Grimm – “Highway of Tears” Recap. Wonder Grimm Powers, Activate!

Season 4, Episode 6

Air Date: Friday, November 28, 2014, 9/8c on NBC

Rating: ★★★★★

“There is no mercy in you. You cut off the heads of men and women, and these you wear as a garland around your neck.” – Grimm

[warning] SPOILERS AHEAD [/warning]

The tales of love and sacrifice are written in history. Both humans and Wesen alike participate. In “Highway of Tears,” Komodo dragon type Wesen sacrifice humans to satiate their goddess “Kali-ma.” Not a fair analogy, but it is what it is. People make sacrifices to save the ones they love. And with the phrase, ‘All is fair in love and war,’ sometimes sleeping with the enemy is the only way to get the upper hand.

Puts a different spin on the term ‘sleeping with the enemy.’

“Highway of Tears” picks up where “Cry Luison” left off – a giant wooden wesen symbol burns in front of Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) and Rosalee’s (Bree Turner) house. Then Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) tells Nick (David Giuntoli), “You need to be a Grimm again.” As Nick confirms this is what Juliette wants, the ball begins rolling toward Nick regaining his Grimm powers.

Nick calls upon Captain Sean Renard’s (Sasha Roiz) Hexenbiest mother, Elizabeth (Louise Lomard), to help him and Juliette with the potion. As Juliette inhales green smoke from a witch’s hat, she slowly begins to transform into Adalind (Claire Coffee). Is it just me or is it weird watching Nick make out with Adalind? I appreciate how Juliette (as Adalind) tries her best to convince not only herself but Nick as well, that she is still Juliette, if a little different. It’ll be the only free pass Nick gets to sleep with another woman, sort of. I think they both kind of had a bit of fun with it. But when Juliette collapses in the bathroom, writhing in pain, clutching her stomach, I wonder if something didn’t go wrong? Juliette is human. She inhaled a potion made by a supernatural being. Or could there be a bun in the oven?

Wonder Grimm Powers, Activate! Now Portland has their two Grimms again!

Now that Nick has slept with Adalind/Juliette, he will hopefully get his Grimm powers back. I am glad the writers are taking their time with this story line. Having Nick lose his abilities was a great catalyst to propel Trubel (Jacqueline Toboni) into the spotlight, and as much as I like Trubel, Nick is the better Grimm. What I’m saying is, Trubel is Robin to Nick’s Batman. I also appreciate the writers not giving Nick his powers back immediately after he sleeps with Adalind/Juliette. The progression of Nick’s Grimm abilities slowly reemerging is very well timed. It makes for better television as Nick suffers through something like growing pains as he regains his Grimmness.

I guess human sacrifice is the 'it' thing these days, huh?

I guess human sacrifice is still a thing…

The case this week involving Komodo dragonesque Wesen is interesting because it goes back to a case Nick and Hank (Russell Hornsby) worked years ago, before Nick learned he was a Grimm. It seems every three years, a couple—a male and female—must be sacrificed to appease the goddess Kali-ma these wesen worship. The owner of a junkyard, JP (guest star Erick Aavari) and his two sons, have a system to trap young couples traveling on dark roads.

The real crux of “Highway of Tears” involves two things – Nick regaining his powers and Adalind figuring out who has her baby. We know Nick is a Grimm again but Adalind and Prince Viktor (Alexis Denisof) do not. I wonder if the connection Adalind and Nick shared once while she was trapped in the dungeon is a side effect of the potion. At any rate, Prince Viktor’s probing questions about why Adalind chose to give up her baby leads to the revelation of Nick’s Grimm mother Kelly (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio). Then Adalind remembers something Kelly said, “Sometimes we have to sacrifice what we love most.”

Meanwhile, Josh Porter (Lucas Near-Verbrugghe) makes his way to Portland after being nearly killed in Philadelphia in last week’s “Cry Luison.” Josh’s father Rolek (Sam Anderson) was a Grimm who passed away. He thought his son would carry on the Grimm legacy but Josh doesn’t seem to be a Grimm nor does he possess any extraordinary skills at identifying Wesen. With no other family, Josh seeks Nick’s help but meets up with Trubel first. Of course, Nick hasn’t regained his Grimm powers yet and Trubel explains the situation.

The question remains: who is watching Trubel? Is Agent Chavez (Elizabeth Rodriguez) keeping tabs on Trubel or are other Wesen still after Nick, thinking he’s not a Grimm anymore? Whatever the case may be, things are getting very intense in Portland.

Interesting Conversation

Elizabeth makes it a point to tell her son Sean to be very careful; what she did to save his life can only be done once. I feel as though the writers want us to remember this since they mentioned the same thing in “The Last Fight” episode. Elizabeth is leaving Portland and I’m sure she’s going to search for Kelly and her granddaughter.

Overall

“Highway of Tears” is entertaining but it doesn’t excite me. It bridges the story lines of Adalind and Kelly with the baby; it addresses Nick becoming a Grimm again; and it also highlights the intricacies of the Wesen council and the many facets of Wesen laws. I’m ready for Meisner (Damien Puckler) to return. No, not just because he’s hot…well, maybe. I’m anxious to learn more about the keys and the map they make. Where does the map lead? And will we ever meet the mysterious and elusive king? I’m sure we’ll be seeing Kelly again very soon. Grandma Hexenbiest is ready to meet her granddaughter.

What did you think of “Highway of Tears?” Leave me a comment below or tweet me at @judybopp. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Tune in to Grimm, Fridays at 9/8c, only on NBC.

For more on the show, go to the official site.

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Follow Grimm on Twitter @NBCGrimm, as well as these cast members: @russellhornsby, @mistergiuntoli, @BitsieTulloch, @sasharoiz, and @MrReggieLee.

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Judy Manning

Dream chaser extraordinaire! Judy tends to be a tad sarcastic and kind of goofy! She is an avid admirer of all things supernatural, paranormal, celestial and mystical. She loves to read, write, and watches way too much TV. She enjoys many genres of film and music (and let's be honest, most music from the 80s). She also has a wicked sweet tooth. Cupcakes beware.