Lovecraft Country Review: Full Circle (Season 1 Episode 10)
The need for power always comes with consequences. On Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 10, “Full Circle,” we come back around to that with Christina, but in the end, is it enough?
The episode leans a little too heavily into its least interesting aspect, but still manages to capture the emotion of Atticus meeting his mother and Letitia accepting her fate as protector. While it may be a little too exposition heavy so early on, it does help center the show before heading toward the confrontation.
The problem is still the inconsistency of the magic system. Leti can be shot, killed, and resurrected on Lovecraft Country Season 1 Episode 2, “Whitey’s on the Moon,” but Atticus can’t be saved. Christina can become immortal, but that can still be taken away after the fact.
The magic side of the story has been the weak link of the show for a while, and for the finale to lean so far into it is a bit of a downer. The science fiction part of the story works, as does the cultural touchstones that are important and speak on through generations, whereas the magic feels like a cure-all rather than a baked in feature.
The ritual is certainly an exciting visual treat, especially as Leti and Ji-Ah interfere, but the villagers holding everyone hostage disappear once things get out of hand rather than helping out as they have before. They are willing to get completely wrecked on the bridge, but once things get wild with magic, they’re gone.
It leaves Christina’s downfall feeling somewhat like a cop out rather than an infliction of her own hubris. We need the enemy to fail, even though she’s essentially succeeded. Atticus is gone, but at least it’s not in vain as his family lives on.
But there are tons of questions still. Is Ruby dead, as it’s insinuated before the fight between Christina-Ruby and Leti? It feels like we aren’t getting the right amount of closure on Tic and Ruby as the fatalities of the show, when they’re incredibly important characters.
Are we okay with Diana becoming a murderer now that she has a robot arm? And wouldn’t it make more narrative and emotional sense for Leti to be the one to strike that final blow?
Like a lot of the show’s bigger, violent moments, they feel like a cycle between exploitation for the sake of it, or trying to make a cool moment stand out. Some are definitely executed with expert precision, like almost all of the premiere, but here it doesn’t quite land.
The best moments of the episode come from quieter, somber affairs. The scene of Tic being baptised (though we do not get to see that part), and Hippolyta inspiring Diana, are powerful scenes of two characters gaining a little faith.
Faith can be in hard supply these days, and so these messages are needed more than ever. Both Tic and Diana are at their lowest points, at least in terms of their arcs, and the people that mean the most to them pull them back from that edge of despair and give them a new lease to fight another day.
It’s also appreciated that the faith here isn’t entirely based in religion, but in believing in something, anything, so that you have something to hold onto.
There’s also a lot of fun in simply enjoying each other’s company, like the scene in the car on the way to Ardham. It’s been a rare sight for character to let loose, especially since George’s death, and singing along together is a nice little reprieve before the tragedy kicks in.
There is more than enough here to continue from, with Diana and the shoggoth, Letitia using spells to further peace, and more monster stories to uncover, along with touching on the better aspect of the show, the social and cultural injustice done upon a people.
Plus we have Hippolyta with her potential laboratory, which we don’t get to see for some reason, which could be the start of more time travel stories. But that’s just a guess, as again, we didn’t get to see it.
While I may sound down on Lovecraft Country, there are aspects that do absolutely excel. Some episodes this season are incredible. It’s just that the stuff around it is muddled and doesn’t have impact.
Leaning into racial inequality and pushing on that is the show at its best, and using that to tie into a science fiction story, where Black characters normally aren’t the leads, is a wonderful jumping off point.
But for it to go beyond itself, a tightening on its magic systems and its rules for one person over another are needed.
What did you think of this episode of Lovecraft Country? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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Lovecraft Country airs Sundays at 9/8c on HBO.
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Kevin Lever
Kevin Lever has been following television closely for most of his life, but in starting to cover it, he has grown a further appreciation. He strives to give the blockbusters their due, and give the lesser known shows a spotlight to find more fans.