The Circle – The show begins with a skit from “The Circle” by William Crest. Dan Turner (Mamoudou Athie) repairs a VHS tape from his father, Dr. Steven Turner (Charlie Hudson III). His father believes from the moment he was born, he would love stop-motion skeletons as much as him. He answers the phone to hear Mark Higgins (Matt McGorry) say he is outside the gate. Dan alerts Mark that he is not permitted to let him in. He apologizes he drove so far and walks away. When Marks admits to locating Thomas Bellows, he turns around. Bellows’ girlfriend, Alecia Flores told Mark that Virgil Davenport (Martin Donovan) hired him to restore some tapes approximately six years ago. Bellows suffered from a mental breakdown while working at the research facility. He was killed in a motor vehicle collision in Nova Scotia several weeks after the job was complete.

When Dan returns to the facility, he begins smashing the surveillance cameras with a baseball bat. He says “Fu** your fishbowl” and smashes the camera as Virgil watches from a different location.

Dan repairs another tape from the Visser archive and pops it in the cassette player. Sleeping Melody (Dina Shihabi) appears on the screen. The camera points toward the floor and shuts off. She gets out of bed and walks over to her camera. She picks it up and looks around the room. She doesn’t know where she is at. A police cruiser is sitting in front of the building. A shipping label, with Samuel’s name and address, is on a cardboard box.

Two police officers question her about Chris Lee (Zach Villa). She tells the officers about the time leading up to Chris falling onto the ground in front of her and Samuel. She says someone pushed Chris he didn’t jump, and Samuel Spare (Evan Jonigkeit) is lying about his identity. She reaches into her bag to find Father Russo’s occult book and Samuel’s fake ID cards missing. She says Samuel may have pushed Father Russo (Martin Sola) in front of the train the other night as well. The female officer (Alison Weisgall) suggests she was using drugs with Chris. Melody denies doing drugs and tells them about the addicts on the 6^th floor.

Melody receives a call from the Stuyvesant Health Center to alert her of Anabelle Cho (Julia Chan) hospital admission. Melody arrives at the hospital to find Anabelle handcuffed to the bed. Anabelle says she has a message for you. When Melody tries to find out who, the doctor (Randy Kovitz) approaches, saying she broke Gabby Stanton’s (Daina Griffith) jaw and stabbed a security guard in the eye with a nail. Anabelle does not have a history of illicit drug use or mental illness. She asks him about mold from the Visser building. He says it is likely that a neurotoxic mold could cause hallucinations.

Melody asks Cassandra Wall (Kristin Griffith) about Eleanor’s paint. Cassandra describes Anabelle as a special Spirit Receiver like her Eleanor. Melody grabs Cassandra, demanding her to identify the woman in the painting when Jessica “Jess” Lewis (Ariana Neal) walks in. Jess’ mother prohibits her from seeing Melody because Samuel told her she was unwell. She denies the allegations and recommends she stay away from Cassandra and Samuel. When Melody approaches Jess, she spills her tea on the floor. She looks around to find a teapot and cups sitting on a table. She accuses Cassandra of poisoning Jess and Anabelle. Jess reminds Melody that she saw her buying the tea from a local store. Melody inquires about the jar from the elevator. She asks Jess to give it to her, so she can have it tested. She looks over at Cassandra who shakes her head no.

Jess gives her a key to the Visser basement. She enters a room in the basement filled with markings. She removes some of the paint from the wall and rubs it between her fingers. Chanting can be heard in the background. When she turns around Samuel is standing there. The screen begins to flicker, and an evil creature temporarily appears. Dan gently removes the tape from the cassette player. The tapes and cassette player are covered in mold. He calls Virgil to alert him of his findings. He demands to know how the mold got there. Virgil asks if he is having mental issues, offering to send out a doctor. He says there should be a spare cassette player somewhere in the facility.

 

Dan finds a small camera that appears to have belonged to Thomas Bellows. He made the recordings for his girlfriend, Alecia. Virgil hired him to digitalize soap operas. He shows her a journal and rows and rows of tapes. Bellows etched his and Alicia’s initials in the back of a pew. He tells Alecia that his work is sucking the life out of him as Dan stares in horror. He shows her a large notebook bearing the name “Wellspring,” Virgil’s DNA company. He believed the company was a front for illegal data collection. He questions who Virgil was searching for and why bottles of blood are stored in refrigerators at the facility.

Bellows claims to see a face on the screen while refusing to believe he is crazy. He asks Alecia if she sees it. He screams, “Fu** you and your tapes, Patricia.” Dan discovers Patricia was a tenant at Visser. She recorded soap operas all day. Melody interviewed Patricia when she first arrived at the Visser. Patricia believed there was a message hiding in the soap operas.

