TV Review: Emerald City 1×04 “Science and Magic”

“Science and Magic” definitely gave us some whiplash, but in the best way possible. Though nothing was really accomplished as a whole, there was a great deal of character development for each major character, and some of the smaller parts that had us confused or unsure at the beginning are starting to come together.

Because each character played a major role in this episode, there was a lot of back and forth between each jagged scene. Still queasy from the spinning storyline, the best way to recap the episode is to split it into the different tales told.

Tip

There’s no question that Tip had a shocking and dramatic introduction. She has spent most of the last few episodes struggling with the confusion of who she is. Though this confusion is understandable, it wasn’t until last night’s episode where we were truly able to see Tip as a dominating and powerful character, as well as what she is capable of as a woman.

After assuming that she has killed her best friend, Jack, Tip can not accept what she has done and is on the brink of jumping off of a bridge. Luckily (or unluckily), a guard of Ev talks her out of it. He takes her to Glinda’s orphanage where she will be raised to become a part of the Wizard’s council. Just after her arrival, West shows up and believes the feisty, rebellious Tip would be better suited at her Brothel. After the two witch sisters hash it out over who gets her, they ask Tip what she wants. She responds, “So you’re saying my only choice as a girl is a nun or whore?” Glinda and West are taken aback and so are we. Though we, as women, don’t literally have to choose between the two like Tip does, this metaphor resonates deep and establishes a liberating point, which is why must we choose betweem one extreme or the other? Why can’t we choose neither? Although it is unsure what, if either, she will opt for, I think it’s clear that Tip resembles a very empowering leader for all women and young girls watching.

Jack

Ladies and gentleman, we have our Tin Man! After Jack’s fall that almost killed him, he awakes in a sketchy hospital setting and is told by a mysterious woman not to be frightened (which accomplishes just the opposite). It turns out that this Doctor, named Jane (Gina McKee), is actually employed by Lady Ev (Stefanie Martini), whom she has operated on as well. While Jack begins to recover from his Darth Vader-like operations, he has a quick and awkward run-in with a woman who enters the doctor’s office. We later find out that this mystifying, masked woman is Lady Ev, and she seems to enjoy Jack’s company. So much, in fact, that she now owns him. It is hard to tell what her true intentions are, but we unfortunately have to wait until next week to find out.

The Wizard and Anna

Just like last week, this uncomfortable romance really puts a damper on the show as a whole. They both clearly like each other, but Anna is devoted to her cause of staying pure and serving him as his counselor and nothing more. Their scenes of romantic strains are awkward and clumsy, and leave little to be desired. Nevertheless, we did gain some valuable information about the Wizard. Just as Anna predicted, he is unable to bring the Warriors back to life in order to protect Oz from the Beast Forever. Anna does predict that the beast can be killed though, and now we must wait for the climactic encounter between good and evil, which one’s which is another mystery we must wait to uncover.

Lucas and Dorothy

As this dynamic duo continue their hike to Emerald City, they come upon a mysterious little girl in the woods who holds on tightly to Lucas and refuses to leave his side. Convinced that she must be from the nearby village, Dorothy risks being caught by the Wizard’s guards to return the girl to her family. Surprise! They catch her, but she makes a quick getaway thanks to her magical machine that shoot bullets and scares the living daylights out of the people of Oz. Before the escape, the guard recognizes Lucas and claims to have been searching for him for some time. Lucas is somewhat unphased. “He knew who I was. The man I am today is who I want to be,” whispers Lucas as he leans closer to Dorothy.  We finally get the kiss we’ve waiting for while Dorothy and Lucas share earbuds and listen to Bill Wither’s “Ain’t No Sunshine.” The scene is straight out of a cheesy teen flick, but we aren’t complaining. The scene beautifully illustrates the harmony between science and magic as well as the intense connection between Dorothy and Lucas.

The next morning, Lucas and the young girl must separate from Dorothy and although Dorothy gets away, Lucas and the girl are caught by the guards. Oh, and remember the mysterious Viking man from the premiere episode? Well, he’s back, and it’s hard to tell if he is a friend or foe, but I look forward to finding out next week.

There are a lot of battles between paradoxes demonstrated throughout this episode; whore or nun, science or magic, good or evil. Must these two things be so disconnected, or can they coexist? I have a feeling Emerald City will continue to blur the lines between each extreme in episodes to come.

Rating: 9/10

Emerald City airs Fridays at 9 PM EST on NBC