'Outcast' Recap: 'The Road Before Us'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​THIS IS THE EMERGENCY SPOILER ALERT SYSTEM...YOU ARE ADVISED TO READ AT YOUR OWN RISK...

The finest horror stories out there know that the only proper way to tell their respective tale and truly satisfy the audience is through balance by giving us plenty of scares and plenty of time to catch our breath. This constant rollercoaster ride of peaks and valleys allows for an incredible experience and as time goes on, it's clear that Outcast has mastered this type of storytelling in record time.

But this week's episode decided it was time to add a new wrinkle to the fold. While 'The Road Before Us' truly served as that 'breather' episode, designed to pull us away from all the wild things that have been going on in Rome, WV; in the sneakiest of fashion, the show was quick to find places to jump start our hearts with a few strategically placed scares as well. But more importantly, rather than sit idly by and give us the dreaded filler episode, which is what one might expect from a 'valley' episode, this story treated us to a few answers to some burning questions we've all been wondering about and as an added bonus, the show's newfound uncomfortable atmosphere, where that sense of danger and uncertainty permeates every waking moment of the series, only managed to get worse. 

That last little tidbit came by way of continuing last week's storyline, revolving around Reverend Anderson and his exorcisms turning out to be utter failures. As the hour unfolded we learned that in essence, without Kyle, every single person he tried to cleanse of evil still holds the demon deep within and their lives are going downhill because of it. It made for an interesting crisis of conscience for the good Reverend since essentially everything he has been fighting for has been a waste of time since they aren't quite cured and well, it's creepy to know that the evil within these people is laying dormant, waiting for a chance to come forth once again and that led to the reveal that something is coming called 'The Merge' and clearly Sydney is some kind of leader to these demons.  

However, despite the creepy nature of this episode, there was some light that managed to shine through all the darkness. Last week Kyle was gravely concerned that his ex wife was still under the influence of this powerful force and that his daughter was in danger and well, for most of the episode, it sure seemed that way. But a tender moment where she was able to safely touch Kyle revealed she isn't possessed, simply broken psychologically over what happened in her home and well, her lack of memory of that fateful night is something Kyle is still trying to protect her from, even if it costs him another shot at happiness with his wife and child. It's a bold move on Kyle's part, but it's clear after hearing more ominous words from a demon regarding his role in this whole mess that he fully understands that his silence on the matter will help protect his family until this nightmare is over.

What exactly that nightmare is, we still don't quite know, but the fact that the show gives us just enough to go off of, in such foreboding fashion, almost puts the viewer in a place where...perhaps we don't quite want to know, and that dread makes it okay to keep the truth in the shadows for now. But in the meantime, at least we were treated to the show's real first happy ending since we know Kyle's wife and daughter are safe, but it won't be long before the ugly returns. After all, Sydney clearly has some plan in mind for Kyle and there are still dark forces working behind the scenes in Rome since the police chief is trying his damndest to get his best friend to open up about what went on in that shed. This story just keeps getting juicer every single week, can't wait to see what next week has in store for us...until then.

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