As usual The Hunting Party Season 2, Episode 4 ‘Amanda Weiss’ focused primarily on catching the killer of the week played by the eye-catching and fiery Elizabeth Gillies. Unlike the majority of killers that we’ve seen so far on the show, Gillies brought a natural ease stepping toe to toe with Melissa Roxburgh’s Bex that reminded us just how good she is in television dramas.
Previously, we’ve had a problem with how this show gives too much screen time to temporary storylines. We get this show loves to stay true to procedurals. But the drama aspect has been lacking. The killers may change every week, but our team doesn’t. Which is why we always want to see more of them talking to each other outside of work. And this episode was one that gave us what we wanted. The domesticity and vulnerability in seeing them bond, argue, or lean on each other. Shane has confessed to Bex who he’s been looking for after many years of searching. Everything is out in the open now, but the aftermath isn’t sunshine.
Bex didn’t take it as smoothly as Shane believed she did. He may not have seen her face, but we did. And that’s why we loved The Hunting Party Season 2, Episode 4 ‘Amanda Weiss’ so much. Because this hour was an almost perfect balance of giving us a memorable killer and character interactions we craved. Also this episode made us think about how this episode builds tension up for incoming turmoil between the team.
MORE: Missed last week’s episode? Read our The Hunting Party Season 2, Episode 3 ‘Zack Lang’ Review HERE!
Shane and Bex (and Oliver)
Shane and Bex toasted to new beginnings after confessing his secrets in ‘Amanda Weiss’. This moment was relieving for Shane as he finally would tell someone the truth about why he took this job. He had confessed something that scared him to be honest about. On the other hand, for Bex, it’s clear to us that she isn’t happy. As much as we love how close these two are getting, Bex’s blank stare tells us how troubled she actually is.
At this point in the show, Bex has been through a lot. She has survived countless hostage situations with crazy killers. She has seen and studied horrific murders for years. It wouldn’t be bizarre to say her job is something she’s gotten somewhat insensitive to over time. As she was able to talk to Amanda’s therapist with ease as if they were talking about weather and not murderers.
Consequently, what hurts her the most are relationships. It’s why Oliver betraying and abandoning her as partners stuck with her for so long. Sure it may have taken a long time, but eventually they did reconcile while he died in her arms. However, that doesn’t take away from the emotional damage he caused her. She’s scarred by Oliver keeping her at arm’s length when she wanted to be trusted by him.
So, she has experience dealing with overcoming the pain inflicted on her by someone she cares about.
Yet the thing about Shane, especially when it comes to his relationship with Bex, is that he’s supposed to be different than Oliver. He’s supposed to be the guy that doesn’t lie or keep Bex out of the loop when he needs help. And that’s exactly what he did here. Even if he didn’t mean to hurt her or the others, keeping a secret that you’re related to a killer you may or may not come across in the field is too big not to confess. Especially when you put your lives in each other’s hands every single day. Bex had already been burned by someone who abandoned her with such power over her. She doesn’t want it to happen again and we understand why.
MORE: Do you want to rewatch Season 2 during hiatus? Read our The Hunting Party Season 2, Episode 1 ‘Ron Simms’ Review HERE!
Friendships Will Be Tested
We also see Shane’s side of things this episode. Because he understands that his mother is not a good person. He just didn’t want to give up on his search before he found answers. Knowing that she was a murderer didn’t stop him from wanting to find her. He’s been so relentless in finding out the truth because the woman in his tapes is his mother. Someone who should’ve been important to him in life but wasn’t. There’s weight to such a title and it can’t be erased. And Bex knows how to hold that mantle up because she’s a mother herself. It’s why, as much as she would like to follow in his footsteps, Bex can’t be like Shane in dismissing this fact.
We as viewers can’t judge him for his search because finding his mother was important for him to get closure. Yet, in the same breath, we can see the problem in how Shane is handling this. He doesn’t want to poke the bear that is reality now. He doesn’t want to mess any relationships up or reflect on what this means for him as a grown man with a good heart and links to someone who isn’t. While we can’t blame him, especially after Bex turned quiet, it won’t be good for him to bottle his emotions up.
If he spent that much time looking for her, he must care in some way even if he says he doesn’t. Shane has been exposed weekly to how terrible inmates and therapists are from The Pit in every case. And yet he still pushed forward to find his mother’s identity with and without Dulles’ help. Because the knowledge mattered to him. Shane may be willing to brush aside his ties to Taylor, but he hasn’t seen her knowing she’s his mother yet. That’ll be the true test as to whether he’s able to live with the truth without confrontation.
MORE: Miss what showrunner J.J Bailey said about Shane and Bex’s dynamic growing in Season 2? Read our interview!
Lazarus Knows About Shane
Shane and Bex could’ve gone the extra mile in talking more about how they feel about finding out Taylor was Lazarus. But they didn’t and chose to pretend like there wasn’t an elephant in the room. It’s not that Bex doesn’t trust Shane. She knows him well enough to know his good character.
The issue is with Shane’s nonchalance. After hearing that Shane had been looking to find the woman behind the voice in his tapes for years, he brushed their findings off to keep the mood light. Which is understandable as he doesn’t want his team to see him in a different light. And why Bex’s silence and stare hurt to see. Because we know she doesn’t want to judge him, but she’s wired to think critically. She could see right through him. As his friend, she knows this is impacting him more than he’s letting on.
Shane actively makes the choice to put his life on the line every day for his team and this job while being kind, considerate, and protective. For example, Shane jumped in headfirst when the victim needed saving in The Hunting Party Season 2, Episode 4 ‘Amanda Weiss.’ He rolled down a hill to stop the girl from falling into the lake and calmed her down instantly.
Overall, it’s impossible to say that Shane can’t not care about who his mother is if he can easily care about the random victims he saves. Which’ll make the rest of the season a ride to buckle up for. Especially after the cliffhanger of Taylor knowing that Shane is her son because now, they’re aware of the other. And it’s never good to get personal at work.
NBC‘s The Hunting Party returns on February 26th at 10 pm EST.
