Season 2 of Shining Vale has proved that it is going to be completely pointless. In hindsight, even Season 1 did not give the audience a lot to go by, but there was something in regards to raising the audience’s anticipation about what happens next and keeping them on the edge of their seats. The writers may want the story to be a multi-season plot, but it makes no sense to offer nothing when half of the second season is almost over. Five episodes later, all that has changed since the previous season’s ending is that Pat got pregnant because of some witches, Rosemary is actually Nellie, who was a reporter, and someone by the name of Ruth, who has her face, is Pat’s neighbor. It shouldn’t have been so easy to summarize the whole thing in less than a sentence, but here we are, and the sad part is that most of the show isn’t even as funny as it used to be. Shining Vale deserved better than this, and since that is not likely to happen, let us just look at the recap of this episode.
Spoiler Alert
Is Pat pregnant?
There are way too many jokes about Pat’s age, and they have gone from being mildly funny to inappropriately age-shaming. She wants to get tested to see if she is really pregnant or not because of the awful dreams that she is having, and when she arrives at the doctor’s, she accidentally learns that Gaynor had been there for an abortion a few months ago. Gaynor had dated Ryan, and that had resulted in a pregnancy. It is possible that a part of the secret was known at her school, which is why the rumors were flying about her. Pat takes the news really well, though she is not enthusiastic about the positive pregnancy result. When she meets Terry, he talks on and on about the new journey of his life and how he is turning into someone he always wanted to be, but the moment Pat tells him about the pregnancy, he wants to give their relationship another chance. Pat lets him know that she may not be able to carry the baby full term and that he does not need to be with her as an obligation, but Terry could never give up on his dysfunctional marriage, even if he wanted to. Pat and Terry are together again, and the kids don’t like the idea. However, Pat is still able to talk to Gaynor and lets her know that she won’t judge her for any of the harsher decisions she may have needed to take in the past (the abortion). As for Jake, it may be some time before he gets over the loss of two Christmases.
Who is Ennio?
Ennio sounds really close to ennui, which is essentially dissatisfaction due to boredom. ‘Ennio’, on the other hand, means ‘destined’. It is a fitting choice for a handsome exorcist who is always tempted to break his vows. Ever since “Fleabag,” there has been a rise in making the priests good-looking and giving them love stories that won’t have any real fulfillment. But it may pass. Get it?
Ennio is here because of the Phelps’ dead neighbor from season 1, who had warned them about the ghost in the house whose name was not Rosemary. Ennio goes to the basement, heartily flirts with Gaynor, and takes some pictures, only one of which is romantic. He senses some dark energy at the bar, and that is the place where most of the ghosts choose to talk to their humans. Ennio is going to send the photographs to the Vatican, and it might be the one proper development we see in the season.
How is Pat’s pregnancy?
The clues to something being wrong are all around the house and in Pat’s pregnancy. Terry is told that he has no testosterone in his body, and technically, that means that Pat cannot be pregnant. But Terry is thankfully not accusing her of cheating or simply calling the doctor a quack. He has to take the injections and medicines for his condition, though.
As for Pat, her book is becoming a phenomenon, and somewhere across the country, some woman killed her husband with an ax after reading Rosemary’s story. The message everyone is taking from the book is that ‘middle-aged women are allowed to be a little crazy.’ The greater objective must be that women of any age always have a lot to live for, and they should never stop exploring, but this phrasing is alright. A woman in Pat’s book club also seems to be going crazy after reading the book, and throughout it all, there is a huge emphasis on Pat being a bad mother. The rest of the club recommends Dr. Skapoli, and even Ruth is very enthusiastic about it all. Pat wants to go to her older brother, but she finds that he died seven years ago. It could also be a lie, and Ruth may have done some voodoo that made the receptionist lie to Pat. But the appointment has been made for Dr. Skapoli, and Pat goes there with Terry. The doctor seems nice enough, and he assures Pat that she will have a normal pregnancy. The real challenge at her age is getting pregnant, not carrying it to term. He also warns her of some psychosis and depression, and while talking, Pat cannot help but see flashes of the devil in him. This entire season is a parody of “Rosemary’s Baby.”
At the end of Shining Vale Season 2, Episode 5, it is another fresh beginning for the family. Pat is scared that the generational madness will pass on to the baby, and it might be a mistake to bring them into the world, considering everything they have been through. But Terry, ever the well-meaning guy, assures her that with the bad, there will be a lot of good, and the baby will be lucky to have them as its parents. At least this one might not get stuck in a wall like Jake did and then break out of it. When Pat checks the hole in the wall, she has another scary vision, and it is going to get more and more terrible for her.
Final Thoughts
Shining Vale is hanging by a thread, and it needs to set itself right very fast. The theme may be about how women’s voices are ignored, but the story needs to be structured better, or there really is no point in it.
