‘Shining Vale’ Recap – ‘Chapter Nine: Homecoming’

10/16/2023

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Courteney Cox and Greg Kinnear as Patricia ‘Pat’ Phelps and Terry Phelps in Episode 201 of ‘Shining Vale’ – ‘Chapter Nine: Homecoming’. (Photo Courtesy of STARZ.)

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the Season Two Premiere of ‘Shining Vale’. To revisit the Season One Finale, click here. Also, this piece was written during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. Without the labor of the actors currently on strike, the series being covered here wouldn’t exist.

For the most part, horror stories on the small and silver screen, come to a quick or abrupt end once the monster/evil has been defeated, and understandably so. After all, the audience has just endured one incredible emotional roller coaster ride. One that left their hearts racing and well… seeing the darkness be vanquished really was the pay off, so there’s no need to see how the main characters handle winning the day after going through hell… so… fade to black. Which is a formula for horror that has worked well for as long as the visual iteration of the medium has been around, and few have ever fussed about it. For it is satisfying and if by chance there needs to be any kind of follow up, it can wait for the sequel. Wherein we can briefly catch up with the characters that survived the last chapter, shortly before they die.

Because that too… is a thing that often happens in horror stories, so a next generation of heroes can take on the monster and take us on another rollercoaster ride. But as the years have progressed, there are some creatives that are starting to wonder… what if by chance… horror stories took the time to ponder upon the aftermath of such nightmares? Because it might actually be worthwhile and fascinating, and potentially fun, to see how people who had brushes with evil and things that go bump in the night, get along after dealing with that. For the possibilities are endless there since they could… handle it fine or suffer from trauma to overcome or perhaps struggle if they must face the evil again, if the story injects a sequel-esque twist. Which has indeed brought forth a bevy of new stories that ponder upon such matters, and that is providing us with some fascinating new stories, and it just so happens that the season two premiere of Shining Vale on STARZ, took the time to explore this as well.

For ‘Chapter Nine: Homecoming’ picked up a mere four months after Patricia ‘Pat’ Phelps was locked up in a mental health facility for well, attempting to murder her husband and bring harm to her family and well… that set the stage for a perfect exploration of what life might look like for people that had that kind of brush with evil. The kind that only Rosemary’s angry spirit could provide and as it turned out… this story postulated the possibility that life would be terribly, terribly sorrowful, and rough for everyone involved in such chaos. Terry for instance, spent some time in physical rehab following that dark day. Because that hit to his head and the damage to his body was a lot for him to bear and he needed time to heal, physically and mentally, and the kids… well they too struggled mightily to move forward with such darkness in their lives. Because someone had to step up and take care of the family and Gaynor took on that role at great cost. Since it forced her to drop out of school and join the workforce and take care of her baby brother, Jake. Who was doing his best to find stability.

Gus Birney as Gaynor Phelps in Episode 201 of ‘Shining Vale’ – ‘Chapter Nine: Homecoming’. (Photo Courtesy of STARZ.)

Which brought forth some fascinating follow-up to such an event, one that posed the reality that perhaps the many heroes out there who have faced evil in the horror universe fell upon hard times and dark days as they tried to recover, and while that alone would have carried this episode from beginning to end… there was still more that this story wanted to ponder upon regarding its central theme. For it also wanted to know… what would happen to a character in a horror story that served as vessel for evil if they were freed from the madness and went back to their regular lives. Which was handled through Pat here. Since she ran out of insurance money and in true American Health Care fashion, was sent packing accordingly. Which brought her home and while she was eager to put the pieces of her life back together, by reconnecting with her family and making amends… that was going to be no easy task for her. Primarily because… life back at Casa de Phelps was a mess in every sense of the word.

After all, Gaynor could only do so much from a cleaning perspective and she of course… had some deep emotional scars from her mother that she was not willing to address. Not to mention Terry was still fighting tooth and nail to reclaim his memory after that slam to his head and that made reconciliation tough. And of course, Jake was sticking to a pattern to find stability in this life. Which forced Pat into isolation. Where she had to reflect upon her journey and everything that happened and that put her in a dark place mentally, to the point where her mother and her agent had to step in and offer support and point out… that it is easy to tear down what we cherish in life, but putting it back together takes a great deal of time. Which in turn, pushed Pat to do her best to begin to mend fences, and there was progress there. The kind that sadly, might be threatened by something quite evil. For despite receiving incredible treatment, an old friend by the name of Rosemary happened to be hanging about. Giving rise to the wonderful question that season one leaned in upon often. As to whether or not Pat is actually suffering from mental illness… or if an unholy ghost is indeed haunting her rustic home.

But while we wait to see if that is the case or not, we can revel in the majesty of one intelligent season premiere. Because this was that rare horror story that dug deep into the potential emotional and physical damage that would come forth with a battle against the supernatural or the darkness of humanity. Since people would indeed see their lives change and they would be forced to heal in dynamic and unique ways. Not to mention, this story deserves a massive round of applause for exploring Pat’s journey here as well. Because horror stories usually kill off characters like Pat or leave them in a devastated mental state to move onto a new hero. So, to have Pat heal, and face the consequences of the evil that was in control, be it real or be it through a break, made for a powerful story, that offered some refreshing perspective on such matters. But that is what this series does, it shakes things up, keeps things fresh and it is just wonderful to have it back on the air so we can continue to be surprised by a quality horror tale that goes places other scary stories simply will not. Until next time.

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