In episode 2 of THEM: The Scare, the scary things that happen to Detective Dawn Reeve (Deborah Ayorinde) as she looks into a string of horrible killings are shown in more detail. The episode follows several different plots, such as Kel’s experiences with police brutality, Dawn’s search for a suspect named Curtis Maynard (Darnell Jordan), and Edmund’s problems in both his personal and work life.
THEM: THE SCARE EPISODE 2 RECAP
At the start of the episode, the scene of Bernice Mott’s murder is shown. She has many fractures, which makes the coroner think she may have been killed by a train or a trash crusher. Even so, McKinney keeps saying that Malcolm (Deion Smith, the young boy who reported the murder, is the one who did it. At the same time, Kel (Joshua J. Williams) is seen smoking under the bleachers at school with Natalie (Sarah Grace Elliott), another Black student, who talks about police abuse. At first, Kel doesn’t seem to care, but he quickly agrees with her, showing that he has also been through it.
The story then moves on to another murder case that is similar to Bernice’s but takes place on the Southside. Dawn is looking into the crime scene when she sees Curtis, a black guy. She follows him when he runs away. The locals, on the other hand, won’t help, so Dawn has to go into their homes to look for Curtis. Curtis tells Dawn that he ran away because he was scared when she found him in his house. When McKinney gets there, he is very mean. He accuses Curtis of using drugs and punishes him physically. Dawn begs Dawn to stop, but McKinney won’t stop until a Black male police officer steps in.
At the same time, Toddler Edmund (Tyree Scott) is having a hard time with his acting job. He chokes himself while calling an agency. Rhonda (Tamika Shannon), the agency’s secretary, suggests that he try out for a part as the killer in a slasher movie, but Edmund seems to be on the fence because the role might not fit his gentle personality. When Kel gets home, he finds that his room is surprisingly clean. At the same time, Dawn’s mother, Athena, hears Bernice’s voice and is shocked to find her picture among Dawn’s case files. Later, Dawn meets up with her coworker Reggie Marks (Charles Brice), and the two of them have a short affair.
In another place, Curtis Maynard finds his hidden stash of drugs, but the sound of cops coming up behind him stops him. As he opens the door to his child’s room, he hears a baby laughing. This makes him hide the drugs. When Curtis’s broken bones are found in his hidden cubby, the show turns darker. His mother says that the devil killed him, which adds to the magical elements that have been hints at in the show. Dawn is sure that the killings were done by a serial killer, but her bosses don’t believe her and think there is a link between Bernice, Malcolm, and Curtis.
As Dawn walks away, she sees white agents looking into Black people for the murder on the Southside. This shows how tense things are between black and white police officers. At the end of the show, Kel starts having hallucinations, which may be caused by the trauma and racism he is facing. Meanwhile, Edmund tries to hurt himself but fails, so he dresses up as a mascot and waves a knife around the arcade. He is fired, but he has a frightening smile on his face the whole time.
Dawn’s character grows as she struggles with the racism that is built into the police force and her own reasons for wanting to become a police officer. Kel’s story shows how racism affects young Black people in many ways, while Edmund’s story looks at issues of self-worth and identity. Dawn tried to find the serial killer but her bosses didn’t believe her, so she called the press herself.
At the end of the show, things get tense because Ke starts having hallucinations, which may be caused by the trauma and racial tensions around him. In the end, Episode 2 of THEM: The Scare adds to the mystery and tension surrounding the killings and also explores the complicated issues of race and identity. The struggles of the characters and the creepy setting set the stage for more surprises and turns in the series.
Coming soon: more THEM: The Scare news, sneak peeks, and reviews at tvacute.com.
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