The Originals Review: A Man of His Word

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Thanks to The Originals, Tuesday is officially the best night of the week. That's at least partially due to the fact that Elijah is back and being a scheming, squishy-hearted badass.

No one understands Klaus the way Elijah does. No one keeps his word the way Elijah does. No one rips the hearts out of three witches in the middle of a church the way Elijah does! 

Make a note: No one hurts Elijah's family and lives, you guys. The Originals Season 1 Episode 6 was another excellent installment of this new series.

Extreme Measures

In a previous life, I was an English teacher. There's not a better poem in existence to describe Klaus and this series than the one used tonight and I'm trying really hard not to go all teacher-y right now and explicate this one. Really hard.

Hearing Klaus read "A Poison Tree" by William Blake set my literature loving heart ablaze. I looked up the poem just to read it again for myself and digest it a little bit. And then I might have watched the opening over just to listen to him read it one more time. 

The episode started with Klaus trying to find a way to earn Elijah's forgiveness after daggering his older brother once again. Elijah refused to drop this most recent daggering, and rightly so. Klaus has used that against his siblings far too many times. 

But Elijah wasn't mad. He was just...unforgiving. Because he's Klaus, he offered up a fresh body, and because he's Elijah the peace offering was refused. He's not going after a co-ed or a tourist because it's easy. Klaus should've known better.

Elijah is a man of honor! And plans! Good ones!

Davina needed to learn to control her magic and Elijah knew and informed the others that Sophie Deveraux is not their friend, so it's time to sever the ties which bind her to Hayley. Where Elijah found an enchanted knot for Davina to untie, I'm not entirely sure, but find one he did. And untie it, she did, just in the nick of time.  

It's hard to imagine whether the pregnancy storyline would ever be jettisoned completely since the baby is such an integral part of the Original family at this point, so it's hard to say whether I felt Hayley or the baby were ever in any real danger.

I do have to admit that pregnancy stories aren't my favorite because of the slow nature by which they must move. (Unless, of course, this were that other vampire story...) I'm glad that Sophie and Hayley are unlinked because it feels a little less hokey now that we know that the magical miracle baby isn't the real reason Sophie and Jane Anne lured Klaus there. There's still that whole Harvest thing to worry about.

However, with Agnes out of the way, we can worry about it a little less, right?

When Elijah gets mad, he gets mad. But he's never the raging, vengeful, angry beast that Klaus becomes. He's quick and decisive and matter-of-fact in his approach to ending the lives of those who've crossed him by harming his family. 

I can't say that I saw him snapping Agnes' neck coming because I most certainly did not see that coming. At all. His "forgiveness and honor" speech to Klaus had me convinced that he was about to let Agnes go. Nope. Even Klaus seemed shocked that Elijah had killed her. Happy that she was dead, but shocked that Elijah had done it.

He was also shocked by Cami's reaction to the news that he'd found out the truth about her brother's death and that it had been taken care of. He expected her to be happy, or relieved, or just not angry with him, but at the same time, he seemed not to like all of the compulsion he used on her on The Originals Season 1 Episode 4.

She has vowed to undo whatever it is he did to her and in the process of making that vow became my favorite human. Her uncle, Father Kieran, isn't far behind. Those two have moxy. 

But the best part about the unlinking and the dead witches wasn't Cami. It was all the screen time with Elijah and Hayley. Elijah cares for Hayley, deeply, but is that tenderness borne from romantic attraction to her, a desire to protect her child because the baby is his blood, or both? 

Klaus watched Elijah follow Hayley into the kitchen with a knowing and somewhat jealous smirk. Rebekah saw the looks that passed between Elijah and Hayley in the pool and understood that she's about to see Tatia 2.0 with her brothers. Elijah choosing to stay behind in New Orleans to help Klaus and Hayley and protect Davina was another nail in the proverbial coffin for the baby sister. 

Rebekah showed shades of her Mystic Falls self tonight. She wanted freedom, but more than that, she didn't want to be alone. She's never wanted to be alone. And that's always been her downfall. Her weakness.

She decided to pay Marcel a visit to say goodbye before leaving town and of course she couldn't leave without taking a bite of the fruit from that long-forbidden tree. But then she did something so classically Rebekah it was almost painful and that was beg Marcel to leave with her.

Why would he leave New Orleans? He's not a nomad the way that she is, and her asking him to run away with her felt bizarrely out of place. New Orleans is his home. It's his empire. 

The minute Rebekah pulled the apple from her bag, it was immediately clear that Marcel would know where the Original siblings were living. What wasn't clear at that moment was whether or not Rebekah gave him the apple knowing he would figure out their secret location or if it was just an absent-minded offering. Her reaction to the news of Hayley's abduction answered that question.

In screwing Marcel, Rebekah screwed up. Huge. Now Marcel knows where and whom Klaus was hiding and he has Hayley.

Can't this pregnant, hormonal werewolf ever catch a break? 

What did you think of "Fruit of the Poisoned Tree?" Are you glad Sophie and Hayley have been unlinked? What does Marcel have planned for Hayley? Check out The Originals quotes and sound off in the comments about tonight's episode!

Fruit of the Poisoned Tree Review

Editor Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
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Rating: 4.6 / 5.0 (174 Votes)

Miranda Wicker was a Staff Writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in 2017. Follow her on Twitter.

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The Originals Season 1 Episode 6 Quotes

I know I'm the only one in this house that actually drinks milk, but would it kill any of you to make sure it's actually on the grocery list?

Hayley

Rebekah: So this is what you do the first time we're back together as a family? Vampire Book Club?
Klaus: Reading edifies the mind, sister.