Midnight, Texas – “Unearthed” Review. Truth Will Out.

Season 1, Episode 5

Air Date: Monday, August 21, 2017 at 10/9c on NBC

Rating ★★★★★

“Killing me won’t bring her back; it won’t give you closure…” – Manny

They say, “[T]he truth shall set you free,” and in this week’s episode, “Unearthed,” more than one person is feeling lighter now that their secrets have been told. There are two major storylines in “Unearthed” – one involves Manny (François Arnaud), his Grandma Xylda (Joanne Camp), and the infamous Hightower (guest star Christopher Heyerdahl). But I’ll start with the second storyline first, the one involving Bobo (Dylan Bruce) and “Sons of Lucifer” (S.O.L.) leader Peter Lowry (guest star Evan Jones).

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The S.O.L set fire to Bobo’s pawn shop as a ruse to distract him from their real purpose – kidnapping Fiji for ransom.

In previous episodes, Bobo always checked the locks on his secret underground bunker. In “Unearthed,” the contents of said bunker are revealed. It seems Bobo’s family was deep in the whole “white supremacist” movement. And while Bobo doesn’t share his family’s beliefs, his hiding this tidbit of information from his BFF (now lover) Fiji (Parisa Fitz-Henley), a woman of color, is kind of a big effing deal. Understandably Fiji is upset, not only for obvious reasons, but also because of the whole being kidnapped, tied up, and drugged for ransom thing. Bobo’s stockpile of weapons and loot in his secret hideout could do a lot of damage in the hands of Lowry and his gang.

Lem (Peter Mensah) helps Bobo out in a big way by helping rescue Fiji from the S.O.L.. Those S.O.L. guys are SOL (shit out of luck, pun intended) as soon as Lem steps on scene. But I’m with Olivia (Arielle Kebbel) on one point; Lem needs to “stop almost dying” because that would totally suck.

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Evan Jones does too good of a job being a total d**k as Peter Lowry.

Jones does a fantastic job of making me loathe every inch of Lowry. His portrayal of the ruthless leader of a white supremacist biker gang is so convincing, I had to remind myself he’s acting. Lowry is still convinced Bobo killed his wife Aubrey (Shannon Lorance), who incidentally was engaged to Bobo, although under duplicitous pretenses. As an aside, I’ve been a fan of Jones since his days on ABC’s October Road.

And now for Manny, Xylda, and Hightower’s epic story. Manny mentioned in “Sexy Beast” that his Grandma ran a scam on Hightower; however, there is so much more to this sordid tale than some mere swindling. Long story short – a betrothal gone awry and $100K later, Hightower comes seeking his revenge against Manny. It would have been Xylda too if she weren’t already dead.

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Christopher Heyerdahl gives an amazing performance as the nefarious Hightower

Heyerdahl’s decorous presence in Midnight, Texas makes me smile but only briefly. His guest starring role is magnificent, yet short lived. His portrayal of a grieving father doesn’t exactly tug at your heart strings, especially because he tries to kill Manny in a variety of ways. Hightower’s story is interesting and there is substance there to possibly explore his back story in another episode. One can hope.

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Violet possesses Manny and tells her dad how she really feels.

Manny does his best to rectify the grievance both he and Xylda inflicted upon Hightower and his late daughter Violet (guest star Sarah Minnich), but it seems there is more to the story than meets the eye. Manny calls upon Violet’s spirit and she reveals her true motivation for ending her own life. Daddy issues, anyone?

Interesting Things

Fiji’s cat Mr. Snuggly (voiced by Joe Smith) helps save her life. I love the interaction and conversation Mr. Snuggly has with Bobo after the pawn shop fire. I’m sure Bobo didn’t expect to be talking to a cat, but it doesn’t really faze him. I guess talking cats aren’t really out of the norm in a town like Midnight.

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Lem wins Most Awesome Friend Award but he really needs to stop almost dying…like for real.

Olivia and Lem win the cutest (with a hard edge) couple award. After Lem nearly gets killed, again, Olivia expresses her anger which is basically her way of saying those three little words to her favorite vampire. And he loves her too! Aww.

Creek (Sarah Ramos) almost pissed me off when she jumps to conclusions about Manny’s past. But she finally puts on her big-girl panties and tells her dad (Bob Jesser) she’s dating Manny. I mean, I’m sure he already figured it out but it’s good it’s all out in the open.

Overall

“Unearthed” reveals many truths. Heyerdahl and Jones turn in outstanding performances, and while their lights definitely appear snuffed out, with Manny being a psychic, maybe both will show up again at some point. I’m ready to learn more about Mr. Snuggly. I also need to know what Chuy (Bernardo Saracino) is and when the demon will resurface. At the end of “Unearthed,” we get a glimpse of what’s coming…that poor armadillo.

Let me know what you thought of “Unearthed.” Leave a comment below or tweet me at @judybopp.

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Judy Manning

Dream chaser extraordinaire! Judy tends to be a tad sarcastic and kind of goofy! She is an avid admirer of all things supernatural, paranormal, celestial and mystical. She loves to read, write, and watches way too much TV. She enjoys many genres of film and music (and let's be honest, most music from the 80s). She also has a wicked sweet tooth. Cupcakes beware.