The Strain – “Last Rites” Recap. Unusual Cargo.

Season 1, Episode 12

Air date: Sunday, September 28, 2014 at 10PM ET/PT on FX

Rating: ★★★★★

“You take a look around the city, bro? A plague done broke out, turning people into killin’ machines. ‘Bout to be a whole lot of chaos and ain’t nobody findin’ me.” —Gus

“Last Rites” is a disappointing penultimate episode. I fully expected a mini humans vs. strigoi battle inside the underground caves but got zilch. While we do get to see our elusive strigoi SWAT team again, their appearance, although exciting, is too brief. After such a powerful and intense season, I can’t help feeling jipped with “Last Rites.”

The acting and cinematography is fine but it’s the lack of intensity that kills “Last Rites” for me. After such a lead in with “The Third Rail” being so gripping, to have “Last Rites” as the penultimate episode is like getting to the top of the roller coaster waiting for it to plummet and it doesn’t. It just stalls.

Most of the episode is boring. Sorry, but it is. Flashbacks show us the origin of the strigoi heart Abraham (David Bradley) keeps in a jar beneath his pawn shop, but it doesn’t lend much to the overall story. We already knew Abraham lost the love of his life and the flashback did little to amplify their tale. Did I become more empathetic? No. I actually became a bit pissed off at him. A young Abraham (Jim Watson) leaves his handicapped wife Miriam (Adina Verson) while he hunts down his arch enemy Eichorst (Richard Sammel). Admittedly I was nervous when he crawls through a dark tunnel, anticipating something terrifying lurking within. And of course, there is, but it doesn’t grip me as it has in previous episodes. I’ve been spoiled by the intensity of The Strain, especially in the last few episodes, so I had high expectations for “Last Rites.”

Eichorst is done with Abraham’s constant interference. He’s attacking the pawn shop.

Speaking of Eichorst, he’s none too pleased with Abraham and makes his move. The strigoi assisting Eichorst appear very malleable as far as minions go. They seem to comprehend and follow directions well. Most of the strigoi we’ve seen have been mindless feeding monsters looking for their next meal. And we also see another familiar face, rocker Gabriel (Jack Kesy), who joins in on the attack on the pawn shop with Eichorst. Where the heck has Gabriel been? The last we saw him he was acting like Golem in his bachelor pad. I digress. I had a feeling Nora’s (Mia Maestro) mother Mariela (Anne Betancourt) would become a casualty and my instincts were right. I can’t imagine what Nora (Mia Maestro) must have been going through to do what she does. Her emotional breakdown left my bottom lip quivering. It is singularly one of the most emotional scenes I’ve watched on The Strain this season. Maestro does an amazing job of conveying her anguish. I felt every ounce of her pain resonate through my screen.

Eichorst pays Eldritch a visit but it is The Master that Eldritch is dying to see.

One interesting development is the return of Dutch (Ruta Gedmintas). She has a grand plan and it actually works. Those annoying emergency broadcast system messages on the television – well, she figures out a way to hack the system to give Eph (Corey Stoll) a few minutes to warn the public. As an aside, Eph really needs to work on his public speaking. He wastes a bit of time trying to spit out his credentials, when he should have just said he was with the CDC and there is a virus linked to the Regency flight with those 206 missing passengers. That would have raised eyebrows and red flags. I could have done without Dutch and Vasiliy’s ‘let’s get to know each other’ questions but maybe Dutch’s background will play a factor in future seasons. Who knows; all I’m saying is I didn’t need to know about her dad and how she became a hacker at this juncture.

The very ill Eldritch Palmer (Jonathan Hyde) gets his wish. After his so-called sacrifice to bring The Master (Robert Maillet) to the U.S., he finally receives his reward. I must say, I nearly vomited when The Master helps Eldritch. I’ll leave it at that. I wonder if the way The Master creates a new strigoi with his own essence, if you will, will they not go through the same transformation as the rest of the newborn strigoi who are attacked by the worms. Seeing Eldritch weak in one scene, looking like he’s knocking on Death’s door, to him standing in the rain laughing is quite the speedy recovery. I’m interested to see his full transformation take hold.

YES! Finally! The strigoi SWAT team led by a strigoi named Quinlan (Stephen McHattie)

Finally, the most interesting part of “Last Rites” – the strigoi SWAT team. Our pal Gus (Miguel Gómez) decides he needs to get the heck out of town. He needs to arm himself with weapons and have some spending money so he does what he does best; he robs a local gangster named Alonso (guest star Jamie Hector). But things get a little hairy when Gus gets greedy. Alonso receives a large payment for shipping unknown cargo and Gus thinks whatever is inside is worth more than the payment. He couldn’t be more wrong.

The chaos that unfolds after Gus blasts his way inside an unknown cargo container is what I had been waiting for the entire episode. Queue the cavalry music as the strigoi SWAT team shows up and in less than five minutes, they’ve contained—all puns intended—the situation and take Gus with them. Why? It’s only my guess but I think they want to recruit him for their cause.

Despite the lack of excitement in “Last Rites,” I am still very much looking forward to seeing the season one finale of The Strain. Where has the strigoi SWAT team taken Gus? Who is shipping strigoi out of New York and where were they headed? Now that the pawn shop has been compromised, where will Abraham and the gang find refuge? And what has become of Eph’s ex-wife Kelly (Natalie Brown)?

What did you think of “Last Rites?” I’d love to hear from all of you, especially those who have read the books. I welcome all opinions. Tweet me @judybopp or leave a comment below.

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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.