'The Librarians' Recap: 'And the Dark Secret' & 'And the Steal of Fortune'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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

​Ah, you have to love the month of December. There’s a delightful chill in the air, sometimes there’s snow on the ground, and everyone has the season of giving on their mind. But perhaps the sweetest moment of all for nerds and geeks everywhere, is the sheer fact that this month also signals the return of one of our favorite television shows, The Librarians, and the time to enjoy wonderful new adventures with this incredible group of heroes has arrived at last since last night signaled the beginning of season four and I have to be honest, I was quite curious as to what this new season was going to bring to the table for the Librarians this year.
 
After all, they won the ultimate battle between good versus evil when they sent Apep packing in last year’s season finale, so what other dangers could possibly await them? Well thankfully the show wasted zero time in introducing a big threat to us since we met the Order of the Shadows in the opening moments of ‘And the Dark Secret’ and well, they’re quite frightening to say the least. Granted, there’s always something chilling about a villain or villains that want to control our minds but the fact that these ‘fine gentlemen’ are on a quest to plunge the world back into the dark ages makes them infinitely more terrifying.
 
However, as this show is wont to do, it’s not enough for our intrepid Librarians to just duke it out with a nasty villain. They need to be challenged and they need to grow and surprisingly, a lot of the character focus fell to Flynn in this series premiere since he was forced to face his past when it was discovered that his original Guardian, Nicole, was locked away in the basement of the Library, by Jenkins, to preserve the prophecy and really, what made this storyline so special is that it allowed for us to see a softer side of Flynn, one that reminds us of his humanity and how far he’s removed himself from it within the walls of the Library and also because this sequence of events set up what appears to be a potentially big thematic concept for season four, faith.
 
Because Nicole did a fine job of making Flynn question the purpose of the Library and its intentions for that matter and for the first time ever, we saw him doubt his actions and his own role in everything when it comes to the Library and despite being able to defeat this awful organization (at least for now because I know I’m not alone in thinking that the Order will be back before long), Flynn still seems to have questions when it comes to his purpose and the integrity of what he’s doing, and it would seem that every Librarian this year is going to have to put pure blind faith into the Library and that it is in fact doing the right thing or things when it comes to keeping the world safe from those who wish to cause humanity, harm. 

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​However, rather than end the opening of season four on a somewhat sour note, we were blessed with a second episode last night, one that quite frankly, had a classic and whimsical feel to it. Because ‘And the Steal of Fortune’ found a way to pepper in some ancient mysticism with plenty of laughs and this episode was nothing short of a pure delight. In this particular tale, the Librarians are forced to investigate a casino named Fortune Downs, simply because the bad luck that surrounds the people that spend their hard-earned money in this place simply cannot be related to coincidence, it has to be magic…
 
Now what gave this episode a classic Librarians feel is the sheer fact that the Writer’s Room and Director Eriq La Salle found a way to give the audience a sense of grand adventure, in the middle of a Casino, which really is quite the feat since those places are closed off for the most part, and what was equally as impressive was how seamlessly the script was able to integrate the Greek Goddess Fortuna into modern times with her awesome plan when it comes to stealing luck and really, Sunny Mabrey stole the show in this episode with her portrayal of Fortuna since her performance featured a wonderful mix of confidence, confusion and pure unadulterated ego.
 
But really the highlight of this particular story, was that it was just plain fun. The Librarians were able to do their thing, and deliver a lot of laughs along the way. I mean come on, the fight scene where Jake and Baird are drunk on bad luck was utterly delightful and really, watching Cassandra figure how to make the Roulette wheel work to her advantage with a touch of math was as magical as the artifacts she works to protect and I’m incredibly hard pressed to find a moment in this particular tale where a smile wasn’t plastered on my face from the laughs and the joy this one sent my way.
 
If anything, this was quite the interesting way to open season four of the series since in reality, these episodes are so vastly different. We had the darker, grittier aspect of season three present in the first hour and the second story was vintage Librarians through and through, and really, what has me fascinated about season four, is that in many ways…we are now in uncharted territory when it comes to this show. There’s mystery to be found everywhere once again, and until the Order returns, there’s no real villain waiting in the wings and I think that’s going to allow for the series to do what it does best, and try new things storytelling wise that will no doubt impress us and wow us. Either way, I’m so glad this show is back on the air, and I cannot wait to see what other adventures await us as season four rolls on. Until next time. 

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