of our coverage on the series, including episodic recaps and more!
