Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Heart of the Undead

Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal Season 3 Episode 7, “Heart of the Undead,” sees Spear finally make a harrowing realization about who he is.

Much of Primal Season 3 focuses on the consequences of Spear being brought back to life as a zombie. He is lost, confused, and chasing vague memories he can’t seem to fully piece together.

But, in “Heart of the Undead,” we see the social consequences of Spear’s resurrection.

It’s already painful that Fang does not trust him, but to see the entire village vilify him as a monster feels like an injustice. It’s a fitting turn of events, but tragic nonetheless.

Primal Season 3 Episode 6, “Cavern of Horrors,” is notably less visually ambitious, and it’s clear they are saving the impressive backgrounds for this one.

“Heart of the Undead” features some jaw-dropping environments. From the village to the jungles, to the sequence of Spear in the waterfalls, this episode is a treat to look at.

There aren’t any traditional Primal fight sequences, but Spear being accosted and attacked by the villagers does embody the overwhelming odds this show loves to pit its characters against.

Despite his strength, Spear can’t fight back. He can only run, and it feels so unfair to him.

In the aforementioned gorgeous waterfall sequence, Spear has a massive revelation about himself. Upon catching a glimpse of his reflection, he realizes for the first time that he’s a zombie.

This moment of horrifying clarity conveys so much emotion through its animation. The way Spear finally acknowledges his skeletal hand and recoils from the memories of the terrified villagers is visceral.

It’s all tied together by the beautifully overwhelming musical score that punctuates all of Spear’s realizations.

You can see and hear his terror and eventually his denial.

Spear’s reunion with Fang and Mira seems to have been short-lived. He’s once again separated from them.

However, this time, Mira is actively searching for him, with a worried Fang following. It’s hard to say whether or not Spear is going to give up on trying to get through to Fang, but she seems to be a bit conflicted.

While it’s likely a bit frustrating for fans, Fang’s distrust makes perfect sense. Fang has seen the undead before and she doesn’t have any reason to trust one of them.

But it’s clear Mira is disappointed with Fang for being hostile towards Spear. If nothing else, now Fang is at least willing to find him for Mira’s sake.

The episode is in an unfortunately very familiar place.

Season 3 has been full of callbacks, and now we get the return of the zombie dinosaurs and ape-men of season 1.

There’s a good chance the next episode will see Spear facing off against one of these ape men. This fight is one of the more visually impressive of season 1, so it’s exciting that we may get to see another.

Although this admittedly ends the episode in a grim place. Whether or not Mira and Fang will manage to track down Spear is up in the air.

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Genndy Tartakovsky’s Primal airs Sundays at 11:30 P.M. ET on Adult Swim.

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