This week, Alice starts to learn about the mechanics of time travel and dives head first into learning more about her Uncle Jacob’s disappearance. Kat is offered an interesting opportunity, and Del prepares for Jacob’s upcoming memorial service.
Poor Kat. Those opening scenes where she’s out searching for Alice are heartbreaking. Obviously, we as the audience know that Alice is perfectly fine, but we find out she’s spent twelve hours not having any idea where her daughter was or what happened to her. When you consider the amount of loss Kat has experienced, and particularly Jacob just up and disappearing, it’s not all that surprising that she quickly jumps to worst case scenario conclusions. The visual imagery is poignant when we see her pulled over next to a cross, which we later learn is a marker for her father, who died in a car accident just outside the farm. The reminder of what she’s been through makes her near panic attack seem like a pretty reasonable response. It was nice to see that, once again, Brady steps in to ground her. While I have my issues with Brady’s character, the one thing he has excelled at is being there to talk things through with Kat. Despite their divorce, he is continuing to be an ally during what has been a rather rocky return home for his ex-wife. I’m still not crazy about some of his choices as a father. Kat never should have had to be the one to tell Alice about Rachel. However, it does feel like in this episode, he is putting forth a little bit more effort to try and be there for Kat and Alice in his own way.
Eventually Alice returns from her time travel adventure. In what is a prime example of miscommunication, the conversation between adult Kat and Alice when Alice first gets back highlights how out of sync they are. We know, and Alice knows, that she wasn’t trying to run away, or get back to her dad, but how exactly does one explain to their mother that they were stuck in another time and didn’t know how to make it back to the present. I don’t envy Alice in that moment. Unfortunately, when she says she was trying to get home, all her mother hears is that she was trying to get back to Minnesota to be with her dad. Likewise, when Alice asks ‘what happened to you?’ referring to Kat’s carefree, teenage self, Kat is not thinking that far back in time. Why would she? Her daughter didn’t know her then. Under normal circumstances, mothers and daughters aren’t often on the same page. In this particular instance, Kat and Alice aren’t even reading the same book. Now, in full fairness, Kat has been through hell the past twelve hours, worrying about her daughter’s whereabouts and being terrified that Alice could have disappeared in a similar manner to Jacob. Also, given Alice’s behavior since they arrived, and the fact that she has been begging to go back to live with her dad, the conclusion Kat draws and her reaction to it are justified. It just sucks for Alice, who is actually feeling really good right now about the time she got to spend meeting her family in the past. The experience has left her feeling much closer to her mother, and so it is jarring to be back in the present where they aren’t fast friends. As much conflict as there may be for them right now, I do love the scene near the end of the episode where Alice tells Kat that, while she appreciates that her mother would leave for her, that she wants to stay in Port Haven and learn more about her family. It’s one of the first times where I think Kat feels like she made the right choice bringing them home.
Poor Kat. Those opening scenes where she’s out searching for Alice are heartbreaking. Obviously, we as the audience know that Alice is perfectly fine, but we find out she’s spent twelve hours not having any idea where her daughter was or what happened to her. When you consider the amount of loss Kat has experienced, and particularly Jacob just up and disappearing, it’s not all that surprising that she quickly jumps to worst case scenario conclusions. The visual imagery is poignant when we see her pulled over next to a cross, which we later learn is a marker for her father, who died in a car accident just outside the farm. The reminder of what she’s been through makes her near panic attack seem like a pretty reasonable response. It was nice to see that, once again, Brady steps in to ground her. While I have my issues with Brady’s character, the one thing he has excelled at is being there to talk things through with Kat. Despite their divorce, he is continuing to be an ally during what has been a rather rocky return home for his ex-wife. I’m still not crazy about some of his choices as a father. Kat never should have had to be the one to tell Alice about Rachel. However, it does feel like in this episode, he is putting forth a little bit more effort to try and be there for Kat and Alice in his own way.
