‘The Stand’ Retro Recap: ‘Part III: The Betrayal’

Written by John Edward Betancourt 

When we last left Stu Redman and all of his new friends on The Stand, it seemed as though the great battle between good and evil was on its way. Randall Flagg was building his own army of unsavory people out in the desert, while the closing seconds of 'The Dreams' showed us an incredible convoy on its way to Boulder which meant that, 'Part III: The Betrayal' should have provided us with one tense story.

However, that was simply not the case. This particular entry in the saga decided to go with a true slow burn, one that quite frankly at first seems like a failure when it comes to what this show has stood for thus far, since it features so many scenes of the mundane. There are barbecues to be had, town meetings to revel in and even committee meetings making this almost feel like an end of the world version of The Phantom Menace. But alas, there is a rhyme and a reason as to why this tale slows it down quite a bit; simply because this story is truly setting the stage for our grand finale and this is where we finally get to learn who are characters are when it comes to the good guys and what they are truly made of and more importantly...the events in this episode allow for them to finally believe in a higher power and serve the Lord accordingly. 

If anything, this tale truly serves as a wakeup call for the good folks of the Boulder Free Zone. Because as the story chugs along, Stu Redman and all of his friends quickly come to realize that despite the creature comforts the city of Boulder offers them, and the fact that they cheated death and made it this far, the danger is still quite real. Randall Flagg is preparing for war out in Las Vegas and these poor folks have to do something if they want to survive. That means making sacrifices they never knew they were capable of and asking their friends to perform tough acts that could potentially get them killed, all in the hopes of saving what's left of a fledgling mankind. It makes for some powerful moments, and allows for one character in particular, Stu, to grow to new heights as he quickly becomes the leader of the Free Zone and the man who is forced to make all the tough decisions. 

As for the horror aspect of this story, well that is achieved by the downward spiral of Harold Lauder, who is slowly seduced by Nadine and in turn Flagg as he gives in to the pain of his former life, and goes after those in charge of the Free Zone with explosives, killing several of the town's leaders in a vendetta and dynamite fueled firestorm and really, King relies on the oldest monster in the genre, man, to scare us and while Harold's quest for blood may not be as terrifying as the events of the first two episodes; his desire to cause great harm and how much he seems to relish in his fury is disturbing to say the least. Plus the fallout of his actions are felt greatly since it leaves the Free Zone in utter chaos, which it sinks into further thanks to the passing of Mother Abigail and well, despite seeing Stu and a handful of his closest friends make their way toward Vegas to confront Flagg as God wishes, the devastating events that play out here leave you wondering if they will remotely be successful in this final fight...or if mankind is doomed after all.

In the end, this is an episode that at first, I really didn't enjoy. It honestly felt like filler at the time. But I'm quite glad I decided to revisit it since it was a gentle and powerful character study and the events of this story simply feel natural. By not giving us some grand build up to the final fight, King has allowed for events to unfold as they might in real life, in logical and progressive fashion, and much like the real world when bad arrives in this story, it arrives in spades and it's how Stu and the gang deal with it that matters. Either way, now the stage is truly set. Stu, Glen, Larry and Ralph are headed for Vegas, and what they say and do will determine the fate of mankind and it's starting to become obvious now, thanks to this episode...that the final battle will not go the traditional route in the slightest, and we can expect the unexpected. Until next time.

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