I’ll probably irk some people by saying this, but I think one of the main reasons I have adored Teen Wolf since the pilot is that at the end of the day, it’s a sweet show. Case in point: the body count in the exquisite season three half-finale was nowhere near what it could have been.
We begin with Scott, Stiles, and Allison waking up from their tubs in a white room where they find the visible portion of the Nemeton–its massive stump–as the only other thing in the room.
From there, we get a very neat trick as each of the three flash back to scenes from the pilot–for Scott, it’s the moment he was bitten in the woods; for Stiles it’s when he was busted by his dad; and for Allison it’s a scene we didn’t see in the pilot of her in the car with her mother when Scott runs out into the road and is nearly hit. What the memories trigger for all three of them is the realization that they know where the tree is because they’ve all seen it before.
When the come to back in the real world, Deaton tells them they’beeen out for 16 hours and they only have four hours until the eclipse. Before they can head out the door, they’re met by one of the Scavos, seeking Lydia’s help against his brother and Kali.
Back at the loft, Derek has saved Cora but depleted himself to the point that he’s at risk of death if he tries to fight Kali. Then the Scavo and Lydia arrive and Lydia tries to explain her gift as what she feels more than what she knows–she’s not psychic. When she tells Derek, Peter, and Cora that she feels like she’s standing in a graveyard, Peter begs Derek to take Cora and go, and he does.
Then Kali comes calling with her Scavo, and before she can terrify Lydia into telling her where Derek is, Jennifer crashes through the ceiling, shattering glass everywhere, and she and Kali throw down. In pretty short order, Jennifer takes out Kali and the merged Scavo/uber wolf. She grabs Lydia and tells her to scream. Lydia launches her banshee wail and Derek and Cora hear it out on the road and Derek knows immediately what it is so he turns the car around. When they get back to the loft, Jennifer makes the case that Derek can protect her against Deucalion and then she won’t have to sacrifice the Scooby parents. It makes enough sense to him that he goes with her, and then Lydia and Cora realize the Scavos have somehow survived their takedown so they rush the brothers to Deaton.
Allison, Isaac, and Scott return to her house to find her dad’s office overrun with Scott’s dad and a few officers, and all the Argent armory laid out on the desk. They stew for a scoche before Allison has the brilliant idea to launch a flash bomb and they make their escape. Scott goes to meet Deucalion while Isaac, Stiles, and Allison head to the Nemeton. Stiles wrecks his car and is knocked out. Allison and Isaac can’t wait any longer and head into the woods. Isaac hears Papa Argents whistle and tracks it. They find the parents and Allison has a happy reunion with her dad until the room starts to disintegrate. Isaac wolfs out to keep the roof above them until the moon is eclipsed, and just as he’s about to drop it, Stiles rushes in and props it up with his titanium bat and saves the day.
Over at the barn o’doom, Deucalion and Scott are waiting for Jennifer. Director Russell Mulcahy pulls out some of his Highlander visuals when Deucalion and Scott watch her walk up and Derek steps out of her stride to walk alongside her and Scott realizes she’s brought reinforcements. Then we have another throwdown where Deucalion completely morphs (and I’d swear he was blue) and Jennifer shows her true face until Derek intervenes and sort of dupes her into giving Deucalion his eyesight back so he can see her, too. That depletes her enough that Scott defeats her safety circle and his eyes turn as he Alphas out. Then Deucalion slits her throat.
Scott and Derek tell Deucalion to re-assume his title as a man of vision now that he can see and that they’ll come for him if he defaults on his new gift.
We pick back up at school as Scott narrates about his friends and his pack (who he told Deucalion and Jennifer would save their parents). Lydia is with her Scavo; Danny is with his, and Isaac and Allison laugh together as they come down the stairs. Stiles comes in and puts his hands on Scott’s shoulders and they start down the hallway, content that their friends are safe. But Scott narrates that he feels the darkness Deaton warned him of, and we see that it’s Deaton he’s recounting everything to.
At the loft, we see Derek and Cora pack up and go and Scott says he doesn’t know where he’s going or for how long, but he hopes Derek finds his peace.
We also see Allison set new ground rules (in lovely, fluent French) for Argent, Inc. that they will help those who need it, regardless of their nature.
And Scott’s dad comes to see him and is met with a closing door. Around the corner, Melissa smiles.
Out in the woods, a nearly-lifeless Jennifer crawls to the Nemeton and begs it for mercy when a hand reaches out and flips her over and she finds herself face to face with Peter. She’s not surprised and tells him of course it’s him because he needed Scott to become Alpha again, and he loses his shit that he’s the Alpha, and he’s always been the Alpha (i.e. the whole thing has been Peter’s play), and then he finishes her.
And that’s where we leave off with a four month and change hiatus. I thought it was an immensely satisfying finale, and we got answers and resolutions to the big bad questions. We know something is looming, but as Scott says, his pack is safe for now, and that’s kind of a nice (there’s that word again) situation to leave them in. I wish other shows would do this—realize that we’ll be back after the break without the hand-wringing. Trust your audience. Teen Wolf does, and that’s an awesome feeling.
New episodes return January 6th. If you missed the Teen Wold Revelations special after the finale, you can watch it here. And here’s a sneak peek of what’s on Allison’s mind when we get back (and really, can you blame her?).