Eventually Alice returns from her time travel adventure. In what is a prime example of miscommunication, the conversation between adult Kat and Alice when Alice first gets back highlights how out of sync they are. We know, and Alice knows, that she wasn’t trying to run away, or get back to her dad, but how exactly does one explain to their mother that they were stuck in another time and didn’t know how to make it back to the present. I don’t envy Alice in that moment. Unfortunately, when she says she was trying to get home, all her mother hears is that she was trying to get back to Minnesota to be with her dad. Likewise, when Alice asks ‘what happened to you?’ referring to Kat’s carefree, teenage self, Kat is not thinking that far back in time. Why would she? Her daughter didn’t know her then. Under normal circumstances, mothers and daughters aren’t often on the same page. In this particular instance, Kat and Alice aren’t even reading the same book. Now, in full fairness, Kat has been through hell the past twelve hours, worrying about her daughter’s whereabouts and being terrified that Alice could have disappeared in a similar manner to Jacob. Also, given Alice’s behavior since they arrived, and the fact that she has been begging to go back to live with her dad, the conclusion Kat draws and her reaction to it are justified. It just sucks for Alice, who is actually feeling really good right now about the time she got to spend meeting her family in the past. The experience has left her feeling much closer to her mother, and so it is jarring to be back in the present where they aren’t fast friends. As much conflict as there may be for them right now, I do love the scene near the end of the episode where Alice tells Kat that, while she appreciates that her mother would leave for her, that she wants to stay in Port Haven and learn more about her family. It’s one of the first times where I think Kat feels like she made the right choice bringing them home.
Elliott is quickly becoming a favorite character of mine, both in the past and in the present. His scenes with both Kat and Alice were fantastic. Teenage and adult Elliott working with Alice to figure out time travel is offering some much needed levity to the show. While much of the present day scenes are draped in tension and drama, it’s fun to watch the two characters awkwardly navigate the logistics of the pond and its rules. Teenage Elliott has not yet bought into the idea that time travel exists. He seems more intrigued by the fact that Alice is claiming to be Kat’s daughter. The scene where he essentially asks her if he’s her father is equal parts sweet and also hilarious due to Alice’s reaction. I don’t think Alice has quite caught on to the fact that Elliott is crushing pretty hard on her mom, so she’s completely grossed out by the suggestion. Back in the present, the two share some additionally great moments. I couldn’t help but laugh a little bit when Alice bursts into his classroom demanding to ‘talk about last night’ while he’s standing there with all of his colleagues. Obviously their relationship is purely innocent, but you see some of Alice’s teenage naivete shine through in her maybe not realizing that was truly bad timing… and phrasing. Adult Elliott, honestly, isn’t any less awkward than his teenage counterpart - a fact which makes him quite likable. Even twenty years later, he doesn’t seem to know all that much about the rules of the pond, drawing conclusions based on Alice’s current experience to date. My favorite scene with the two was when Alice shows up at his house after the pond refuses to take her back to 1999. She tells him he’s supposed to be her guru for all things time travel, to which he responds that he needs time to become the Giles to her Buffy. The fact that Alice doesn’t know who Buffy is makes my heart so sad. I love Elliott’s line about how he cries for Gen Z. Buffy is such a classic, and I think Alice would like it. Regardless of whether or not Elliott is yet the Giles to Alice’s Buffy, he does offer her some guidance. Essentially, it seems that the pond does what it wants, when it wants. If it, or the forces that make it so, want Alice to travel back and forth, she can. If it determines she needs to stay, she stays. Also, time passes in the same amount regardless of which side she’s on. 12 hours in the past is 12 hours in the present. My only small quibble is the way in which Alice, in the past, figures out how to get back. She goes to teen Elliott for help, but then seems to figure it out on her own anyway. She concludes she’ll just jump back in to get back and his response is simply “I guess that makes sense.” Are we supposed to infer that they stayed up all night in the barn theorizing the hows and whys in order to come up with this plan? It seems like a fairly simple solution. She couldn’t have done that the night before? She had to spend the night, nearly cause her mother a breakdown, and then test this theory the next morning? Maybe the forest was too dark to find her way back. I’m sure there were TV and plot reasons for needing the 12 hour gap. The Kat scenes, while heartbreaking, were beautiful, and helped facilitate the conflict between mother and daughter. I guess arguing for logic in a show with time travel is reading into it too much. I just need to suspend that disbelief a little further. It was all enjoyable content regardless.
