The Strain Season 1 Episode # 8 "Creatures of the Night" - Recap and Review

This post discusses the episode in detail. Readers yet to watch the episode are recommended to skip it, if they wish to avoid spoilers.

At the end of the previous episode, Thomas Eichorst (Richard Sammel) is about to kill Abraham Setrakian (David Bradley), when he was shot in the leg by Dr Eph Goodweather (Corey Stoll)/ Dr Nora Martinez (Mia Maestro). The Strigoi makes good his escape, but is weakened by his injury.

Abraham, Eph, Nora and Jim Kent (Sean Astin) break into a facility to acquire some supplies. They run into Vasiliy Fet (Kevin Durand), who beat them to the punch and has been helping himself already.

The gang heads to a store to buy some UV lamps. They come under attack by a horde of vampires. Dutch Velders (Ruta Gedmintus), the internet hacker hired by Eldritch Palmer (Jonathan Hyde) also happens to be in the same store with her friend.

A delivery guy and Dutch's friend try to flee and are killed. Jim gets infected by a vampire. Eph and Nora remove the worm from inside Jim and destroy it. But it is too late and Vasiliy shoots Jim dead to prevent his transformation.

The group makes its escape in a delivery truck.

This is hands down the most interesting episode so far. 

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Vasiliy referring to the store worker Hassan as “Apu” was a nice reference to “The Simpsons”. As readers familiar with the long running FOX show would be aware, Apu Nahasapeemapetilon is the owner of the convenience store in Springfield. Guillermo del Toro is a fan of the show and has created an opening for a Simpsons episode which can be viewed below:

We get to see some hardcore and non-stop action. The focus of the episode was on the vampires/Strigoi. We learn that each vampire is connected to the Master. The Master commands them and can communicate through them. The Strigoi reach their full maturity after about a month.

Then, there are the “Chosen ones” like Thomas Eichorst, who are more advanced and can retain their original appearance.

The discussion among the group about deciding the fate of the infected Jim shows the different approaches taken by Abraham and Vasiliy vs Eph and Nora. While the former two are practical and do whatever is necessary to ensure their survival, the two doctors tend to be emotional. 

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Image Sources: FX Networks, DelToroFilms.com

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The Strain Season 1 Episode # 5 "Runaways" - Recap

Ruby Wain (Regina King) calls in Dr. Evanston, an urologist to take care of her client, goth celebrity Gabriel Bolivar's (Jack Kesy) medical problems. Gabe, under the control of The Master, attacks the doctor with his stinger and claims her to be “Mine”. 

Ruby gets scared and sprains her leg, while fleeing the house. She calls someone and informs about the incident involving Gabe.

Abraham Setrakian (David Bradley) educates Dr Eph Goodweather (Corey Stoll) about “The Master” and refers to him as Patient Zero/Strigoi (Romanian word for vampire).

Abraham explains about his experience in 1944. A much younger Abraham (Jim Watson), along with his “bubbeh meiseh” grandmother (Kathleen Chalfant) and a friend, are taken to a concentration camp, under the control of Thomas Eichorst (Richard Sammel). Abraham and his friend are spared, after the camp guards learn that they are skilled carpenters.

Back to the present. Attorney Joan Luss (Leslie Hope) is getting more and more sick. The governess, Neeva (Kim Roberts) notices the subtle change in her employer when Joan stares at her daughter's neck with a strange look.

Dr Nora Martinez (Mia Maestro) is informed about her mother, Mariela Martinez (Anne Betancourt) making yet another escape attempt from her institution. She is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.

Eph and Abraham reach Ansel Barbour's (Nikolai Witschl) house, only to discover that his wife Ann-Marie Barbour (Alex Paxton-Beesley) has committed suicide by hanging from the roof.

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They carefully approach the shed and Eph shoots Ansel with his newly acquired nail gun, loaded with silver ammunition. Before decapitating Ansel, Abraham chants the following words: “Sabia mea fredoneaza de argint”.

Back in the concentration camp, Abraham watches a mysterious stranger feed on a fellow prisoner. He confides the same to his friend, who advises him to stop looking for monsters.

Eldritch Palmer (Jonathan Hyde)'s doctor informs him that his body cannot endure any more organ transfers/operations. Eldritch replies that this will be the last operation to be performed on him.

Vasiliy Fet (Kevin Durand) notices the spike in rat related incidents and makes an investigation in the sewers and is pursued by a big horde of strigoi. He escapes through a manhole and the sunlight prevents the vampires from catching up to him. 

Jack Noon is hired by Ruby to clean up the mess created by Gabe's attack on Dr. Evanston. He becomes Gabe's next victim.

Neeva packs Joan's kids and takes them to her place to keep them safe from their mother.

Nora is forced to take her mother out of the institution after a vampire attack.

Eph goes to the CDC with the video evidence of the infected victims. He tries to convince his boss, Dr. Everett Barnes (Daniel Kash) to declare a quarantine. Jim Kent (Sean Astin) advises Eph to flee and helps him to escape. 

David Bradley's Abraham Setrakian is the most fleshed out character in the show. I liked his quote: “Inaction is the greatest evil”. His interactions with Eph are the highlights of the episode.

Couple of scenes reminded me of other Guillermo del Toro efforts. In the concentration camp, young Abraham's friend makes the observation that they are already surrounded by monsters. This was similar to del Toro's Oscar winner Pan's Labyrinth, also set in the aftermath of a Spanish Civil War. The film's protagonist, Ofelia fantasizes about a faun and other mythic creatures while the merciless Captain Vidal inflicts cruelty around her in the real world.

Similarly, Vasiliy's escape from the strigoi through the manhole was reminiscent of a similar scene in Blade II, starring Wesley Snipes as the titular vampire hunter.

The episode felt disjointed and did not have the impact of a vampire show. The teaser for the next episode promises a lot of action. Hopefully, the next episode will be more effective.

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Image Sources: FX Networks, DelToroFilms.com
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