Warning: This review contains spoilers for Episode 8 of The Magicians’ 5^th season, as well as references to previous episodes. Read at your own risk.

We’re back again guys! Episode 8 of The Magicians is here and we’re pushing toward the home stretch of the season. There are a lot of unsolved riddles from the season and questions that we’re on the cusp of answering. On top of that, we’ve just gotten some new reveals in the last episode which should make things interesting moving forward.

To recap Episode 7 a little bit, we learned that The Dark King is using gold to summon the Takers. We also learned that Margo and Eliot have gained the trust of the faeries and that Fogg from timeline 17 is a crazy person. Additionally, we now know that the moon is upset and is causing problems with magic, which is going to be difficult to fix.

Julia has chosen to go to Fillory to stop their apocalypse and Penny is embracing his new role of Dean of Brakebills. There’s still the matter of Kady helping the Hedges and what happened to Marina, not to mention a few other loose ends, but we’ve got time for those.

Spoilers begin here folks!

Episode 8 begins in Fillory, where children are suddenly taken by (you guessed it) the Takers. We then see Julia, Eliot, Margo, Josh, and Fen talking about the latest developments. Eliot blames himself for the loss of the children because he gave Seb the gold that summoned the Takers. They begin discussing the fact that Seb has survived seven assassination attempts and therefore, big magic must be keeping him alive.

On top of that, Margo believes he needs to die (I’m inclined to agree) but 300 years of propaganda telling the people they need him is going to be hard to break. Josh isn’t on board with killing him but they all agree he has to be stopped, especially if he is at the root of this apocalypse. The goal ends up being to stop the Takers, get rid of the Dark King, and avoid catastrophe.

After a conversation with Charlton, Eliot confides in Margo that he doesn’t think he should be the one to kill Seb, even though he is in the perfect place for it. Margo suggests that he get rid of his feelings by sleeping with Seb, but has she forgotten what happened with Mike? Luckily, Eliot points out that killing someone you’ve slept with shouldn’t happen but if it does, it should be a one-time thing.

Ultimately, Margo brings about a compromise. If Eliot finds Seb’s weak point, she will find a way that he doesn’t have to be the one to actually kill him. For once, we’re actually seeing growth in Margo and Eliot’s relationship. He’s confiding in her and she’s willing to do what she can to prevent him from having to kill anyone else.

Summer Bishil, as always, brings nuance and beautiful grace to this scene. Her emotions are plain on her face and despite her initial “let’s get this done” attitude, she clearly shows care for Eliot’s feelings. I hope this leads Eliot to rely on the others more, though I don’t think sleeping with Seb or adding more risk of trauma is a good idea for Eliot. How many lovers does he have to lose?

We then switch gears to Alice and Hamish. Alice has taken the device, allowing her to create artificial circumstances from the greenhouse, so that she can study it. Hamish is upset by this because some of the plants will die because of it. Personally, I think it’s a matter of priorities. The world? Or a few plants.

After a lover’s spat, (I’m convinced they’re going to be a thing), Hamish discovers that one of the plants in Alice’s diagram is from another place in the multiverse. He offers to reach out to an expert, but Penny reveals that this expert is on Fogg’s banned “do not admit” list. He apparently visited a world filled with infectious plants, which makes him a danger to the entire school.

Alice persists because this plant is part of something Quentin was working on before he died. I like that they’re attempting to keep Q’s memory alive but, honestly, I wish they’d just bring him back in some form and let him explain what’s going on. Even if it was a recast, this whole situation is strange and doesn’t seem to have bearing on the main plot, at least not yet.

Penny ultimately agrees, on the grounds that this expert must be tested thoroughly for any infectious substances before he is allowed to visit. Next, we see a clever scene involving Julia asking Fen if there is a plant she can use to test if she’s pregnant. Why is this clever you ask? Because Stella Maeve was pregnant herself during filming and it is a great way to tie it in.

The child is likely Penny’s, which brings up an interesting conundrum. Are there risks to giving birth to a kid whose father is from another timeline? Also, Julia was pregnant once before but not by choice. Julia asks Fen to keep it a secret because she and Penny are in a weird place, and she doesn’t know how exactly she feels about it.

