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TOAD-ally Nick’d Out! Retrospective: Grimm “One Angry Fuchsbau”

Season 2, Episode 17

Air Date: Friday, April 5, 2013, 9/8c on NBC

Rating: ★★★★★

“He sang a sweet song in tones so full and soft that no human ear could resist them, nor fathom their origin.” —Grimm

Rosalee sits as Jury foreman in a murder trial.

At first glance, you think the title of this episode, “One Angry Fuchsbau,” refers to Rosalee (Bree Turner), who is a Wesen known as a Fuchsbau, getting upset about something. Turns out it’s a play on words or, rather, a play on the title of a film similar to this week’s story line—Twelve Angry Men. Rosalee is on a jury for a big murder case involving several Wesen, unbeknownst to the human eye. But something is very wrong when the jury, which includes Rosalee, finds themselves leaning towards one verdict and then suddenly, feeling conflicted and empathizing with the defendant, Donald Nidaria (Phillip Keiman). Could his attorney, Brian Kellogg (Brian T. Finney), be so good, he can sway the entire jury and the witnesses?” No. He’s just a sleezy Zeigevolk who’s using his power of persuasion to elicit a ‘not guilty’ verdict for his own greedy outcome.

Rosalee enlists Monroe’s help to administer the antidote to Brian’s toad-snacks.

What I love about “One Angry Fuchsbau” is not only the intriguing case of this Zeigevolk but how Rosalee enlists the help of Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell), Nick (David Giuntoli), Hank (Russell Hornsby), and Bud (Danny Bruno) to stop Brian from using his pheromone-laden powers forever. The elaborate scheme to get Brian’s sweat—yes, his sweat—to brew an antidote is delightfully entertaining. Seeing Monroe go into full Blutbad mode, not once but twice, during this episode is terrific. I think we forget sometimes that he’s a Wesen too. Of course, administering the actual antidote is the tricky part. There are toads involved.

Now, I’ve been clamoring for a while about wanting to see Eric (guest star James Frain), Captain Sean Renard’s (Sasha Roiz) half-brother, and finally I get my wish. Maybe it’s me, but is Adalind (Claire Coffee) already sporting a teensy baby bump? Her visit garners an interesting response from Eric when she tells him Sean was unable to get the key from the Grimm (Nick): “So, it’s about time your Grimm knew the truth about my brother and me.” Hmm, what truth is that, pray tell? This piques my interest most intently; I’m ready for these two brothers, half or not, to meet again face to face. Even Hank questions Nick about actually trusting their Captain. By the looks of Nick’s reaction to that question, it’s obvious he’s not sure if they should.

Monroe does Nick a solid by reluctantly taking Juliette to Aunt Marie’s trailer

My wild hair theory—Juliette’s (Bitsie Tulloch) weird visions are her latent memories trying to come back—is true. But when Monroe takes her to Aunt Marie’s trailer to help see if it will jog her memory, it does; that and so much more. Juliette begins to see Nick everywhere—at the desk, by the weapons cabinet—and she’s overwhelmed by the flood of voices and visions. I wasn’t surprised when she consults Pilar (Bertila Damas), the Latina psychic she met in season two, episode nine —“La Llorona”—who seems to know much more about Juliette than she should. Pilar isn’t surprised about Juliette contacting her, and says some interesting things: “So, you’ve been experiencing something you can’t explain…you are standing on the border between two worlds: darkness and light…your journey is just beginning.” What? I knew from the conference call with Bitsie Tulloch and Sasha Roiz that Juliette was going to have an interesting story arc coming up but this tidbit makes me salivate with curiosity. What did that poisonous cat scratch do to Juliette? Here’s another wild hair theory – Could it have anything to do with Adalind trying to regain her Hexenbeist powers? As we’ve seen in some of the clips for upcoming episodes, Adalind wants her powers back and I’m wondering if infecting Juliette and making Sean, only half-Hexenbeist, kiss her back to life has something do with regaining her abilities?

Overall, I completely enjoyed “One Angry Fuchsbau.” It has humor, intrigue, mystery, drama, chivalry, and toads. A well-rounded and slimy episode; what more could you want from Grimm?

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

For more on the show, go to http://www.nbc.com/grimm/.

Like Grimm on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/NBCGrimm.

Follow Grimm on Twitter @NBCGrimm http://twitter.com/NBCGrimm.

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

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Photos © 2013 NBC Universal, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

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.

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.