Now that we know a government in some form still exists, the introduction of President Archer into the mix adds a new layer and long awaited plot point. Is there somebody out there still in charge? Archer establishes herself early on when she observes Avery held prisoner in the containment chamber. Archer understands the dangers this creature represents and asks Axel whether there’s “a way to kill it.” This brief exchange prompts Julius to remember the Sunshine Unit and wonder whether Doc may be able to help. Good news on multiple fronts because Doc’s absence continues to be sorely felt, and more importantly, the answers still seem to lie in the science. To this point, only a beheading appears to successfully put down a vampire.

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Since her return to human form, Ivory adds a fresh perspective with her intimate knowledge of the Sisterhood and its tactics and aspirations, and we’re treated to a gentle scene in which the president not only humanizes herself but acknowledges the pain and sacrifices Ivory’s endured. While it’s a moving exchange as Archer recounts her son’s serious illness, Jennifer Cheon Garcia plays Ivory with a subtle skepticism that acknowledges the president may have motives yet to become clear. Later, when Jack begins her recovery and Archer announces plans to take her to safety, Ivory’s request to accompany her friend signals that all may not be as it seems. Of course, everything’s not as it seems since Jack’s not Jack, Archer’s no longer Archer, and the distractions multiply at a dizzying pace.

One of the greatest challenges Vanessa faces along her journey has been learning who to trust, and between Violet’s memories of the Dark Realm and the realization that the Dark One has taken Jack’s form, the truth becomes increasingly difficult to ascertain. One thing we know for sure, however, is that Jack remains trapped in a coffin somewhere in the Dark Realm while Dracula enjoys free rein in the real world. There are subtle hints that Jack is not who she appears, but it’s the flashback to their time in the parallel world that lays the groundwork for what takes place in the present.

Bathed in sinister red light, Violet and Jack appear in a room full of crypts that eerily foreshadows the season’s final scene, and a strangely familiar voice tells them to “follow and all will become clear.” Tricia Helfer’s Dracula returns, and as she nonchalantly pours tea into a cup, the attempt to draw the sisters into her dark world begins. “Come, my children; it is time you knew everything.” Considering everything these two have recently learned about their origins, any talk about revealing their true destiny is understandably met with a reasonable amount of skepticism. Implying that the sisters have been lied to only reinforces the evil manipulation Dracula imposes on them, and Jack clearly lets the Dark One know she’s not buying this approach. Does Dracula fear Jack more than Violet? “If I wanted you dead, you already would be,” she tells the sisters, but in the end, it’s Jack that remains trapped.