While trapped in a possessed house, Abbie and Ichabod discover secrets about both of their pasts. Here is a recap and review of “Sanctuary.”
Recap:
Lena Gilbert, billionaire by day, socialite by night, investigates her newly inherited haunted-looking mansion. If the lurking crow wasn’t enough of a warning, the closet filled with vines that wrap her up should do the trick.
Although the speed impresses him, Ichabod complains that drive thrus take the appeal out of mealtimes. He proceeds to correct Abbie’s list of pilgrim food, irked more by his separation from Katrina during the holidays. Their initial hesitance to accept Irving’s order to hunt for the missing Lena Gilbert is assuaged when he mentions that she possessed a note containing Katrina’s name. Abbie’s search on the wondrous Internet leads them to Fredericks’ Manor, a former safe haven for freed slaves and refuge from the supernatural. Inside, they discover bloody signs of a struggle. Of course, there’s no cell reception, and all entrances to the house seal themselves up.
Abbie spots an 18th century ghost, then Ichabod spots a book on the floor. Not only is it Katrina’s favorite, but it’s her copy, complete with his “If you’re reading this, I’m dead” note. They rescue Lena from entanglement in vines that squirt out blood when they’re punctured. Darkness. Monster noises. Breaking glass. Still no way out. Abbie gets separated, as the newly arisen vine-man chases after Ichabod and Lena.
Jenny drops by the precinct to return the gun Irving “loaned” her. As she inches out the door, she suggests a Thanksgiving gathering so they can be normal people for once. Irving’s ex-wife interrupts with their daughter, Macy. Awkward. Macy and Jenny bond over their mutual dislike of Irving, while the ex-wife threatens to take full custody if he doesn’t step up as a father.
The ghost returns to show Abbie a vision of Katrina giving birth. It’s a boy! Upon finding Ichabod, Abbie delivers the news, and he transitions from skeptical to proud and hopeful. Flashback to the evil sent by Moloch breaking through the manor’s protection immediately after baby Crane’s birth. In the present, the ghost leads them outside, but an angry Ichabod returns to ax the vine-man to death. Abbie and Ichabod soon discover that the ghost who appeared and who delivered the baby was Abbie’s ancestor. Their paths have been entwined from the get-go.
Review:
Like last week’s episode, the most important aspects of “Sanctuary” were the flashbacks. While the entire series is based on important past events, these episodes have been telling those stories with greater vigor than focusing on what occurs in the present day. This week, the present case simply provided the opportunity to unfold history in a way that would reveal information to the audience and the characters at the same time. A solid, but not stellar, episode, “Sanctuary” succeeded with what it sought to deliver, but found itself slightly bogged down in the vine-man’s trail.
The idea of trapping a group of characters in a single location for most of the episode means that the drama they encounter must be sustainable and must contain enough diverse plot points to make the continuing drama feel fresh. “Sanctuary” disguised its struggle with this by cutting to Irving at the precinct or Katrina in flashbacks, both of which contained more compelling stories than Abbie, Ichabod, and Lena seemingly running around in circles in the dark and confusing mansion. The vine-man was only moderately threatening because of the minimal displays of his abilities and of the consequences from encountering him. Being clawed to death or being immobilized while still alive would no doubt be horrendous ways to leave the world, but these two instances were barely presented with enough of a shock factor to hammer home the horror aspects. In addition, so much of Abbie and Ichabod’s struggles in the house revolved around them not knowing where to go and them losing one another – there was too much walking that felt like filler.
However, the idea of the monster of the week was an interesting one. The symbolism of a vine-man taking over an old, abandoned mansion was subtle enough not to insult the audience’s intelligence, but obvious enough to make him a villain befitting the circumstances. While the anthropomorphized vines created a different kind of monster than the usual horsemen or hellish demons, he still fit well into the established world of Sleepy Hollow.
Although I wouldn’t go so far as to classify it as a holiday episode, “Sanctuary” took full advantage of the Thanksgiving holiday rapidly approaching to delve into the families of the main characters – what an appropriate time to do so while throwing in zingers about Ichabod’s age and the average American’s misconception of historical accuracy. The revelation that the Cranes had a son, a surprising discovery in itself, holds the potential to become far more surprising given the number of ways that the story can further unfold. Because of the surge of demonic attacks on the mansion once he arrived into the world, baby Crane must have a significant part in the war between good and evil. Also, it would not be something worth mentioning in the midst of the rest of the episode’s drama if it was unrelated. How fascinating, and utterly heartbreaking, would it be if baby Crane aligned himself with the opposite forces as his parents? Per usual, Tom Mison did an exceptional job with his material, but it’s worth noting again because of the level of sadness that he portrayed upon learning about the son he never met. It was nearly impossible not to ache with him.
The connection between Ichabod and Abbie is slowly growing into a tale of predestination put in motion long before they and I expected it. The possibility of choice is muffled by the call to duty, which works to the series’ advantage because of the likability of these two characters. When you lack the ability to connect to a character’s choices, you need something to latch onto, and likability is just that tether. Luckily, their connection has unfolded well enough not to come off as coincidence. The characters’ own mild surprise lets the audience know that everyone is warming up to the idea together.
Jenny and Captain Irving have formed quite an electric bond, though it’s not necessarily romantic or friendship-based, but rather based out of respect toward their mutual affection for Abbie. I was not expecting to enjoy their scenes together on the level that I did. On a different note, like Abbie and Ichabod, Captain Irving is caught between two worlds in a struggle of family versus work. The fact that his family’s appearance in this episode seemed abrupt since there have been very few mentions of them played into the feeling of discomfort at his ex’s lecture to him. As mentioned before, the nature of losing a child is innately saddening, but this could have been more emotional if there was a strong scene between Irving and his daughter. One more thing to be hopeful for.
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