This episode made me love the friendship between Elliott and Kat. Having grown up together, they are able to pick up right where they left off. Their scenes in the barn are so sweet. Given how lonely and isolating Kat’s return has been, it’s nice that she has a familiar face who is just unconditionally there for her. Her fractured relationship with her mother, and the fact that Alice doesn’t have the same experience with losing Jacob that she does makes it so Kat doesn’t really have anyone nearby to talk to about everything she’s feeling and going through. Elliott steps up in a big way, being a source of comfort for her and a shoulder to lean on. My favorite moment with them was at Jacob’s memorial, when he notices Kat getting overwhelmed and immediately offers his hand for her to hold. He is obviously still harboring strong feelings for her, but for now, given all the chaos and turmoil in her life, she just needs her best friend, and he is filling that role brilliantly.
What is going to continue to be interesting to watch is the dynamic between Elliott, Kat and Alice in regards to the time travel situation. Elliott is already having to tread lightly with Kat when she asks him if he remembers their friend Alice from when they were kids. While he fully remembers Alice as Kat’s daughter, Kat claims to only remember Alice as an energy rather than an actual person. He never lies to her, but he is withholding details, which I’m sure will bring conflict between them eventually. Elliott hypothesizes that Kat doesn’t realize Alice is her daughter because, technically, it is impossible. It is definitely a bit of a mind trip to wrap one’s head around. Why is Alice the only one who can time travel? Elliott tries and fails. Does the fact that Elliott is not a Landry impact his ability to come through the pond, and to remember the past in a way that Kat is not able to? Could Kat travel through the pond if she tried? Going back to my theory from last episode, did Jacob travel through the pond? I have so many questions. Going back to Kat though, it is odd that she doesn’t draw the connection between her ‘friend’ and her daughter sharing the same name. Speaking of the name Alice, they make it a point to imply that it is a reference to Alice In Wonderland, as Kat finds a copy of the book in her daughter’s room. I love these kinds of references as it shows a true attention to detail in the writing of this story.
Back in the present, Brady offers Kat a book deal to write a tell all about Jacob’s disappearance. On the surface, this seems like it could be a good, cathartic experience for her. Del is adamantly opposed to the idea. It has become abundantly clear that she wants to bury any mention or discussion of Jacob. Unfortunately for her, whether Kat writes the book or not, Alice is bound and determined to learn more about her uncle. In part she is trying to figure out how he disappeared to better understand the impact it had on her family, but also, meeting him in the past left an emotional mark on her. She’s seen in person what her mother and grandmother saw all those years ago - a young boy, full of life and laughter - and she’s formed a connection with him. While Del doesn’t like it, she is far more gentle in her reaction to Alice’s curiosity than she is to Kat’s. After she finds Alice doing research at the archives, she essentially tells her that between Jacob’s disappearance and Colton’s death, she lost her whole world and it’s too painful for her to keep rehashing the past. Kat is notably left out of that ‘whole world’ equation, something Alice picks up on. I’m still not convinced that this is the only reason Del doesn’t want to talk about Jacob. I think she knows more than she’s letting on about the mysterious and mystical nature of Landry farm. While Alice is researching Jacob’s disappearance, she finds an article that sheds more light on Del and Kat’s fractured relationship. The day he disappeared, he was with Kat at a local carnival, presumably under her supervision. The article states that Kat told police “One second he was by my side, and then he was gone.” On some level, there’s an implication that Del blames Kat for Jacob’s disappearance, and that maybe, Kat, subconsciously blames herself a little bit. This whole family could stand to go to therapy. Seriously. While that information is definitely on the heavy and dark side, it does offer some insight into why Kat is so bound and determined to find a rational explanation for Jacob’s disappearance, and also why Del struggles to lower her guard around her daughter. It is no small thing to blame your child for the loss of their sibling. I’m sure she is torn between feeling those feelings and feeling guilty for feeling those feelings. On a note unrelated to this show, it makes me think of the video game, Life Is Strange: True Colors, and the scenes where Charlotte is angry with her son. It’s a similar concept of guilt, anger, and reckoning with blaming your child for something tragic. If anyone has not played that game, I HIGHLY recommend it.
