Review: Wilfred, S2, Season Finale, Ep. 212 – “Secrets”
Air Date: Thursday, Sept 20, 2012, 10:00PM E/P on FX.
Rating:
“If we knew each other’s secrets, what comfort we should find.” – John Churton Collins
WOW! What a twist of events. As season finales go, this one threw me for a loopty-loop! Did you expect that ending? I know I didn’t. I thought for sure we were finally going to meet Ryan’s (Elijah Wood) elusive father but instead we get Ryan’s old pal James (guest star Eugene Byrd), who stops by Jenna (Fiona Gubelmann) and Drew’s (Chris Klein) backyard wedding to give their gracious host Ryan a heads-up. Ryan is being indicted on charges of selling his former employer’s secrets, for which he got a $10.2 million payout conveniently nestled in an off-shore account. Say what?
If you were absolutely sure of Ryan’s innocence, then you were one of the few. I know there were others who questioned whether Ryan could have done something like that. The fact that he accuses Wilfred (Jason Gann) of being the mastermind wasn’t a surprise. But the interesting part isn’t the cute little wedding; nor is it Ryan’s crazy sister Kristen (Dorian Brown) pawning off her infant to James so she can booze it up and shake her money-maker on the dance floor. I know Kristen is desperate for a replacement baby daddy but she’s got to leave James alone. May I just say I love Brown. She cracks me up.
No, while all of that was entertaining and hilarious to boot, the intriguing part of “Secrets” is a child-like drawing from Ryan’s past that reveals something very peculiar, although not too surprising…well, not after you think about it. Seeing the little doggie behind the tree off to the side didn’t really grab my attention, especially when Wilfred admits he’s the one who drew the picture. However, a similar drawing is within a photograph of Ryan and his mom Catherine (Mary Steenburgen) painting together and what we see there is the real kicker.
If Wilfred did draw the first drawing, or rather the drawing he showed Ryan to confuse him, which is what I’m probably doing to you now, how did he know what to draw if he hadn’t been there in the beginning? Get it? Well, you’ll need to watch the episode if you missed it. Or watch it again to get all the double talk that goes on. I think the writers purposefully write overlapping and regurgitated dialogue just to screw with us. I’m on to you people (eyeballs the writers).
The insanity comes from Amanda (Allison Mack). Now that she and Ryan are back together, Ryan finally confesses about Wilfred. He tells her he talks to Wilfred. Instead of smacking him in the face, Amanda grabs him and kisses him, confessing she talks to Wilfred too! Huh? The only difference is her Wilfred has a thick French accent while Ryan’s Wilfred is Aussie. Did you believe Amanda could see and talk to Wilfred like Ryan does? Well, when she can’t repeat what Wilfred says, that’s proof in the pudding that she couldn’t. However, (and this is a wild hair theory), I think it’s a case like Ryan’s mom’s cat Mittens (Rhea Pearlman)—maybe each person sees and hears them differently. Or perhaps Amanda was thrilled that Ryan confessed something so outrageous, it gave her hope that she wasn’t the only insane one in the relationship.
This season had its ups and downs for me. Some episodes really had me scratching my head while others had me laughing. And some episodes just had a mixed bag of everything – head scratching, laughing, and a huge pinch of ‘WTF’ thrown in. Although I would have liked it if Ryan had resolved some issues, I think it will all segue into season three, especially with the ending of “Secrets.” The question I think we all want answered is, who is Wilfred? He tells Ryan, “Without you, I have no purpose; I’m nothing; it’s like I don’t even…exist.” What do you think? Is Wilfred the elaborate imaginings of Ryan’s post-suicide attempt in season one? I guess we’ll have to wait to find out.
*(As an aside – there were only two photos (both of Ryan) from this episode which is I only have one in the review.)
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Photos © 2012 FX Networks, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Judy Manning
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