Hemlock Grove: Why Season Three Is The Best Offering

Since Halloween is here, what better than a Hemlock Grove post to celebrate the spooky season? The latest and sadly last addition to the Netflix series is easily my favorite. (Note: contains spoilers.)

I should probably add a caveat: I am not a horror aficionado. By which I mean I'm one of those people who closes their eyes during gory scenes. (I managed to be eating dinner the first time Peter transformed into a werewolf. Hemlock Grove 1, Me 0.)

Season one was interesting, but erratic and heavily stylized, sometimes to its own disadvantage—too hot. The second season was overly focused on Miranda and baby Nadia—too cold. Season three? Definitely the porridge that was just right.

Loved the opening credits.

Fear is an integral cog in the horror experience, but fear comes in many forms. A large part of what makes the third season of Hemlock Grove compelling viewing is the quality of the fear driving the characters: each time the emotion is associated with, or birthed from, love.

Rather than straightforward terror, this kind of manifestation of fear is insidious, powerful, and for me, much more compelling than gore. The slow build also helps imbue the last season with an insistent sense of foreboding.

Here are examples of the fear/love connection in the third season narrative:

-Andreas' love for Destiny and the idea of future children inspires a husband/father fear that births a disturbing level of ambition.

-Peter's fear is a driving force—his love for his cousin Destiny makes him fear for the quality of her future with Andreas, and he fears losing his bond with Destiny after handing her fiancé over for execution.

-Roman's greatest fear, aside from never finding his daughter again, is losing Peter's love and friendship, to the point where he kills Destiny so Peter won't find out she was injured fighting him.

Even when Peter and Roman are on the path to killing each other, love is at the core of their convoluted, tortured responses. 

Such an interesting dynamic.

Another pro is how the season in no way follows the expected story arc. I assumed the ten episodes would focus on finding Miranda and Nadia. I thought maybe the baby would have one of those supernatural growth spurts that saw her become an insta-teen.

I did not expect the show to shelve that storyline for most of the season. This narrative decision is so surprising it almost qualifies as a twist. Instead we wander through the psyche of Dr. Pryce, a much more interesting and enlightening use of screen time. Dr. Pryce simultaneously fears and craves love, and is moving toward an epiphany for most of the season in an increasingly chaotic and fascinating way.

Shelley's love was bright and sweet, and her storyline offset the increasingly dark relationships on the show. The jarring contrast in the powerful scene between Roman and Shelley in his home, in terms of their emotional landscapes—she's pondering a path of peaceful passion while Roman is consumed with hate—worked beautifully to separate Shelley from the rest of the regular cast, emotionally as well as physically.

True love conquers all, even in Hemlock Grove.

The series has always suffered from too much Olivia. I understand a villain is required, but you also need to engage with the character. I don't know if it was the casting, or the writing, but Famke Janssen as Olivia wasn't as dastardly enthralling as she should have been. When you gained insight into the experiences that had shaped her (via flashbacks) rather than becoming interested in her as a multifaceted character, you resented the extra screen time she was getting. Something tells me this wasn't the desired effect.

In the third season we're offered a much more unusual bringer-of-chaos: Olivia's abandoned daughter Annie. Annie is like a Christian missionary from centuries back who would travel to far off lands with the goal of saving heathens, only to kill the whole tribe by introducing measles. She is the most dangerous character because she deludes herself into believing her intentions are good, when in fact she is self-duplicitous and displays an astonishing level of hypocrisy. 

Few characters have wreaked as much havoc (and in Hemlock Grove, that's saying something). She, of course, expresses deep remorse regularly with self-flagullating dialogue, but continues to destroy a number of lives. Prime examples:

-Her obsession with Roman, an obviously very young, very vulnerable, and very damaged individual. After he confesses to his mother mind-controlling him and forcing him to rape his cousin, Annie immediately instigates a sexual relationship, despite being his sister. 

-She opens the door, literally, to the series' tragic conclusion by admitting Destiny into the house for a showdown with Roman. 

-Roman kill Destiny without Annie really intervening. Despite all her kickass action scenes to this point, suddenly a boot to his face or a solid right fist is beyond her.

-She feels compelled to tell Peter that Roman killed his cousin, knowing it will likely destroy Peter as well as Roman. 

The way she brings about Roman's death (to me) implies some part of her intended his destruction all along—possibly not on a conscious level, but as a subconscious extension of her complex issues with their mother.

These elements make her a much more interesting catalyst than Olivia. She moves the story forward whenever the waters are beginning to calm, causing wave after wave of chain reactions, always telling herself it's with the best intentions (road to hell for sure). And in a strange way, you see the family connection between Annie and Olivia.

With a sister like this, who needs enemies?

The ending of the series was mythic, and felt right for the Peter-Roman relationship. At its core, the show has always been about their unusual dynamic. In the first season they are both so horribly lonely, it's impossible to stop watching. 

The series offers a lot of great performances: my favorite was Landon Liboiron, who brought so much depth to his role. I'm not a fan of werewolves (in fiction or film), and not a horror fan, and yet I kept watching because Liboiron made me care what happened to the character of Peter. Destiny was a close second—Kaniehtiio Horn was riveting and offered a very interesting female character.

Next up? Joel de la Fuente as Dr. Johann Pryce and Bill Skarsgård as Roman would be sharing third place on the podium. (But do any of the Skarsgård's ever deliver a disappointing performance?) Roman always felt twisted; as if Skarsgård's was projecting his character's inner turmoil in the way he moved and held himself.

Sad to see Hemlock Grove cease production, but the series definitely went out on a high note. (Or should that be a howl?)