What makes the concept of blaming Kat for Jacob’s disappearance that much harder is the fact that the two of them were so close. Every scene we have with them, be it flashbacks, or Alice’s trips to the past, the two are seemingly inseparable. Yes, they are siblings, and we see those dynamics with the debate over Jacob taking Kat’s room when she leaves, and her chasing him through the house when he takes a picture of her that she fears might look bad. However, ultimately, there is a truly special bond between them. In one flashback, we see that Jacob had big plans for Kat to become a reporter and him to be her photographer. They had dreams of solving crimes and mysteries and becoming a heroic reporting duo. Now, it is worth noting that we are seeing most of these flashbacks from Kat’s perspective, and it is entirely possible that this makes them rose colored. I’m sure Jacob and their relationship had more flaws than Kat’s memories are allowing for, given the circumstances. The few less than perfect moments we have seen were from Alice’s visit to the past, not from Kat herself. That said, I have a hard time believing, even without the fantastical elements at play, that there would have been any willful neglect on Kat’s part that contributed to his disappearance. When reminiscing with Elliott, Kat stumbles upon the symbol Jacob had created for their reporting team. It is clear how guilty she feels about not being able to protect him. (Alex Danvers syndrome? Supergirl fans know what I’m talking about.) Speaking of that symbol, JK, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of it. Given the line about how ‘a hero always leaves their mark’, I think this will become a recurring clue. Given all the mystical, mysterious things at play on this farm and in this family, I haven’t for a second been convinced that Jacob is dead. Assuming he’s not, he’s eventually going to make his way back to his family, and I bet that we are going to start seeing this mark appear in other places. Not just his old notebook, or etched in a table in the barn. If I’m wrong, then it’s a great red herring. I strongly suspect I’m not wrong. This episode also allowed us to see more of the incredibly close bond Kat shared with her father. Through flashbacks, we see him being a rock and a support for her in the wake of Jacob’s disappearance. Whether or not he shared some of Del’s feelings about Kat’s role in that event is unclear. What does seem clear is that Kat doesn’t believe he did. Feeling lost after another fight with Del, Kat goes to visit her father at the cemetery. She says she wishes he’d gotten to meet Alice. Oh, if she only knew. If Kat had gotten to see her daughter sing with her father in the kitchen of the Landry house, that would have been magic. Technically, she did see it, she just doesn’t realize she saw it. Maybe one day soon she will be able to make the connection. That is something I would love to get the opportunity to watch play out. Speaking of the scene in the cemetery, who is Danny? Kat obviously knows him, but he acts as though even looking in her direction would cause him some sort of pain. Was it just the fact that he knew Jacob’s name was on the headstone? Or was there something else going on?
Over the course of just two episodes, there have been what feels like an abundance of clues and hints regarding what we might see going forward. One of those clues is the actual timeline of Jacob’s disappearance and Colton’s death - October 29th, 1999, and February 17th, 2000 respectively. Given that Alice is traveling back to 1999, it seems obvious that she only has a limited time left before she reaches that point where everything changed. I’m curious how aware she is of that fact or if she’s thought that hard about it. The preview for next episode also shows her missing a significant chunk of the past timeline for reasons yet unknown, thus limiting her time further. In regards to the mystery of Jacob’s disappearance, it doesn’t sound like he’s the first Port Haven resident this has happened too. The article that Alice reads in the archives alludes to another child disappearing 30 years earlier in the 1960s, and a 61 year old man named Stewart who also went missing around the same time as Jacob. The carnival has been around for over 100 years. Is it responsible for some of these mysterious disappearances? The article also mentions that Jacob was taken to the carnival by Kat and “her boyfriend”, which makes me very curious. Is this, presumably, after Kat meets Brady at summer camp? Is Alice going to, at some point, meet a younger version of her father as well? Another, slightly more random item that caught my attention is the blue balloon. There has to be some significance to this given the way it triggers a flashback for Kat, and one is released at Jacob’s memorial.
