Violet recaps Season 2 Episode 9 of The Following, titled Unmasked, where Joe helps Micah “make a splash,” and Hardy, Weston, and Max try to figure out who the FBI mole is! Following the recap, both Violet and Josh share their thoughts on the episode.
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Episode Recap of The Following, Season 2 Episode 9: Unmasked
- Micah allows Joe to make a phone call to Jana to help Micah “make a splash.” Carrie tries to get info out of Hardy. Max walks in on Weston in a towel. Max has narrowed it down to 6 possible women who could be the FBI mole, including Mendez. Joe helps Micah record a video message. Emma, Robert, and a killer named Lance will be Micah’s “first messengers” for a plan to take place in New York.
- Hardy thinks Mendez is innocent, but Weston points out that her security codes were used 6 times last year to access Debra Parker’s email. Hardy approaches Mendez and questions her, then backs off. Mendez ditches her cell phone, but Max had bumped into her earlier and placed a tracker on her. Mendez ditches her car and hails as taxi, while Hardy and Weston follow.
- Mendez has the taxi drop her off at Jana’s house, who is her ex. There are other people there, and Mendez insists on speaking to Jana alone. Mendez confronts her in the garage about using her security clearance, and Jana stabs her in the stomach and leaves her there while she goes back inside to visit with her company, acting as if nothing happened.
- Hardy and Weston arrive at Jana’s house, and one of Jana’s friends let them in while Jana is upstairs. They ask about Mendez, and the friend brings Hardy to the garage, where they discover Mendez has been stabbed. Hardy tells the friend to call an ambulance, while he orders the other friend to take the kids out the back. Jana points a gun at Weston as she comes down the stairs. Weston pulls out his gun, as does Hardy, who asks where Joe is. She says it doesn’t matter, and shoots herself in the head.
- Micah has Julia brought to him. While his back is turned, she grabs the gun on the table and shoots – but it’s empty. She realizes that Joe set her up. Joe chokes her to death, and Micah thanks him. Mendez seems to be okay, and is taken away in an ambulance. Weston has sent the info from Jana’s computer to Max, and also has Jana’s cell phone.
- Emma, Robert, and Lance show up at a bookstore for a Carrie Cooke signing. Upon analyzing the info from Jana’s computer, Hardy, Max, and Weston discover that Carrie Cooke is being targeted. They find out about the signing and call the FBI in. Meanwhile, at the signing, as Emma asks Carrie to sign a book to her friend Joe Carroll, Robert and Lance put on white masks and begin slicing people’s throats and stabbing people.
- Emma threatens Carrie at knifepoint to share the video message with the world. They hear sirens, and Emma and Robert escape out the back. Lance is left behind, but he acts like just another victim when the cops come in. When Hardy shows up at the bookstore, Carrie greets him with a hug. The cameras show that there were 3 assailants, though Carrie only saw 2: Emma and a guy wearing a mask.
- Hardy figures out that Lance is the third assailant, and pulls his gun on him, which Lance responds to by holding a police officer at knifepoint. Hardy warns the others that they need him alive. However, the police officer tries to fight back, and another police officer shoots Lance dead. Micah praises Emma and Robert for their efforts, and thanks Joe for his help, as the incident is all over TV.
- Carrie goes on TV and plays the video message. But to Micah’s surprise, the video is of Joe, not of Micah. While the video plays, Micah drops to the floor dying from the wine that Joe poisoned. In the video, Joe unmasks himself, revealing that he is alive, promising salvation. He says that in the coming days more blood will be spilled, and “you will never feel safe again.”
- Joe convinces Robert that it’s a good thing that Micah has “gone home,” and asks Robert to spread the “glorious news” to the others. He also asks Emma to keep an eye on Robert. Robert holds a ceremony at Korban showing that Micah and Julia have been called home, then he welcomes the Prophet Joe to lead them on the path to salvation. The followers chant “Praise Joe.”
- Hardy calls Carrie over so they can have dinner together. They kiss, and probably do more. Meanwhile, Weston goes to a parking garage and gets into the back of an SUV, then is transferred to another car, where he has to put a bag over his head. He is brought to a hotel room, where the FBI is secretly holding Claire, who is still alive and well.
Violet’s Thoughts on Season 2 Episode 9 of The Following: Unmasked
After the relatively slow buildup we’ve had all season, this episode finally contained what we’ve been craving: chaos orchestrated by Joe Carroll! Like it or not, The Following audience members want to see Joe being manipulative. He’s a villain that we love to hate, and we prefer to see him in action, being a master puppeteer, rather than sitting on the sidelines like he has been. Or at least, that’s how I feel anyway. Joe has been so patient with boneheaded Micah, even though the audience could see how annoyed he was with him, and it was pretty awesome the way they tricked Julia. So Joe finally got Julia out of the way once and for all, and then he was able to easily dispose of Micah, followed by a convenient ceremony whereby the followers witness the fact that Julia and Micah have been “called home,” paving the way for Joe to easily step in as their new leader. I think Joe needs a “That was easy” Staples button to press! So yeah, now the world knows that Joe Carroll is still alive, thanks to Carrie Cooke broadcasting the video, and now Joe Carroll has a large group of followers at his beck and call. Let the games begin!
