‘Servant’ Recap: ‘Awake’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode 409 of ‘Servant’. To revisit the previous episode, click here.
​
Early in its four-season run, the Apple TV+ series, Servant, focused heavily on a grand question for the Turner family. In that… would they ever face the horrible trauma that they endured on that fateful day when Jericho died? For if they were to do that, their lives would have taken a vastly different course, one grounded in honesty and authentic emotion and of course… it would have been a life free of Leanne. But alas, their deep and winding pain from that trauma, combined with the gift that Leanne gave them, and the power she exerted over them… allowed for that question to go the wayside. But now, after four years of this family avoiding the big question… the time finally arrived for them to answer it in this week’s episode.
​
For ‘Awake’ is a story that informed us, yes, the Turner family was indeed going to face that trauma head on and deal with the consequences of it, and all it took to reach that point, was to come to understand that the nanny was genuine trouble, and that their lives were now in danger for not handling their trauma. Which served as a powerful metaphor regarding the power of trauma and loss and how it can indeed swallow a soul and a life, and that was but the first of many powerful metaphors and examinations regarding that topic, and in order to get to all of them, a powerful miracle had to come into play. In that, Dorothy had to get to the car just outside the house, where Sean and Julian were waiting, and that was no easy task.

Because Leanne truly believed she had her family now, and everything she wanted. A mother, a brother, and the sole role of caretaker for all… allowing for her to carefully watch over Dorothy and control every movement and moment. But of course, when one knows their nemesis well, they know how to beat them, and Leanne fell into a well-laid trap from Dorothy. One that allowed for her to drag herself to the car… where the truth was finally bestowed upon her. And in that moment, waves of pain and emotion came washing over her and they broke her, which was no surprise. For this was to remind us, that facing our trauma is an ugly and difficult but necessary process if we ever want to grow, and even then… when we do, we have quite the choice to make regarding our pain.

One that Dorothy faced in a literal manner in this tale. For while she was at her lowest and hurting in every way imaginable, Sean and Julian brought her into the house where Leanne presented her with the Devil’s temptation if you will. Live in reality and endure the pain of making a terrible mistake that will haunt you forever or… hold Jericho and the live the lie. A choice that wasn’t made in this tale but wow, was that a powerful moment. One that truly spoke to how we must choose to live with our pain and grow from it or bury ourselves in the sorrow. All of which made this the show’s most moving and powerful episode to date, one that finally gave the fans what they’ve wanted.

Because we have indeed been eager to know if Dorothy and her family will ever confront that pain and now… they have, and what comes next is anyone’s guess since it is indeed Dorothy’s choice to make, regardless of whether Sean, Julian, or Leanne like it. But what matters most here, is that the series is doing everything we hoped for and more. In that… it is clearly preparing to bring every hanging plot thread to a close, so that we the fans… get to enjoy a satisfying end to the story regardless of whether it ends happy or not, and that is all you can ask for and that will in fact, make the wait for the final chapter in this harrowing saga quite difficult. Since we simply must know, how this story is going to end. Until next time.

---

Powered by JustWatch