‘Slasher: Flesh & Blood’ Recap – ‘Upstairs Downstairs’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Caution: This article contains spoilers for Episode Four of ‘Slasher: Flesh & Blood’.

​Thus far, our journey through the Shudder series, Slasher: Flesh & Blood, has been fascinating to say the least. Simply because this latest chapter in this iconic franchise has taken the time to examine some incredible concepts. Such as the nature of evil and how people can be corrupted by it when a person, they trust in life is rotten to their core and is eager to spread their disease to others. Plus, the first three episodes have also offered up some unique commentary on the wealth divide in America and how money corrupts minds and sounds when its acquisition is the only focus of an individual. But while this has made for some top notch, elevated horror through and through, deep down we all knew that eventually, such cerebral concepts would have to take a backseat in this tale.
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Because there are a lot of unanswered questions floating about this story, such as where on earth Vincent has been after all these years, and who was behind his kidnapping. Plus, Liv has been missing for some time now in the middle of the night and we haven’t a clue if she is safe or not and of course… we are still eager to learn exactly who is behind this night of total terror for the Galloway family and why they’ve chosen violence to teach this twisted family whatever lesson is lurking in the killer’s mind. Well as it turns out, the next episode in this gory saga, ‘Upstairs Downstairs’, opted to move the plot along and answer some of those burning questions. Such as what exactly happened to Liv after she ran off into the night and the good news there is; she’s actually alive and well and has been looking for a way off of this awful island.

In fact, when we catch up with her here, she’s making good progress on an escape route. For she’s found a boat that only needs minimal repair, and she even gets that boat back to the work shed, where it seems for a brief moment that she is going to manage to fix it up and get the hell of away from this never-ending nightmare. But alas, the Gentleman arrives and puts a stop to that, but not in the gory manner that one might expect. Because we also came to learn in this little encounter that Liv can hold her own in a fight. As evidenced by the outright butt-whipping that she provided the Gentleman with before escaping to the house. Giving all of us hope that perhaps someone can defeat this twisted individual after all. 

But while her return to the Galloway estate should have given everyone great comfort and hope, a surprise twist upon her return only brought about more strife. For after her wounds were healed and she had a moment to rest, her mother took the time to comfort her and sing her a sweet and gentle lullaby. One that caught Vincent’s attention because it sounded painfully familiar and rightfully so. For his kidnapper sang that song to him often to bring him comfort and that is when it was revealed that Birgit kidnapped young Vincent in retaliation for all the strife, he and the family caused her and her daughter. A revelation that brought about fury from Florence, and that of course meant that the right course of action was for mother and daughter to flee and that of course, ended in disaster. For the Gentleman eventually caught up with the two of them and pulled Birgit into the darkness of the night when the opportunity was right and that led to another harrowing end for a character.

One that wanted a better life for her daughter and payback for the way a family treated her and well… in the end, this was simply a solid tale through and through. For this one felt like a classic slasher story since it was filled with tension and dark moments and that just speaks to the versatility of this series. Since it can clearly shift from thoughtful horror story to intense ride on a moment’s notice and well, now that the truth is out about Vincent and now that his kidnapper is gone, one has to wonder what kind of chaos awaits Liv next. For this family has proven time and time again that the worst parts of their past fuel them to do awful things and that could spell trouble for the only person thus far that has done anything positive in regard to this awful situation. Until next time.

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