After warning Kelly to leave the city with Zack ahead of the spreading plague, Eph is arrested by the FBI. Eichhorst has one final job for Gus, while Setrakian realizes that the coming eclipse is the tipping point for virus infection and the beginning of the end.
At long last, it seems like every single aspect of the show has had physical interactions with the dangerous vampires. The plot can finally start moving forward in an exciting and engaging way. A solar eclipse happens and everyone is freaking out that it's an impending sign of doom. Why then, is there still not a strong sense of urgency? The main characters are largely just seeing stuff happen around New York City. They aren't being asked to make life-and-death choices that will then effect how the rest of the vampire strain will spread.Eph and Nora end the hour at Setrakian's pawn shop fully ready to listen to his way of dealing with the strain and the people it has infected. That would imply that something drastic happened to each of them that propelled them to Setrakian's way of thinking. But that simply doesn't happen. Eph previously worked with Setrakian just to gather enough prove to show to his bosses at the CDC. He then got arrested. That was his big aha moment. That seems kinda lame. He didn't force the FBI agents to confront the vampires and die in the process - which he would have then felt guilt over. Escaping their custody literally has nothing to do with him outsmarting them because they didn't listen to his warning. Nora, on the other hand, just wants to keep her mother safe. She sees an attack at the nursing home and then takes her to her place. Then when FBI agents looking for Eph show up there, the only place she thinks she can escape to is Setrakian's. That's her big moment which is even more flimsy. It's all just circumstantial. It completely destroys her character-based decision previously to not join Setrakian's crusade because it would mean killing people.
"Occultation" also makes a very big deal about the pending solar eclipse. And then, it's literally just a few minutes. What actually happens in those minutes that's of any game-changing importance? The vampire medical examiner attacks Eph and the FBI agents and Gus and his pal. That was it and then it was over. The Strain needs to start moving its plot forward in meaningful ways. While it's cool and creepy to see effects like Eichhorst feeding on his prisoner and sunlight destroying a vampire, it doesn't quite make up for the slower parts of the narrative. Two main characters - Eph and Fet - go to their families to tell them to get out of the city before the outbreak claims their lives as well. Basically if you're just learning about the vampire outbreak, you view the person issuing the warning as a crazy person. There's simply too many of those people. The show should be moving past that point by now. Eph tells his ex-wife and son to head to Vermont and she spends the whole hour contemplating whether or not to go. There's simply no urgency at all.
Some more thoughts:
- "Occultation" was written by Justin Britt-Gibson and directed by Peter Weller.
- So, Jim and Gus meet again after their brief encounter in the premiere and nothing much comes from it. Gus learns something not-human is happening but he doesn't deal with it firsthand until much later.
- Also whose body were Jim and Gus disposing of? And why did Eichhorst need them to do that?
- Setrakian is suppose to be a badass vampire killer despite his age. For once, the show is starting to show that his age will hinder his ability to fight. They do that by him needing to take a pill in the middle of his battle with a group of them. That was so odd and the laziest way to tell that aspect of the story.
- So the internet isn't working... except when Zack needs to know that his dad is in trouble.
- Just in case we didn't hate the FBI agents enough because they wouldn't listen to Eph, they just had to PHYSICALLY ASSAULT him when he didn't comply. I mean do government agents actually do that? I don't think so!
- Also, in case we didn't have enough sympathy for the woman who works in Fet's office, she was given a child a second before turning her into a vampire and killing her.