Del’s arc in this episode was largely focused on Jacob and his upcoming memorial service. After all this time, she’s attempting to move on, and has made the impossible decision to have him declared dead. We first learn about this during her conversation with her friend, Rita. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t a super big fan of Rita after watching that scene. I do respect that she is trying to protect Del and wants to help her heal and move on. It’s a noble endeavor. However, Kat and Alice being back in town is a family matter, and one she should keep her nose out of. Perhaps my strong reaction is a knee jerk instinct to want to protect any character Chyler Leigh plays at all costs (See Alex Danvers). That said, I also feel like she has no idea what Kat has been going through, and is pretty quick to judge her return. Del may be in pain, but so is the rest of her family. They don’t deserve to be dismissed or viewed as a burden. In Rita’s defense, it’s not exactly like Del has welcomed Kat home warmly. She seems to have little sympathy for Kat’s feelings, and isn’t offering her much of a ledge to stand on while she gets back on her feet. I don’t think she’s painted much of an image that would improve Kat’s standing with Rita. Obviously, Del is trying to navigate her own hard and complicated feelings about both the past and the present situation she’s in with her daughter. That said, it felt cruel to blindside Kat with an impromptu job interview at the diner. She had to know it would make her look bad in front of an old high school nemesis. If getting her a job offer was her purest intention, there had to have been other places looking to hire that she could have reached out to. Add to that the ongoing debate over who sent Kat the letter. At least she did finally admit to writing it. That is something, and not something small. It proves that, on some level, even if she is struggling to let her guard down, that she wants some sort of reconciliation with Kat. The above may make it sound like I don’t like Del’s character, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. I just want to see her get to a point where she can open up and talk to her daughter about the hard stuff without hiding behind that wall she’s been fortifying for the last twenty years. Kat claims that the reason she’s been gone all this time is that her mother wouldn’t let her stay. If I had to take a guess, once Colton was gone, Del and Kat had polar opposite methods of dealing with their grief, which in turn caused enough conflict that it caused Del to push her daughter away. It’s the same conflict we see with them now, where Kat has to talk about it in order to process, and Del can’t because doing so is too hard.
We see glimpses of a softer Del, one more akin to the woman Alice meets in 1999. Underneath the tough exterior, she is genuinely concerned for her granddaughter’s well being while Alice is missing. We see her breath a sigh of relief when she hears Kat and Alice arguing. Of course, she immediately wipes that away for a much colder “I told you she’d come back” when Kat comes downstairs. We even see a downright happy Del at the farmer’s market, flirting with the local newspaper man, Byron. I love that Alice can tell her grandmother is interested in the man because Del does the same hair tuck that she had done in 1999 with Colton. It’s fun that Alice is learning some of these nuances about her family. I’m sure we will see more of that as time goes on. Eventually, Del’s wall begins showing cracks. After grieving for her lost son at the memorial, she can’t bring herself to write his date of death in the family book. Kat, despite not wanting to buy into the theory that her brother is dead, offers to write the date in for her mother, to help give her some closure. Finally, mother and daughter are able to meet each other halfway, and it was a scene of absolute beauty. Hopefully this is a sign of less rocky waters to come for the pair.
Other random observations:
-Alice is sort of making friends at school. Sophie and Spencer seem cool. At least they aren’t actively making fun of Alice over the fire alarm stunt.
-Worth noting that, out of obvious habit, Kat and Dell still sit at the same seats at the table that they did in 1999. Alice now sits in Jacob’s seat.
-The reveal of Jacob’s teddy bear under Del’s pillow made me cry. She hasn’t erased everything.
Two episodes in, and this show has me hooked. I genuinely was not expecting to enjoy this as much as I do. Those who know me, and those who read my Supergirl reviews know that when I truly love a show, I have so much to say about it. I pick it apart and look for all the details, and connections, and everything that makes it click for me emotionally. The Way Home has officially earned that status. It is so well done, and I am so invested in these characters and this world in just the couple of weeks that it has graced our screens with its presence. Any quibbles I have are mostly technical or logical in nature and have nothing to do with the overall quality of the story or content. I don’t know what else to say other than, I’m impressed. If you haven’t watched yet… first of all, why did you read this long winded review, and second… drop what you’re doing and go watch it now. I, for one, cannot wait for episode three.
