SurrealEstate 3×9 Review: “Grave Matters”

SurrealEstate season 3 episode 9, titled ‘Grave Matters’, served as a penultimate chapter that just felt… off.

I don’t know what it is. But to me, the pacing of the second half of Surreal Estate season 3 just isn’t it. Like, don’t get me wrong, I liked how ‘Grave Matters’ focused on Rita and fleshed her out as a character instead of continuing to use her as a stereotypical “rival” for the Roman Ireland Agency that occasionally popped up to stir trouble. However, the penultimate episode wasn’t the place for taking such a Rita-focused detour.

In a way, the events of ‘Grave Matters’ came across as the writers padding out the episode runtime just so the second-to-last offering could end on a particular cliffhanger before next week’s finale. 

The main plot had Rita reaching out to Luke to team up to help one of her incredibly rich clients. Turns out, a woman named Stephanie was running out of time to gain ownership of her deceased father’s estate. Stephanie’s father, Magnus, liked playing games. Since Stephanie was a child, her father would make her answer riddles and solve puzzles whenever she wanted something. Now, even after his death, he wanted Stephanie to follow a bunch of clues to learn the password to his laptop. She only had until midnight to do so.

Having Susan, Lomax, and August go on an adventure following one clue to the next in a way that had nothing to do with the season-long plot thread involving Tyler/Malec was an interesting choice by the writing team. I enjoyed seeing Lomax take the lead as the trio solved puzzles around a graveyard (a location Lomax was understandably familiar with). To raise the stakes, the puzzles were booby traped becuase Magnus was twisted like that. And while it was obvious none of the co-leads were going to be fatally injured, I would have still liked to have seen them try and solve the puzzles while ensuring they wouldn’t get hurt in the process, instead of them avoiding the traps because of sheer luck or… let’s be real… plot convenience.

As for Rita, I was pleasantly surprised seeing her be the one who got to have a conversation with Magnus’s ghost in his mansion. The two talked about emotionally charged parent/child relationships. We got to learn why Magnus was making Stephanie go through all of the trouble from beyond the grave. He wanted her daughter to finally “work” for something in her life. I understood where Magnus was coming from, but he could have handled the situation a lot better, especially when Stephanie was growing up. But then again, that’s true for a bunch of parents out there. Hindsight is 20/20.

I liked how Rita handled her paranormal predicament. She kept her cool and was pivotal in encouraging Magnus to gain some closure with his daughter before parting for the afterlife. We even got a scene where Rita reached out to her own daughter to rebuild their relationship. I appreciated getting to see a more “human” side to Rita. But then again, the penultimate episode wasn’t the time for taking such a journey. The pacing didn’t make sense to me at all.

Other relationships that came up were Susan’s budding romance with Crash and Luke reaching out to Megan. Susan was understandably concerned about telling Crash the truth about her supernatural abilities and the type of properties she sold. August offered good advice to her. If Crash wasn’t comfortable with who Susan was, she should learn about it now instead of somewhere down the line. If you felt the need to hide your truth to be with someone, that particular person wasn’t for you to begin with.

Also, was anyone else surprised to learn that August’s relationship had ended with Rochelle? Did I miss something in a previous episode, or did the breakup occur offscreen? I’m kind of disappointed. I liked the two together. August’s scene with Susan made me miss Father Phil even more. In my opinion, Father Phil would have been the perfect character to give Susan advice about finding the right person and building a life together. I want to know Anthony’s thoughts about his spouse going around fighting actual demons and evil spirits. Hopefully, the husbands return to the series if SurrealEstate gets renewed for a season four.

Luke’s conversation with the ghost of an old woman helped give him the push he needed to reveal his true feelings to Megan. Waiting for the “right” moment to be with someone doesn’t always pan out the way you would like it to. If you love a person, it’s better to let them know and then try to work together to build a relationship. Of course, context matters. Don’t be a creep about it.

Luke still loved Megan. And ignoring his feelings for her wasn’t doing him or Megan any favors. Yes, she was in a relationship with another dude, but I think it was important for Luke to tell her the truth. I liked how the writers handled their conversation. Kudos to Luke for being respectful of Megan’s current relationship and not forcing her to end things or making it complicated by leaning in to kiss her. I mean, it’s still a complicated situation. But I would still give Luke points for how he talked about his feelings, especially when it’s clear Megan still loved Luke, too. I’m looking forward to seeing where the finale leaves things with them.

Coming to Elvis the Elephant, ‘Grave Matters’ featured a scene where Luke talked to his mother in person about his childhood imaginary friend. It’s nice to see the two working on their relationship. Luke’s very understanding of his mother’s issues. Unlike Luke, Victoria couldn’t communicate back with the ghostly voices she heard, making her feel she was losing it and spending most of her life being afraid of the world beyond the veil.

According to Victoria, Elvis was Luke’s childhood imaginary friend. She didn’t think too much of it because it was normal for kids to have imaginary friends. However, we know that Elvis is more than that. Tyler/Malec wanted to take over Luke’s body. And with Luke avoiding Tyler, ‘Grave Matters’ concluded with Tyler learning about Victoria’s location from Rita and deciding to take her hostage to force Luke to lower his guard.

The finale is going to be about Luke and his crew rescuing Victoria and defeating Tyler. I’m interested in seeing how tough a threat Tyler will prove to be. Even defeated, we know Tyler’s not alone. So, I’m interested in seeing how the creative team will set things up for a possible fourth installment.      

What did you think of SurrealEstate season 3 episode 9 ‘Grave Matters’? Are you looking forward to the finale?

Let us know.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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