Prodigal Son Season 1 Episode 18 Review: Scheherazade
Jasmine Blu
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Oh, Prodigal Son, consider me intrigued yet again.
The concern that the Girl in the Box mystery took an anti-climactic turn was premature. Good ole Martin put that to rest on Prodigal Son Season 1 Episode 18 after he came face to face with Eve.
We can only take Martin's words with a grain of salt, but he knows how to reel you in, doesn't he?
The hour was delicious on all fronts. The ballerina case was interesting with its twists and turns. It's a cutthroat world, so Javier's death was one of those cases where anyone could be a suspect.
It also had many noir elements to it that made it more engaging than usual. Fiona, with the pouty countenance and breathy tone, gave off a classic femme fatale or the Chanteuse vibe as the company's lioness.
She had the '40s/'50s style hair and everything. She served as both a suspect and the most useful witness and asset throughout the investigation.
Everything went back to Fiona, the Jessica Rabbit of Prodigal Son. She was a wealth of information, and she had a significant role in some of the shenanigans that were taking place alongside the case.
Gil commenting that the stash at the ballet company was arguably worse than things confiscated from the homes of drug dealers was a laugh out loud moment.
I've raided drug dealers' houses and turned up less incriminating evidence.
Gil
So were his parting words to Fiona of "be good," knowing she was behind another dancer nearly blinding the other via contacts or the laxatives placed in someone else's supplements.
Did anyone cringe at the glass shards and other bits? Ballet may consist of a group performance, but it sure as hell isn't a team sport.
All of that aside, as cold as some of the dancers came across, none of them had anything to do with Javier's death. Their competitive edge led them to do highly questionable things, but murder wasn't among them.
And Fiona, she loved Javier. She was concerned about him leaving what had become their home, so it was less likely she killed him once it was revealed that they were in a sexual/romantic relationship.
Gil: Hey, Fiona, be good.
Fiona: It's hard to be good when you're so much better than everyone else.
Javier's past came back to haunt him. He defected from Cuba, and Castillo was the person he thought was dead but who came back and killed him.
Someone he admired turned out to be a killer who murdered people he considered his family. Malcolm had a few connections to this case, one of them being his understanding of the victim.
We also found out in the collection of skills our boy has acquired over the years, ballet is on the list. They could've left it at his mother's obsession contributing to him being more knowledgable than most after years of being dragged to the ballet.
But nope, they amused the hell out of Gil and the rest of us. Malcolm confessed that he took ballet for five years, and he showed promise. It's believable, too. Did you see that leap he took while pursuing the suspect?
Gil: Am I imagining things or did you just speak ballet?
Malcolm: If you must know my mother made me take ballet class. For five years. I showed great promise.
It was great form there, Malcolm. He's lithe, no?
The case was also a way to get Jessica involved since she was the one who called it in. Another point to Malcolm for hilarious reactions. When Jessica asked if he was sorry about missing their ballet date or watching someone murdered before his eyes, his face said it all.
It was one of the strongest hours for connecting all of these bits and pieces and some of the characters, too.
Nicholas (hellllllooooo, Dermot Mulroney), was the owner of the ballet company and running the charity event Jessica attended (in that gorgeous dress).
Are you apologizing for standing me up or for missing the chance to witness a murder?
Jessica
He seemed charming enough, especially when he rescued Jessica from Cricket's passive-aggressive shade-throwing. He and Jessica hit it off, but he's not Gil. Yours truly was a bit miffed about that.
However, Gil did not disappoint. He was not feeling how close Nicholas was getting to his Jess. The two men had a couple of silent exchanges where they sized each other up and did not hide that they didn't like each other.
Two things Gil and Martin can agree on is caring about Malcolm and hating Nick's guts, particularly for being anywhere near Jess. We understand the former, and the latter, well, this guy must be bad news.
Gil's spidey senses were tingling, and he liked Nicholas for having something to do with Javier's murder. If not directly, then he had something to do with Castillo's arrival in the states and at the ballet company.
Ballerina: Dancers live by a code. Pirouettes, cigarettes, easy sex.
Both Ballerinas: No regrets.
He has money, power, and prestige, and by the end of the hour, he became someone whom we should direct our attention. Is he another "big bad?"
The showdown between Eve and Martin was tense. It turns out, Malcolm was the one to suggest going there after dreaming about Sophie. She told him that Martin is the only one with the answers.
Martin thought Malcolm brought Eve there for a "meet the parents" ordeal, and Martin is funny for always assuming they're having every day familial moments.
