Fantasy Island Season 2 Episode 8 Review: Walk a Country Mile

On Fantasy Island Season 2 Episode 8, “Walk A Country Mile,” the show delivers a fantastic, straightforward episode that propels the rest of the season forward in exciting ways.

The fantasy pushes the story along, which the show has tried and failed to do multiple times. This episode, though, finally succeeds. 

A classic “Parent Trap” episode isn’t what I expect from “Walk a Country Mile,” but it fits with Marie Osmond and Tyler Perez. 

As Shay (Osmond) and Beau (Perez) swap lives, realizing how difficult each person has it — more thoughts on that later — they learn something before returning to themselves.

The fantasy flawlessly intertwines with the stories of our characters: Helene feeling antsy and Elena realizing what a mistake she’s made. 

As much as I’m going to miss Helene, and as much as the show will suffer, it’s nice to see that Helene is an actual person with desires.

Since she was introduced, Helene has been a pawn for everyone else’s lives to move forward, and she’s never been given a chance to be anything other than a grieving daughter.

It’s a shame that she’s deciding to leave now that she is her own established character, but there’s only so much time you can spend on a deserted island with your Dad you never knew and your grandma-best friend.

At one point on “Walk a Country Mile,” it’s quiet but implied that Shay wanting another Grammy for her new writing is a bad thing. 

Shay brushes it off, and so should everyone else.

Wanting nice things, whether they’re luxury items or distinguished awards, is not a bad thing. There’s no reason you shouldn’t be proud to be recognized for your hard work. 

On the other hand, asking me to feel bad for a (very) rich person because they’re facing a reality check is doing too much, Fantasy Island. 

Like Ruby, I haven’t quite figured out who or what Isla is. Is she an old ghost? A siren? A lonely soul wandering the island?

There are several options, and for Ruby to have been upset about Elena putting her guard up, it’s a wonder why she won’t just talk to Elena about it. 

There’s an opportunity to do something exciting with Isla, and how the show builds it up is finally getting interesting. 

Overall, “Walk a Country Mile” is the best episode we have gotten from Fantasy Island in some time, and that’s because of all the incredible storytelling, characters, and actors on board. 

I sincerely hope that even if Isla becomes some mysterious being that can’t be with Ruby, she isn’t too crushed by it. Ruby deserves better than feeling sad as a central storyline.

Stray Thoughts

• “You can’t mourn forever” being used about a breakup is aggressively dramatic. Please be real with me. 
• Helene in the Olympics when?
• If Elena doesn’t loosen up soon, I will need Ruby to lock her in a room with an on-island therapist. 

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Fantasy Island airs Mondays at 9/8c on FOX.

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