I find this scene a bit interesting. Fen lost her child because of the faeries and now she’s helping Julia. Brittany Curran’s acting here is spot on and Stella, well, I think the fact that she is also pregnant brings an interesting nuance to this scene. Things have remained complicated with Julia and, for once, I hope she gets something positive out of this.

The next scene involves Josh showing up with Macarons, while Margo insists that they are a trap. She admits that she’s avoiding the conversation with Josh about leaving him to die in Fillory. They then decide to try to use said sweets, to get Seb to open up to Eliot about things.

When he finds Seb, the man is agonizing over the loss of the children, saying people have no clue what being king is really like. I can’t decide whether he’s being genuine here or if he’s lying about feeling actually guilty. Eliot suggests that he could possibly step down, and when Seb says he “has to be king,” Eliot points out that he doesn’t actually have to be anything.

Seb reveals that this is a choice he made a long time ago. He says that he is tied to a conduit and that he thought he could save Fillory by tying himself to the conduit. Seb then kisses Eliot after Eliot suggests they just leave. He reveals a tattoo on his chest before he pulls away and apologizes. He then asks Eliot to leave and suggests they not see each other again.

I really can’t put a pin on what is going on here. Is Seb as evil as people think? Or is this a case of him being tied to something he can’t stop? Either way, I think the only ending for him is death, which really frustrates me. I’ve said this before but representation only matters if LGBT couples are treated the same as other couples. If every LGBT character is used to either die, foster growth in others, or experience pain, that isn’t representation.

Next, we see Alice, Penny, and Hamish with this new guy named Ray. I can’t place the actor that plays him but I always enjoy seeing him when he’s on shows I watch. What was funny about this scene though, is seeing Alice restrain herself from not killing this [insert expletive] for being a totally rude jerk. He asks (rudely) for a few instruments and Alice complies, mostly to restrain herself from wringing his neck, justifiably so. Right before the scene shifts, we see his eye go uh, well the best way to describe it is wonky. He’s infected by something, we’re just not sure what.

The scene goes back to Fillory, where the gang is discussing what Eliot has learned. It seems that Seb is tied to a “vitality conduit” which might be related to the tree tattoo he had on his chest. Fen suggests the tree is a “Blackwood” tree, which Josh agrees to help them find. Julia offers to go but Fen shoots that idea down while trying not to reveal that Julia is pregnant.

Eliot is reluctant to stay behind, but Julia suggests making a problem that requires two magicians to fix, thereby causing Seb to need Eliot’s help. The best part is that Margo intends to make good on her promise. Margo swaps bodies with Eliot so, technically, he goes with Josh while she stays behind. I absolutely loved the Freaky Friday reference in this scene.

When Alice returns from getting the instruments, Hamish is unconscious and Ray is trying to run. Alice pushes him with magic and his chest cavity explodes, releasing…something. We then switch back to Margo and Eliot, in a scene that is absolutely hilarious. Summer and Hale attempting to act as each other is great and I found myself laughing the entire time.

Margo then learns about Charleton and also admits that the spell has a quirk. If they tell anyone they’ve swapped, they won’t be able to swap back. They swap notes on each other’s particular crisis situations and then off they go to their respective duties. Suddenly, half the people in Whitespire are asleep and Margo (as Eliot) meets with Seb.

Margo isn’t very good at playing Eliot and Seb immediately notices. Charlton notes that she could do better but ultimately, Seb falls for the ruse and the two of them begin to prepare to stop the sleeping curse. It was Julia and Fen’s doing, of course, yet I can’t help but worry that this plan is going to go very wrong at some point.

Next, Fen and Julia have a talk about the baby. Julia doesn’t want this to rule her life and Fen basically says that she needs to choose. She either wants the baby or she doesn’t. If she keeps it, then she’ll have to focus on it, and her life will go on the backburner. It’s interesting to see Fen’s take on this, especially due to all that she has endured. Yet again, I have to give Brittany props for her handling of this.

Fen then drops a bombshell. Due to the time of the month (no pun intended) Julia’s pregnancy will be accelerated as long as she stays in Fillory. With that bombshell dropped, Eliot (as Margo) and Josh begin looking for the Blackwood tree. Of course, Eliot winds up a captive audience to this talk, where Josh admits that he doesn’t know if Margo wants to break up or not.

I can’t help but feel like Eliot made the situation worse, but what was he really supposed to do in that situation? In any case, Hamish and Alice discuss with Penny what happened. Hamish believes Ray was hosting fungal spores, which now want a new host since Ray is now dead. The problem is the spores have now spread to students, who all want the plant page that Alice has.

They go to consult Fogg 17, who offers a solution on the condition that he is released afterward. He is, of course, outwitted by Alice and then threatens to turn them all into Lobsters once he gets out of the cell. Alice then undergoes an obligatory stealth mission to find the book with the solution to their problem. This scene is really tense, but Olivia played it very well.

They administer the potion and immediately Penny gets possessed. Back in Fillory, Eliot and Seb are almost ready to counteract the sleeping pollen. Margo intentionally taught Seb the spell incorrectly, so that she (as Eliot) would have to get closer to him, thereby drawing things out a bit. She is clearly getting to Seb, as he keeps trying to distance himself. Her plan is working flawlessly to drag things out, but Charlton suggests a more personal approach.

After trying to bridge the gap and bond over mutual attraction and loss, Seb reveals that he must put Fillory first. Interestingly enough, I think Margo and Seb have something in common, the weight of the crown. If only they had a chance to really explore that facet of things. Josh and Eliot (as Margo) are still looking for the tree and Josh refuses to take “Margo” to the tree, because he sees through the deception.

Hamish and Alice start talking and Hamish oversteps by asking her if Alice’s death is what Quentin would want, but he suggests giving the Fungus what it wants. Hamish reveals that he lost his wife and even named a flower after her. They bond over the mutual loss and Alice gets an idea of how to fix things.

Charlton and Margo talk about Seb a bit back in Fillory. She’s starting to see what Eliot sees. Eliot tries to get Josh to help. After an emotional outburst, Eliot causes Josh to tell him which tree is the right one, at the cost of possibly nuking his and Margo’s relationship. I would suggest that it isn’t for the best, but honestly, Margo deserves better than someone who cheated with Fen of all people.

Sadly, the plan goes wrong. The Dark King sees “Eliot” coming with the knife and, at the very last moment, Julia deals the killing blow to Seb. Before any of that can be processed, we’re back in the shoes of Alice. She offers to give the paper to the fungus if they tell her what it is about.

It is about something called The World Seed, pure potential given form. With the right nurturing, the World Seed can grow into anything, including a new world. This is a plot point from the books that I was wondering if we’d ever see adapted on screen. Alice and Hamish masterfully outsmart the symbiotic fungal spores and just like that Penny is back.

Penny reveals that two powerful people want that World Seed page and the big question looms. What was Quentin doing with it? That question remains unanswered as we shift back to Margo and Eliot, who discuss their mutual misfortune and pain. I am glad to see Margo reiterate that Eliot is deserving of love and that one day he really will find it. I just wish that was something we would actually see on screen for once.

Except now we know that The Dark King isn’t dead. The final scene shows him coming back to life. Did the vitality conduit not break? Did they cut the wrong tree? Who knows? One thing is for certain, Julia now has a target on her back, and it seems like things are going to get worse for everyone involved.

This was a solid (if chaotic) episode, though I think that Eliot’s struggle with the Dark King and his infatuation with him is only going to lead him to ruin. I can imagine that Seb will be on the warpath now that he’s been assassinated, or at least, now that it was attempted. We still don’t know what’s up with Kady, or where things will go with the rest of our merry band, but something is at work with all of this.

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The Magicians

6.5

Score

6.5/10

Pros

• Great Acting from Brittany and Stella
• Hilarious Body Swap Scenes
• Tense Stealth/Thriller Scene
• Margo and Eliot's Relationship is Finally Back to How It Should Be

Cons

• The Episode was a Bit Chaotic
• Encouraging Eliot to Sleep With an Enemy is in Bad Taste