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Hotel Beau Séjour certainly isn’t something which will hook you on the first episode, but it is weird enough for you to want to see how things play out.
The Introduction
Due to reasons yet unexplained, Kato (Lynn Van Royen) died. Well, at least she seems to have died. She saw her dead body in a tub and again getting pulled from a lake. However, as for who killed her and why? There are no answers. She remembers only the morning of her death and that’s it. She doesn’t remember breaking up with her boyfriend Leon (Maarten Nulens), who is an up and coming motocross star, but then there comes the kicker – Some people can see her.
It is all very weird. Her mother, Kristel (Inge Paulussen), who is beside herself, can’t see her. However, Luc (Kris Cuppens), her father, can see her. Also, Sophia (Charlotte Timmers), her seemingly half-sister, can see her, as well as Charlie (Joren Seldeslachts). Someone who seemingly knows Kato but I wouldn’t say he is a friend.
Leaving us with a show in which Kato has a handful of people who can see and hear her or hear and see the things she does. A distinction which needs to be made since she can interact with physical objects and use them, but it seems she makes a ghost copy. Of which only those who can see and hear her can hear the sounds of. Meanwhile, for everyone else, no matter if she calls them or flips papers into the air, nothing changes from their perspective.
Highlights
The Murder Mystery
Kato wakes up on a bed, clearly dead, yet her body is in a bathtub. She is bleeding from her head but there is no murder weapon and we are given no clue who may have killed her. Also, as of the first episode, outside of maybe Leon, there are no real suspects. This crafts a very interesting mystery in which Kato will not only probably have to solve her own murder, but we will likely slowly begin to learn how everyone felt about her. Hopefully leading to a reveal with a shocking culprit.
Low Points
The Characters Don’t Hook You Episode 1
Being that the show deals with multiple families, the police, and townspeople, catching all their names, and remembering who’s who is naturally not going to be easy. Though, at the same time, no one looks, talks, or seems like the type of character you necessarily want to learn more about. Even Kato, with the mystery which surrounds her, it isn’t the character but the situation which draws your interest. But this is just the first episode and we got 9 more to go. So, hopefully, this issue will be temporary.
On The Fence
The Rules of Being a Ghost
I think by the end of the first episode things are firmly established. A handful of people, for reasons we aren’t sure of, which go beyond being related to Kato, can see and hear her. However, the majority of the population can’t. Kato, by all intents and purposes, doesn’t have any sort of powers. She can’t walk through walls or phrase through people. She can interact with objects and seemingly can bump against people but then comes the complexity. While she can bump against people, even interact with objects in front of them, they neither see nor hear what she does.
Something which doesn’t make a whole lot of sense but I hope is explained.
Overall: Mixed (Stick Around)
This show definitely has a better trailer than it does a pilot, but there is potential here. Being that it seems we are dealing with a small town in which everybody knows everybody, there is this sense that we are going to learn a lot about Kato over the next few episodes. Which, hopefully, will build up the suspense as to who killed her and why. However, this point of view is very optimistic for unless these characters kick it up a notch, it may not matter who did what because there may not be a reason to care.
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