The Originals “The Kindness of Strangers” saw Elijah get his memories back and turned us (the viewer) into a hot blubbering mess of feels. It also saw Hope doing some dangerously stupid stuff to reunite her family and Freya finally setting her foot down about her place in Hope’s life. Things don’t ever get easy for the Mikaelsons, do they?
Let’s talk about The Originals “The Kindness of Strangers”!
Elijah Getting His Memories Back
We’re going to rip this band aid off RIGHT AT THE START of this review because it needs talking. Elijah’s memories coming back was as torturous to my heart as it was when they took them away. He didn’t want them. He was scared to get them back and even though he ultimately chose to do it himself, he was cornered into doing it. And it was so painful to watch.
The despair and pain on Elijah’s face, his howling cries, are still firmly in my mind. He watched the woman he loved with all his heart (and that we’ve watched him fall in love with over seasons) die in front of him while he was protecting another. Elijah will forever carry that memory, unless he caves and puts it behind the red door like he’s always done for painful things in his life, which I don’t think he’ll do. He’ll see her death as if he were a spectator or as if watching a movie, with no control.
And the only thing you can say to something like this or the situation that they’re all going through is: That’s fucked up. It’s fucked up that Elijah’s got two lives warring inside of him for control. It’s fucked up that he watched his love die. And it’s fucked up that he has to come to another woman he loves and try to somehow balance his instincts to fight for the Mikaelsons but also for Antoinette. It’s all fucked up.
I wish happiness for Elijah when The Originals comes to an end. And if I’m being honest, who he ends up with right now isn’t really important despite my crying emoji emotions for him watching my boo Hayley die. (Spoiler alert: I really want Hayley back and I kind of really like Antoinette. Why not have all the women survive for a change and worry about OTP for a time later.) I just want Elijah happy. I want the weight that suddenly came down on his shoulders to lessen as he learns to mold these two men he’s become into one.
I want it all and with the way that things are going right now I’m not so sure I’ll get it.
Freya is Done with Everyone’s Shit
You ever wanted to jump through your screen and start a slow clap for your favorite character because they just did THE thing that you’ve been waiting all season/episode/movie for them to do? That’s what happened to me with Freya Mikaelson when she laid it out nice and crystal clear for Klaus Mikaelson.
While Klaus was running away and losing himself in grief that he didn’t have to drown in, Freya stayed. She stuck around. She got to know Hope, watched her grow, and even put her relationship on the line because she believed in “Always and Forever” so much. That’s nothing small and she deserves to be acknowledged and respected for the part she played in raising Hope.
Do I think that putting The Hollow back together is a good decision? Hell, no. But do I understand that the situation was getting dire and a plague was upon them? Yes. They have to try something different and make the hard decisions to A) get the Mikaelsons back together or B) save New Orleans from disaster. And if Klaus, the man who abandoned Hope for years, isn’t ready to make those hard decisions, Freya will.
And for the people who argue, “But he’s her father!” *insert Thor gif saying “Is he though?” A father stays. A father nurtures, engages, and educates. And fathers or parents of any sort, don’t have to be blood. They can be people that stepped up and made a choice. Freya made the choice. She’s just as much of a parent to Hope as Klaus and the sooner he understands that (us too) the better.
What the Hell Hope?
If Freya gets a standing ovation then Hope gets a facepalm gif courtesy of Captain Picard. I understand that things aren’t black and white. I understand that there are facets to everything. And I even understand that she has just lost her mother and everything is going to shit. I understand all that. But it doesn’t mean that I have to like what she’s doing or the position she put her family or New Orleans in.
Hope fucked up. And they’re (the Mikaelsons) going to fix it. But there will be tons of blood, torrents, and destruction before everything is set straight. And just to clarify, it didn’t start with Hope. She had something done to her by The Hollow and by her father aka when he left her. But that doesn’t mean I can’t hold her accountable for kidnapping Hayley, placing her family & New Orleans in danger, and putting HERSELF in danger by putting The Hollow back together and inside of herself.
Holding people accountable for their actions is part of life. There will be forgiveness, from me and from the rest of the Mikaelsons, but it’s going to take some time where she WILL fuck up over and over until she finds her way. That’s just life. Until that happens I’m going to go through my internal catalogue of gifs where the characters facepalm over and over. It’s much needed for the ridiculous that Hope Mikaelson is doing/participating in, to get her family back.
Favorite Moment from “The Kindness of Strangers”:
Anything with my goddess Hayley. I miss her. Please bring her back. Please give me more flashback scenes. I miss her!
Check out the trailer for next week’s episode titled “We Have Not Long to Love”:
The Originals airs Wednesdays at 9/8c on The CW.