Motherland: Season 1 Episode 4 “Hail Beltane” – Recap/ Review (with Spoilers)
It’s time for the orgy known as Beltane, and while nearly everyone is having sex, Scylla is trying to keep Raelle from learning her secrets.
Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.
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It’s time for the orgy known as Beltane, and while nearly everyone is having sex, Scylla is trying to keep Raelle from learning her secrets.
| Directed By | Haifaa Al Mansour | |
| Written By | Christopher Oscar Pena | |
| Aired (FreeForm) | 4/8/2020 | |
| Introduced This Episode | ||
| Bryon | Bennett Taylor | |
| Mikaela | Veronika Hadrava | |
| Petra | Catherine Lough Haggquist | |
This content contains pertinent spoilers.
A Warning & A Promise – Petra, General Adler, Raelle, Abigail, Tally, Gerit
With Petra, Abigail’s mother visiting, so comes to notable interactions. A minor one with her daughter, establishing they don’t have the most loving relationship. But also there is Petra and General Adler, and another sign that General Adler is anything but absolute when it comes to others witches, even those who serve under her.
Yet, what can be expected as history seems to not be fair to the Bellweather witches and who knows how much General Adler has played a hand in that. Never mind, since the Bellweathers were one of the first to likely join her, there is always the chance they see themselves next in line. Hence why, as Head of Intelligence, Petra makes sure to have friends within The Hague. It would make a transition of power easier.
But, politics and legacies aside, Tally is quite excited about spending the Beltane with Gerit. Especially after he sends a scroll with an image of his penis.
Covering Up Tracks – Mikaela, Porter, Scylla, Raelle, Bryon
Porter’s death is a major event that calls for investigations, and Petra even calls for the Beltane to be cancelled. However, not a single witch agrees, so while inspections are done, the General and others enjoy themselves. Which could lead you to wonder, what do queer witches do?
Well, unfortunately, we don’t learn the answer to that. Scylla is trying to cover her tracks as Porter is used for a necromancer experiment. And as that happens, Raelle is somewhere between seeing Porter’s memories, trying to confront Scylla, and being forced to attend the Beltane despite having no interest in men.
Which is how she meets Bryon. Someone else who is queer, and they spend the night, as people moan and groan, talking. About what? Well, love, Raelle’s insecurities, and also how there is a manual, called the Codices, the boys use as a sex and romance guide – including the trick Gerit used to send a picture of his penis. Though we come to learn, it was a generic image.
Getting back to Scylla, despite her feeble attempts to get Porter to not speak the truth of what led to his death, she fails thanks to someone named Mikaela succeeding. Now, who is Mikaela? Well, a member of the Spree, perhaps the one who spoke through the balloon, which gives Scylla her next assignment: Get invited to the Bellweather wedding coming up.
To The Bonds We Made – Bryon, Raelle, Gerit, Tally, Abigail
Due to Tally getting to lose her virginity, she is excited, showing off her mark, and finds Gerit having to leave difficult, so she gets in every kiss she can. As for Raelle? Well, when it comes to Bryon, if ever forced to procreate, at least she has a friend to do so with and who could make a fun partner in raising a child – assuming witches get to do so.
And while Abigail seems to have solely used all that sexual energy to get stronger, hence her not seeing her men off, this whole holiday has given her what she ultimately wanted – a strengthened bond. One that has shown Raelle can show up and weather discomfort for the unit. Also, Tally, while sometimes an anxious mess, with the right support, she can get the job done. Thus reassuring Abigail when it comes to her unit joining her for her cousin’s wedding, and their future as they pursue a higher ranking.
Highlights
Tally and Gerit Are So In Lust (But Let’s Pretend Its Love)
It isn’t clear how things are from Gerit point of view, and Bryon adding his two cents didn’t make it clear if Gerit is as green as Tally or was using the book because the methods have long worked. However, based on their chemistry before and after having sex, one could submit these two are the real deal and, hopefully, will meet again. Now, whether that’ll be when Tally realizes she is pregnant, since wasn’t a condom in sight, we’ll hopefully find out soon.
Another Member of the Spree Appeared
When it comes to the Spree, it has been Scylla and unnamed individuals who carried out attacks. So for us to see another one who appears with a consistently seen character, it feels like a big deal. Mind you, it isn’t clear who Mikaela is to Scylla, but with her giving directions, one would assume in the mostly flat hierarchy of the Spree, this person has some sort of power.
How Threatened Is General Adler’s Position?
While she has her biddies and clearly is seen as an OG when it comes to witches at war, it increasingly seems everyone is ready for the next generation to take over. And based off the way we saw General Adler handle General Sharma and now Petra, it makes you wonder if she fears insurrection? Not that she rules the world, but there is this vibe that it isn’t just the Spree who would like to see her era and influence diminish – if not end.
On The Fence
This, Low-Key, Felt Like Filler
There is something about the whole Beltane festival that seemed very frivolous. And while there was the establishment of General Adler’s authority not being absolute, and Scylla’s secret continuing to unravel, everything else felt like filler. Don’t get me wrong, I do love and appreciate Tally’s relationship with Gerit, and seeing Abigail and Petra interact. It’s just, both seem very basic and performed as expected.
After all, Tally is this simple girl, from a matriarchal society. So her getting all kinds of dazed over her first sexual experience is expected. But, with things coming off a tad corny, it made the lack of depth to their relationship clear as day. Then with Abigail’s relationship with her mom, there is a lack of chemistry there. For as much as you realize and understand the situation, I can’t say the writing and performances really drove it home. So you are left knowing the state of their relationship is sour since you’ve seen this kind of mother/daughter relationship many times before.
Yet, perhaps it should be noted, maybe the reason this episode felt like filler is because it is the first one without a notable threat. The Spree didn’t attack anyone, and while Libba and Abigail had their usual spat, no one got hurt. And after each episode having some form of violence, bare skin, well-placed cloth, and angles just seems tame, and all that “Motherland: Fort Salem” has avoided being up until now.
But with the men seemingly being sent back from wherever they came from, here is hoping this was just a blip.
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