‘Mayfair Witches’ Season 2, Episode 2 “Ten of Swords” Recap & Review
Photo Credit: Skip Bolen | AMC

In the Mayfair Witches’ season two premiere, the show seemed to be taking a darker tone. Certain scenes, the overall mood, and the look all pointed to something more sinister on the horizon. Episode two, “Ten of Swords, continues that trend, with darkness oozing out of many scenes and characters alike.

This probably has a lot to do with our demon-ghost child Lasher, who, as in season one, has chaos follow him everywhere, whether it was his own doing or some outside force. Still, older man demon ghost child Lasher has ignited a chain of events in these first two episodes with the witches scrambling. We see Rowan make a decision she’s sure to regret later.

While Rowan (Alexandra Daddario) decides what the best course of action is to find Lasher (Jack Huston), he is out killing Mayfair women in the most awkwardly seductive way. Lasher is confused, not understanding how or why he is doing what he does. If I had to guess, it would be that the child in the now-man body is at odds with the demon ghost inside him.

After the first Mayfair death in “Ten of Swords,” Lasher and Rowan come face to face. Rowan lashes out at him with lightning and anger, trying to stop him from getting away, but to no avail. This allows him time to kill again later on.

One wonders if Rowan is really trying that hard to stop Lasher. Ghost Millie Mayfair (Geraldine Singer) drops in a few times to ask just how hard she is actually trying, questioning if she has something else in mind. Rowan has a chat with Jojo (Jen Richards) about freeing Cortland Mayfair (Harry Hamlin) while standing in front of his frozen-in-stone body, no less. However, she changes her mind, hoping to find another way to glimpse what Lasher wants.

Speaking of Cortland, he’s not having the best time in whatever world that imprisons him. In one splendid scene, he tries to please his father at the dinner table, bringing him plate after plate of food to be a good son. When the food runs out, he cuts his arm off at the elbow and serves it to his father, who eats it up like it is just another piece of meat. It’s another example of the show going places it didn’t in the first season. This was the cherry on top of the already weird, interesting, and uncomfortable scene between father and son.

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Meanwhile, we have the unlikely team-up of Ciprien (Tongayi Chirisa) and Moira Mayfair (Alyssa Jirrels). She called him after the second Mayfair death in the episode. Moira doesn’t trust Ciprien, as the Talamasca doesn’t get a lot of love for the work it does. This is the price they pay. Ciprien drops his mental walls so Moira can read his mind, which is her Mayfair witch power.

They are an odd couple, not in the romantic sense, but in trying to figure out what needs to be done next. Moira sees right into Ciprien’s obsession with Rowan and calls him out on it, questioning whether he is here to help the Mayfair family or just Rowan herself.

The weirdness between Rowan and Sam ‘Lark’ Larkin (Ben Feldman) continues, this time in person. Lark shows up virtually on her doorstep, using the blood test results from Lasher she asked for as an excuse. Their dynamic is strange, awkward, and cute at times, but it feels a bit shoehorned in. The writers may be trying to force this into the story too hard.

This contrasts with Rowan’s freeing Cortland, which felt very natural. When she quickly realizes he knows nothing, she devises a plan, essentially making Cortland hers to do as she pleases.

Overall, “Ten of Swords” struggles a bit with the pacing, as in many episodes in the past. It’s juggling a lot of storylines at the same time. However, when it finds its footing and embraces some of this new, darker feeling of dread, it seems to flow much better. It’s still hard to say if the more sinister tone is here to stay or if it will be abandoned along the way. Let’s hope it finds its identity and pushes further into the darkness.

Rating: 3.7/5 Stars

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