At the halfway point ofSweet Tooth’s second season, the show continues to demonstrate its commitment to giving fans uncomfortable flashbacks to current events and a whimsical journey about kids with horns and tails. There’s always a grim moment to put down the happy ones, and there’s always some sunshine at the end of the darkness. The fourth episode is a sad one, but there are still some bright moments.
“Bad Man” comes from the writing trio of Noah Griffith, Daniel Stewart, and Zaike LaPorte Airey. Griffith and Stewart previously wrote the sixth episode of season one. Together, theyworked onSwamp ThingandThe Mist. LaPorte Airey is new to the series. His best-known work is on some well-received short films.
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After their first failedattempt in episode 2, Big Man and Aimee turn to some unsavory characters to recruit an army and save their kids. The duo winds up in the hands of the “Air Lords,” a group of mercenaries who are willing to aid them in their quest. Through some tense negotiating, Jepp gets into a fistfight with one of his new teammates. The plan is set in motion with a small brigade of armed planes preparing to burst into the Last Men’s camp. Unfortunately, Jepp’s outburst leads to a falling out with Aimee. Jepp is forced to reveal his unfortunate past, informing his ally that he used to serve the organization that has been killing children like hers since the beginning of the apocalypse. Big Man has clearly seen the error of his ways and despite a fairly reasonable physical confrontation, he’s more than willing to repent for his old life. Aimee’snewfound sense of betrayalis understandable, but it’s fair to say that Big Man gets the short end of the stick here.
Meanwhile,Bear has decided tojoin the Last Men. Her logic for this decision is a bit messy, given that she’s spent most of her adolescence killing Last Men, but she’s doing great at boot camp. Every recruit and officer in the militia sees the incredible prowess Becky brings to each challenge and questions her skills. Though she’s clearly distracted by her hatred of their goals, she’s able to prove herself as one of their best potential soldiers. Her success subsides when the Last Men decide to take her along on her first mission. It’s a complex moment in her character growth as she sets aside the things she believes in to pursue her friends. Like a lot of characters in this season, she’s deep undercover, and anything she does could be her downfall.
Dr. Singh has finally achieved all he set out to accomplish. He has the cure in the palm of his hand, but he still isn’t done. Thanks to the work of Gus’s mom Birdie, Dr. Singh discovers the cure. Unfortunately, the cure requires the butchering of another somewhat innocent soul.Singh is willing tomake the sacrifice, but it doesn’t set him free. Now that he has the cure, he’s only become more valuable to General Abbot. To celebrate his accomplishment, Abbot invites Aditya and Rani to an extremely tense dinner. After Abbot’s brother Johnny joins the table, the audience finally gets a glimpse of the man behind the glasses. It’s a haunting exchange that digs into the circumstances that can turn a regular family into a pair of warring cult leaders. As Singh leaves the unpleasant meal, he’s left with a new impression of General Abbot that seems to unveil some darkness in him. As a character, Dr. Singh isa complicated sympathetic villain. He’s different in every scene and described differently by every other character.
Sweet Toothtries tobe everything at once and succeeds far more than most examples. It’s an impressively complex narrative for something aimed primarily at young adults. Multiple perspectives with entirely different moral and personal outlooks converge on similar circumstances. This is a gripping exploration of the modern world. The way things are going these days, it’ll probably never be too dated. There’s an early scene in the episode that pokes fun at the wave of parties after the vaccine came out, and though it’s only a few minutes, it’s deeply affecting. Everything in the show manages to feel allegorical and sincere.
Those who choose to bingeSweet Toothwill experience it as a long movie. It works in that capacity, but it’s hard to believe it wouldn’t benefit from a weekly release model. The ups and downs are huge, but each episode has such a neat thematic structure. Even when a reveal isn’t shattering the narrative, there’s an emotional impact that can’t be ignored. Instead of teasing the audience with lore, it’s constantly building the personal stories of each major character.Sweet Toothworks becauseit’s willing to let the audience experience its world through the eyes of its characters, but it succeeds because those characters are so lovable.