This episode made me love the friendship between Elliott and Kat. Having grown up together, they are able to pick up right where they left off. Their scenes in the barn are so sweet. Given how lonely and isolating Kat’s return has been, it’s nice that she has a familiar face who is just unconditionally there for her. Her fractured relationship with her mother, and the fact that Alice doesn’t have the same experience with losing Jacob that she does makes it so Kat doesn’t really have anyone nearby to talk to about everything she’s feeling and going through. Elliott steps up in a big way, being a source of comfort for her and a shoulder to lean on. My favorite moment with them was at Jacob’s memorial, when he notices Kat getting overwhelmed and immediately offers his hand for her to hold. He is obviously still harboring strong feelings for her, but for now, given all the chaos and turmoil in her life, she just needs her best friend, and he is filling that role brilliantly.
What is going to continue to be interesting to watch is the dynamic between Elliott, Kat and Alice in regards to the time travel situation. Elliott is already having to tread lightly with Kat when she asks him if he remembers their friend Alice from when they were kids. While he fully remembers Alice as Kat’s daughter, Kat claims to only remember Alice as an energy rather than an actual person. He never lies to her, but he is withholding details, which I’m sure will bring conflict between them eventually. Elliott hypothesizes that Kat doesn’t realize Alice is her daughter because, technically, it is impossible. It is definitely a bit of a mind trip to wrap one’s head around. Why is Alice the only one who can time travel? Elliott tries and fails. Does the fact that Elliott is not a Landry impact his ability to come through the pond, and to remember the past in a way that Kat is not able to? Could Kat travel through the pond if she tried? Going back to my theory from last episode, did Jacob travel through the pond? I have so many questions. Going back to Kat though, it is odd that she doesn’t draw the connection between her ‘friend’ and her daughter sharing the same name. Speaking of the name Alice, they make it a point to imply that it is a reference to Alice In Wonderland, as Kat finds a copy of the book in her daughter’s room. I love these kinds of references as it shows a true attention to detail in the writing of this story.
Back in the present, Brady offers Kat a book deal to write a tell all about Jacob’s disappearance. On the surface, this seems like it could be a good, cathartic experience for her. Del is adamantly opposed to the idea. It has become abundantly clear that she wants to bury any mention or discussion of Jacob. Unfortunately for her, whether Kat writes the book or not, Alice is bound and determined to learn more about her uncle. In part she is trying to figure out how he disappeared to better understand the impact it had on her family, but also, meeting him in the past left an emotional mark on her. She’s seen in person what her mother and grandmother saw all those years ago - a young boy, full of life and laughter - and she’s formed a connection with him. While Del doesn’t like it, she is far more gentle in her reaction to Alice’s curiosity than she is to Kat’s. After she finds Alice doing research at the archives, she essentially tells her that between Jacob’s disappearance and Colton’s death, she lost her whole world and it’s too painful for her to keep rehashing the past. Kat is notably left out of that ‘whole world’ equation, something Alice picks up on. I’m still not convinced that this is the only reason Del doesn’t want to talk about Jacob. I think she knows more than she’s letting on about the mysterious and mystical nature of Landry farm. While Alice is researching Jacob’s disappearance, she finds an article that sheds more light on Del and Kat’s fractured relationship. The day he disappeared, he was with Kat at a local carnival, presumably under her supervision. The article states that Kat told police “One second he was by my side, and then he was gone.” On some level, there’s an implication that Del blames Kat for Jacob’s disappearance, and that maybe, Kat, subconsciously blames herself a little bit. This whole family could stand to go to therapy. Seriously. While that information is definitely on the heavy and dark side, it does offer some insight into why Kat is so bound and determined to find a rational explanation for Jacob’s disappearance, and also why Del struggles to lower her guard around her daughter. It is no small thing to blame your child for the loss of their sibling. I’m sure she is torn between feeling those feelings and feeling guilty for feeling those feelings. On a note unrelated to this show, it makes me think of the video game, Life Is Strange: True Colors, and the scenes where Charlotte is angry with her son. It’s a similar concept of guilt, anger, and reckoning with blaming your child for something tragic. If anyone has not played that game, I HIGHLY recommend it.
