“A Novel Approach”

It’s like this show keeps getting better with every episode. Anyway, Teen Wolf returns with another dark episode filled with blood and gore, the mystery behind the Dread Doctors, suspense and the long awaited “Stydia” moment, (the ship name for Stiles and Lydia), something us die hard fans have been waiting for ever since the show started airing.

This episode also shows us some unexpected events, particularly Stiles having to kill someone, even if it was in self defense. What I found the most odd out of the whole situation was Stiles lying about it to Scott and the rest of the pack. At least if you don’t want anyone to know, you should do a better job at covering your tracks. I think the opening scene between Stiles and Donovan where Stiles is forced to kill Donovan in self defense was pretty cool yet creepy and intense at the same time. It reminded me of the old school horror movies that I’ve grown up with like Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street among others. Dylan O’Brien’s performance right after killing Donovan was pretty stellar and I think Stiles felt a bit of emotional turmoil as it reminded him of the time he became a Nogitsune and how much of a monster he was by killing everyone without the slightest remorse.

After the whole predicament, Scott informed Stiles via his phone that the bodies of all the victims that the Dread Doctors had terrorised (Tracy and Lucas) had gone missing and when Stiles goes back to the school library he finds to his utter astonishment that Donovan’s body was missing too. It is later shown that Deputy Parrish (in his full supernatural mode) was carrying Donovan’s body, to the Nemeton and may have done the same with the other bodies of the victims too. What is going on with Parrish? It’s been forever and we need answers, now. Also, I think the fact that Stiles lying to Scott about Donovan and Scott with his “we must protect the victims at all costs” attitude was a mere plot device to drive a wedge between the two best friends. As if Theo wasn’t enough.

This episode also made us realize that everything ultimately leads back to Eichen House. Malia finds a book written about the “Dread Doctors” and Lydia deduces that this book isn’t a story, it’s more of a prediction about the events that are yet to come. They discover that the author of the book was Valack, the same person Dr. Deaton had encountered in the previous season. The pack band together to meet him and demand answers. I really liked how they all got together because we’ve not seen the whole group interact much this season and it was nice to see them bond together as well as Kira getting to know more about her friends.

Later when they arrive at Eichen House, they are unaware that Theo has already informed the Dread Doctors they would find the pack at the very same place. Over there Dr. Valack reveals that he wrote the book that they found. He claims that it’s a tool designed to help them learn about the Dread Doctors. He wrote it because no one would believe him or listen to him. He explains that they were “scientists who worshiped the supernatural.” They found ways to live longer and develop power. While he was telling Stiles and Lydia all of this, Scott and Kira have a heart to heart moment and I was genuinely shocked when Scott brought up Stiles and Lydia’s relationship and how much Stiles loved her, as was shown in Seasons 1-3, but most of Stiles feelings for Lydia had fizzled out since Season 4 because of the introduction of Malia. I wonder if this is an indicator that their relationship could potentially resume into a romantic one in the near future, because while Stiles and Lydia were never a couple, they sure as hell act like one and I think it also made Scott realize that he needs to be a better boyfriend to Kira. I seriously hope Jeff Davis brings them together because I’ve always liked them together and they have genuine chemistry.

Later, things go awry when Kira finds herself unable to control her electric powers and this brings the Dread Doctors to them. Dr. Valack blames Scott and his pack for bringing turmoil upon Beacon Hills in the first place because their actions resulted in the opening up of the nemeton. They finally realize that it is their responsibility to fix it, but they are interrupted when the Dread Doctors attack. Dr. Valack insists that they should read the book he wrote so that they can stop them. While the Dread Doctors attack, Scott yet again does nothing. He doesn’t even fight the Dread Doctors. His only concern is Kira. *yawns* I really needed some Alpha action.

Malia on the other hand was out of action this week, and instead wound up spending the day with Theo. Am I a bad person for admitting that I actually liked Malia and Theo together and how flirtatious they were being with each other. I hope this doesn’t turn into another love pentagon between Stiles, Malia, Lydia, Parrish and Theo. Well that’s a little concerning because what I’ve learned is that love triangles -or shapes- can ruin potentially good storylines. I hope this doesn’t happen in this case though. I feel really bad for Stiles, but Malia is just another way for Theo to get to him. Plan A, which was Donovan kind of backfired, so why not use the one girl that Stiles is in love with instead? I know Theo is evil, but he and Malia kind of look good together and it was seen throughout the episode.

I also really like how much character development and back story Malia has been getting this season compared to how dull she was in the previous season. Kudos to the writers! While Theo is busy teaching Malia how to drive, (I think he was doing that on purpose to get Malia to remember the night her adopted family died). Malia starts having flashbacks and it is evident that she still suffers from PTSD. She finally remembers what happened that night. The Desert Wolf was the one that killed her family. Turns out it was her biological mother that ruined her life. But why? And why is Theo after the Desert Wolf too? Why does he want to know about her? Strange.