The InBetween Review: The Devil’s Refugee (Season 1 Episode 9)

Before we jump into our review of The InBetween Season 1 Episode 9, “The Devil’s Refugee,” you might want to refresh your memory by reading our review of The InBetween Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot.” 

Ed Roven is back on our screens and he’s bringing some history with him. But forgive me in advance because you already know there’s nothing good about it.

Millie literally dances into Cassie’s life in the first scene of the episode and drags her to the scene of another murder with a plea of “Find me.”

It’s disturbing enough to make Cassie ask Tom to open up the cold case we’ll be following for the rest of the episode.

But let’s pause for a quick second to address a question I’ve had all season: what determines the nature of Cassie’s experiences? 

She often doesn’t know when she’ll be transported somewhere (these are more than visions as Cassie can feel while there). That’s easy enough to accept. 

But sometimes, as is the case with Millie, she doesn’t even know she’s seeing a spirit. 

Yet, later on the episode, she tells Damien she has the ability to sense when Ed is listening to a conversation. So, which one is it? 

I’m not quite sure there’s an answer here. But in the future, the show needs to better define Cassie’s abilities. It will make her a more reliable character to the audience.

This is simply a side note that needed mentioning first because the flashback on this episode is so intense that nothing is going to seem important after we discuss it. 

As crass as this sounds if you’re a fan of crime shows you know that fictional murder scenes are sometimes not as difficult to watch as they should be. 

They are often expected on a procedural especially. Plus, viewers rarely have an emotional tie to the victim strong enough to elicit more than general discomfort. 

Millie’s murder is different. It’s one of the most difficult scenes I’ve ever watched.

Perhaps it’s because while I know Ed is a serial murderer, I also believe he loved Millie.

Perhaps the scene is made worse by the fact that viewers know Cassie reminds Ed of Millie and we’ve seen Ed be helpful, if not kind to Cassie. 

Cassie even admits as much when confessing to Tom that Ed has been visiting her since the Mark Waterman case. 

It may be because viewers are told that this is Ed’s first murder and that during those summer days with Millie he actually is an innocent man. 

We know that Ed has the option to save Millie and turn in his mentor Frank Blair. He could have lived a completely different life.

We know that when Ed walks into that room and sees Millie, he’s starting down a dark path and will never look back. We know that if Frank hadn’t chosen the path for him Millie might be alive.

She and Ed might be in love. Mark Waterman might be a well-adjusted man taking care of his mother instead of a convicted murderer. 

Whatever the reason, watching Ed take Millie’s walkman headphones from around her neck sends chills down my arms. Watching Cassie cry as Ed chokes Millie out brings water to my eyes. 

Women trust these men. And why wouldn’t they trust a man who loves them back? 

This is the best case of the season so far even if it’s just an elaborate setup to let viewers know that Mark has the same abilities as Cassie and Ed is going to help him escape prison.

Viewers feel the impact because we’ve seen Cassie and Ed’s relationship grow. 

Growth has a positive connotation, but that isn’t always the case. Cassie’s relationship with Ed has grown whether she likes it or not. 

She might be in danger, and she may have played a part in putting all of Seattle in danger by getting so close to Ed and provoking him. 

That means that a central question on this episode might come up again in the season finale. Can Cassie handle the repercussions of her abilities or does she need the protection that Tom and Bryon so often want to give her? 

In the scene where Cassie is asking for help with interrogation techniques for questioning Ed she says to Tom,  

“So it’s fine when you need my help with a case, but when it’s the other way around and I come to you I get shut down? You need to decide how you see me, Tom. Am I the little girl you want to protect or am I the woman who helps you solve crimes? You can’t have it both ways.”

On one hand, Cassie is right. It’s not fair for Tom to exploit Cassie’s abilities for his cases but not provide the same help back. 

Considering that he’s like an adopted father to her makes the feminist sentiment of the quote even stronger. It’s not necessarily his biological right to worry about her. 

On the other hand, a dad is a dad. Tom can’t help worrying. And he probably knows why Damien is going to the bar but doesn’t stop him.

They both respect her. But Damien is quicker to see Cassie as an equal. That makes me want to see a romantic relationship between Damien and Cassie even more. 

Cassie’s relationships aside, viewers are left with a few enormous questions at the end of The InBetween‘s Season 1 penultimate episode. 

Will Mark and Ed succeed breaking Mark out of prison? What will Mark do once he gets out?

Perhaps the most intriguing of all — how does Mark Waterman breaking out of prison help Ed Roven break out of The InBetween? 

What did you think of this episode of The InBetween? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The InBetween airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on NBC.

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