‘Castle Rock’ Recap: ‘Caveat Emptor’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

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​There are, a great many things we worry about in our lives. Sometimes they’re important issues, such as a sick family member or a relationship that needs healing, or bills that are out of control. While other times, it’s the silly stuff that hangs on our mind, such as how we feel like an idiot over saying ‘you too’ to the ticket agent who told us to enjoy our movie, or that one thing we said in third grade that had the class laughing at us incessantly. The bottom line is that there is always something swirling through our minds, but of the many things that keep us up late at night, there is one thing that we work to avoid thinking about and that is… our final moments on this earth.
 
Which I know, sounds a touch morbid to bring up, but let’s be honest, we really don’t worry about it, and with good reason. Because the end seems so far away and, in many ways, it truly is, so there’s no need to take the time to ponder upon our lives as a whole and our choices until that fateful moment arrives. But when it does, what exactly would, or should we reflect upon and how will we face the end as it creeps up on us? Those are important questions to ask that are up to the individual, but it just so happens that Castle Rock found a way to dive into this moment in fascinating fashion in its next episode. Because ‘Caveat Emptor’ saw Reginald ‘Pop’ Merrill face his final moments at last thanks to the cancer surging through his system and some unexpected guests outside of his shop and this all made for one powerful tale.
 
Which is funny because at first glance it seemed as though this story was going to be an extension of last week’s episode, wherein action and adventure and tense moments came our way. Something that was reinforced by quite a few elements early on in this tale. For the gunfight that took place outside of the Emporium was pretty darn intense and the scenes involving Annie and her friends, one of which included a spy from the cultists’ side were equally reminiscent of last week’s tale. In fact, the only thing that really separated this segment of the show from the ‘norm’, was the dark humor that Annie brought to the table since she dropped an incredible one liner this week. But the arrival of Ace and his clan is what brought forth the reflection in question since Pop saw an opportunity to potentially fight or talk his way out of this one and well, Ace wasn’t having it.
 
Ironically, his former son had come to the Emporium to get his hands, on pertinent information about his Lord and Savior, the Kid. But in order to smoothly obtain what he wanted, he tore into Pop in incredible fashion, forcing him to face his past and every single mistake he’s ever made and well, it was just stunning to watch Pop take inventory in this tale. Because he quickly realized he was going to be a goner soon, and it was either start to make peace with yesterday or fade into oblivion as a monster and while there wasn’t necessarily a message to be found here, the story did expose the fact that some people, the ones like Pop; face the end, mired in fear and regret and when given the opportunity, they’ll do whatever it takes to earn one more breath. Which made his death pitiful in the end, and heartbreaking too since he never found his absolution and to make matters worse, Ace is going to resurrect Pop to mine his mind for all the information he absorbed on the Kid, potentially allowing for the darkness surrounding this town to spread.
 
Yet while we can sit here and brand Pop a coward, one key moment in this tale has me wondering if Pop saw this confrontation as an opportunity to cheat death. Because he did grab a lot of Haldol from that tray, and if he pumped himself full of it before Ace shot him, there’s a fair chance the possession part of his resurrection won’t take hold and the man will be healed and given that all-important second chance. But what Pop will do with it, will have to take a back seat. For the end is apparently nigh in Castle Rock, and a dark cloud is closing in on this town and well, this was a fascinating episode when all is said and done. Because I really didn’t expect it to dive into an exploration this dark or this philosophical, while still finding ways to entertain and wow us and all higher notions aside, it really did set the stage nicely for the season two finale and truly, it is going to be a long and painful wait until next Wednesday because I am desperate to know how this story is going to end. Until next time. 

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