Spirit Receivers – The show begins with a brief description of the influential London artist, Eleanor Wall. She was born in 1928 and joined the “Spirit Receiver” as an adult. Eleanor and her sister, Cassandra Wall (Kristin Griffith) relocated to NYC in 1974. They opened their first business, “Wall Galleries” to display the Spirit Receive collection from various members across the US. Cassandra put some of the pieces up for sale.

Dan Turner (Mamoudou Athie) has a flashback while looking in the mirror. Cassandra’s hand pops out of the screen and grabs him around the neck. His attempt to break the code into the file room is unsuccessful. He tosses his notepad on the ground and tries to break the glass.

He goes outside to call Mark Higgins (Matt McGorry) and leaves a voicemail to alert him that his attempts to get into the basement were unsuccessful. He sends him a picture of the keypad lock securing the file room. On his way back to the building, he runs into Melody Pendras (Dina Shihabi). She stares at home intently as he gradually approaches her. He asks her what she is doing here. She says you tell me because I don’t know. He stands directly in front of her. Bobbi (Jacqueline Antaramian) wakes him at 8pm. Virgil Davenport (Martin Donovan) calls as Dan enters the building. He scolds in a strange way about not being reliable. Dan says I lost track of time. Virgil offers to send a physician out to give him a B12 injection.

Dan repairs another tape. Melody is with Jessica “Jess” Lewis (Ariana Neal). She recommends Flintstone vitamins and a tape of bird sounds. Jess is just going to stay put. She shows her a copy of “The Secret of NIMH,” admitting it helps her. Jess explains the concept of comets and shows her a telescope from Samuel (Evan Jonigkeit.) Anabelle (Julia Chan) drops by to get Melody to go with her to Cassandra’s apartment.

They look at the Sprit Retrievers’ collection. Cassandra tells her about putting some of the pieces on the market. Melody finds the piece from the previous meeting that held what looked like a satanic idol. Cassandra believes it came from Estonia. She claims to have misplaced the key and a sculpture is stored inside the main compartment. Melody asks her if the Visser is spiritual. Cassandra frequently looks in Anabelle’s direction. She refers to the meeting as a cult. Anabelle catches their attention when she asks about a painting of a woman, with her breasts exposed. Cassandra says it is unimaginable how many worlds are still undiscovered. She describes the pendant from the picture as Kharonite, derived from a comet. Melody can see her face inside the pendant, which is rare. Eleanor painted the picture from handmade paints. She gives Anabelle a jar of Eleanor’s paint.

Anabelle asks if she knows Julia Bennett. She doesn’t remember because her memory is not so good. They are invited to a dinner party at Cassandra’s apartment tomorrow. Anabelle inspects the jar, telling Melody Cassandra and Eleanor were not sisters, but lovers. Cassandra took Eleanor’s last name, so they could enter the United States. When they return home, they find Samuel knocking on their door. He asks if they have visited Jess since the purge. She thanks him for finding Jess a doctor. He asks for the skeleton key from the mailbox. As Melody goes for the key, Anabelle asks Samuel about the community room satanic choir practice. He explains how Tamara Stefano (Kate Eastman) was unhappy about her “Purgatory” opera performance. They previously dated and had too much wine. Melody says it doesn’t matter. He believes it does matter and apologizes before he leaves. She tells Anabelle to let it go.

Dan is startled when he flips off the cassette player. In a flashback, young Dan Turner (Trayce Malachi) joins his sister, Emily Turner (Jaxon Rose Moore) under a makeshift tent over the piano. She asks if he wants her to tell him a ghost story. He denies that ghosts are real. She says their dad believes they are everywhere. She says ghosts are lost, with nowhere to go. Dan suddenly awakens and gets out of bed. He sees Melody sitting on a bed. She reads what appears to be a diary about a trial involving demon-possessed people who are accused of assault. He asks what she is doing here. She doesn’t know.

