Road to Nowhere
In the eighth episode of The Midnight Club, Ilonka wakes up to find Stanton in her room. Stanton does not reveal who is going home, but pleads with Ilonka not to say anything until they are 100% certain. It is definitely not Ilonka either. Ilonka awkwardly promises not to say anything… and immediately tells Kevin in the next scene. ..
Ilonka is convinced the ritual was a success and decides to speak with Shasta about it. The mysterious lady doesn’t have a lot to say, but she shows Ilonka around the group and explains about the “four humours” that are connected to the Five Sisters ritual. Interestingly, Ilonka is offered a place in their ranks. However, she would also need to bring the Paragon Book. Don’t do it Ilonka, it’s a massive red flag! Ilonka doesn’t listen to these subliminal warnings and decides to trust her and get the book. ..
In Ilonka’s absence, Cheri cuts Spencer’s hair before approaching Mark. He tells her that he wants to go and see his parents and tells them all the things he’s not said before. Mark drives him there, where Spence opens up to his mum. He reminds her that he’s probably going to die and his good friend has recently passed away (Anya). He’s realized that when his time comes, he’ll be surrounded by people who really care about him. ..
He loves his mother but wants her to accept him for who he is until the end, and not be judgmental about the fact that he’s gay. After kissing her on the head, he arrives back to Brightcliffe with the others.
Natsuki: It was a dark and stormy night. I was walking home from work, and I saw a figure in the distance. It was Amesh, and he looked so sad. I didn’t know what to do, so I just followed him. We walked for hours, until we came to a dark alley. Amesh told me a story about Anya- his love for her. He said that she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen, and he wanted to protect her from the world. But then something happened that changed everything. Anya died, and Amesh couldn’t process it yet. He didn’t know how to tell anyone about it because he felt like it would break their hearts even more. So he just sat there with his head in his hands, until eventually someone came by and helped him back home."
Natsuki tells her story, called the Road to Nowhere, of a girl named Teresa. She tries to bolt in the middle of the night, but she’s stopped by a couple of hitchhikers, called Freedom Jack and Poppy Corn. The two men offer her a ride home, and Natsuki is grateful. They tell her about their lives and how they’ve been able to find freedom on the road. They also tell her about the fire that’s burning in their room.
The trio of travelers are on the road and it seems like they’re going in circles. They pass the same gas station numerous times and a strange banging sound seems to show numerous things raining down from the sky. When they pass the gas station a third time, Teresa decides to search the garage, where she finds herself passed out in the car. ..
That smell she’s been experiencing all this time is presumably the exhaust fumes from the car. Teresa never left her garage and is trying to kill herself. Freedom Jack and Poppy Corn are apparently manifestations of herself; the devil and angel on her shoulders. Teresa is reminded that should she decide to stay then it’ll hurt - a lot. Teresa decides to face that and stick around.
Natsuki brings up a slightly different ending to the story, in which Ilonka instead gets the lift down to the basement and finds the old woman from before. When she tries to leave, she’s grabbed by Kevin and shown a photo of his son. “Oh no, not again,” he says.
The Episode Review
It seems that the stories that the kids have been telling are in fact real, or at least some of them are. This reframing of what we’ve seen so far is good, and it’s nice to finally get some time with the other kids like Cheri, Natsuki and Amesh. Spencer has a nice moment here though when he confronts his mum and speaks his piece, but honestly it would have been far more effective had we seen a story from him earlier in the season to make this emotional payoff all the more poignant. ..
The old woman’s revelation that she is actually Kevin seems to indicate that the two are not actually related. There are holes in this theory, however, so it’s possible that Kevin is just being possessed from time to time. His story about being controlled by the voices in his head sounds true with a semblance of truth.
The upcoming episodes of “Game of Thrones” look like they could be quite the intriguing watch.
