“Sleepy Hollow” Review: Episode 2×06 – “And the Abyss Gazes Back”

Ichabod Learns Yoga, A Wendigo Brings Up Old Wounds, and Irving Begins The Battle For His Soul

On this week’s Sleepy Hollow, Abbie tries to offer support to Joe Corbin after he returns from Afghanistan but he blames her for his father’s death. But when Ichabod and Abbie find Joe in the woods amongst multiple dead bodies, they find themselves determined to save Joe from a curse that transforms him into a Wendigo each time he smells blood. Only feeding on human organs shifts him back to his human state, but Joe’s running out of time before the change becomes permanent. Henry is responsible for the curse and wants a powerful poison in exchange for the cure, but what other trouble is he getting up to? How is Irving holding up in the mental hospital? Let’s discuss!

Check Out These Buns

The episode kicks off with Abbie teaching Ichabod yoga. Yes, you heard that right, yoga. It’s one those brilliant comedic scenes between our favorite Witnesses and we couldn’t help but admire the golden light beaming through the windows paired with the lit candles. All together, it added a warmth to the scene that reminded us of how nothing is more natural than these two and the bond they share. Then when they head to the bar (Ichabod’s idea), we get to see them simply enjoying themselves for once! It was a bit surprising but we so appreciate the writers taking time out to let these two have a drink and a laugh before resuming their battle against the forces of evil. We also can’t resist mentioning how hilarious it was how Ichabod took such issue with the word “buns.”

The new supernatural foe comes in the form of Joe Corbin, Sheriff Corbin’s son. Having returned home from Afghanistan after being dishonorably discharged, Abbie is eager to reconnect with the boy she used to babysit. Joe tries to push her away, feeling Abbie is to blame for his father’s death, but soon he has both she and Icahbod on his tail. Turns out, Joe is a Wendigo! His change is triggered by the smell of blood and the VFX team did phenomenal work bringing this creature to life. The change from both Joe to Wendigo and from Wendigo to Joe was incredible to watch. The scene in which Ichabod and Abbie first encounter WendiJoe was made extra action-filled through the use of shaky cams, slanted angles, and that pounding score. We also loved the effect used when Joe is later about to transform again, due to Henry’s slicing his arm, where everything went blurry and seemed to vibrate, adding an extra sensory way of experiencing Joe’s change.

“Of course I’m coming with you! My son did this to your friend. I must help to make it right.” ~ Ichabod

Abbie has a quiet moment with Joe in which they have a heart-to-heart. She makes him understand that his father did love and feel proud of him. What’s important about this relationship is that although Ichabod and Abbie are close, Ichabod did not know Sheriff Corbin the way Abbie and Joe did. Grief doesn’t disappear overnight and this way, Abbie was able to use that time to tend to her own feelings regarding Corbin’s death. She makes Joe a promise that she’ll never give up on him and this later comes to fruition when Joe is in a seemingly permanent Wendigo state. Ichabod is ready to kill Joe, believing that the incantation he just recited won’t work but Abbie won’t let him. In the end, it’s her unwavering faith in Joe that brings him back to his human state and this made us love Abbie all the more. Her inner strength and her compassion for others are but a few of her redeeming qualities and Nicole Beharie proved yet again why she is the heroine we’ve been waiting to see in fictional media.

Devil Is In Your Ear, Apocalypse Is On Your Mind

Finally, Frank Irving’s back! We haven’t been happy with how little Irving has been used this season and after that shocking turn of events in which Henry tricked Irving into signing over his soul (and in his own blood, no less), we were dying to see what Irving was up to. He had already been made aware of the soul problem but now Henry paid a visit to offer up the apparent solution to get it back. We say “apparent” because who ever really knows what truth is when it comes to Henry Parrish. Irving needs to kill a man, a former client of Henry’s, who was also the drunk driver that caused Irving’s daughter Macy to become paralysed. This is precisely what temptation looks like.

“Those who fight monsters should see to it that in the process, they do not become one. When one gazes long enough into the abyss, the abyss gazes back. Doesn’t it, Captain?” ~ Henry

When Irving finally does confront Gil, it seems like he’ll be able to keep it together. But Gil says one too many insensitive things about Macy and the accident and then Irving’s got Gil on the ground, ready to strangle the life out of him. Then, he has a vision of that post-apocalyptic world he previously saw in a dream. We can’t get enough of this sequence, because there is so much attention to detail with all of the mayhem, destruction, fire, heat, and we’re certainly not going to complain about Orlando Jones being done up like a ridiculously ham 80’s action star. Everything about it works. Irving doesn’t actually end up killing Gil, but we see how shaken he is by his actions and the seeds of doubt now in his mind as to who he really is. The symbolism is ripe here, as Irving is not simply fighting for his soul in the literal sense but in an existential sense too. Now that’s some top-notch story-telling there.

