Before we get into the episode review, let’s take a break to appreciate just how great of an actress Sissy Spacek is. She has been killing it since the 70s when she was Carrie White from Carrie and in the 80s when she won her Oscar for portraying Loretta Lynn in Coal Miner’s Daughter. In my opinion, she is one of the greats and a very underappreciated actress. So, in the off chance that she is reading this, we here at The Game of Nerds love you and appreciate the great you have been turning out since for the past 40 years.
Photo Source: Castle Rock, IMDb
The reason I had to say that is because this latest episode was a Ruth-centric episode and boy was it a great episode, maybe the best episode of the season so far. Throughout the episode, you are seeing Ruth’s day leading up to the end of the episode from last week. However, with her Alzheimer’s we are also getting glimpses into her past before she is being sucked back to reality because of her handy chess pieces.
Ruth’s story is a rather tragic one that is told beautifully. It shows how Ruth and Alan began their relationship and hinted at an adulterous relationship while the good reverend was still alive. It showed how the good reverend wasn’t quite as good as was originally thought. After hearing the “Voice of God” he became obsessed with it. We also learned that he was going to kill himself before he finally heard the “Voice of God”. They had a very unhappy relationship and Ruth almost left him plenty of times.
I could go on and say the exact details, but I would not be able to do it justice. The most important bits happened at the end so if you want to go watch it I suggest you go now because there are going to be some major spoilers for the episode coming.
Photo Source: Castle Rock, IMDb
So, we were filled in on whose blood was on the kid — it was his own. Ruth stabbed him with a screwdriver while he was in the house. I’m still confused as to the reasoning behind him being there. I don’t know if the reverend’s spirit is in him somehow, but that’s the impression I got from it. Nevertheless, she ended up stabbing him, obviously not fatally, and that’s where the blood came from.
The tragic part comes now. Throughout the episode, she is searching for the bullets for the gun they have in the house. Eventually, she remembers where she put the bullets — she never took them out of the suitcase she packed when she was going to leave her husband — and retrieved them so she could more efficiently protect herself. While hiding in the garage, a man comes down the stairs and she shoots him. You don’t get a good look at who it is…but you know who it is. She had shot Alan. Directly after this scene, there is a very moving scene that I have no idea if it was a memory, a dream, or what exactly it is, but it is essentially how the two of them reconnected after many years being away. It is beautiful and heartbreaking and I wasn’t expecting to have such a bad allergy attack during that episode…
What did you all think of the episode? We got some more answers but with three episodes left I am excited to see what is left in store.