What makes the concept of blaming Kat for Jacob’s disappearance that much harder is the fact that the two of them were so close. Every scene we have with them, be it flashbacks, or Alice’s trips to the past, the two are seemingly inseparable. Yes, they are siblings, and we see those dynamics with the debate over Jacob taking Kat’s room when she leaves, and her chasing him through the house when he takes a picture of her that she fears might look bad. However, ultimately, there is a truly special bond between them. In one flashback, we see that Jacob had big plans for Kat to become a reporter and him to be her photographer. They had dreams of solving crimes and mysteries and becoming a heroic reporting duo. Now, it is worth noting that we are seeing most of these flashbacks from Kat’s perspective, and it is entirely possible that this makes them rose colored. I’m sure Jacob and their relationship had more flaws than Kat’s memories are allowing for, given the circumstances. The few less than perfect moments we have seen were from Alice’s visit to the past, not from Kat herself. That said, I have a hard time believing, even without the fantastical elements at play, that there would have been any willful neglect on Kat’s part that contributed to his disappearance. When reminiscing with Elliott, Kat stumbles upon the symbol Jacob had created for their reporting team. It is clear how guilty she feels about not being able to protect him. (Alex Danvers syndrome? Supergirl fans know what I’m talking about.) Speaking of that symbol, JK, I don’t think we’ve seen the last of it. Given the line about how ‘a hero always leaves their mark’, I think this will become a recurring clue. Given all the mystical, mysterious things at play on this farm and in this family, I haven’t for a second been convinced that Jacob is dead. Assuming he’s not, he’s eventually going to make his way back to his family, and I bet that we are going to start seeing this mark appear in other places. Not just his old notebook, or etched in a table in the barn. If I’m wrong, then it’s a great red herring. I strongly suspect I’m not wrong. This episode also allowed us to see more of the incredibly close bond Kat shared with her father. Through flashbacks, we see him being a rock and a support for her in the wake of Jacob’s disappearance. Whether or not he shared some of Del’s feelings about Kat’s role in that event is unclear. What does seem clear is that Kat doesn’t believe he did. Feeling lost after another fight with Del, Kat goes to visit her father at the cemetery. She says she wishes he’d gotten to meet Alice. Oh, if she only knew. If Kat had gotten to see her daughter sing with her father in the kitchen of the Landry house, that would have been magic. Technically, she did see it, she just doesn’t realize she saw it. Maybe one day soon she will be able to make the connection. That is something I would love to get the opportunity to watch play out. Speaking of the scene in the cemetery, who is Danny? Kat obviously knows him, but he acts as though even looking in her direction would cause him some sort of pain. Was it just the fact that he knew Jacob’s name was on the headstone? Or was there something else going on?
Over the course of just two episodes, there have been what feels like an abundance of clues and hints regarding what we might see going forward. One of those clues is the actual timeline of Jacob’s disappearance and Colton’s death - October 29th, 1999, and February 17th, 2000 respectively. Given that Alice is traveling back to 1999, it seems obvious that she only has a limited time left before she reaches that point where everything changed. I’m curious how aware she is of that fact or if she’s thought that hard about it. The preview for next episode also shows her missing a significant chunk of the past timeline for reasons yet unknown, thus limiting her time further. In regards to the mystery of Jacob’s disappearance, it doesn’t sound like he’s the first Port Haven resident this has happened too. The article that Alice reads in the archives alludes to another child disappearing 30 years earlier in the 1960s, and a 61 year old man named Stewart who also went missing around the same time as Jacob. The carnival has been around for over 100 years. Is it responsible for some of these mysterious disappearances? The article also mentions that Jacob was taken to the carnival by Kat and “her boyfriend”, which makes me very curious. Is this, presumably, after Kat meets Brady at summer camp? Is Alice going to, at some point, meet a younger version of her father as well? Another, slightly more random item that caught my attention is the blue balloon. There has to be some significance to this given the way it triggers a flashback for Kat, and one is released at Jacob’s memorial.