In what universe would Malcolm make it a priority to introduce his girlfriend to his father for the hell of it? Eve had a laundry list of things she wasn't supposed to do, but she stepped over that red line and smacked the heck out of Martin.
I'm dead, Malcolm. My sister over there? She doesn't know where I am. Neither do you. Only one man does. Stop running from him. You know what you have to do.
Sophie
It was the smack heard around the world, and Michael Sheen is commanding with his facial expressions and presence. You could see the flicker of rage after the fact. He can slip between being charming and funny to sinister in a millisecond.
If you ever forget how dangerous he is because of the titillating dad jokes, humor, and cardigan sweaters, moments like that will remind you of who this man is.
Malcolm intended to use Eve to goad Martin, and it was a success. He didn't expect his father to share too much, but her presence and connection to Sophie rattled Martin.
Martin's relationship with Malcolm is a multifarious bond that is hard to decipher. Martin swings from a genuine interest and protectiveness of Malcolm to possessiveness. He likes to toy with Malcolm too, and you can't always rule that out when they're interacting.
Eve: The girl in the box that Malcolm found. Her name is Sophie Sanders.
Martin: Huh. How do you know that?
Eve: She was my sister. Where is she?
Martin: I'm afraid I don't know.
Eve: You were wrong; this is a waste of time. Your son thought you would tell me the truth. But I knew better. You're not some self-styled genius. It's all fake. Pretend. You're not a surgeon. You're not a father. You're not even a man.
Malcolm: Eve.
Eve: You are a void. A hole that consumed anyone unfortunate enough to meet you. Like your son. Like my sister.
We've mentioned before that Malcolm played a role during the camping trip fiasco. The show likes to play with the idea that Malcolm has similar tendencies of his father, and he may have acted on them in some way.
Martin's response to Eve coincided with that theory. He always speaks around an issue and never gives the full story. It's incensing. It's as if he's playing with our heads too.
Martin behaved as though the truth about what happened to Sophie would destroy Malcolm, and he didn't want that to happen.
His insistence that Malcolm let it go felt more like he knew Malcolm wouldn't be able to handle it if he discovered something about himself.
Martin: Malcolm, wait! You don't understand. You need to leave this alone.
Malcolm: I'm done. When you're ready to tell the truth, I'll be back.
Martin: No, you're not listening to me. Malcolm!
Malcolm blocked most of this out for a reason. It's the brain's way of protecting itself when it happens, especially with something traumatizing.
Martin goes back and forth between seemingly wanting to draw bits and pieces of Malcolm's "dark" side out of him and taking pleasure in it and wanting to protect him from the truth.
Is it that he wants to be the one to control the truth and what Malcolm learns and knows? Does he want to draw everything out in his time like he's still grooming Malcolm or enacting some psychological puppeteering?
We have more information about that night. We can guess that some of it is truthful, like that Martin brought Sophie on the camping trip.
Malcolm: Why? If that's the truth, why deny Sophie's existence? Why the gaslighting? The chloroform?
Martin: Trust me, Malcolm. I'm being a good father here. I'm protecting you by stopping you. Now you go and do the same thing for Eve. If you love her, stop her.
Apparently, she wasn't dead, and he took her out there to go through his ritual and kill her. He had to squeeze it in while he was with Malcolm and John.
John said Martin brought Malcolm along so Martin could kill Malcolm. Martin changed his mind or chickened out and didn't. But it didn't play into Martin's story. Martin wanted to kill Sophie while Malcolm was up in the cabin asleep.
Martin mentioned he didn't do right by Sophie, and it was a reference to giving her drugs, but wouldn't he have given her something to knock her out during the transportation process?
Martin could've taken Malcolm there to see if Malcolm had it in him to be like his father. Maybe he coaxed Malcolm into doing something to Sophie. It could've happened after Malcolm stabbed John, and that's why Malcolm doesn't remember most of it.
I gave you plenty of warning. It's not my fault she never reached out to you, that you have been chasing someone who doesn't want to be found. It's cruel, I know.
Martin
Martin warned Malcolm that he needs to stop pursuing this, and he implied that if Malcolm wanted his relationship with Eve to work, they need to stop digging. At least, that's how it came across.
The only thing that would make you think Malcolm's relationship with Eve would be in jeopardy if she found out the truth is that she discovered that Malcolm had a role in Sophie's death or mutilation.
But of course, there's also a chance that Martin is telling the truth about Sophie. She thought someone (Nicholas) sent Martin to kill her for whatever it is she knows or did.
She was a smart girl who found a way to leverage her life with a prolific serial killer. She didn't even bat an eye at Martin's revelation that he was The Surgeon.
