'The Librarians' Recap: 'And the Disenchanted Forest'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

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

One of the many reasons that I’m such a huge fan of TNT’s The Librarians, is the sheer fact that the Writer’s Room of this magnificent show isn’t afraid of addressing the consequences that come forth from a character’s actions and that kind of consistency in the storytelling, had me curious as to what kind of fallout and consequences were going to come about from Flynn’s decision to hand over his proverbial Library Card and walk away from the job at hand and thankfully, last night’s episode, ‘And the Disenchanted Forest’, wasted no time in showing us the lasting impact when it comes to Flynn’s departure.
 
If anything, one might say the response from the team, albeit uncomfortable, was completely and utterly warranted. Because the Librarians were in essence, shattered by his decision. We saw the hurt on all of their faces as Eve explained to them that Flynn had left and left for good, and the negativity from this decision was only compounded by more talk revolving around the ‘One True Librarian’ since the team took the time to infight a bit, as they debated who should fit that bill and in all honesty, the opening to this episode was downright heartbreaking because it was clear now, that Flynn’s exit had created a great divide amongst the team, and I was concerned as to how on earth they would find unity going forward.
 
As it turns out, this moment of discord was nothing more than grief and loss working in disguise because the team once again proved that they can work together in impressive fashion as they unraveled the mystery of the Source Tree. But they did need some time to work through their pain, especially Baird, who blamed herself for Flynn’s exit, since she firmly believed that she didn’t do enough to keep him in the Library and it was quite wonderful to see Eve deal with the ache in her heart and find her strength once again through her team and her actions and while that alone would have made for another stellar episode, the show also decided it was high time to revisit a few themes that have been lingering about this season.

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​Because if you’ll think back to the series premiere, and the Christmas episode, two key concepts were explored in those stories; faith, and understanding one’s purpose and it would seem that a fair chunk of this season is going to explore those notions with each respective Librarian. Ezekiel of course, has already finished his journey of self-exploration since he understands what the Library means to him and what it can do for others and it would seem that this episode served as Jake’s moment of discovery since he found himself in a place where he could have everything he ever dreamed about before he was recruited into the Library.
 
But thankfully, his exploration of love, and the opportunity to interact with the Source Tree in the most intimate way imaginable, seemingly gave Jake a new focus and perspective on what he does, and those final moments with Sarina in the Library, where he asked her to keep it a secret and away from the prying eyes of the world, speaks volumes to the fact that he understands how the Library can be a force for good, and that it can protect people from harm and well, all of these personalized journeys are clearly building up to addressing the matter of the One True Librarian. Because if all of them understand what Jake and Ezekiel understand, there will be no infighting, no power play, just unity and peace.
 
Of course, that’s two Librarians down when it comes to this wave of discovery, leaving Cassandra as the last woman standing and it would seem that next week, she will be heading off on her own voyage of enlightenment and I cannot wait to see what she learns about herself and what the Library means to her. But while we wait for that story to unfold, we can sit back and bask in the glory of one incredible episode. I mean wow, this one packed in a ton storytelling wise and I tip my hat to Writers Nicole Ranadive and Gary Rosen for stuffing so much into the script and Director Dean Devlin for helping the actors deliver some flawless and beautiful performances and for ensuring that this delicate script worked perfectly on screen. Either way, season four is quickly starting to overpower the wonder of season three thanks to its incredible storytelling and for now…it’s back to watching the clock to count down the minutes until next week’s Cassandra-centric episode. Until then. 

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