Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Reaper: Follow the White Rabbit

"Adapt or die, Sam," says the Devil (Ray Wise) at one point during the very funny "Dirty Sexy Mongol" last night, and the same could be said for the Reaper series, as it still struggles to find an audience in its second season. While the series maintained its numbers from last week's premiere, it's still the CW's sacrificial lamb left to Idol's slaughter.

'Adapt' was the theme for the episode, with the escaped demon being the infamous mogul Genghis Kahn, who quickly adapts to his surroundings, becoming a corporate raider, Bluetooth tech and all. But the symbolism of Ben's white rabbit should not be overlooked. Usually, a white rabbit means innocence (hello, Ben!) and rebirth, while the act of following the rabbit is a metaphor for waking up to the reality of your situation (see Alice in Wonderland, The Matrix and Lost). The somewhat innocent Reaper has now hopefully followed that rabbit and woken up to the reality of the series' surroundings and is now ready to kick some butt. This episode reminded me a lot of how Buffy was when it was firing on all cylinders, and I'm hopeful that it means a return to the demon rebellion story while Sam searches for Alan and the hope of getting out from under the thumb of his devilish father.

Musically, the series continues to impress, having fun with the "Sock wants to sleep with his stepsister" storyline. First there was the "I'm wrestling with my brother!" bit to Santogold's "Lights Out," which made me thirsty for a Bud Light. Then, as Line Out warned us, The Saturday Knights' "Foreign Affair" made an appearance. It was a short, but oh so sweet cameo for the song, which fit in with Sock's desire for his Asian relative. After that, Sock's dance-off, pants-off was hilariously choreographed to Chromeo's "Fancy Footwork," forever linking the image of Tyler Labine's dancing to the song in my head.

Playlist: Reaper - Episode 2.02
1. "Lights Out" - Santigold
2. "Foreign Affair" - The Saturday Knights
3. "Fancy Footwork" - Chromeo
4. "A Little More of Me" - Juliana Cole
5. "Ride Them Tails" - Brian Desveaux

Previously: Family Bonding (Episode 2.01)

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