The quote of the week is from “Donkey Cabbage”, but I’ve decided not to do a Reference Rundown on it yet. The “Donkey Cabbage” plot is there, but it is more in the background, while the main case has no connection to this fairy tale at all. But there is a connection to another Fairy Tale. You might not have noticed, but when Nick is entering the hideout of the Skalengecks, there is graffiti at the wall. The quote “Nicht lange danach überkam die Katze wieder ein Gelüst” is from another Grimm Tale, “Cat and Mouse in Partnership”. In the English version, the quote goes like this: “Before long the cat was seized by another fit of longing.” The fairy tale is about a cat and a mouse that have hidden away a pot of fat for the winter. But the cat keeps secretly eating it, until the fat is gone, and when the mouse discovers this during the winter, the cat eats her, too. The cat’s addiction to the fat, which results in her betraying her friend, is mirrored in the episode with the two addicted Skalengecks, who are not above killing for what they want.
German Gebrabbel
I already explained a while back why “Skalen” is a bad translation of “Scales”, when I talked about the “Skalenzahnen”. They made the same mistake with the “Skalengeck”. The “Geck” might be hinting to a “Gecko”, but the thing is, “Geck” is actually a German word. A “Geck” is a guy, who is extremely fashion oriented.
“Trauminsel” is a workable translation for “Island of Dreams”. And “Zaubertrank” is also a real German word. The translation is “Poison”, but German is a little bit more precise than English, and differs between “Gift” (poisonous concoction), and “Zaubertrank” (magical concoction). “Keimextrakter” (the stuff Rosalie need to help Wu) works also and means at much as “gem remover”. Only the “Saugendampf” is a little bit questionable. “Saugen” means “to suck” and “Dampf” means “vapor”. But considering what the thing is used for, “to suck vapor” is a fitting description, even though a German would say something along the line of “Dampfsauger” (vapor sucker), instead of using a verb like a nom.
Highs and Lows
+ Rosalee, especially Rosalee and Monroe – just adorkable
+ “The refrigerator repair man is gonna keep people from bothering us?”
+ The use of music, especially towards the end
- Freddie was a “nice guy”? Really Monroe? The guy who sold human organs and ripped you off in the process?
- Personally, I wouldn’t feel safer in my home with a gun. Not at all.
- Doesn’t Wu wonder what happened to him?
The Grimmoire
“We all make mistakes.” Who is Renard talking about? Hank or himself? After all, he unwittingly put his precious Grimm in danger with his plan. It’s also interesting that he hinted to be from an originally noble family, not just in the Wesen world, but in the human world as well.
The Final Judgment
It is surprising how the writers can do the same thing so wrong and so right on two different occasions. Juliette involvement in the show was very clumsy so far, and this episode was more a step back than forward. I’m all for developing her into a woman, who is able to stand on her own against the threats she will have to face if she stays with Nick, but this goes way too fast. Just a few episodes ago she was against using weapons, now she suddenly wants to shoot? Granted, she had two mayor scares in her own house, but the dialogue should reflect the change in character. Never mind that they made her some sort of super-shooter. What for? Wouldn’t it be enough that she knows the basics for now? Why does she have to be perfect in everything she does?
Rosalee on the other hand is perfectly written. In just one episode she got a layered character, an interesting past, and was shown competent in what she does, but not overly so. It’s already obvious that her knowledge about magical remedies will be an asset in future episodes. I also appreciate the continuity they established by killing off a character we have already seen before, instead of a random shop-keeper.
There is so much to love about this episode, and only a few things to criticize. I give it 9 golden keys out of 10.
S1E16: link
