Teen Wolf 5×18 Review: “The Maid of Gévaudan”

“The Maid of Gévaudan” marks the return of Crystal Reed to Teen Wolf, this time as the hunter Marie-Jeanne Valet who successfully took down the Beast.

Her introduction, accompanied by a cover of “Save Tonight” by Zayde Wølf, was without a doubt one of the greatest moments of Teen Wolf. Incredible visuals and a strong, focused story made for an epic episode this week.

Gerard Argent aka Grandpa Death recounts the tale of Marie-Jeanne to Lydia as the others scramble to hide out from the Beast in the high school after a disastrous lacrosse game. A significant portion of the episode is Marie-Jeanne’s story told through flashback, with only a few scenes taking place in the present where the last episode “A Credible Threat” left off.

This episode is also the directorial debut of Teen Wolf producer Joe Genier. The spectacular directing really enhances the story, and I hope to see more episodes directed by the talented Mr. Genier soon. After watching this episode, I can’t wait to check out his upcoming feature, the thriller “The Secrets of Emily Blair.”

Crystal Reed killed it as Marie-Jeanne, both literally and figuratively. Outside of a few wonky wigs, the show did an excellent job of bringing 1760s France alive for the viewers. “The Maid of Gévaudan” would actually serve as a great backdoor pilot for a spin-off focusing on Marie-Jeanne Valet and Henri Argent hunting supernatural creatures all over the country. I could totally be down for that. Anyone else? Get on it, MTV.

The only major criticism I had with this episode is the anticlimactic reveal of the season long question: who is the Beast? The answer was pretty obvious, as it was the only teenage human left on the show outside of Stiles.

That’s right, it was Mason. Scott tracks the Beast’s scent and finds Mason’s bloody shoes. We get a brief moment of Mason’s wide-eyed confusion before Corey snatches Mason and drags him off. To protect him? To give him to Theo? I guess we will have to wait for next week’s episode to find out.

Now, here’s the thing: I don’t want them to find a way to save Mason. I know that sounds terrible, and it’s not because of a lack of love for the character. Mason is funny, adorable, and his excitement for the supernatural is fantastic. The problem is, we’ve seen too many characters saved after turning into monsters. Jackson was resurrected after becoming the murderous Kanima. Stiles was saved after being taken over by the Nogitsune. It’s time that the pack encounters a situation where they are unable to save their friend from the monster that they have become. I want to see the fallout and the toll that this takes on the characters when the only answer to stopping the Beast is Mason’s death.

This episode also featured the epic line from Malia telling Braeden, “Bring your shotgun. Bring all your shotguns.” This was added to the script by new staff writer and my best friend, Will Wallace! Go, Will!

What did you think of Crystal Reed’s return to the show? Do you think that the pack should find a way to kill the Beast without killing Mason?

Author: Kalissa

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