Many residents in Sleepy Hollow become infected with an unidentifiable plague after a boy wanders into town from the lost colony of Roanoke. Here is a recap and review of the Sleepy Hollow episode “John Doe.”
Recap:
In the forest, a young boy trails a young girl as she frolics away, but she soon vanishes. One of the other four horsemen charges through the fog, poofing into black smoke as the boy emerges from the woods. As Abbie helps Ichabod settle into his new home, Corbin’s cabin, they’re called to investigate the passed out young boy. Ichabod discovers the boy has blackening veins, simple clothing, and speaks only Middle English. Later, Ichabod chats with the unidentified boy in quarantine, learning that his name is Thomas and he lives in Roanoke – the lost colony of Roanoke, which disappeared three years after being established in 1587.
Detective Morales follows up on the talk of the town, asking Captain Irving why Ichabod has been hanging around. The captain dismisses his inquiry by questioning Morales’ judgment in regard to his ex, Abbie. Then, Morales brings up this issue with a colleague and gets nowhere. He makes one final attempt to uncover the truth, but the woman at the college where Ichabod supposedly teaches vouches for him.
The black vein virus begins to spread, causing panic. Abbie and Ichabod track Thomas’ path through the forest and find where the footprints began: a pond surrounding a little island. Ichabod eyes markings on the trees that indicate a secret path. Walking across the water, he and Abbie discover Roanoke – where everyone’s infected but symptom-free. A colonist reveals that the Horseman of Pestilence infected them, so the spirit of the first girl who died guided them from the original settlement to this safe haven. To be cured, Thomas must return home, or else the Pestilence’s plan will come to pass and his impending arrival will be made solid.
Back at the hospital, Ichabod shows signs of infection, so he’s knocked out and put into quarantine. While unconscious, he visits with Katrina, who says she and other souls are trapped in purgatory by Moloch. Abbie, frustrated, enters the hospital chapel, where her plea for a sign leads her to discover that water is the key. Upon the captain’s subtle hint, Abbie steals Ichabod and Thomas during their orchestrated transfer and takes them to be baptized in the Roanoke water.
With the horseman nearing, Ichabod and Thomas dip under in the well. The horseman flashes into smoke. The veins subside. All is well. Ichabod and Abbie now stand in the midst of the forest with no Roanoke around. Turns out, the colonists were dead all along, but Thomas turned corporeal after being lured into Sleepy Hollow.
Review:
While still an entertaining episode of Sleepy Hollow, “John Doe” didn’t top last week’s stellar hour. This episode was shaped more as a routine procedural, instead of a character-driven story. Despite this decision, “John Doe” centered on an interesting case coming from a widely known, and now modified, historical legend.
If you take away the curse, the ghost town, the outdated language, you’re left with a case that presents itself as plausible. An outbreak of an unknown disease affects the town: it could happen anywhere. Affected people become better without any medical explanation: rare, but it exists. This is the initially captivating aspect of “John Doe.” But when you include the relocated colony guided by a spirit to live in peace as if in the sixteenth century and Horseman #2 of the apocolype who bestows a worse threat than Dr. Frankenstein, you’re given a classic Sleepy Hollow tale that impresses, but doesn’t astound.
The storyline with Morales asking what the deal is with Ichabod Crane fell flatter than it should have. While these scenes broke up the case’s action nicely and finally provided a secondary story in the precinct for the week, the content seemed to be there for the sake of appeasing an idea necessary to include. The series grounds itself by presenting realistic reactions to the strange events, whether it’s Abbie always starting out skeptical of the supernatural, Ichabod struggling with the modern time, or doctors believing Jenny went crazy that day in the forest. Morales has become another real-world reaction with which the audience can identify. However, the fact that it has taken until episode five for someone to notice that Ichabod is a misfit, combined with Morales posing virtually no threat to Ichabod’s continued partnership, made this storyline into filler content. It was the easiest and quickest case a Sleepy Hollow detective will ever face.
Ichabod’s weekly struggles with modern inventions were in full effect this episode. They continue to elicit a laugh despite their often obvious nature. Who has never struggled with that impenetrable plastic barrier around razors or been curious about what exactly it is that makes tape sticky.
Along with these dilemmas, Ichabod faces the fact that he feels out of place in this world, leading Abbie to wonder if he would choose to stay in the lost colony among simpler people. While it’s fairly clear that Ichabod is too dedicated to stopping the horsemen to abandon that goal, it did bring forth a big step for Abbie – she fully considers him a worthwhile partner and necessary intrusion in her life, admitting that Ichabod belongs in Sleepy Hollow now. The relationship between the two has been a delicate balance of faith and convenience, but now it has morphed into trust and enjoyment of one another’s company, and it’s wonderful to watch.
Although the main case of this episode did not lead us into a cliffhanger before the two week break, the final scene did. As the Headless Horseman rises from the river and rides through the forest for a return appearance, we’re left wondering what’s coming to Sleepy Hollow next. Has Headless been working on a scheme, or simply awaiting Moloch’s orders? Where are the other two horsemen? Can John Noble become a series regular? Will Katrina escape purgatory?
