“And glory like the phoenix
Midst her fires,
Exhales her odours, blazes,
And expires.”

Every time we think we’ve seen it all, another breed of Wesen rears its head and, in this case, it’s quite the fiery head as Nick, Hank and the others investigate a fire that leaves two teens dead and forces Nick to pay a past enemy a visit as they work to take down a rare and most dangerous Wesen with a penchant for arson.

Another new Wesen is discovered.

As the fire rages at Harrison and Sons, Nick and Juliette are dealing with the fallout from the Marechaussee. Though once again Juliette wants to tell Nick her secret, she holds back. The following morning has Nick and Hank investigate the fire. They speak to John Harrison, the owner of the store, and his son Nick, after speaking to the insurance investigator. She mentions how the fire seemed to have a “mind of its own.”

The elder Harrison is miffed at the detectives’ subtle accusations of it being an inside job and their research into the insurance policy on the store point them towards Charles Lainy, the lawyer who filed the bankruptcy for the company. It’s obvious the lawyers are uncomfortable with something but we don’t quite know what that would be. Sergeant Wu adds some more meat to the case when he brings up the fire’s similarity to an arson case worked by Lieutenant Orson, the Bauerschwein arrested for killing Monroe’s friend Hap all the way back in season one’s “The Three Bad Wolves.” Though he’s not too keen on Nick’s reappearance, Orson’s still a cop and wants to help take down the baddie. As he has seen the face of the arsonist, Orson’s provided a limited get out of jail free card (complete with low-jack) and is briefed on the current case. Renard speaks to Orson and gives him two-days furlough to catch the arsonist. Now, all they need is a clue to this new Wesen.

The clue is discovered by Wu during his research in the trailer with Nick. The newest in a gallery of weird is the Excanaesco, a Wesen that seems to have been the basis of the phoenix lore. The fiery heat it generates is going to be a major problem, one they may be able to circumvent with a bit of SPF 10 trillion. And Rosalee’s help. They take Orson to the spice shop and Rosalee’s ready to pitch in when Monroe returns and his reaction to Orson’s presence is predictable and, to Rosalee, tiresome. She assures her newlywed hubby that the hatred and animosity between Wesen is ridiculous and Monroe needs to put it aside for the sake of the two dead kids. It takes time but he finally acquiesces and the two detectives and three Wesen are well on their way to formulating an agent to counteract the Excanaesco’s flame-on.

While the gang’s hard at work, Charles Lainy meets up with the firebug, informing him to eliminate any and all connections as it pertains to the arson. The dumb lawyer believes he’s immune to any blowback but the Wesen takes to eliminating Mr. Lainy first. Wu calls Nick, Hank, and Orson to the scene and the latter catches a glimpse of the Excanaesco at the scene. Digging into the lawyer’s history as a public defender, the cops determine the identity of the fire Wesen; Damien Barsow. When Orson sees Barsow’s picture, he confirms that it’s the face of the arsonist. The new information allows the cops to draw the conclusions of Barsow being hired to burn the building down and now he’s cutting all ties, which leads to the man that hired him: John Harrison.

Only it’s not John Harrison’s fault, rather his son, Andy’s. Prior to Barsow’s call, Andy gets into an argument with his dad about the future of the family business. The youngest Harrison wants no part of it and storms out. To get rid of Andy, Barsow poses as an investigator into the fire, luring John Harrison back to the building. Nick and Hank arrive just as Andy’s about to leave and he admits his guilt to the detectives. Monrosalee calls to let them know everything is ready and the couple meet the others outside of the burned down building. From the start, they had tried to figure out the best delivery method for taking down the Wesen and they’ve discovered it in the form of some serious water rifles. But that’s only part of the plan. Not only do they need to distract Barsow but must wait until he woges to neutralize his abilities. Orson volunteers for the dangerous job of bait, while Nick cut loose the trussed up John Harrison. When Barsow hears Nick confirm Harrison’s escape, he rushes outside only to be met by a circle of water guns pointed at him. He woges and gets covered in the neutralizing agent. It traps the heat within his body and, with nowhere to go, the Excanaesco becomes a victim of his own power and explodes.

The good guys have won and, in the aftermath, Monroe and Orson put aside their differences to shake on their, well, differences. The former cop is escorted back to prison, happy that, for at least one more time, he was able to protect and serve like the cop he used to be.

Juliette pops her game face as she takes on Adalind Grimm

But of course, they saved the best for last. Throughout the episode there were snippets of action as it pertains to Viktor and Adalind’s search for baby Diana. The Royal has a few irons in the fire, using Sam’s intel (the same man Renard’s hired) to track down Kelly Burkhart. Adalind’s had her eye on Juliette and finally decides to pay her a visit. She gives Juliette the ‘come quietly or else’ spiel only to get the surprise—and butt-kicking—of her life when Juliette biest’s out and wipes the floor with Ms. Schade. Nick comes home to the carnage and, tired of keeping the secret to herself, Juliette woges out, showing Nick the biggest change in their Grimmtastic life…

Past and Future

  • It’s always a treat when shows revisit characters thought to be out of the picture. Daniel Orson’s inclusion not only made sense but was also a perfect example for irrational hatred, this time between Blutbads and Bauerschweins. Rosalee tells Monroe as much, reminding him that such needless hate nearly cost him his life. He’s finally able to see the truth of her words and, though he doesn’t exactly forgive Orson, it may be the jump start on something bigger. Namely, the fight against the divisiveness in the Wesen community.
  • I could talk about the dual agenda Sam’s playing as he searches for Kelly Burkhart and the baby but, let’s not kid ourselves: we were all waiting for the Adalind/Juliette throw down and it did not disappoint. Despite being a newbie to her Hexenbiest powers, Juliette’s raw strength made her battle with the show’s original ‘ugly face’ a one-sided affair. Even more important was Juliette revealing her gameface to Nick. His reaction, so similar to Renard’s, was priceless and understandable. It will take some time for Nick to come to terms with her condition and though Juliette may take it as a slight on her, the truth is that he will blame himself for his girlfriend’s new Wesen status and will do everything in his power to change it. The question is will he be able to come to terms with the truth—that this isn’t a condition they can fight, rather they must accept it, no matter how unwanted it may be?