It’s All Connected!

Remember the Pied Piper’s Flute that Hawley sold (in two broken pieces) to Henry? After which we saw Henry grind it up into a fine powder, and give it a little taste. Totally creepy and seemed to make no sense, but we had faith that the writers would explain eventually which tonight they did. That bone fragment was sprinkled on a letter Henry sent to Joe to trigger the curse, get him sent back to Sleepy Hollow, where he would claim his inheritance, and retrieve a secret box belonging to Corbin that contained a deadly poison that Henry wanted for himself. Go ahead and take a moment to process all of that. This level of planning is not only impressive to Henry as a character, but a testament to the writers of this show. This would not have worked without great time and consideration taken to map everything out carefully so all the pieces would fit together properly.

“You never gave up on Joe Corbin, Leftenant. Even when he was a creature cursed to the point of no return, when everyone believed he was beyond saving, you fought for him and now I must fight for my son.” ~ Ichabod

Henry’s just as creepy as ever, just what we love to see. John Noble adds an almost Shakespearean-like flair to Henry’s scheming and it is so gripping to watch. We’re always at-least half-terrified to see what horrific thing he’ll do next but we simply cannot look away. The final scene shows Henry having acquired the poison and we loved the setting and ambiance of his lair. The decoration had his witch heritage shining through, with all kinds of bottles and dark mood lighting surrounding him. We half-expected for him to turn around and bump into a cauldron. Even the bottle of poison creeped us out, as Henry poured the contents out in front of him, all red and menacing with a dead centipede in it, too. Then when he worked his magic and put it all back together again, the result was a deadly Black Widow spider. If that weren’t enough to have you shaking in your boots, guess where the spider went? Into. Katrina’s. Mouth. We may or may not have shrieked at seeing that happen but after seeing how the Pied Piper grinding played out, we know that however this plays out is bound to be good.

FINAL VERDICT

Once again, we enjoyed the ride Sleepy Hollow took us on. Director Doug Aarniokoski did fantastic work with all the shooting, angles, and editing for the sequences with WendiJoe, as it all came together to make the action consistently strong throughout. The score was also equally important, as it accompanies the narrative whether it’s fast-paced action or emotional bonding between the Witnesses. Writer Heather V. Regnier absolutely nailed the comedy, as Ichabod’s dialogue objecting to yoga and his barrage of ranting from playing video games had us laughing heartily. Tom Mison never disappoints with the delivery of his lines, be they comedic or other, but we had to mention it again because of his handling of the word “buns” and all the joy it brought us. We also want to give a shootout to Orlando Jones, who is handling this darker turn for Irving commendably well. When he said, “Even God thought the Devil was beautiful before he fell,” our stomach dropped as we felt the weight of the burden Irving is now carrying. We only hope the writers will continue to keep Irving in each episode’s narrative because this story is too interesting to leave on the sidelines.

Questions, Comments, Concerns…

• Abbie’s whipping Ichabod’s buns into shape. There’s nothing about this I’m not loving.
• I don’t know what’s going on with Ichabod’s wig tonight but it has never looked more luscious and flowing!
• Look at Abbie getting Ichabod to open up without saying a word. But come on! Who could say no to that face?
• Baby Corbin needs to learn some manners. Don’t go being rude to my girl, Abbie.
• “THE ARACHNID FELLOW” That’s it. I’ll no longer be using the phrase “Spiderman.”
• New opening credits! YES!
• Look at Henry getting tricky with the lawyer talk. Irving should’ve read the fine print!
• Ichabod just busted out an Abbie impersonation and it wasn’t half-bad!
• Wendigo needs to floss.
• THAT’S WHAT THE FLUTE WAS FOR
• Please. We don’t need Katrina making a mess of Ichabod’s recovering headspace.
• Joe! That’s what you get for trusting Henry and leaving Abbie locked up in the vault!
• Abbie saving Joe I SWEAR SHE IS A SUPERHERO
• Ichabod using “buns” as profanity, excuse me while I die laughing.