T E L E V I S I O N / Glue 102 & 103 Review

“In the old days, it was a bit of a tradition. They’d take all the things the dead person owned. They’d pile it all up in their trailers, douse it in petrol and set a match to it. They believed if you kept hold of the dead person’s things, they might come back to haunt you. ” Doing a bit of 2-in-1 episode reviews to catch up. Midterms week are upon me and whilst I procrastinate, I decided to get around to being somewhat productive and write this up because damn is the show getting good. Like most shows, the pilot usually helps you decide whether you want to continue. If I have some sort of interest (even the smallest amount), I usually end up watching the next 2-3 episodes and see how I feel after that. Thank God Eli's face kept me intrigued past episode 1 because I am mildly hooked. The series definitely got me with the second episode and amped up the volume in the third! Episode 2 fleshed out a lot of things like more about James life--his desire to go to university and leave the countryside for good, Ruth's family life, more about Cal's life and murder, and the kicker of this episode Janine. I like that they gave more insight into each character in fact it gives them the roundedness they need and also a drive for the entire plotline. Especially after the first episode, I was suspicious of James being the killer. I mean you can't just show him killing a calf and then drop it. But as episode two unfolded, the idea of James being the killer wouldn't make sense. Why would he start to reminisce about something Cal left behind/hid? I feel like James was just very connected to Cal, looked up to his free-spirit personality (though now we understand it was very much a heavy facade) because he could not under his sense of obligation towards his mother and the farm. Besides that, we are also introduced to his sister who splits the second the episode nears to an end. (This was one of the things that I didn't really like about this episode. Don't introduce a character and have them split 2 seconds later. I realize not all minor character's can't be developed and fully fleshed just for the sake of time, but it felt really odd to have this huge reunion in the family and see her book it. If they bring her back later on, I might forgive the writers, but right now, that's just poor decision making.) Next off, we have Ruth. I was mildly creeped out to hear that Ruth had an affair with Tina's dad and became pregnant because of it. It left me with a few questions as we are also introduced to Ruth's mother. Was the affair the cause of her break from the group? Was her pregnancy the reason she had to be essentially taken out of the camp? Hopefully, these will be answered. Out of most of the characters, Ruth is one of my favorites. We see her drive to be a good police officer/detective while struggling with her lost identity as a Roma and her new role as a mother. She, out of the few episodes that have aired, is the most developed and arguably the female protagonist of the show while Eli is the other. But even then, Ruth seems to take on more of the spotlight than he does and I don't mind it at all. Finally, Janine as the major twist of the episode. I did not see that coming at all with her identity theft. I mean, I could sort of see the faking horses to get more medication, etc. but the identity really punched me in the gut. For a moment, I also thought she was going to be the killer too, but similar to James' character, it didn't really add up. She was with Rob, and she doesn't seem like a killer type. Maybe a drug addict, and identity thief but definitely not a murderer. In Episode 3, we learn more about Cal--obviously through Eli--and his history, more Janine, and Rob. From what I'm piecing together, Cal was abused during his time in foster care, became mixed up with Dominic Richards--the drug dealer of the town, and became a teenage prostitute (this is my guess with the number on the wall). It's sad to see the misery he experienced while everyone just knew him as a great guy to be with. No one knew who Cal really was and now we get to learn through Eli who wanted to know him and protect him most of all. We also learn more about Janine's past, her family (her aunt specifically) and perhaps her reason as to why she took on a false identity and ran away. I started to feel sympathetic to her as a character. Actually, as each episode progresses, I start to feel a tinge of sympathy for each character more and more. Like Rob, who I just thought was the cheater/douche/head in the clouds kind of guy, actually was given some dimension with the introduction of his father, his father's affair, and his verbal abuse towards his son. Now, there's a reason why he's never home, why he keeps his distance from Tina but also turns to her the most out of everyone. Hopefully, we get to see more of the family dynamic. On another note, I'm not sure whether I'm down with the Tina/Eli relationship, but I don't mind it. I'd prefer Eli stay single though because I don't want him taken away from me even if he is a fictional character. My theory so far is that the sex tape of Rob and Janine was recorded by Cal--though whether he uploaded it and sent it or someone took it and now taunts Rob is still hazy. I want to say Annie might've been the one that killed Cal simply because we don't know anything about her. She's a character that hides behind her ditsy-ness compared to the rest. Unless we follow her in episode 4, she's one of my prime suspects. Also, I'm still reeling over Janine's attack. My mind is still trying to find a character who would fit the bill, but none come to my mind. Oh, and that kid that gets Cal's bracelet, having him pop up and around the area is kind of weird, especially in that last shot. For one thing, how close is Janine's house to the camp? Why was he there? I hope it wasn't just to make things eerie with the bad omen of the bracelet. I mean, come on now. Can't wait to see what episode 4 has in store being the halfway point of the show! Ratings: ★★★☆☆ G L U E | Mondays, 10PM → E4