Motherland: Fort Salem is really out here creating TV that is imaginative, outstanding, and game-changing. And this is with two seasons under their belt. I’d like to imagine that they’d tell a complete and full history that gives Eliot Laurence the time needed to tell the story of Raelle, Abigail, and Tally to the fullest. But for now, we’ll have to contend with three seasons and an opportunity for the writers to finish off the series on their own terms.
But enough of us wishing this and that. Let’s talk about what we have, what’s still to come, and what this season finale sets up when it comes to Motherland: Fort Salem. Because these young women aren’t the same people they were two seasons ago when we started this journey. Back then they thought they knew who they were and the path they were on. Motherland: Fort Salem transformed them, molded them, and gave us three young women who will survive and thrive.
Why? Because they have each other. And that is enough.
The Unit Fighting and Surviving
Not going to lie, I was terrified the entirety of this episode of Motherland: Fort Salem. Big sweeping episodes like “Revolution, Part 1” usually mean that one of our favs is going to die. And with a trailer like the one for this episode, that had Raelle screaming out in pain, it was easy to come to the conclusion that Tally, Abigail, or Scylla were going to kick the bucket. Thank God that I was absolutely wrong.
Raelle, Abigail, and Tally are all alive and well. Sure, getting to this place meant leaving the Army behind and going into hiding because the government is now after them. But they’re safe and no one super close to the group died. Not even their romantic partners died, something I was sure would happen to Adil and possibly Scylla. Yes, there was pain. But not unnecessary pain that is meant to destroy our core team.
If anything, this has all brought them closer together. They were sisters before “Revolution, Part 1.” Now Raelle, Abigail, and Tally are something more complicated and unshakeable. So much so, that I don’t think the government can get in between them and the family they have formed together. And this is such a rare and beautiful thing, that I hope it survives into season three.
Their survival as a unit matters. It matters to people who see themselves in Raelle and her queer journey at finding love with Scylla. It matters to people who see themselves in Abigail and her journey as a Black woman in a position of power. And it matters to people who see themselves in Tally and the transformation she’s been going through since day one. All of it matters and I can’t wait to see more.
Raelle and Scylla Deciding What They Want
I remember way back when Motherland: Fort Salem first started and how ehhhh I was about the relationship between Raelle and Scylla; especially because the latter was a liar who did terrible things because she believed in a cause. Two seasons later and I’m in a position where it is undeniable how much both women have changed and grown. Some of that growth is for each other and some is for themselves.
But what’s most important with these two is the fact that they choose to do good. They choose to change lives. They chose to rewrite a nation’s history in a manner that honors witches and humans without either of them practically enslaved to the other. That’s what is going to lead to the real revolution and it makes me happy that at the forefront of all of this is a queer couple in the form of Raelle and Scylla.
It’s not like these two don’t have tons of things to discuss and talk about. It’s going to take time to work through the betrayal, the anger, and the pain. But they’ve decided to stick with it and keep going because they love each other. That’s what matters. That’s what helped them decided on what to do; with the distinction that they aren’t blinded by their love to the realities of the things they’ve done, particularly Scylla.
Whatever comes next for Motherland: Fort Salem it’s clear that Raylla are endgame. With only one season left, Motherland: Fort Salem isn’t going to spend time introducing someone else as a love interest for Raelle or Scylla, especially when Raylla has the building blocks of greatness. In the meantime, I’m looking forward to their growth, the things they learn about each other, and how they’ll change the world together.
The Camarilla Are a Bunch of Bastards
I felt like Sofia Vergara’s character from Modern Family that started screaming, “I KNEW IT!” Because I knew it from the start. There was something different about the Vice President; something off in the way that he looked at his daughter Penelope. It was like there was something lacking or he was playing pretend to fool the audience. But I knew. I felt it in my bones that he was up to no good and I was right.
The Vice President sacrificed his own daughter for his political career and a sick movement that sees witches as less than dogs. And it makes you wonder how long he had planned on killing her and when did the Camarilla approach him? Or did he approach them? Either way, he’s a weakling and a spineless man who doesn’t care for those “dear” to him and who are his own flesh and blood.
Knowing that the Camarilla has infiltrated the government at the highest order is terrifying. Yes, Raelle, Abigail, Tally, and the rest of the gang will wear disguises and all that jazz. But they can’t trust anyone besides each other to guarantee their safety, especially with them being witches and the aggressors of Motherland: Fort Salem being calloused and disgusting human beings.
So, what comes next? Our favs are going to be hunted down, the opinion on witches will continue growing and changing, and the Camarilla will grow more powerful in the meantime. That’s not to say that the Camarilla is going to win. They aren’t. But it’s going to be hard work from Raelle, Abigail, Tally, and the rest of the gang to figure out how to stop them and show the world how human they are despite those who hate them.
And I can’t wait to watch.
Motherland: Fort Salem has been renewed for season three on Freeform.
