Deacon returns! And some other random guy who is not important and only used for exposition is also here this week. The episode opens with the two of them trolling tunnels. Deacon is right on schedule for his return. It’s almost the end of the season and these kids need some authority figures who knows what’s going on.
In the first scene, the episode’s namesake is already brought up with Deacon’s usual explaining mythology bit. The Ouroboros is from Norse mythology. It is the snake that eats its own tail and also happens to be a huge plot point in fellow werewolf drama Hemlock Grove. Deacon and Random Russian Guy find that they are not alone in the tunnels. They are being hunted.
The Desert Wolf! This entire cold open should have been about five episodes earlier than this, but still appreciated. She takes out Deacon’s companion. Not here for cupcakes and tea, to be sure.
In a correction from last week, the body that Melissa found on her kitchen table is not in fact Kira. Though it was Kira’s sword that had crucified the body to the table, it doesn’t seem like the body was identified at all which could have caused some confusion. Melissa calls Sheriff Stilinski but her caveat is that he takes off his badge before he enters her house. She knows that this could link back to Kira and in a world of werewolves and kitsunes, all is not as it seems.
In a slightly dramatic turn of events, Melissa slaps Stilinski. This is getting real. He called the murder in even after she made him promise not to. Melissa is trying to protect her son’s girlfriend but props for Stilinksi who is still loyal to his badge. Parenting is a huge theme this episode. Not only is Melissa getting an honorable mention for her skills but Kira’s parents should also get a ribbon as well. Even Scott himself gets a nod for being the parental figure for his pack.
It is a relief that Kira isn’t dead, but that doesn’t mean that she’s out of the woods. Last week made her inevitable departure pretty clear, as does this week’s episode. Kira is found in the middle of the road by the cops and arrested for homicide.
This is announced as a code 187 over the radio – something they probably wouldn’t publicize – along with Kira’s full name. But Stiles needs to know what’s going on and it’s better than exposition. Somehow his police scanner is still working even though his jeep was on fire. Beacon Hills is a mysterious town.
The second parenting team of the night, the Yukimura family, is impressive. Kira’s father Ken completely sacrifices himself for his daughter without a second thought. He and his wife walk into the station clearly having rehearsed and planned out what they were going to say. One of the regular humans of the show, Ken proves that humanity does not mean weakness.
He is taken into custody for confessing to killing the girl in self-defense. Everyone knows that Kira really did it and no one is saying it. For the rest of the episode, Scott adopts a veneer of anxiety. This is something you have to accept when you become a parent. Scott is desperate to find Liam and turns to his Alpha powers to find him. And not in the most ethical way, a shock for those who have been watching the show since the beginning.
Lydia and Theo are questioning a survivor of the attacks, Cory. Bursting into the room, Scott implements the trick that Peter first showcased in season one to share memories through Alpha claws. Scott’s descent into darkness is only just beginning and everyone is starting to realize it. He discovers that Hayden and Liam are being held at the water treatment plant.
Like a good wolf papa, Scott must find his child Liam and will do anything to do it. He takes after his own mother when it comes to parenting. Both are at the point where they are willing to bend the rules to protect their offspring. Scott, Malia, and Mason head to the plant to rescue Hayden and Liam.
The sheriff’s department accompanies the new body to the morgue to make sure that it doesn’t get stolen this time. It doesn’t take very long for them all to be ambushed. Despite their best efforts, the body has been stolen from the hospital. Stiles discovers that it was Parrish all along. A more interesting end to the episode if the audience hadn’t known that basically the entire time.
Following her mother’s suggestions – who does not appear to be upset at all that her husband is potentially going to prison – Kira reads the Dread Doctor book backwards and she can finally remember her repressed memories. The Doctors experimented on her during the storm from the season premiere. For Kira, this seems to be the end of the line.
Malia, Mason, and Scott get lost in the tunnels trying to find Hayden and Liam. Scott needs to use his inhaler – still something that has not been explained. Werewolves don’t get sick or have common ailments. But what they can have is a panic attack. Scott is blaming himself for everything that’s been going wrong. On the wall of the plant is the symbol for the Ouroboros – the snake eating its own tail. Ominous, for sure.
Theo is the one to finally rescue Hayden and Liam. Somehow he’s able to pry open the electrified fence when no one else could. What makes him so special? Presumably the same thing that makes him on the Dread Doctor’s side. The kids ask what a successful experiment would look like and maybe that’s Theo. He could just be a pet of the Doctor’s. He did come in around the same time and will do anything to get the pack to trust him.
In the back of the car, Hayden isn’t healing like she used to. She understands that this means she’s a failure and will probably be terminated. Liam finally finds a way to take away her pain as they kiss. You would think that would make the driver of the car, Theo, kind of uncomfortable, but no. He just watches them in the rearview mirror like the creep that he is.
Still feeling the failure of the night, Scott visits Kira who tells him about her epiphany. She was experimented on and now she can’t trust herself around the pack. She’s dangerous. Luckily since the body disappeared they let Ken out of police custody, but this means that Yukimura’s are going on an indefinite road trip out of Beacon Hills.
Though, she hasn’t died, she still seems to be off the show. For now at least. Kira and Scott kiss romantically in the rain and lights explode dramatically as only Teen Wolf can pull off. Another one bites the dust, Scott. He just keeps losing girlfriends left and right and can’t help it. He goes home and admits to Melissa that he feels the change in the dynamic and worries that it is all because of him. Things are changing for the worse.
The end of the episode circles back to Deacon who is being interrogated by The Desert Wolf. True to her reputation, she is interested to hear that her daughter is still alive. But only so that she can kill her again.
This season is a slow burn, something that seems to be common in television these days. While it’s preferable to the Monster of the Week type episodes, real questions need to start to be answered. Maybe they’re saving the Desert Wolf for next season, but it’s a little tedious to keep watching a show where nothing ever seems to change. The audience knows that Malia is going to be tracked down by her mother and Lydia is going to end up at Eichen House. We just want to get there.