The Gifted season 2, episode 13 recap: teMpted

The Underground has difficulty gaining new allies in their fight against the Inner Circle on this week’s episode of The Gifted.

As interesting as it is to see all of the different mutant factions, “teMpted” shows that the show is beginning to stretch itself thin. The Gifted is juggling so many storylines and certain characters are suffering because of it. This episode excludes Jace Turner and his gang of Purifiers to shift larger focus to the Morlocks. However, we haven’t spent enough time with them and Erg all season for the latter’s flip-flop in this episode to feel genuine.

The Morlocks

Clarice seems to be fitting in with the underground mutant faction as she volunteers for every raid. Unfortunately, one of their missions goes sideways and Marcos’ Morlock friend, Glow (Laysla de Oliveira) winds up getting shot. Naturally, the Morlocks don’t have the medical means to treat her so Clarice goes to the only medical professional she knows: Caitlin.

It’s a refreshing change of pace to see Caitlin back in doctor mode on The Gifted. He character has been a bit of a mixed bag this season but she’s always at her best when earnestly fighting to save lives. Clarice portals to the apartment to grab Caitlin and Marcos before leading them back to the tunnels.

More from FOX

• 5 best new shows premiering in September 2023 on AMC, Peacock & more
• Batman TV shows that don’t feature the Dark Knight
• TV shows that went into the Multiverse
• Will there be a The Big Leap season 2? When will it premiere?
• The Big Leap season 1 episode 11 recap: Who ends up together?

While Marcos is able to give Glow a transfusion, Caitlin knows they’ll need to head to the clinic for more. Erg isn’t happy about a human in their midst but he’s shut up quickly by Caitlin and eventually grows accustomed to her presence. The Gifted treats us to his flashback this week where we learn his human girlfriend sold out the Underground after getting busted by Sentinel Services. Is this one experience enough to really tarnish his views on all humans? Didn’t other humans help out the Underground?

Nevertheless, Erg is impressed when Caitlin stands her ground at the clinic from the Purifiers. She needs the centrifuge for Marcos’ and Glow’s blood so she isn’t planning to leave any sooner. After shooting a Purifier, the group is able to escape in the nick of time. Glow is able to get proper treatment and Marcos is relieved to see she’s okay. It seems like The Gifted could be teasing a romance between these two but with the Lorna/Marcos reconciliation, it makes us wonder how that’ll happen.

At least Erg learns to trust humans again and draws a dirt “m” on Caitlin’s face before she leaves. When he offered her a gift, we half expected him to offer up an “m” shaped scar like the rest of the Morlocks. Although, we think a better gift would have been Erg offering to help out the Underground in their fight against the Inner Circle.

THE GIFTED: L-R: Amy Acker, Natalie Alyn Lind and Stephen Moyer in the “teMpted” episode of THE GIFTED airing Tuesday, Jan. 22 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2018 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: Annette Brown/FOX.

The Underground

After discovering in last week’s episode that the Frost Sisters had set their sights on Lauren, everyone in the Underground is on edge. Lauren is desperate to keep herself out of their grasp and has taken to not sleeping. She has deep-set bags under her eyes and refuses to allow herself to rest for more than twenty minutes. Caitlin thinks she needs to sleep, once again proving that she doesn’t totally understand what her daughter’s going through.

Luckily, Caitlin spends the majority of the episode with the Morlocks so Reed is on parent duty. He tries his best to get through to Lauren when he finds her listening to the music box. However, she’s not receptive to his warnings about the darkness in their family.

His speech accidentally sends her right into the Frosts’ arms. When she falls asleep, Andy is waiting but he’s completely controlled by the Frost Sisters now. He’s confident and understanding, not to mention he knows exactly what to say for her to trust him. Andy/the Frosts convince her to trigger Fenris in the dream before begging her to meet in real life. While the use of Fenris gives her some momentary relief, she realizes what’s happening and forces herself to wake up.

THE GIFTED: L-R: Blair Redford and Stephen Moyer in the “teMpted” episode of THE GIFTED airing Tuesday, Jan. 22 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2018 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: Annette Brown/FOX.

Unfortunately, the dream has more of an effect on her than she thought. Lauren decides the best thing to do is to take off and get as far away as possible. Before she can hop on a bus out of Washington D.C., she notices a mutant family getting harassed. She angrily slices the police car before taking off again. At least Reed and John aren’t that far behind. However, John takes his alone time with Reed to encourage him to be more open with his daughter about his experiences.

It’s not too long before the two stumble upon Lauren but she’s becoming more unstable. Despite not wanting to talk, she eventually relents and lets her dad approach. He shares how the music box spoke to him as well and how desperate he was for that power. She’s not alone in this because he’ll be there the whole time.

The Gifted throws a big curveball our way with this story. While many viewers expected Lauren to eventually embrace the dark side and join Andy, the show actually has her suppress her powers instead. Andy is equally surprised when he no longer feels a connection with his sister and the Frost Sisters are horrified. How will the Underground fare without (arguably) their strongest mutant?

THE GIFTED: L-R: Emma Dumont and Sean Teale in the “hoMe” episode of THE GIFTED airing Tuesday, Jan. 15 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2018 Fox Broadcasting Co. Cr: Steve Dietl/FOX.

The Inner Circle

Lorna is still a double agent but she’s just barely scraping by. This week’s episode has her fake an injury during training to sneak into Max’s room. She finds detailed blueprints of all the major government buildings. Naturally, Lorna is horrified that Reeva would be so hellbent on destruction. She meets up with Marcos so the two can share a sweet moment and swap information.

Unfortunately, Max realizes almost immediately someone snuck into his room. Initially, he blames his two other partners but is quick to suspect Lorna. She’s too good with a weapon for her slip-up in training and he calls her out privately. However, Lorna throws around the weight of her heritage to quiet him for the moment.

It won’t be for too long since Marcos agrees to separate Max from the Inner Circle when Lorna refuses to leave her double agent post. When he attempts to abduct Max from a liquor store, he winds up getting shot quite a bit. The car gets set on fire and it definitely looks like Max is dead. However, Marcos can be seen trying to get away while clutching his chest. Considering the guy gave quite a bit of blood to Glow earlier in the episode, he can’t be in great shape. Looks like the Underground is going to need the Morlocks’ help much sooner than expected.

For a while, it seemed like the Underground had the weaker storyline compared to the Inner Circle. However, this episode definitely showcased why the Underground’s arc has gotten more interesting with Lauren’s and Reed’s storyline. If the Morlocks don’t end up joining the fight, then their addition seems a bit forced. The ending of this episode felt like it could have served as an official goodbye to Clarice. Hopefully, the series can find a better way of integrating this faction and Blink into the main storyline before the season is over.

The Gifted is on a two-week break but the next episode looks like it’s going to be explosive. How will the Underground deal with the loss of Lauren and will Lorna escape the Inner Circle? So many questions to be answered and we’re excited to see how the remainder of this season plays out.

What did you think of “teMpted”? Be sure to tell us in the comment section below!