The Outsider (Sky Atlantic)

Great observations both of you.

I thought this weeks episode had a theme of "empowerment" from the believers in the entity and they each got up in the face of the non-believers and told them they better wrap their heads around the fact that this is all really happening.

As mentioned above by Geo, Holly confronted Ralph for not telling her that Terry had scratched Claude, especially when she told the group that was how the entity was passed from host to host. Ralph also got dressings down from his wife Jeannie and Yul, the Latino GBI investigator (both believers) over his recent apathy about the case and lack of urgency given Holly's talk to the group. Glory's lawyer Howard got similar reality check from his investigator Alec (a believer).

As for Claude leaving town, that goes with the theme of all the other murders where the host leaves town whilst the doppelganger stays behind to commit a murder, baffling police that someone seen by multiple witnesses right after a murder was also seen by multiple witness hundreds of miles away at the exact same moment. So depending on whether it was Claude or the doppelganger that left town we don't know where the next murder will take place. In the earlier murders the host was out of town when they got scratched by a carrier. Terry in Ohio visiting his father at the care home and the care home worker who passed it on to Terry had gotten scratched by the Latina woman he hooked-up with when he was visiting his brother in New York. Claude seems to be the first person to be scratched while at home.

What was the business with the dining room chair that Jeannie gave to the charity shop? When Ralph noticed it missing she told him not to worry she had ordered a replacement on-line. Did she get rid of the chair because the entity sat in it? Or because it was the chair their dead son used to sit in? She also gave Glory's children all of his old toys. Maybe she was remembering what Holly said about the entity being drawn to pain and figured if she removed things that caused her and Ralph pain - such as their son's possessions - the entity wouldn't visit again?

Regarding Glory, it was obviously too soon for her to return to work, and I didn't believe the reason she gave about needing money to put food on the table because their savings were running out.

Terry was a high school English Literature teacher at a Georgia public school. As such, he would have been a member of the local teacher's union and part of his vesting would be a life insurance policy. Probably one that paid double benefits for a non-natural death, such as being murdered. He probably would have also paid into a pension plan which would transfer to his widow upon his death. Although its possible she couldn't collect on the pension until she reached retirement age. Anyway that's nitpicking some such errors can be overlooked to move the story forward.

Whether the young couple were really house shopping or being looky loos is unclear but Glory's meltdown seemed a bit over the top. Perhaps she is starting to become a believer or she simply has reached her breaking point.

Her decision to move forward with the law suits I saw as her being defiant. She told her boss she refused to move away. That was their home. So maybe she figures if her family is to be the most infamous family in town they will also be the richest family in town. Money can make a lot of people suddenly start to like you and treat you differently.

Like both of you I was baffled by the scenes with Holly and Jack. She started the drive acting normal, then she became terrified by his neck blisters, then as they drove along she became calm and peaceful again, then she freaked out again and decided she needed to escape.

During their long drive to the barn they talked openly and candidly about the entity. Jack asking why it chose him and Holly said because it fed on pain. And Jack is obviously a troubled man.

At one point Jack more or less told her that he would not hurt her, even if the entity told him to. She responded she wasn't very worried as she believes the entity only kills children.

The two sets of keys baffled me too. Holly is driving a rental car. Its been a long time since I rented a car but I don't remember them giving you two sets of keys. And rental car keys are probably stamped with a message that they aren't to be duplicated if she tried to get an extra pair made at the hardware store. And why would she? I didn't understand Holly's nightmare about there only being one set of keys and Jack shooting her. Did she feel guilty for having abandoned him?

When she was driving away, Jack - a trained police marksman - would have shot out the tires if he just wanted to disable the car. He also would have probably been able to hit Holly had he really wanted to. So I think maybe his firing was out of frustration more than wanting to do her harm. He was hurt, crushed. The one person that could help him abandoned him. So he shot out the windows of the car.

He really seemed to want to get her to the barn. I think he believed if she saw where he encountered the entity it might help her rid him of it.

When the truck driver stopped to pick up Jack when he was hitchhiking I though the driver was a goner, but again Jack seems very reluctant to hurt anyone. And he simply got a ride out to the woods. Probably thinking if he isolated himself away from everyone he cant do anyone any harm. And his will to live also prevented him from swallowing his own gun.

When Ralph visited Tamika, the Asian policewoman, she acted very defensive and aloof when he tried to pick her brain about Jack and why he might be acting strangely. Ralph was innocently asking questions, thinking she might have noticed something he didn't, but Tamika's conscience made her think he was prying or knew something she and Jack had been trying to hide, which makes me think even more that she and Jack had an affair and the baby is his. The entity visited Tamika the night of the Christening. Perhaps it was drawn to the pain she felt when Jack would not hold their baby.

Holly's 'boyfriend' has a bit of "creep" factor to him don't you think? He is a retired cop, but he is pretty young. And he is working as head of security for a strip mall in a small Ohio town. I cant recall if he talked much about his back story, but his early retirement and the fact that the only job he seems to have been able to find seems below his station makes you think there was some nasty business. He seems to be mildly stalking Holly, showing up out of nowhere and tracking her to Ralph and Jeannie's house.

Like Diziet I also hope that the plot is not setting up too many cliff hangers for season 2 that leave us frustrated.