‘Homecoming’ Recap: ‘Needle’

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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

If there is one lesson in life that every single person out there needs to learn at some point or another, it would have to be, to know when to take a step back and regroup, when the going gets tough. Because when things don’t go our way, we have a tendency to double down and try to force whatever it is we want to happen into existence, and that usually ends badly. Because it makes us desperate, to the point where we make ugly mistakes. But if we just take a moment to think about what’s happening in a calm and logical fashion, we can approach our problem or task with a clear mind and a new plan, and this is sadly a lesson that Alex did not learn in time, in the next episode of Homecoming.
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Because when we catch up with her in ‘Needle’, she’s desperate to stop Walter from heading to Geist Headquarters, and rather than pause and ponder upon a new and proper approach to appealing to his better nature, she decides the nuclear option is the only way to go. Which motivates her to fill a syringe with as much of the memory wiping drug that she feels comfortable with, and practice on a melon in order to figure out the best way to quickly inject the drug into Walter. Which would effectively solve her problem by forcing him to forget everything once again and once she was comfortable with her needle dropping skills, she set out to Walter’s home to finish the job and secure a wonderful future for her and Audrey.

But alas, Walter wasn’t home upon her arrival and while she tried to figure out his whereabouts, she ended up running into him at her hotel. Wherein Mister Cruz offered up an olive branch, one that would involve a day of fishing and friendship. Something that Alex was quick to accept in the hopes of getting the chance to stick him. But as their little journey into the woods continued along, Alex once again found herself in an uncomfortable place. Because Walter was now asking all the questions, trying desperately to get to know her, or to get her to slip up. Something that forced Alex to steel her nerves and push ahead like always, in the hopes that Walter wouldn’t realize in the slightest that trouble was waiting for him on the horizon.

Which was another mistake on Alex’s part, because once again, she underestimated his savvy and his skill in observing people. And once they were alone in the middle of nowhere, he revealed why he was so curious about Alex and her past, simply because… he knew everything about her was a lie. For he knew damn well that snipers use yards to measure over meters, a faux pas she made when discussing her ‘sniper friend’, the day before. And his concerns about that slip up, prompted him to follow her throughout the night and most of the day to see what she was all about, and with her cover blown and her safety compromised in her mind, Alex did her best to escape Walter. Even going so far as to be honest about his time at the Homecoming facility.

If anything, being exposed and cornered and exhausted put Alex in a desperate corner. The kind that forces one to think in a wild and confused fashion and being in that place mentally, prompted her to make one final and unfortunate mistake. For in a last-ditch effort to subdue Walter with the drug, he turned the tables and plunged that needle into her arm and well, that brings us supremely close to present day. For now, Alex is without her memory, and it won’t be long before she finds her way back to Geist and a love that is unknown to her, and it should be quite interesting to see what awaits us next in this tale. For we are near the end of our journey, since the season two finale is up next and knowing this series, the final chapter in Alex’s adventures will be filled with epic moments and a satisfying end. Until next time.

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