The Strain Season 2 Episode 10 Review And Recap! The Assassin!

The Strain S02E10: “The Assassin”

Extermination Palmer is on. Dutch and Eph are on the mission. They get some bonding time during the stakeout. I guess the tension between the estranged couples got them switching partners for the time being. Dutch keeps surprising us with her skills. She uses her network of cyber criminals to score anything and everything. Even in an apocalypse, you share your KitKat. Both wait for Eldritch Palmer’s return to the penthouse, avoiding direct conversation about their lives. Dutch breaks the silence talking about horny monkeys. Did she just compare herself to a Bonobo? I guess that’s one way to go on about their love triangles. Eph sees right through her. “I’m glad I’m finally getting a window into what’s happening inside your mind.” They are both on the same boat whether Eph refuses to see it or not.

Speaking of targeting the more privileged New Yorkers, the Mayor and Councilwoman Justine Feraldo hosts a press conference to announce their move into the Upper East Side. It seems like Feraldo’s arm is twisted beyond any resistance. Just when you thought she had given in, Feraldo turns the tables to our delight. She made sure her services came with a tag; “Red Hook paid with their blood. Something tells me the Upper East Side would prefer t to pay with their wallets.” Oh snap! How much do we love this woman? She is seriously awesome. Ferldo is more than aware of the backlash she is about the receive. She intentionally pisses off the big shots with this stinger. The Councilwoman deals with ticked off Manhattan residents without a single blink. She stands her ground while they fire angry threats at her since she knows they need her more than she needs them and she is their only chance at feeling safe again.

Eldritch Palmer has fallen hard for Miss Coco. She actually gets him to come out of his “comfort zone” into the boonies in hopes of winning her back. He maybe too old to carry a stereo up three flights of stairs, but he certainly had his Lloyd Dobler moment. OMG he is in love! Didn’t think it was even possible. Strange enough his desperate one-liners worked on her. Coco is back in the nest.

Back at the penthouse, the mayor reaches out to Palmer in the middle of their rekindling to warn him about Councilwoman Justine Feraldo. Mayor seeks Palmer’s support to get Ferando on a leash. Good luck with that buddy. We can’t forget about Dutch and Eph who listens in on the conversation. I guess a change of scenery is in order.

Dutch and Eph set up camp on top of a roof and await Palmer’s arrival for a clear shot. After a quick sip of liquid courage, they are ready to do some damage. Dutch is clearly enjoying the bonding time. “This is pretty badass for you” Eph barely accepts her compliments since he is not too eager to share any common grounds with her. Everyone is transforming, bringing their true selves to the surface. That could be either liberating for people like Fet or be very uncomfortable for people like Eph.

Palmer finally arrives on scene and drops the bomb by expressing his support or Feraldo. What’s his game plan now? Well whatever it is, it’ll have to wait. Eph is too eager to take the shot, but Dutch calms him down and directs him for a clear shot. As soon after the shot, they bolt to the exit. Eph makes sure Palmer was hit. Unfortunately our eyes are notorious for playing tricks. The shot misleads and finds Coco instead. If you think Palmer was already cuckoo for Coco, this will definitely push him over the edge. What’s more dangerous than a man seeking for power? It’s a man in love.

Eph and Dutch’s exit plan doesn’t work out too well. Then again, their entire plan went sideways. Hit the wrong target and got caught after. I believe that’s a double whammy. Dutch gets dragged out of the cell and Eldritch Palmer walks inside. The situation went from Uh-oh to holyshit. “Yes I’m alive. You failed.” Palmer kept his posture surprisingly well. Not the face to face encounter we expected, but they had a nice talk. Even though Palmer is the one who wants to become a Strigoi, Eph made the first move for his throat.

Meanwhile, Nora, Fet and Setrakian are off on a quest to find the Lumen. They’ve narrowed their search down to four people who shares the same name. Time to knock down doors and cross people off the list. They crash a party and start popping, I mean heads of course. They move on to the next one and find themselves in a book shop. Jackpot, this might be it. During their tedious search, they hear about Dutch and Eph. Nora and Fet abandons the search immediately to go rescue the duo. Setrakian isn’t too happy and protested their move. Fet snapped; “It’s not true professor. They are more important”. That a boy! This man has such a big heart and as much as he respects Setrakian, he is still intact with his humanity. Despite his disapproval, I’d be lying if I say Setrakian didn’t respect their decision.

While sulking in his failure, Eph gets another surprise visit from a bunch of unwanted guests. He barely manages to survive the stingers. To his relief, Nora and Fet barges in right on time to chop down the infestation. Now the hunt turns to Dutch. They find out her location though the arresting officer and rushes out to save her. Will they be too late? Hope not.

On the other side of town, Coco goes under the knife. Palmer threatens to stop his support for the Master if Coco’s life slips away. Eichorst, with his most “sincerest” smile accepts the message clearly. “Matter of the heart is not a high priority” Not a shocker from a being with no beating heart. The Master does not react well to threats, but it seems like he might have bigger plans for Coco. The master pays them a visit middle of the night to snap her out of the coma. Waking up to that face could scar her for life and I think she was more petrified of being alive than dead. Palmer renewed his heart, got it stolen, broken and now everything started spilling out uncontrollably. Reality check for Coco. She always wanted to know all, and now that she got more than she asked for, what will she do?

In the meantime, Setrakian gets a surprise attack from the bookstore owner. It ended his search since he didn’t match the description. Setrakian moves on to the last name on the list. After a full day on the quest, he is running low on his power juice. Time to grind up a new batch of slimies. Just when he was about to lose it, he hears the creaking of loose floor boards. Oh Holy Grail! The Lumen is very much real and it has been found at last. The glory doesn’t last too long as he gets a good knock on the head. The Lumen disappears yet again. Oy vey!

We hear the disturbingly familiar pull of chains. Eichorst is getting ready for a snack, but what threw us off our seats was the image of the poor soul tied at the end of the chain. NO!!!!!! Let me pick up my jaw first. Not going to lie, I completely went bonkers. With the end nearing, the show is really messing with our heads. Last week we almost had a heart attack when we thought we might have lost Fet, now Dutch. What!!!! Why???

As far as episodes go, this was probably the most chilling way it has ever ended and an insane cliff hanger to haunt us all the entire week. OMG! This episode was full of surprises and I can’t imagine how everything will go down. We are nearing the end and things are getting terrifyingly darker. Keep your fingers crossed people.

Until next week, Happy Hunting!