Lacrosse is really boring after the Nogitsune.

There. I said it. For instance, there's nothing wrong with Teen Wolf Season 4 Episode 5, but there's really nothing all that great about it, either.

The stakes were raised so high in Teen Wolf Season 3 that dialing back just doesn't cut it. It's kind of amazing to say that given there is a dead pool out on all of the supernatural beings in Beacon Hills, but I don't think anyone we care about is going to die because we've had too much death already.

Change is good, but in small doses. The Alphas and Nogitsune tore apart Beacon Hills and to throw even more change at us by way of losing another major player would be too risky.

Watch Teen Wolf Season 4 Episode 5 Online

That leaves us with stories like Araya threatening Argent to start hunting again instead of working with his friends and the new teen hunters who have egos too big to suit their brains. We're learning there are a lot more supernatural folks out there, but that's not really all that interesting. We kind of knew that already, given the history lesson we got on Beacon Hills and its name last season.

Derek is losing his powers, which could be why he's taken to tagging along with Stilinski instead of doing much else. It was cute how impressed he was with Scott's parenting skills, though.

Far too much time was taken up during the hour watching Liam try to curb his anger. We got it pretty quickly. Watching him wolf out over and over as he tried to talk himself off of his IED/werewolf created anger ledge was a a time filler, pretty much like the lacrosse game, Liam's broken bone, etc.

Stiles got out a few good one liners, but nothing spectacular. Lydia was trying her damnedest to find the second cipher code and when fellow Banshee Meredith showed up with it, it seemed they should be able to figure out the third pretty quickly now, right? Who else died on Teen Wolf? Boyd, Erica, Jennifer Blake. Plug in a name and see what sticks.

The best news as learning why it might not be so creepy that Deputy Parrish obviously has the hots for Lydia. He's not just an adult making it like a love story on ABC Family, but he's a supernatural himself. He's been drawn to Lydia and knows shes -- as he puts it -- psychic, but what is he? 

People were calling him out as supernatural last season and their instincts paid off. Let the guessing game begin!

The Benefactor story is different than I expected. For some reason I thought regular people would be targeted to take down the supernaturals for cash, but it's professional hunters instead. That doesn't really make him all that benefactor-y; it just makes the killers greedy. Unless I'm missing something, taking that innocent human element out of the equation squashes my idea that he was using Hale money to right wrongs they had done to humanity. Eh, maybe not.

It's doubtful Scott killed Violet after she made her embarrassing attempt to kill him (he's a lot tougher than I thought!), so we should get some more information about this benefactor soon. Either way, the previews show that Kate is out there trying to figure out his identity as well.

Make sure you watch Teen Wolf online when you're feeling blue! In the meantime, if you're loving where the story is leading, maybe you can sell me on it in the comments.

Are you down with the benefactor plot?

Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.