TV Show Review

TV Review: OUTCAST: Season 1, Episode 10: This Little Light [Cinemax]

Patrick Fugit Madeleine McGraw Outcast This Little Light

Cinemax’s Outcast This Little Light TV Show Review. Outcast, Season 1, Episode 10: ‘This Little Light,’ was as useful or useless an example of a season-ender, as the amount of stock any given viewer would place on its one major happening. That, and how viewers might’ve felt about last episode’s major happening serving only to facilitate this one.

That last happening was Megan (Wrenn Schmidt) getting Occupied, of course, and the expected level of crazy that comes with, coming off a little crazier than usual – and at Mark’s (David Denman) expense.

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Side note: if any of you kids remember Aeon Flux (the original MTV shorts – not that Charlize Theron thing) you probably appreciated Megan probing the window to Mark’s departed soul. Eye play still works better than gallons of corn syrup.

Being Megan, however, some allowance had to be made for a ‘morning after’ solution – if only because Kyle (Patrick Fugit) would demand it. That, in turn, would mean an out being made available (for all her Occupational hazards, after the fact). This was where Chief Giles’ (Reg E. Cathey) past contributions paid off, officially committing him to Team Bad Touch. It was a big enough contribution to get him out of Bad Touch duty, anyway.

Kids may still largely be off limits, regarding body counts (one of the reason I appreciated Pitch Black – spoiler: those kids died horribly); but putting them in jeopardy still makes for plot points. Usually, that means some kind of unforced error; so even with Freshly Occupied survivor/ veteran, Amber (Madeleine McGraw), at hand, a traumatized Holly (Callie Brook McClincy) could be excused for giving the game away (Freshly Occupied hyper-senses notwithstanding).

Well, it made for a decent twist, anyway – one of the better uses for red herring in an episode recipe. No reason was given for it, though; but I suppose some allowance could be made for a major plot point, revealed later on.

The running plot point, about Kyle being something of a gravity well to the Occupiers, played into Sidney’s (Brent Spiner) plans, conveniently enough, and it was nice to see the Dracula-Renfield dynamic, of Kat & Ogden (Debra Christofferson, Pete Burris), taken as far as it was; but too much time was spent on Kyle & Anderson (Philip Glenister) just looking for Megan (granted, this ran parallel to useful POV scenes, for her new Occupant).

No, it took a bit of ‘initiative’ from Ginger Spite, Aaron (C.J. Hoff), to ‘incentivize’ Kyle into doing something more drastic, than cruising with Anderson (though some detail, into how Aaron went about doing the deed, would’ve been useful – his target had company).

Maybe my abduction game’s gone rusty (for having never existed, mind you), but there seems to be little point to having trunk passengers bag their own heads, if  you’re going to leave their hands free to de-bag at will. As to why Kyle kept his on, the whole way: I dunno. He was preoccupied with the Occupieds’ current preoccupation with him, having now resorted to kidnapping (literally). It was a pretty flimsy bag, though; but I digress….

Dramatic license is the only reason that came to mind, when Kyle finally came face-to-face with Occupied Megan (I won’t go into Sidney just walking away from the rest of the story – let alone his prize). Team Bad Touch talked over the whole plan of action – as if their experience wasn’t enough – but somehow, Kyle thought more talk, less face-palming, was the way to start things off. This, immediately after a tussle with another Occupied that literally sucked.

Dramatic license can be so overrated, script people; don’t confuse prolonging suspense with drawn-out momentum killing. The good news, in this case, was that the script wasn’t done with child endangerment as plot driving device.

The reveal some viewers might (maybe even should) have anticipated was facilitated by Kyle’s unforced error. If you didn’t see it coming, that’s understandable – it would stand to reason that such a detail would’ve mattered back when Amber’s mom was attacking her. Unless the whole deal is strictly a ‘hands on’ affair, or Amber was just a late bloomer, there may be something of a plot hole, there.

Hey, speaking of dramatic license – why do so many characters take to the idea of tossing a whole lighter at accelerants? Seems like deliberately leaving personal evidence at the scene of an arson, to me; but I guess with the Fire Chief compromised, and the Police Chief already onboard with one cover up….

Cue Disco Inferno.

Of course, we never get full eyes on the victim of said arson; so plot gap (that even a thing? Plot bridge, maybe)….

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I’m not sure if the Outcast reveal was a big enough deal to close out the season, or that Megan’s Occupation was better served as a means to that end (maybe she should’ve been allowed to ‘resolve’ a previous plot tangent, while she had a get-out-of-homicide-free card going for her). With a hint of new Sidney leverage, over Anderson, a toss of set expansion (road trip: yes), and just a dash of Invasion of the Body Snatchers’ (literal chaser, to the road trip?) open ending, the Outcast season finale might at least have had enough to it for continued interest. It would’ve been better as a conclusion to season 1, however, instead of a pause, ahead of season 2.

I miss the fear of God that British programmers seem to have, when it comes to pacing their series….

Leave your thoughts on this review for ‘Close to Home’ in the comments section, below. For more Outcast photos, videos, and information, visit our Outcast Page, subscribe to us by Email, “follow” us on Twitter, Tumblr, Google+ or “like” us on Facebook.

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Sam Joseph

Sam is an Avid consumer/observer of Geek culture, and collector of Fanboy media from earliest memory. Armchair sociologist and futurist. Honest critic with satirical if not absurdist­­ wit with some experience in comics/ animation production.
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