He asks where she got a small wooden box. It was on the bed when she arrived. The box contains a tape from his father, Dr. Steven Turner (Charlie Hudson III) who collected 16-millimeter films like “Flash Gordon.” He asks her about “The Skeleton Dance.” She laughs and shakes her head. The tape was comprised of Dan’s favorite scenes in several films. He destroyed it after discovering his father was different than he grew up believing. She tells him about her mother dropping her off at a church when she was a baby. She left a ring on a necklace, which she threw away multiple times. He tells her she knows his father. She refuses to believe him. As her anxiety level increases, a light bulb begins to flicker until it blows. They call for each other.

When Dan turns on the light, he finds the little wooden box and notebook on the bed. He opens the notebook to find the name, T. Bellows. He slams the notebook shut and tosses it on the bed. He looks in the closet to find a stack of similar notebooks, all of which are signed by T. Bellows. He opens a notebook to find pages and pages of numbers. One of the numbers, 40593, is circled. He tears out the page and heads to the file room. He inputs the number into the keypad and the door opens. He enters the room and begins searching through the file cabinets until he finds his father’s file. He finds a document “Night Terrors: Paranormal Perception in Non-Schizophrenic Adults” written by his father.

Dan speaks with Mark who says his dad was involved in parapsychology, which may be contributed to his temporary suspension at NYU. He discovered items stored in plastic bags from the Visser Apartment fire. He found Melody’s ring and journal among the items. His father’s address is written in the journal. He believes T. Bellows was working at the research facility at one time. Mark agrees to research T. Bellows to see what he can find. He asks Dan if he is doing okay.

When he turns around, he finds Virgil standing in front of the “Mystery Signals” neon sign. Mark tells him the building is not for sale because his father owns it. He says everything is for sale and calls him by his first name. He introduces himself and comments about his relationship with Dan. He questions what Mark gets out of their relationship. Mark asks why he needs to get anything out of the relationship. As he turns to leave, Virgil tells him he has come to talk about Dan. He knows they have been talking and Mark’s father paid for Dan’s medical bills when he was in a psychiatrist hospital. Virgil offers to pay Mark for keeping him in the loop about Dan’s mental health. Mark refuses the offer and tells him to go “fu** himself.” Before he leaves, Mark asks about the importance of restoring the Visser archive and what he expects to find. He refuses to answer and gives him a business card before leaving.

Anabelle talks about Eleanor’s handmade paint, which she describes as “amazing.” She calls Melody’s meetings with Dr. Turner sex dreams. Anabelle promises to meet her at Cassandra’s apartment in a bit. When Melody knocks on the door, Jess answers. Jess is wearing Cassandra’s Kharonite necklace. Cassandra asks about Anabelle who will arrive later. Jess introduces Melody to Patricia Marston (Carla Brandberg.) who has been a Visser tenant since 1962. Patricia records soap operas and other shows. She believes there is a message for her somewhere in the shows. Melody asks who the message would be from. She refuses to answer. Melody asks if she remembers a Visser tenant named Julia Bennett. Her response, “Port Charles, she had a twin, Penelope” takes Melody back.

Melody interviews a fifth-floor tenant, Helen Yung (Emy Coligado), a sculptor. She made the masks for Tamara’s “Purgatory” opera. Samuel arrives with Evie Crest (Michelle Federer.) Dan recognizes Evie and questions why she is at Cassandra’s party. They sit down for dinner. Evie talks about her spirituality on and off stage. Samuel tells Melody that Cassandra generally does not invite men to her dinner parties. When she asked him to stay, he couldn’t refuse. “The Circle” creator, William Crest is Evie’s father. William attended a Hollywood Hills bachelor party. After dinner, they were all blindfolded, escorted to a bunker, and sworn to secrecy before they were permitted to watch a snuff film. Williams was so inspired by the film, he decided to produce “The Circle.”

