“It’s real bad.”
Not even when Colconnar threatened to unleash hell on Earth have things looked this grim for the town of Midnight, Texas. Theophilus is alive, Patience and her dark witches have enslaved the town, and Manny is dead.
Okay, so that last part’s not quite true.
Though Manny’s purported death last week was a shocker, it’s not surprising that he’s alive and well. But that’s only because Kai took his place, making the point that, unlike Manny, his body did not possess the power to contain Theophilus’s essence. It’s a last gasp that eventually pays off, as the male portion of the incest twins (thanks for that quip, Basil) physically breaks down in the most horrific ways. It’s a small bonus of the Midnighters but one they’ll desperately need as they mount their assault against Hypathia, dark Joe, Fiji, and a gaggle of dark witches.
For her part, Hypathia plays the role of megalomaniacal witch intent on world domination pretty well. Unfortunately, similar to Fiji’s jaunt to the dark side, Jamie Ray Newman’s Hypathia portrayal goes a bit overboard. In fact,
there are moments where she becomes a caricature of herself and that overdone tenor—along with a resolution cobbled together much too quickly and sloppily—really drags Yasss, Queen down. There’s so much that goes on in the 45 minutes of runtime that nothing gets a chance to stand out.
Not only does Olivia become a vampire (which saves her life), Joe is tortured into darkness, and Fiji regains her soul (thanks to the trickster Basil’s return), but Delilah is freed from her 800 year prison, and Bobo makes a deal that will most probably haunt him and the now expecting Fiji…
Phew. That’s a lot of stuff and though there are several plot threads intentionally left open, even what we got did not get its justice. The fight between Hypathia and Delilah could have been epic but, like the Midnighters trying to wrangle their friendly-angel-turned-dark-fiend, the choreography was both rushed and uninteresting, an unfortunate problem several shows have had, Arrow and Supernatural among many others. Still, the culmination of Hypathia’s plan deserved another hour to be told and eventually wrap but instead, the finale wraps things up in a bow. A very loose bow with a lot of room for trouble to resurface, but a bow nonetheless.
Despite the missed opportunities of the finale, Season 2 of Midnight, Texas improved upon the groundwork laid by its freshman campaign. There were missteps, of course, and some of the issues have been pointed out in these episode review columns but, on the whole, it was a fun ride with a loveable band of characters as flawed as any group of white hats I’ve ever seen.
Midnight Mile
- So goes the life of Manfred Bernardo that, even when he wins, he’s losing. Despite banishing Hypathia and killing Theophilus, he now has to deal with the mysterious warrior that stalked Delilah in her 800 year prison. Considering she bested him more often than not and the Midnighters having Colconnar and the founders of dark magic on their winning resume, how much of an issue will this dark knight be? Unless…he’s a harbinger of something much nastier than it appears.
- As mentioned, this finale was a rushed compilation of intriguing ideas that weren’t truly able to get their moments in the sun. The writers realized they were hamstrung by time constraints and allowed for many open items had Season Three become reality. Joe killed an innocent thus must find redemption, Olivia will need to get used to her new life as a vampire, Fiji must come to terms with the evil she did as a soulless witch, and Bobo carries the knowledge that his deal with Basil to return Fiji’s soul may have cost their unborn child its soul.
- One of the worst things for a fan is when a show is cut short with several unresolved plot threads; it’s a nightmare we fans often live with when our favorites are axed without properly being able to say goodbye. Unfortunately, Midnight, Texas joins that slew of shows on the pile of unfinished stories as Season Three is officially off the table. While not unexpected, the news is disappointing as the show, despite some questionable decisions this season, greatly improved upon the first season. I’m not ready to say goodbye to my beloved Midnighters…maybe now I’ll have to pick up the books.
‘Midnight, Texas’: “Yasss, Queen!”
Midnight, Texas, Season 2 Overall Rating:
