'Sleepy Hollow' 1.11 "Vessels" Review

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Welcome back, Sleepyheads! A new year brings about changes including the sight of Ichabod Crane in a pair of extremely skinny jeans during the opening scene of 'Vessels'. Don't worry, the show isn't losing touch with its roots as the first season comes to an end. Crane swapped back to his classic duds before the opening title sequence ran. Can't blame Abbie for trying to bring a little more modernity to her partner and it was a great tongue-in-cheek way to address the constant fandom and press attention to whether or not Crane's wardrobe will ever change. After this initial bit of humor to bring us back into the world of Sleepy Hollow, we're right smack dab in the middle of some deadly matters when one of Moloch's demons puts its intentions toward Captain Irving's daughter, Macey.

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This episode was the classic race against time storyline as the Mills sisters and Ichabod face off against one of Jenny's former foes. We got a little bit more background on Jenny and in doing so it illuminated a great deal of how and why her relationship with Abbie went off the rails following their Moloch encounter as teens.  What worries me most about revealing the truly sacrificial nature of what Jenny did to protect Abbie is that it's setting up another great sacrifice for the troubled Mills sister down the line. I don't even want to think about losing her but it's so the kind of knife in the gut death that shows like this enjoy pulling out to drop jaws and keep people compelled.

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Meanwhile no one can explain to me why Luke is still around at all except to do things like get possessed and knocked out. I don't know if the show is saving him up for next season or if they really have no desire to explore his character further. He's just sort of there and on a show with strong writing for its supporting characters--even Andy and Corbin have far more to them than Luke and they're both technically dead--that sort of thing really sticks out in a bad way.

They could redeem him yet however, as I doubt when viewers first tuned in they thought that the arc of

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Captain Frank Irving would grow as it has. Not only is he straight up a part of the team but we've also come to learn and care about his family life. Which is why seeing Irving's daughter in harm as the demon, Ancitif, took over her body and mind was especially brutal. Not only because of the trauma of the moment for Macey but we've now clearly seen the kind of impact such possession has on the former vessel. Poor Jenny Mills was plagued with very dark thoughts and now I worry that Macey will suffer the same if we see her again in season two. Such visions might lend her value as a clairvoyant of sorts but at what cost?

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The search for the Artifact of the Week (TM) did give us a chance to see that Benjamin Franklin was also involved in the war against Hell that took place covertly in the 1700's. I would love if a future episode next season took place entirely back then and gave us a much longer look at what went on. Maybe it would solve a few mysteries similar to the cliffhanger of the episode, revolving around a hidden message in Washington's Bible the very book that the demon quested for, which should be resolved next week for the two hour season finale. Things looked dire in the trailer for nearly all of our faves and I can't wait to see how the world of Sleepy Hollow expands for season two. If he's left standing, Ichabod will most certainly need that lesson on what the dry cleaner is as things are about to get very bloody.