The Following, Episode 5: "The Siege"
Hoo boy. How about that ending, folks? I think it is important to start at the end, especially with this episode. One of the biggest complaints I have read about the show is that not much seems to happen, but a lot of stuff seems to happen. I would agree with that assessment. Sometimes, you are watching and it seems just to be Weston and some deputy driving for 15 minutes, but when you look at the clock you are surprised to find that the show is almost over. There was a lot of wheel spinning in this episode, but there was some forward progress, as Ryan was able to locate the house, where Jacob, Emma and Paul were holding little Joey. It was a short lived success, because as soon as Ryan locates Joey, he gets a gun to the back of the neck, courtesy of Paul. Then it was over. I was cursing at my TV. That was a great cliff hanger.
I feel like I need to shower some praise on the young man who plays Joey. Confession time. I am not a huge fan of child actors. They are cloying. A lot of them can't act. They come off as too precious or too precocious. They can also come off as smug, if the writers are trying to make them seem smarter than their age. I think Joey has a nice balance of the trust a child implicitly has for someone who has been taking care of him for years, but also the good sense to question, when something seems off. It is this distrust that leads Ryan to where he is being held. Joey gets a hold of the cell phone and calls Claire from under the kitchen table, which, was pretty adorbs, even in the situation. Emma catches him and cuts the call short. Claire loses her shit. Joey doesn't let this stop him. He eventually escapes. He meets up with some kindly farmers. At first, I was afraid that these people were going to turn out to be more of Joe's followers. That is a plot device that is getting semi-lame. It is pretty convenient and it makes you have to suspend disbelief a little more than you should. Thankfully, they are not, but it is still bad news for them, since Emma, Jacob, and Paul show up shortly after Joey. Emma takes Joey back, but the suspicious couple are still planning on calling the cops. Not on Paul's watch. He dispatches them per Emma's orders.
Throughout all this we are introduced to two new followers. One shows up after Emma's call to move them. He doesn't last long. After killing one of the local cops the newly deputized Ryan is working with, Ryan shoots him. This is right before he enters the farmhouse and finds Joey. We are also introduced to a follower through Claire. She gets into a van with him after she is told to by Joe's lawyer, Olivia Warren.
Poor Olivia. Olivia was Joe's original lawyer. She wanted to drop him once she realized that he was a sinking ship. Well, you know, Joe. He doesn't take rejection well. He sent one of his followers after her and after losing two fingers, she agrees, under duress, to be his lawyer again and it is her press conference that sets everything in motion. I'm kind of sick of the Poe thing. I'm hoping Joe gets a new schtick, latches on to a new author. Something. That being said, Joe's power is off the chain, if he is able to have a hostage, Olivia, while still in prison.
So, do you think that Ryan will be able to save Joey? My guess is no. How many more followers do you think there are? Are you kind of sick of the convenience factor of the followers showing up at the exact right time? Are you still onboard with The Following despite it's flaws? Let me know in the comments.
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