The Wicked Heart

Ilonka is in the hallway with Kevin when she sees him. She’s still shocked by what she’s experienced. Kevin decides that it’s the meds they’re on, and that she’s not the only one that’s seen things. This final point is brushed over by Ilonka, who decides to head back into her room, this time with the file in hand.

Interestingly, there are sketches in the document with hourglass symbols and dates. There are also a number of sketches with familiar symbols for Ilonka.

Ilonka bursts out of her bed and asks Anya about the symbol. She’s convinced that she’s seen it inside the house somewhere, but she’s not sure where.

Anya is always bitchy, but on visiting days she becomes even more prickly. She has no one to come talk to her and Ilonka suggests she meet Tim, admitting that she’s told her father that Anya is the toughest person she’s ever met.

In “Brightcliffe,” we see a good snapshot of all the different kids, including their interesting and fractured family life. Kevin’s mum is determined to push his brother, Morgan, to step into Kevin’s legacy. Meanwhile, Anya actually does a great job reassuring Tim that everything is okay inside Brightcliffe and that they all look out for one another. ..

Natsuki’s family day comes and goes, with Tristan head down to see Natsuki. Unfortunately, she’s passed away. All the kids show up to silently pay their respects as Dr Stanton heads down to the basement with Tris’ body. Out of all the kids, it hits Natsuki the hardest, especially as she’s always been there for her to read to Tris.

Ilonka and Kevin reconvene in Ilonka’s room to go over Julia’s sketches. She is determined to find the meaning of the numbers and the hourglass, believing them to be important. ..

Kevin tells Dusty Shane that he’s heard Nancy’s conversation and that he knows what she’s going to do. He tells Dusty Shane that he can either go along with Nancy and her parents or he can stay true to himself and not let them control his life. Dusty Shane chooses to stay true to himself and doesn’t let Nancy’s parents control his life. ..

Dusty, a lonely 23-year-old, visits Nancy, a 78-year-old woman who he knows is alone. He enters her home through the back door wearing gloves to avoid leaving any fingerprints. He sits down next to her bed and they share a conversation. ..

Dusty is driving forward and whispers in his ear that he will kill her repeatedly with a hammer until she dies. He then leaves the smiley face card on the counter and the others call him out for repeating a trope from a previous story.

Kevin’s story begins with a smiley face, as he recalls his happy childhood. However, after a moment, he changes the story to include an hourglass. Ilonka tries to object but stops, as Kevin continues his story. He wraps up Nancy’s body and takes her out to a cave, disposing of the body. This wasn’t his first rodeo though and he heads back to his mother, pleading with her to leave him alone. And by them, that refers to the numerous women he’s killed over the years. He sees them every night and the news one cry and scream a lot.

Dusty meets the new girl Sheila, who is interested in following up on their usual shtick of killing and disposing of the body. However, Sheila stops by her friend’s place and decides to phone the police. The detective thinks this could be a crime scene, and a lot of that comes from the card. The police have a lead, which is linked to online chatrooms; Dusty’s hunting ground.

Sheila shows up at Dusty’s place and believes that this is a murder case, not a missing person case. Dusty is uncomfortable, and as the camera swings back and forth between the two characters… Dusty concludes his story with a big “to be continued.”

Ilonka stays behind after the story and asks Kevin about the symbol. After listening to him talk about Hell and the descent, she remembers where she’s seen the symbol. Inside the elevator.

Ilonka believes that the symbol isn’t useless. Closing the doors, Ilonka tries to press the symbol but it doesn’t work. Instead, she presses the basement symbol… and then the hourglass. And it works! They go a deeper level, into the darkness. ..

Ilonka can’t find the light switch, so she turns on the lights with matchsticks. Unfortunately, the old woman from before is standing right there.

The Episode Review

The Midnight Club is about to get tasty! The mystery involving the hourglass symbol is a nice touch and it definitely helps to add an extra dimension to this series – and break up the episodic feel of these different tales. ..

While that does help to understand each of the different kids, I think it could actually be their genuine history, albeit with a few embellished details changed here and there.

Some of the characters like Natsuki and Anesh have had little development so far, which is a shame. I’m sure the upcoming episodes will remedy that though. ..