Wesen Ring Master. Recap: Grimm – “The Show Must Go On”

Season 3, Episode 16

Air Date: Friday, March 21, 2014, 9/8c on NBC

Rating: ★★★★★

“Under such conditions, whatever is evil in men’s natures comes to the front. – Grimm

[warning] WARNING: Spoilers Ahead [/warning]

Can you smell the caramel corn, funnel cakes, cotton candy, and animal dung? Welcome to the “Carnival Metamorphosia” where Wesen aren’t afraid to show their true nature…or are they? The evil ring master, Mr. Hedig (guest star Carlo Rota), isn’t one to suffer fools and with a crack of his whip, elicits forced “woges” from each Wesen on stage for all to see. It’s not really “magic” or elaborate Chinese masks as the audience is led to believe.

Ring Master Mr. Hedig scolds Max for his behavior but is it really Max’s fault he’s losing control?

As Rosalee (Bree Turner) and Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) explain, if a Wesen forces themself to “woge” constantly, meaning they show their true nature, it can become very dangerous. The more they allow their bestial side to show, the more it can take over. After learning about a strange case from Nick (David Giuntoli) and Hank (Russell Hornsby), Rosalee and Monroe go undercover to find out which of the Wesen starring in Hedig’s show is in dire straits. It doesn’t take long to realize who it is.

Main attraction, Maximillian “Max” (Sam Witwer), a Blutbad, is suffering. He doesn’t know whether he killed the two girls in the audience, but when he accidentally hurts his own girlfriend, Genevieve (Chryssie Whitehead), who happens to be a Fuchsbau, he becomes even more unstable. Hmmm, maybe Blutbad and Fuchsbau couplings aren’t so rare after all. Speaking of couples, how amazing is Monroe when he comes to Rosalee’s rescue when Max attacks Rosalee? And Rosalee really knows how to properly thank her man. Seeing Rosalee coming out of the bathroom in the carnival outfit is very sexy. I’ll let your imagination run with it.

Hanks gets an eyeful at the Carnival seeing more than enough Wesens for a lifetime. I’m not sure what kind of Wesen Hedig is, with his shaggy mane and saber tooth teeth, but the other two Wesen males in the show are intriguing. One looks like an ogre, while the other looks like dragon. I appreiciate it when the writers introduce more Wesens. I think we’ve seen the ogre Wesens before but the fire-breathing dragon Wesen is new and quite a badass!

Meisner goes to the one place Prince Viktor wouldn't think to look - the place where Prince Viktor's cars are parked.

Meisner goes to the one place Prince Viktor wouldn’t think to look but things don’t go as smoothly as he’d hoped.

Meanwhile, back in the Swiss Alps, Meisner (Damien Puckler) rushes to get Adalind (Claire Coffee) and the baby to safety by doing something a bit daring. Finding a beaten and battered Sebastian (Christian Lagadec) in the back of Prince Viktor’s (Alexis Denisof) car comes as a surprise, but more shocking is Adalind using her powers for the first time since she became pregnant. She’s a bit rusty but saves Meinser from being shot.

As Meisner and Adalind make their escape, Sebastian sacrifices himself by staying behind. I wonder how Sean (Sasha Roiz) will take the news of his trusted ally’s demise. I believe Sean knew Sebastian wasn’t long for this world especially after not hearing from him, but when your thoughts are confirmed, it changes your perspective. I’ll miss Sebastian. His quiet loyalty was commendable.

Is it just me or is Adalind disappointed when she learns Meisner will not be accompanying her out of Europe? I think she may have a sweet spot for him. He’s feeling it, too. Even though he’s a tough guy, Meisner is lonely; however, when Adalind changes into a Hexenbiest, it’s a tad jarring to look at her. She’s hideous as a Hexenbiest, yet beautiful in her human form. Will Meisner overlook it or is he following some guy-code and not pursing her because of his friendship with Sean? We aren’t sure whether the baby is Sean’s…it’s only been assumed.

This is no life for a Wesen.

Overall, “The Show Must Go On” is a very entertaining episode. Witwer uses his Being Human experience as a brooding vampire to become an even more conflicted Blutbad on the Grimm episode. His ability to show anguish, suffering, and confusion are stellar. Rota’s performance is mesmerizing. To be ring master, you have to be able to hold the audience’s attention. Just because you stand there with a snazzy outfit and whip doesn’t mean you have anyone’s attention. Rota commands the center of the stage with a resonating baritone voice that helps make each word, each syllable, that much more convincing, to say nothing of the fierce manner in which he snaps that whip.

Makeup department, please take note—spend a little more time and effort on the pseudo blood. After Hedig shoots Max, it looks unreasonably bright and so obviously fake, it detracts from the whole scenario. Witwer, thankfully, is very convincing when he falls flat on his face so the blood isn’t visible for long. The prosthetics and makeup in “The Show Must Go On,” on the other hand, are amazing.

So, what did you think about “The Show Must Go On?” Leave me a comment below or tweet me at @judybopp. Looking forward to hearing from you!

Grimm will return on Friday, April 4, 2014, 9/8c, only on NBC.

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

Like Grimm on Facebook.

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.