Saturday – The Son
Episode 2 of The Third Day deepens the mystery as Sam tumbles further down the rabbit hole. Something is seriously wrong with this nightmarish island but for now, it remains unclear quite what that is. The episode itself begins with Sam running through the woods and stumbling upon a burning caravan. Locked from the outside, he watches in shock as someone or something tries to rip open the door. This is all a dream though and Sam soon awakens in bed next to Jess. Naked and with clothes strewn across the floor, they suddenly come to the realization that they’ve slept together. Unfortunately Sam’s also missed the causeway being open meaning he’s forced to spend another day on this island. While Mr Martin heads off to fix up some food, Jess and Sam get talking about religion. Specifically, they talk about Jess’ children and the strange belief system at play on the island. Jess doesn’t much fancy what’s on offer when Mr Martin returns to the table and walks away. Part of this, of course, stems from Jess’ speech about her oppressive relationship. Instead, Sam learns that Epona is up at “the big house.” Mrs Martins believes that they’re both connected together in some way. She believes it’s some sort of spiritual connection and he was meant to find Epona when he did. Brushing off her concerns, he eventually tells her he doesn’t believe in “all that” and walks away. It turns out Sam’s son was killed and his body was found near the shore some place nearby. He took his son Nathan to the fair and received an intense call. Taking his eyes off his son momentarily, when he looked back Nathan was gone. He was missing for 2 weeks and snatched up by a Romanian with learning difficulties called Goltan. Shortly after confessing, Goltan killed himself. Desperate to get his mind off the pain, Sam asks Jess about Gods and in particular, the ones worshipped for this upcoming festival at the island. Midway through discussing the 3 main deities and their methods of killing, Jess recommends Sam speak to Mimir about this given he’s the resident archeologist. When he gets there, things take a turn for the worst. In Mimir’s apartment, numerous pictures and sketches are strewn across his desktop. Underneath the pictures of a cricket and various people is a newspaper cropping about the murder. Before Sam can get a chance to question him though, banging at the door forces him to flee. A man wearing a bag over his head (that looks very much like Pyramid Head from Silent Hill) tells Mimir to get rid of the stuff out in the open. Fleeing from the run-down house, Sam finds himself chasing ghosts. Or, at least, the small child from before. That small child soon fades from view and instead, is replaced by several mask-wearing thugs. They chase him through the woods until Sam runs straight into Epona’s Father. He shakily points a shotgun up at him and struggles to hold back tears. He claims that Sam killed his daughter. “It’s coming… the darkness.” Letting Sam go, our protagonist struggles to hold back his panic as he races back to Jess to discuss what he’s found out. Struggling to come up with a plan, Sam tries to contemplate how to get off the island. Just then, Mr and Mrs Martin arrive and show Epona to him. The same kids who chased Sam through the woods arrive with their masks. Removing them one by one, Mr Martin berates them for going after Sam and tells them to leave. Only, Sam’s convinced it wasn’t them. Something is clearly not right about this island and Sam senses this immediately. When he asks Epona what’s scaring her, she simply looks him dead in the eye and replies that it’s him. In the aftermath of this insanity, Sam sits with Jess and discusses how he feels. For some reason he recognizes this place but can’t say exactly why. With the causeway closing in 20 minutes, Jess convinces him to leave after telling him a story about her oppressive husband and how he won’t let her leave the country. Midway up the passageway, Sam receives signal on his phone and reads numerous messages from his wife. After messaging her back, he eventually decides to head back to town. He’s staying for one more night. Returning to the island, he smiles at Jess from across the pub. Epona also shows up and tells him she doesn’t want him to go. When Sam asks why, she kisses him – which doesn’t go down too well with her Father who watches on from afar. For now, Sam brushes that aside as he sits with Jess and watches part of the festival play out. Midway through, Jess convinces him to take drugs. While high and under the influence, Mr and Mrs Martin tells Sam he needs to leave right now. Larry and his gang want Sam dead and are going after him with knives. This could stem back from Epona kissing him but for now, it’s still unknown exactly why. Leaving him standing outside a church, Mrs Martin races off to check if the coast is clear. While she’s gone, Sam eventually finds himself face to face with Larry. As he removes his mask, Larry smacks Sam in the head with a crowbar and leaves him lying on the ground bleeding out.
The Episode Review
What is going on on this island? It’s the driving question for this series and one that continues to see layers of this mystery unravel. There’s some serious LOST vibes going on with the smoke monster and chasing ghosts through the forest. The visual motifs continue this time around too with plenty of religious connotations and a recurring image of a cricket or a locust. Given the religious significance of this series though I’m inclined to believe it could actually be the latter. After all, a plague of locusts is one of the 10 disasters in the Book Of Exodus. This may actually hold some weight given the other disasters showcased. “Pestilence of livestock” is another of the disasters and we’ve seen this through Sam’s nightmarish visions. On top of that, the “Death of a Firstborn” could also relate to Nathan dying. As a bit of a bonus, the actual title “The Third Day” could relate to the darkness descending over Egypt for three days as well. All of this could be clutching at straws too but it’s an interesting notion to see if this is the meaning behind what’s happening. So far though the mystery is unraveling nicely and the series leaves the door wide open for where this one may go next.