Speaking of Carrie Cooke, did not see it coming for her and Hardy to hook up! I thought he hated her because she stole all his Joe Carroll info from him and wrote a book from it. Does Hardy really need a romantic interest so soon after Lily Gray? And wouldn’t he be a little suspicious of her? In any case, it seems like this sudden romantic connection was done just for the the benefit of the twist at the end of the episode, where we discover that Claire, Hardy’s love, is still alive after all! Seriously, does anyone ever actually die on this show?! Anyway, so we can all see where this is headed. Hardy starts a relationship with Carrie, then finds out Claire is still alive, and conflict results. Not to mention, what is Joe’s reaction going to be when he finds out Claire is alive? Also, why does Weston know about this, but not Hardy, and what is Weston’s purpose in visiting her all of a sudden now? Speaking of Weston, I guess that little towel dropping scene was supposed to slowly ease us into the idea of him and Max getting together. Just get it over with already, we see it coming, no need for the subtleties!
That scene with Jana was kind of crazy. She seemed normal before, when Joe visited her, but now we get to see her true colors, and the fact that any follower of Joe is not of sound mind. Glad they know who the mole is now, so they can move on to other things. But who’s to say there’s not another mole? Hmm…
Looking forward to seeing what Joe has up his sleeve next, finding out what Lily Gray’s next move is, and learning what’s in store for Claire!
Josh’s Thoughts: The Following, Season 2 Episode 9: Unmasked
Wow, what an episode of The Following! There was a lot going on with many characters. Joe Carroll gets his followers, Mike Weston seems to be in contact with the not-dead Claire Matthews, and Agent Gina Mendez gets shanked by her ex over Joe Carroll. I have to say with a few minor quibbles, this was an excellent episode.
To start with the bad, the scene between Max Hardy and Mike Weston towards the beginning with the awkward “dropped towel” scene, was just weird. Why would she sit there and watch him creepily? It was just a weird scene, but in the grand scheme of this episode, I guess I can let that go. Also, what was with Claire’s terrible “hair” when we see her at the end? That black wig looked terrible in my opinion.
Now that that is out of my system, let’s talk about the good. I think both the Gina Mendez and the death of Micah. I really enjoyed the planned stalking of Gina Mendez, with Max’s little bump to plant the tracker, then Ryan Hardy riling her up to make her contact whoever could be assisting in relaying the information to Joe. Interestingly, Ryan makes a comment before following her cab saying that he didn’t believe she was guilty. Turns out, she wasn’t, but was very close to the person who is.
The scene where Jana dies, was also great, also prior to this scene, we learn that she had a psychotic break, and murdered a neighbor’s dog. She legitimately looked to be out of her mind when she was talking to both Gina, and Ryan and Mike. How did Gina decide letting Jana have her FBI clearance codes was a good idea?
Then we have Micah. The surfer dude/hippie cult leader who is more annoying than charismatic, and dumber than a box of bricks. How did people decide to follow this guy? What is great about Micah is Joe’s effect on him. Joe was able to plant the seed of murdering Julia in Micah, and Micah didn’t even realize it. Then of course the video plays that Carrie Cooke was “forced” to air on national TV, which Micah sees–after being given the poisonous drink that Joe provided him with. Certainly a cold blooded move. Once that Robert didn’t seem too concerned about as he saw Micah dying. I guess either Micah’s religious beliefs really infected Robert, or Robert understands–he would be next if he didn’t decide Micah’s death would be a good thing. I wonder though–will the entire cult embrace Joe as their new leader? I would guess there would be some dissenters, but perhaps the Kool-Aid is strong enough that it will not be a problem. I am curious to see if Joe can put these new Followers to better use than the end of last season however.
Overall, it was a great episode. I can’t wait to see what the next move is for Joe, and hope the show doesn’t stumble as much as last season when things didn’t really make sense. I also wonder where Lily Gray is going to fall into the rest of The Following, as we haven’t seen her this episode. I have a feeling that both Ryan and Joe are going to learn of Claire being alive, and Lily Gray may try to exploit this if she is able to learn of her living as well.
I guess my last thoughts are about Claire–How long has she been where she is at? It has been a year. I would think if she is in witness protection, she would be far, far away from this area. I guess the other question I have is, why would Mike Weston have access to Claire, but no one else? At least no one really prominent in the show. Hopefully some of this gets explained in the next episode!
Scenes from The Following, Season 2 Episode 10, Teacher’s Pet
Here are scenes from the next episode of The Following, titled Teacher’s Pet:
