1x09 Henry Deaver

[7.5/10] I have to give Castle Rock credit for its concept. While I find much of the nuts and bolts storytelling of the show pretty lacking, I like the essential reveal here, strongly hinted at in prior episodes.

Castle Rock is built on a hellmouth -- that much is not all that shocking. What’s interesting is that the central mystery of the series, and also the reason behind (our) Henry Deaver’s disappearance in 1991, and the appearance of The Kid is that the town exists as a vergence point among different times and places and perhaps even dimensions. It’s a little out there, but I appreciate the sci-fi neatness of that idea.

I also like the idea that neither The Kid, nor young Henry, are evil. They’re just from the “wrong” universe for where they are, and that causes problems, some kind of negative energy, for everyone and everything they come near. The concept is applied pretty inconsistently in the series, but it’s an interesting one. I also like it as an explanation for why neither “Henry” ages in the other’s universe.

And hey, I also appreciate the cinematography. Using different times of day, and vague fuzz on the edges of the frame while shooting from different perspectives to signify how different people are experiencing that vergence point is a nice stylistic choice.

I also approve of the fact that this episode was fairly focused. We basically get things from The Kid’s perspective the whole way through, which, while not hitting the heights of the Molly- or Ruth-focused episodes, makes “Henry Deaver” a more propulsive outing. Some of that is the show getting by on the inherent coolness of alternate universes, and the sort of intrinsic charge from seeing familiar characters in different guises (see also: Agents of Shield, of all things), but the episode does enough to shift The Kid’s home universe just enough to be different, while keeping it familiar enough to make those differences notable.

Granted, it’s not perfect. For one thing, the scene-by-scene pacing still drags mightily at times. Bill Skaarsgard is way more effective as a creepy, nigh-silent presence than he is as a down-to-earth regular guy in terms of performance. And once again, the episode delivers its reveals, but then belabors them to make sure the audience is following along.

Still, while I wasn’t necessarily impressed or emotionally compelled by the big opening of the mystery box here, it was enough to make me go “that’s neat”, which is more than a lot of shows trying to do big reveals can muster.

Overall, this is an interesting sideways method to reveal a reasonably satisfying solution to the show’s mysteries, with some fun (and occasionally creepy) alternate universe stuff to go with.