TV Review: Teen Wolf (4×03) “Muted”

Now that’s more like it.

This week on Teen Wolf the most unlikely thing happened-it was fun! It was reminiscent of the first two seasons in tone due to the High School and Lacrosse field setting and after the two opening episodes that left much to be desired it was a welcome return. This is a show which is at it’s best when it embraces its true nature-it’s innate silliness that manages to mix enough character sincerity and humor to keep it grounded. This week we got an opening shot with a cat covered in blood named Willow, a muted man who’s hunting down mythical creatures for some reason but we also got Scott and Stiles acting like goofballs on the field for a good portion of the episode.

I’ll be upfront and admit that at first I was worried that it would be another week of tonal disaster and cheesy heroics. We meet a young man who’s family has just been brutally murdered by a nameless assassin.  Luckily and surprisingly aside from a few moments between Derek and Braedon the rest of the episode is high school bound.

Last week we were reminded that they were teenagers-this week we actually got to see them behave as such.

The lacrosse tryout is the BIG event of the week where Stiles and Scott encounters a new threat to their positions on the team in the form of a hotshot freshman Liam (played by newcomer Dylan Sprayberry). The sequence is lighthearted and fun and allows the natural buddy chemistry of  Tyler Posey and Dylan O’ Brien to shine.

The other big moments that happen include: the awkward yet sweet relationship progress between Scott and Kira. Due to Allison’s death their relationship had been at a standstill but this week Scott decided he wanted to be happy and threw caution to the wind.

In other pairing news Lydia and Deputy Parish bonded over finding dead bodies in zip lock bags, Braedon and Derek teamed up to find Kate and Stiles and Malia share an absurdly tender scene where Stiles realizes just how similar the two of them are.

The biggie though happens in the last few moments of the episode. Liam is the hospital after being inured by Scott on the lacrosse field. Scott and Stiles are there and Stiles tells Scott that the’s allowed to want things-he’s human after all. Stiles leaves and that’s when things begin to go a little nutty.

The kid from the beginning turns out to be a creature that eats humans-ew-and takes Liam with him as his next meal. Scott races to the roof to save him and they end up in a precarious position with Liam dangling over the rooftop, about to fall to his death and then two things happen-Scott bites Liam in a desperate move to potentially save his life if he falls and the mouthless assassin returns to kill the teen cannibal he’d left alive.

But it’s that first part that really knocked the episode home because man I never thought that Scott would bite an innocent, no matter the circumstances. This one decision is going to alter his future greatly now and I can’t wait to see what the consequences are.

8/10