‘Firebite’ Recap: ‘I Wanna Go Home’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Five of ‘Firebite’. To revisit the last episode, ‘Vampire Mythology Bullshit’, click here.

Normally in vampire stories, failure is a good thing for the vampire hunters that stalk the children of the night. Because it often means that they’ve seen the vampire’s lair and learned about its layout and their enemy’s weaknesses. Which in turn allows for them to heal their wounds and regroup and go after the evil that lurks in the darkness with impunity, so they can finally end it once and for all, and it makes sense as to why vampire stories stick to that formula. Since it adds a sense of danger to the story and gravity, plus it also gives the characters an opportunity to grow before defeating evil in a heroic manner. One that leaves the audience with a grand sense of outright satisfaction.

But not every vampire story is eager to follow that formula and would prefer to try something new and wow the audience along the way, and one such series that is eager to shake things up and take us on a different kind of journey is Firebite on AMC+. Because ‘I Wanna Go Home’ is an episode that doesn’t follow the ‘failure’ formula present in these stories in the slightest. For when we catch up with Tyson and Shanika here, mere moments after they have escaped the lair of the vampires that lurk outside of Opal City, they’re in a tough place. For they are wounded both emotionally and physically and while Shanika is ready to shake off the pain and load up on weapons and go back down there for her mother, Tyson is not. He simply needs a minute and that is precisely when this story diverges from the standard fare.

Because Shanika is caught by Kitty, stealing first aid supplies in preparation for round two, and Shanika’s condition is of enough concern for Kitty… that she calls social services and has Shanika taken away to a group home and just like that, our vampire fighting duo are split up and in some dark and tough places that they never expected to be. For Shanika, that involves getting by in a group home where she doesn’t want to be in the slightest and to top it off, she has to deal with bullies in this facility that make her life ten times more difficult. And while she of course, finds a way to handle them and their violent tendencies in a manner that allows for everyone to come to an understanding, and gets out of that place, it was fascinating to see a hero be separated from their mission in such a unique and dynamic way, after enduring a setback in their goals.

As for Tyson… well he simply fell into a pit of despair. For Shanika being taken away from him and letting the Vampire King rip her mother out of his arms when they were mere inches from daylight… made him feel as though he was an utter failure. One that didn’t deserve an ounce of happiness for always losing and letting down people that mattered to him, in his mind at least, and that motivated him to just drink his days away. To the point where hygiene and anything else didn’t matter and this too was just fascinating through and through. Since you rarely see heroes regress and hide in this manner, especially in horror stories such as this one, But thankfully… Tyson was reminded of what matters most, courtesy of the Vampire King. Since he managed to infiltrate Tyson’s world by turning Eleona and realizing the severity of the threat at last… finally allowed for Tyson to rise to the occasion.

The only question now, is whether or not Tyson woke up from his stupor too late. Since the Vampire King and his flock of bloodsuckers’ strike when Shanika is vulnerable at the end of this tale. But while we wait to see how our heroes react to this counteroffensive, and whether or not they are indeed, too late, we can bask in the wonder of another original and fresh tale. One that really put a unique and realistic spin on failure. Since so many of us, have indeed drowned our sorrows in booze when the going gets tough, and unfortunately, a teenager getting put in with social services out of concern for their health and safety… happens often. Plus, the horror elements were as top notch as always, as was the humor and gore and once again, this writer will be counting down the minutes until next week’s tale, to see what other surprises this show will have in store for us.

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