Dan busts the window out of the door that leads to the room full of VHS tapes. He removes the label to discover the tapes belong to Patricia Marston (Carla Brandberg). He tells him about the face Bellows claimed to have seen in the soap operas. His phone goes dead when Bobbi (Jacqueline Antaramian) appears. She asks if he found the replacement equipment. When he asks about Bellows, she warns him to finish his job and walk away.

Jill (Mitzi Akaha) enters a bookstore to find Mark waiting for her. She asks what he is doing there. He says rumor has it, Evie Crest suffered a stroke and her grandfather’s (William Crest) tapes would be sold. She asks about Dan because he is no longer working at the museum. She calls his Mystery Signals podcast “shitty” and says the tapes are not for sale. He refuses to tell her where Dan is working. He believes she is trying to win Dan back with “The Circle” tape.

She tells Mark that William Crest was linked to the VOS Society in NYC. She shows him a picture of the VOS Society, including the leader, Iris Vos. She gives him a copy of the snuff film that Crest based “The Circle” on. They watch the video, which only lasts a few minutes. Rumors claim William Crest’s collection is haunted. Mark begins acting strange and agrees to buy it all.

Dan tells himself to complete the job. Samuel pops up on the screen. She was gone when he returned with breakfast. She asks how she got in his apartment and what he did with Father Russo’s tapes. She walks away from him and asks about the stuff on the walls. They have been sending Jess down to collect the mold in jars. He says it is a matter of a shared universe and body and blood. He claims to have the answers that she has been searching for her entire life. They walk down a flight of steps, into a room where several people are standing in a circle, chanting. He says the old mansion belonged to the Vos family. With her voice quivering, she asks about the song the people are chanting. He says it is a prayer, not a song.

Samuel knows Melody experiences pain when she listens to the prayer. Since the opera, he knew she was what he was looking for. She follows him deeper into the room, gradually approaching the evil idol. He refuses to be called a called, preferring pioneer instead. She asks if her mother was his seer. He denies knowing her mother but admits to sending the convent a letter. He says Dr. Turner helped him locate her. Baldung is extremely rare, and he is lucky to have found her. He says they will be as one. Samuel plays a snuff film that was filmed in the same room they are standing in. She trips out when a woman in the film slits another woman’s throat. He assures her she will be safe and proceeds to tell her about the new world, where she will be reunited with her mother. She says “fu** you” and leaves the room.

Dan watches the footage as Melody runs up the steps to her room. She sits on the bed and cries, saying she was never here. She packs her stuff into a suitcase and stops to think about what Samuel said. He said someone would hold a whole new world inside them. She pops a tape into the cassette player. Dan grabs another tape and does the same. Jess appears on the screen. She asks, “Do you think I could be more than I am, like, do I seem strong enough to hold a new world inside me.” Melody rushes out of the room to Jess’ apartment. Tamara Stefano (Kate Eastman) answers the door and says they left last night.  She pushes her way into the apartment to find the furniture covered with what looks like sheets. She runs down the hallway into the stairwell. She looks into the camera, saying they took Jess.

John Smith stands at the top of the steps, refusing to permit her to access the 6^th floor. He pretends to know nothing about Jess. He forces her back down the stairs, where she runs into Samuel. He alerts her that Jess is gone. When she steps into the hallway, she runs into two Rockland workers. Samuel demands to know what they are doing at the Visser. Melody looks into the camera and pleads for someone to find her. Dr. Turner comes around the corner and promises she will be okay. She struggles to get away, but they carry her out of the building while Dr. Turner watches. The evil creature appears on the screen, more prominent than previously. Startled, Dan pushes his chair back and takes off running. He grabs his baseball bat and hits the screen, which goes out for a few seconds before coming back on. Dan smashes the screen as the creature emerges.

He starts smashing the tapes, accidentally hitting the wall. He looks inside the wall and tilts one of the cabinets over to find a trap door. He climbs down the steps into a dark room. He enters what looks like the room, where Melody was with Samuel in the footage. He enters a room filled with computer screens, all with different footage. The evil statue is centered in the room. Dan is drawn to a screen of Melody pleading with someone to find her. As he turns around, someone pushes him in the face as the episode comes to an end.

 

Archive 81 Review

The content is a mixture of virtuosity, surprise, and tension. The show is guaranteed to satisfy your curiosity about good and evil. The camerawork, editing, and writing, up to this point, are great. The acting could utilize a bit of work, but overall, the main cast does a great job presenting the story to their audience.

By the time I made it to the end of the episode, my mental well-being was in a vulnerable state. Rebecca Sonnenshine has created a riveting story right from the start. Only two episodes to go, I question if my curiosity will get the best of me.

The episode deserves a 7.5. Get more Archive 81 recaps here. Support the ReelMockery team by clicking here.