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Grimm, Ep. 3.15, “Once We Were Gods” worldbuilds while demonstrating strong series memory

Grimm, Ep. 3.15, “Once We Were Gods” worldbuilds while demonstrating strong series memory

Grimm S03E15 promo image

Grimm, Season 3, Episode 15: “Once We Were Gods”
Written by Alan DiFiore
Directed by Steven DePaul
Airs Fridays at 9pm EST on NBC

This week, on Grimm: Juliette reaches out to Wu, Adalind hoofs it, and Nick wrangles with the Council

Grimm explores folk lore and legend on a weekly basis, but this week they go further, adding religion to the mix with the revelation that the Ancient Egyptian gods were Wesen. It’s a fun idea and one that works well for the show, particularly when contrasted with the little we’ve seen of the Wesen community. There’s the spice shop and a few other Wesen-friendly (or Wesen-only) businesses and establishments, and of course the Wesen street gangs introduced this season, but on the whole, the Wesen we’ve meet over the course of the series have been more or less in hiding, passing as human and doing their best to avoid detection.

Knowing that Wesen were once so revered must be a bitter pill at times for the community, something conveyed wonderfully by Silas Weir Mitchell in Monroe’s titular line of dialog. The specifics of a civilization like Ancient Egypt being Wesen-friendly may not wholly come together (what about all the Kehrseites? Was everyone a Kehrseite-Schlich-Kennen? Why didn’t everyone have a Wu-style meltdown?), but the idea is interesting enough, and given enough gravitas by Monroe and Rosalee’s reserved approach to the case of the week, that it works. The funeral is particularly effective, and a nice bit of Wesen world-building. It’s been a while since we saw the world of the show expanded in a non-Royals/conspiracy direction; a touch of history was overdue.

Wu is back this week, continuing to struggle with his experience with the Aswang. Reggie Lee does a great job layering Wu’s instability under a façade of denial- he’s always been professional, competent, and in control (couch-eating incident aside), and he’s desperate not only to regain that for himself, but to be seen as such by his colleagues and friends. While Wu’s clean bill of health at the end of the episode is rather tidy, this is undoubtedly a mislead and fans expecting the good Sgt to be back to his old self next week are underestimating the writers, who it feels safe to assume have quite a bit more up their sleeves for Wu.

Grimm S03E15 promo imageA significant amount of the episode is devoted to time with and discussion of Wu, and this is one of its strongest elements. Not only does it strengthen viewers’ bond with our leads, justifying their choices in regards to the likable and very isolated Wu, but it shows us that they care just as much as we do and are honestly trying to do what will most help him. There’s also several nice bits of series memory, with Hank relating his experience and in the episode’s most surprising moment, Juliette going to see Wu. She spent much of season two in psychological limbo, yet since her recovery, the show has rarely touched on this. It’s great to see it brought back here in an appropriate and touching context- of course Juliette would be the best person to help Wu through the initial trauma, regardless of the fact that they rarely share scenes week-to-week. It’s a nice moment and both Lee and Bitsie Tulloch play it wonderfully.

Elsewhere this week, Adalind is on the run with her maybe-demon daughter. Putting her in direct peril is a great move, giving her storyline energy and stakes it has been sorely lacking all season. The hints of magic we’re seeing for the baby are working so far and it’s nice that the two heart beats wrinkle is brought back here, promising more interesting things to come than an expected Chosen One (either good or evil) storyline.

On the whole, Grimm remains in fine form and with a handful of episodes left this season, there’s plenty of time for each of these storylines to develop as we head towards what will likely be another action-packed finale.

What did you think of this episode? Anyone else glad to see Anne Dudek show up, however briefly? Did the Ancient Egyptian mythology angle work for you? What do you think is next for Wu? Post your thoughts below!

Kate Kulzick

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