Stalker Season 1 Episode 19 Review: Love Hurts
Paul Dailly
at
.
Updated at
.
Why do the TV Gods have to be so cruel?
Stalker Season 1 Episode 19 was a fantastic hour of television. It kept me on the edge of my seat throughout and has set up one killer of a finale, but as we all know, it will be the series finale.
We'd have been fools to believe that CBS would renew this solid freshman. It has ratings on par with CSI: Cyber, but the latter managed to eke out a renewal due to it being owned by CBS. Yes, there are a lot of politics that go into the renewal decisions, not just ratings.
It sucks that we are losing such a fine series and I hope that it can somehow live on elsewhere. The cast and crew have put together an excellent show and it would be stupid for it to just end like this.
The case of the week was a two-parter and it actually reminded me of Kevin Williamson's Scream movie series. The stalker was actually a serial killer and this made for a fresh case that threw a long list of suspects at us.
From the first kill in the opening scene, it was obvious that it wouldn't be the last. The inclusion of Vicki was interesting and the fact that we are getting her back story fleshed out was even more so. Her ex-husband seems nice and they at least appear to be being civil to one another, so it is making me wonder if the case she was speaking about which is linked to the current one could have had anything to do with it.
It would make sense, considering they way she and her husband spoke about it. Being a Kevin Williamson creation, don't be fooled if he is revealed to be the killer on Stalker Season 1 Episode 20.
Jack and Beth's relationship is reaching dizzying new heights. It doesn't feel like that long ago that Beth hated him and thought he was a downright creepy guy, but look at her now – she has so much confidence. This shows that the Ray drama had such a big hold on her life. In fact, it was probably more a feeling of dread. Who can blame her?
Jack: You're not coming back, are ya?
Beth: Why would you say that?
Her dialog with Jack was on point and it was stuff we've been waiting to hear all season long. At the moment, it looks like Beth is done with the TAU. Jack caught on to this and asked her, but she was being mum on her decision. Expect her to get in on the action in the finale and decide that she can't have a stalker-less life that will relegate Vicki back to a desk job (Ha!).
We also got some more GREAT scenes with Janice and Jack. They have such a friendly relationship and that's one of the things I'll miss about the show. Sure, I was lobbying for a pairing between the two, but it's great that a male and a female can be friends on TV these days without jumping into bed.
Jack: Darren's car.
Janice: Call for backup.
Because of the way the show was canceled at the last minute, it's pretty evident we won't be getting much in the way of closure, so go into the finale with in mind.
"Love Hurts" was the best episode of this CBS series yet and I have no doubt in my mind that it will be topped by the finale next week. Whether it sticks as the series finale remains to be seen, but don't be shocked if it pops up on a cable channel soon for another go around. It has the ratings.
Remember you can watch Stalker online, right here on TV Fanatic. Get caught up now!
What did you think of the episode? Are you happy about Beth and Jack? What's next for them? How do you see the series concluding? Hit the comments below.
Note: Stalker Season 1 Episode 20 airs Monday May 18 at 9/8C on CBS, which just happens to be my birthday, and I can't wait to see the conclusion.
Paul Dailly was an Associate Editor for TV Fanatic.Follow him on X.
