The Eternal Enemy
Episode 9 of The Midnight Club starts with Dr Stanton revealing just who is going home. It’s Sandra. She no longer has terminal lymphoma and it seems like she’s been healed. Meanwhile, Ilonka speaks to Kevin about his sleepwalking. Apparently he’s been doing this for a while and even woken up in the bed downstairs a few time. She pleads with him to open up, where he admits that the rooms and walls are different. Sometimes he doesn’t feel alone, as if someone is coming for him. Although Ilonka has been seeing the old lady, Kevin has been haunted by this old man. So who are the pair? Well, they intend to go to the library to find out. With all the group joined together, Kevin asks everyone about the visions they’ve been seeing. It turns out it’s just Ilonka and Kevin experiencing this; everyone else most certainly hasn’t. Cheri believes this is folie a deux, which is basically a delusion shared by two people. Natsuki has an alternate theory about the “eater of years” but that doesn’t seem to hold weight here. Ilonka changes the subject and brings up how the ritual was a success and someone is going home. Ilonka believes that it’s her…until Sandra speaks up and unveils the truth. She’s also going home too, as her grandparents are going to pick her up. She’s going tomorrow. Of course, this completely crushes Ilonka. As for the whispering voice in the hallway? Well, it turns out that was Sandra all along. She intended to try and give Spencer some hope. After dropping this bombshell, she leaves. Ilonka follows, storming out the front door and past Katherine, who’s there to see Kevin. It’s not a great time and Ilonka completely destroys her, pointing out that her arrival takes a toll on Kevin. When Kevin shows up and overhears her ranting away, Kevin is shocked and asks her just what she’s doing. Ilonka heads off to find Shasta, pointing out that the ritual didn’t work for her. As she starts to doubt what’s happening and the validity of everything, Ilonka learns the truth. It turns out Shasta is actually Julia Jayne all grown up and living on the outskirts of Brightcliffe! She’s proof that this ritual works and has decided to try and give back the healing magic to the group, hence the cult and knowing about the Paragon Book. Well, she decides they should head off together and go to the basement together, where Julia promises to heal her as she has all the tools to do just that. Meanwhile, Spence heads off with Mark to the latter’s apartment where all the gang are preparing for an upcoming rally. It’s the first time he’s been around likeminded people and tells Spence that they need to be visible. Ilonka heads back to Brightcliffe and into the library, apologizing for her actions to the whole group. It’s Sandra’s final night and this time, the story duties turn to Spencer. The story is about destiny and he calls it “The Eternal Enemy.” Rel is the protagonist and despite being devilishly handsome, he doesn’t have many friends. At college, he clearly has the hots for Christopher Perry and tries to find a way to connect with him. Now, Christopher is actually really into electronics and robotics. He’s a sci-fi geek and Rel suggests they hang out and watch Terminator, which he recorded the night before. Unfortunately, the video doesn’t record and instead it’s American Football. Anyway, they head to the bar where they end up watching the exact same game as before. It seems Rel somehow managed to tape the future! So as a result, the pair decide to continue taping every night to see what happens. And this sees them start betting on the games, winning money over time, while Christopher and Rel also get closer and end up kissing. When one of the tapes records a girl from school being killed, Rel decides to save her life the next day. Despite deciding not to record… he does and this time, it’s Christopher himself who winds up on the news as having died, dismembered by an unknown weapon. Rel charges over to try and save his lover, only to come face to face with a strange hooded man who seems to have futuristic weaponry. Rel manages to stop him though but there’s a problem. It turns out Rel is actually a cyborg from the future; a defective robot that escaped back in time before he could be decommissioned. This hooded figure is actually Christopher from the future. And guess what? So too is future Christopher! Eventually Rel succumbs to his fate. The only thig left behind is a VCR. This VCR tape confirm everything Christopher is going to do in the future. In a future of robotics, Rel reminds him that there’s beauty in sorrow and imperfections. And in that moment, the future changes and Christopher decides not to actually see defects in people after all and that Rel is perfect the way he is. In the present, Spence finishes his beautiful story; it juxtaposes his own history with a guy called Christopher who made him sick but he doesn’t lament him for it. After, the group split and head for bed. As they do, Ilonka lets in Julia Jayne and her group, who head down to the basement and begin their ritual. She’s not alone though and has four other women with her. Ilonka is encouraged to drink some strange cocktail, which she’s told is “tea” but it’s very clearly not. dR Stanton shows up and tries to stop Ilonka. Just before she takes a sip, the other women begin convulsing and collapse on the ground. They’ve been poisoned. Julia scrambles across the ground and grabs Ilonka. She smacks her head hard against the wall and passes out.
The Episode Review
The penultimate episode to Midnight Club finally sees Spence tell a story and it’s a pretty good one in truth. The sci-fi twists and the time travel elements are a nice touch, while the reveal that it’s actually Sandra rather than Ilonka who’s heading home is a nice touch, especially as she’s the only one who didn’t get involved in the circle. However, the show has failed to really capture the essence of horror stories, or expanded upon its meta examination of horror tropes. In fact, most of the scares have actually derived from jump scares, so make of that what you will after the first episode established that as a poor horror trope! Despite all that though, the show is still watchable and the overarching theme about death and accepting one’s mortality is a good one, but this has been very average across the board, at best.
