Episode Title: “Stories We Tell Our Young”
Writer: Michael Duggan
Director: Aaron Lipstadt
Previously on “Grimm:”
Being both a Grimm and a detective has created a conflict of interest for Nick (David Giuntoli) on more than one occasion, but this week’s case takes it to a whole other level when a Wesen council representative shows up in Portland to enforce a law that involves the murder of a young boy.
Daniel, the boy at the center of the case, isn’t your average kid. While other children his age throw tantrums when they’re upset, Daniel’s fits are straight up demonic, leading his parents to take the boy to a monsignor for an exorcism. But Daniel turns out to be too much for the priest and his seminary student assistant; the former ends up dead and the latter pretty shaken up.
Nick and Hank (Russell Hornsby) wonder if Daniel is a Wesen, but his parents aren’t and according to Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) and Rosalee (Bree Turner), at least one of them would have to be. In fact, Daniel is something much worse than your average Wesen.
Rosalee and Monroe tell the detectives they believe Daniel is a “Grausen,” a kind of psychopathic “mutation” that poses a dangerous threat to both Wesen and Grimm, alike. In order to deal with Grausen, the Wesen council requires anyone who comes into contact with one to report it immediately. Once the council is informed, the Grausen are known to suddenly disappear.
Suspecting Daniel is indeed a Grausen, Rosalee contacts the council but Monroe, feeling conflicted about interfering in Nick’s case, lets him know to keep an eye on Daniel. At the hospital, the doctors have no clue what’s causing Daniel’s “Exorcist” impressions, but Juliette (Bitsie Tulloch) has some idea. She may just be a vet, but Wesen are kind of like animals. It’s a stretch, but at least it gives Juliette something else to do besides fret about Nick’s health.
After Daniel shows a nurse his bad side, he’s released from the hospital to his parents. Meanwhile, Juliette tells Nick about a bunch of horses from Jordan who contracted a nasty parasite and had to be put down. She believes the same bug could be behind Daniel’s demonic outbursts.
Juliette’s theory turns out to be right. After a brief scuffle with the council member outside of Daniel’s home, Nick, Juliette and the boy’s father find Daniel unconsciousness in the woods. He’s in danger of dying from hypothermia, but Nick has a theory too. He believes that lowering Daniel’s body temperature could kill the parasite.
He’s right. The three watch as the parasite leaves Daniel’s body. Nick grabs a sample, Daniel is rushed inside and Grimm’s version of “The Omen” has a happy ending.
What’s neat about this particular case is that it allows Nick to contribute to Aunt Marie’s massive Grimm chronicles. It also brings up the ever-present divide between Grimm and Wesen. Luckily, Nick was able to handle Portland’s Grausen problem before the council did. But now that he’s on the radar, they’ll definitely be keeping tabs on Portland’s Grimm detective.
While the detectives deal with Damian, err, Daniel, Renard (Sasha Roiz) travels to Vienna. Renard is taken to a safe house and later attacked by one of the Verat. Meanwhile, Adalind (Claire Coffee) meets the royal family’s new prince, but unfortunately we don’t. Like last week’s episode, things in Vienna are moving… but ever so slowly.
Otherwise, “Stories We Tell Our Young” is a solid episode that suggests Monroe and Rosalee’s loyalties might not lie in the same place. And though the explanation for Daniel’s behavior isn’t as interesting or clever as other Grimm origin stories, it’s much better having Juliette in the mix as opposed to kept in the dark. On a side note, what was that about when Nick commented on Juliette putting her shoes in a dresser drawer? Hopefully, we’ll get some answers next week. Of all the strange occurrences in Portland, this one is especially odd.