Cassandra insists, a copy may be floating around somewhere, staring intently at Samuel. Rumors claim William committed suicide, but Evie refuses to believe it. Cassandra encourages her to speak with Beatriz Reyes (Sol Miranda,) a tarot reader. Beatriz agrees to hold a séance to help Evie connect with William. Melody tries to unlock the cabinet, with the sculpture when Samuel arrives. She tries to explain her actions when he hands her a key. He unlocks the shelf to find a strange sculpture inside. Cassandra orders Samuel to bring the tuning forks to the séance.

Everyone is gathered around the table. Beatriz taps the tuning forks several times before starting the séance. She calls William Crest several times. The lights flicker as Beatriz pants for breath. Cassandra tells Evie to ask her father something. She says daddy are you here. Beatriz turns her head toward Evie. Tamara recommends asking something personal, only they would know. She asks if he remembers when she celebrated her 6^th birthday. No one came to her birthday party. In a strange voice, Beatriz says, “I am nobody, who are you, are you nobody too, then there’s the pair of us.” Evie mocks Beatriz’ “shh.” She tells her to not tell. Evie says, Emily Dickenson. Melody watches in amazement.

Cassandra recommends she ask about the snuff film. She does as Cassandra requests. Beatriz says, Crawford. Evie confirms it was her godfather, Peter Crawford. Cassandra demands she asks if there was a copy of the snuff film. Beatriz breaks down and warns her to stay away. She repeats it several times until her voice sounds evil. Beatriz comes through and apologizes that he is gone. Cassandra suggests she try again. She refuses. Cassandra entices Melody into doing a séance. She refuses to believe her mother is dead. Beatrice points to a chair. She sits down and gives Beatriz her necklace. Cassandra and Samuel look at each other. Beatriz taps the tuning fork while saying Julia Bennett. She calls for Julia Bennett, with no response. She grabs Melody’s hand and says there is someone else. The tape stops working.

Melody appears and asks about the woman in the tape and if he makes films. He tells her his job is to restore films, images, and tapes. She admits to knowing Beatriz but can’t remember her name. She knows Dan’s name and thinks they met at the Visser. She says I am supposed to ask him for help. He agrees to help her if she tells him how. She spots her notebook lying on the table. She picks it up and pulls out the necklace. She accuses him of stealing it. Emily appears, telling him not to be afraid. He tells her she died in the Visser fire. She asks if he is crazy. He points at the footage, saying it is hers. She becomes frantic, refusing to believe she is dead. The lights flicker and she disappears.

The tape begins to play, with Beatriz taking a gulp of air. She turns toward Melody and says she is a good, caring person. She says, “It is a feature, not a bug.” She is repeating Melody’s conversation with Dan. Melody refuses to believe Beatriz knows what is going on inside her head. Dan’s eyes fill with tears as he watches the tape. He says it is real. Dan calls Mark to say he can save Melody, there is enough time. He tells him about seeing Melody and can warn her to stay away from Visser. Mark looks at Virgil’s business card. Beatriz continues to talk to Melody about the Visser fire and her death. Cassandra tries to get Beatriz to stop but she continues talking. She tells Melody to go while scraping her nails down her face. Tamara jumps up and orders for someone to call an ambulance.

Beatrice is being placed in the ambulance as Melody pleads with her to talk about what she saw in her dreams. She returns to her room to find Anabelle scribbling. There are scribbles hanging on every wall. She asks what is going on. Anabelle says there is someone in there. The scribbles transition into a creature as the episode comes to an end.

 

Archive 81 Review

Each role is beginning to develop into a unique character. While Melody and Dan are the starring roles, characters in the shadows are beginning to make their on-screen presence. It is important that viewers be given opportunity to see the significance of each supporting role.

The show is gradually doling out vital information that will eventually lead to the resolution of the Visser fire mystery. With six more episodes to go, the information will be doled out in bits and pieces.

It is becoming more apparent, the role of Anabelle is excruciatingly annoying. Even Melody who is supposed to be her best friend appears fed up at times. The episode deserves a 7.

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