Martin: To save your life, you're going to cut a deal with me? A serial killer? I'm not exactly a good man.
Sophie: You don't get it. I know worse.
Sophie had other fish to fry, and that was because of Nicholas. Martin's confusion/annoyance that Sophie wasn't the least bit afraid of him was hysterical.
He was intrigued by her too, and he wanted to hear her tale. It's about money, power, and Nicholas.
Martin mentioned he had to try a new approach before he called Eve instead of Malcolm. He possibly was scheming while also telling half truths. He's known for that.
His reaction to Jessica on page six with Nicholas was both amusing but disquieting after we learned about his time with Sophie.
Nicholas Endicott is a monster.
Sophie
Maybe he wasn't jealous like he was on some of the occasions when Gil was mentioned; maybe he was worried about her and his kids with Nicholas by her side.
Jessica's taste in men; we need to talk about it. If Nicholas speculation is right, then he's dangerous too.
If Jessica would accept that Gil is who she needs to be with, then she wouldn't have this issue.
Every time we learn more about Sophie, she becomes a fascinating character. This time around, we saw her as a street-savvy, scrappy woman fighting for her life.
If you're the surgeon, that means your smart. I can be of value to you alive.
Sophie
She spoke about Nicholas as if he was the biggest baddie there was, but we didn't get to hear any of the details about why that's the case.
They left us hanging, yes, but also intrigued.
Eve had a hard time processing this new information. If Martin didn't kill her sister, then it meant she was alive and never contacted her again.
Of course, if Nicholas was powerful and had his sights on Sophie, then someone else could've killed her anyway. Either Sophie is alive, someone else killed her, or Martin is misleading them about what happened that night.
This isn't your search anymore. It's mine.
Eve
He could've heard Sophie out and still killed her, after all.
Eve wasn't satisfied, and now she's embarking on a journey of her own to find her sister. She didn't think it was a task for her and Malcolm to pursue together, but we know Malcolm isn't letting this go.
Eve's gone for now, and that's fine. She served her purpose, but Prodigal Son is full of surprises, and they still had some tricks up their sleeves with the Girl in the Box mystery.
Bits and Pieces:
- Next season, and dammit, we should get one, we need an entire episode devoted to Mr. David. The man knows all the bloody details of everything, is perpetually unfazed by the Whitly family antics, and he's hilarious.
Just remember that whatever you do, do not step across the red line.
Mr. David
- One week Jessica stabs Martin in the room and Malcolm covers for her. Later, the new girl crosses the red tape to slap Martin. Honestly, what's Mr. David thinking while sitting outside of that room hearing and sometimes seeing all of this go down? And how does he still have a job when Martin is maimed this much under his watch?
- The way Martin dramatically flopped down on his bed like a toddler throwing a temper tantrum was hilarious, but then he started laughing, and it started a giggle fit. Their whole family is melodramatic and extra.
- The Gil and Nicholas "Jess" off while Jessica looked ashamed that she was caught redhanded on the brink of getting her groove on was too funny.
- Why do snooty, rich people who make jabs while smiling at you have names like "Cricket?" I cackled when Jessica said Cricket and her son were part of that college admissions scandal. If you're bored, watch Lifetime's The College Admission Scandal (which I reviewed). It's entertaining, to say the least.
- Edrisa was thrilled to meet Malcolm's mother, and Jessica was not remotely interested. Nothing keeps Edrisa down, man.
- JT is officially enjoying the name game. He seems happier and funnier than ever now that he and Tally are expecting. He really does need more screentime.
Malcolm: Wait, JT, Juan Tarmel
JT: Nooooo, but thanks for playing.
- It's not an episode of Prodigal Son unless Malcolm's at risk of death or injury. Thankfully, Gil spared Malcolm from death on a stage.
Over to you, Prodigal Son Fanatics. What are your latest theories about Sophie? Is she alive or dead? Is Martin lying or telling the truth?
What is Nicholas up to, and what does this mean for Jessica? What if JT's name is actually JT, and he's trolling all of us? Hit the comments below.
You can watch Prodigal Son online here via TV Fanatic. Go on if you haven't already. You have nothing but time on your hands.
Jasmine Blu is a senior staff writer for TV Fanatic. She is an insomniac who spends late nights and early mornings binge-watching way too many shows and binge-drinking way too much tea. Her eclectic taste makes her an unpredictable viewer with an appreciation for complex characters, diverse representation, dynamic duos, compelling stories, and guilty pleasures. You'll definitely find her obsessively live-tweeting, waxing poetic, and chatting up fellow Fanatics and readers. Follow her on X.