Del’s arc in this episode was largely focused on Jacob and his upcoming memorial service. After all this time, she’s attempting to move on, and has made the impossible decision to have him declared dead. We first learn about this during her conversation with her friend, Rita. I’ll be honest, I wasn’t a super big fan of Rita after watching that scene. I do respect that she is trying to protect Del and wants to help her heal and move on. It’s a noble endeavor. However, Kat and Alice being back in town is a family matter, and one she should keep her nose out of. Perhaps my strong reaction is a knee jerk instinct to want to protect any character Chyler Leigh plays at all costs (See Alex Danvers). That said, I also feel like she has no idea what Kat has been going through, and is pretty quick to judge her return. Del may be in pain, but so is the rest of her family. They don’t deserve to be dismissed or viewed as a burden. In Rita’s defense, it’s not exactly like Del has welcomed Kat home warmly. She seems to have little sympathy for Kat’s feelings, and isn’t offering her much of a ledge to stand on while she gets back on her feet. I don’t think she’s painted much of an image that would improve Kat’s standing with Rita. Obviously, Del is trying to navigate her own hard and complicated feelings about both the past and the present situation she’s in with her daughter. That said, it felt cruel to blindside Kat with an impromptu job interview at the diner. She had to know it would make her look bad in front of an old high school nemesis. If getting her a job offer was her purest intention, there had to have been other places looking to hire that she could have reached out to. Add to that the ongoing debate over who sent Kat the letter. At least she did finally admit to writing it. That is something, and not something small. It proves that, on some level, even if she is struggling to let her guard down, that she wants some sort of reconciliation with Kat. The above may make it sound like I don’t like Del’s character, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. I just want to see her get to a point where she can open up and talk to her daughter about the hard stuff without hiding behind that wall she’s been fortifying for the last twenty years. Kat claims that the reason she’s been gone all this time is that her mother wouldn’t let her stay. If I had to take a guess, once Colton was gone, Del and Kat had polar opposite methods of dealing with their grief, which in turn caused enough conflict that it caused Del to push her daughter away. It’s the same conflict we see with them now, where Kat has to talk about it in order to process, and Del can’t because doing so is too hard.
We see glimpses of a softer Del, one more akin to the woman Alice meets in 1999. Underneath the tough exterior, she is genuinely concerned for her granddaughter’s well being while Alice is missing. We see her breath a sigh of relief when she hears Kat and Alice arguing. Of course, she immediately wipes that away for a much colder “I told you she’d come back” when Kat comes downstairs. We even see a downright happy Del at the farmer’s market, flirting with the local newspaper man, Byron. I love that Alice can tell her grandmother is interested in the man because Del does the same hair tuck that she had done in 1999 with Colton. It’s fun that Alice is learning some of these nuances about her family. I’m sure we will see more of that as time goes on. Eventually, Del’s wall begins showing cracks. After grieving for her lost son at the memorial, she can’t bring herself to write his date of death in the family book. Kat, despite not wanting to buy into the theory that her brother is dead, offers to write the date in for her mother, to help give her some closure. Finally, mother and daughter are able to meet each other halfway, and it was a scene of absolute beauty. Hopefully this is a sign of less rocky waters to come for the pair.
Other random observations:
-Alice is sort of making friends at school. Sophie and Spencer seem cool. At least they aren’t actively making fun of Alice over the fire alarm stunt.
-Worth noting that, out of obvious habit, Kat and Dell still sit at the same seats at the table that they did in 1999. Alice now sits in Jacob’s seat.
-The reveal of Jacob’s teddy bear under Del’s pillow made me cry. She hasn’t erased everything.
Two episodes in, and this show has me hooked. I genuinely was not expecting to enjoy this as much as I do. Those who know me, and those who read my Supergirl reviews know that when I truly love a show, I have so much to say about it. I pick it apart and look for all the details, and connections, and everything that makes it click for me emotionally. The Way Home has officially earned that status. It is so well done, and I am so invested in these characters and this world in just the couple of weeks that it has graced our screens with its presence. Any quibbles I have are mostly technical or logical in nature and have nothing to do with the overall quality of the story or content. I don’t know what else to say other than, I’m impressed. If you haven’t watched yet… first of all, why did you read this long winded review, and second… drop what you’re doing and go watch it now. I, for one, cannot wait for episode three.