Slow Horses Season 2 Episode 4 Review: Cicada
Slow Horses Season 2 Episode 4, “Cicada,” is another stressful episode. The series is really nailing the thriller aspect so far this season, which has been amazing.
There are a lot of developments with all the Russians, and I’m having flashbacks of trying to read The Brothers Karamazov in college and struggling to keep everyone straight.
The show has done a decent job of trying to keep us up to speed by either repeatedly showing names on dossiers or dropping in reminders during conversations. It took me a minute to figure out who Catherine is meeting with, and I was a bit lost until she brings up that this guy connected Webb to Pashkin.
I would appreciate it if someone at Slough House could make a chart or murder board or something, so I can better see all the connections between people. Based on how the show has handled everyone so far, I have faith that it’ll continue to do its best to remind us of everyone’s names and connection to each other.
Something that would be beneficial is a team meeting where everyone shares an update on what they’ve been doing, and then the bigger picture can be spelled out a bit more and be more solidified.
Speaking of Catherine, her chess match is a bit boring. Sure, this is her way of trying to help out, but there’s so much else going on that’s a lot more captivating that it would’ve been best if this whole storyline never occurred.
There are better ways for her to be useful, and we do not need to dredge up her past again. We spent far too much time during Slow Horses Season 1 on it. Let’s move on.
The only potential benefit to her chess match is maybe she’s trying to be out in the field more, which would be some character growth for her.
Speaking of fieldwork, it’s safe to say that River isn’t quite ready to be out there on his own yet.
Between running away super suspiciously after Kelly asked him to stay put and throwing out his phone that isn’t smashed to bits to prevent someone from using it, River makes some poor spy choices. Don’t even get me started on how he didn’t pick up on Alex not being innocent as she slowly moved toward him and then tased him.
River, buddy, come on.
Seeing as how we still have two episodes left, it’s not surprising that River isn’t able to bring down this whole little ring without a hitch. There’s also the fact that he’s still new to the job and by himself, so it would’ve been a bit too unbelievable if he managed it all.
I’m looking forward to Jackson hearing about this, and all the choice words he’ll have for River. Does that make me a bad person?
Admittedly, Alex being the actual spy and not her husband is a nice little twist. There was never a moment where she came across as suspicious or anything but kind, especially compared to her husband.
Stray Thoughts
- I’m not sure what role (if any) Kelly and her father will play in future episodes. Maybe they’ll save River?
- Jackson giving Rebecca the number to his noodle shop is hilarious.
- Is the bomb for the home secretary’s speech? It would be nice to tie something to it, since we had to learn about it for some reason.
What did you think of this episode of Slow Horses? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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New episodes of Slow Horses premiere Fridays on Apple TV+.
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Allison Nichols
Allison is in a love affair with television that doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Slightly damaged fictional characters are her weakness. She loves to spend her free time curled up with a cat and a show to binge-watch. Allison is a Tomatometer-approved critic (Rotten Tomatoes).