Slasher S1E02 [Recap]

Remember that a-hole ginger kid that got wrecked by The Executioner last week? Turns out HE’S ALIVE!! Well, mostly. He’s uglier than ever, that’s for sure. Was he left alive to be a witness to the new Executioner’s reign? Maybe. Do we care? I’m not so sure.

What’s more interesting is the fact that Sarah’s grandmother shows up to try and coax her granddaughter into leaving the house that her parents were butchered in, but Sarah and Dylan don’t seem willing to budge. This is their life, and they’re going to live it how (and where) they choose. The big takeaway here is that Brenda (Sarah’s grandmother) seems to be a bit detached from the emotions of others. She appears to be a very self-serving person. There also seems to be a bit of bad blood between her and Dylan as well. I’m sure that’ll come back around at some point.

Last week’s episode featured the graphic dismembering of Sarah’s neighbor (who was also the wife of one of the men that was having sex with Sarah’s mother). This episode builds upon that a bit more. While Sarah is working on getting her art gallery in shape, local weirdo Heather Peterson shows up and accuses Sarah of stealing her mail. There isn’t a lot to see here, other than further confirmation that this lady is bananas. The real kicker comes when she leaves. Sarah opens a piece of mail and discovers a strange, cryptic biblical message… along with a bloody human finger. We can assume that this came from The Executioner himself. Don’t worry though, the police are adamant that there is not a serial killer on the loose… *phew*.

Sarah receives a very special gift in the mail.

Unfortunately, they’re wrong. Just across town, Robin (husband of Justin, AKA super cool gay dudes that own most of the city’s real estate) has his power cut off at the most inopportune of times. When he goes to check the breaker, he’s cornered and sliced up by The Executioner. It’s a strangely halfhearted murder attempt though, and Robin manages to escape with his life in tact. Due to Robin’s high profile, it is assumed that The Executioner will make another attempt to seal the deal, so officer Henry is assigned to look after him.

Meanwhile, Sarah is back at the prison discussing the cryptic letter that she received with Tom Winston (the original Executioner). This budding relationship is becoming more and more strange. Winston exudes a paternal sense of care in regard to Sarah, and he informs her that the letter she received is not quoting bible verses. The numbers appear to be GPS coordinates. Regardless of Winston urging Sarah not to go alone…she does.

Sarah and Tom’s relationship is becoming more and more strange

After traversing through the woods, Sarah discovers a cave. Inside that cave lies the skeletal remains of… well, someone. The police later conclude that it is the body of Peter McBride (husband of previously butchered Verna McBride). He appears to have been killed with a massive gunshot wound to the head. Is it possible that Verna’s sin was Anger? Did she discover her husband’s affair with Sarah’s mother and kill him out of rage? It certainly seems as if that’s the case.

After all of that has some time to breathe, Justin hosts an important benefit while his husband, Robin is in the hospital catching up on Desperate Housewives with Officer Henry. After yet another power outage, it is discovered that The Executioner’s intended target is Justin, not Robin. Officer Henry calls police that are at the benefit, but it’s too late. Justin collapses to the ground and begins foaming at the mouth and bleeding from his eyes. It’s another brutal kill at the hands of The Executioner. We are to assume that Justin’s cocaine was somehow spiked. His sin? Gluttony.

The skeletal remains of Peter McBride.

It’s a busy episode, but one that does more in terms of character development that it does slashing–and that’s okay. an often overlooked rule of the slasher is making your audience care about the characters. SLASHER is succeeding in that regard. Beyond the major plot points discussed above, there’s also a conversation between Tom Winston and a priest wherein they discuss the “sinner” that the priest once was. The episode ends with an unidentified woman standing on a bridge with a cement block. She pushes it over the edge and watches it fall onto oncoming traffic.

This is a universe ripe with intrigue and deceit, and I’m looking forward to some of these mysteries getting fleshed out.