Creepshow Season 2, Episode 3 recap: The Right Snuff / Sibling Rivalry

Episode 203 of Shudder/AMC series Creepshow begins in outer space on the space station Ocula, where two astronauts, Captain Alex Toomey (Ryan Kwanten) and Major Ted Lockwood (Breckin Meyer), are on a special mission to test some innovative, gravity manipulating technology.

Assisting them on their bold yet dicey mission is the voice of Sandra (Gabrielle Byndloss). Not long into the episode, the astronauts must overcome some unexpected space rock adversity. They use a gravity wave pulse to deflect the object, but it won’t be the only source of tension.

After Ann Poole (Kara Kimmer) from HNN Cable News reminds us that fame awaits the mission’s leader, Alex gets jealous of Ted, who is in the leadership role. Alex’s father was Michael Toomey, the first man on Mars, but it was a source of constant pressure to “measure up” and be great. As a result, Alex starts cracking up. Now, as a “second banana”, Alex hears his father’s shadow chiding him about falling short of true greatness, and he doesn’t want to be a historical footnote to Ted.

Creepshow deep space meltdown

Interestingly, Flight Director Barlow changes the parameters of the mission. Alex and Ted are informed that Earth has been in contact with an alien race, and Ted is predictably slated to be the one to make the first contact with the Gorangi alien race. Apparently, the mission is simply to meet a Gorangi representative and shake hands. Of course, human beings often complicate things, and Alex is definitely that kind of guy.

Alex hallucinates his father berating him again (referring to him as “another spam in the can”) and the space madness leads Alex to promptly squish Ted with the handy-dandy gravity control device. Effectively, this act isn’t only murder, but also a mutiny that endangers the mission. However, Alex steals that mission to himself, to hog that bittersweet glory. When the glorious moment arrives, the Gorangi representative is annoyed that Ted is not the ambassador.

It turns out that Ted was actually a Gorangi himself (called “seven”), which means Alex botched the mission in at least 3 ways. Then the alien scans Alex’s memory, learning he killed Ted. In an extra, Creepshow twist, the Gorangi themselves don’t punish the human race for this breach of etiquette. Instead,  the Gorangi representative informs Alex his use of gravity waves is putting the moon on a collision course with Earth. So, as the moon promptly collides with Earth, Alex watches on helplessly from afar, perhaps caring less about fame and glory, while realizing the gravity of his decision.

Sibling Rivalry

Sibling Rivalry takes place near Manchester High School, but it could be called “Anytown, USA.” This Creepshow story centers around a loopy teenager named Lola (Maddie Nichols) who thinks her brother, Andrew (Andrew Brodeur) is trying to kill her. She tells this mixed-up tale to Mrs. Porter (Molly Ringwald), who is either a Counselor or a Principal (frankly, it doesn’t matter much which). Lola’s story goes on wild tangents, and she even mentions that one of her classmates, Grace (Ja’ness Tate) had kissed her while she was sleeping, which Mrs. Porter suggests would be a form of assault.

Lola’s weird, divergent story seems to suggest she’s confused about sex, but she also wonders why Andrew made spaghetti at home (saying he normally doesn’t cook for himself). She also claims their home’s wiener dog, Dolores Claiborne (named after a Stephen King character), was scared of her brother. She also says she suspiciously found Andrew researching weapons, swords, and axes.

It gets a little more serious

Despite her rambling, silly tone, Lola makes an even more serious claim: Andrew tied her up in the basement! However, due to this seemingly unreliable narrative, Mrs. Porter recommends she see a therapist, assuming she just wants attention. However, when Lola returns home later, she arrives to an initial creepy silence, then she sees Andrew brandishing an ax! Of course, here’s where Creepshow throws in a twist.

Andrew is not threatening her because he’s a maniac but accuses her of killing their parents. He gives her a chance to remember events as they actually unfolded. She remembers dad making pancakes, but it wasn’t syrup she spilled, but blood. Also, Andrew had apparently put garlic in the spaghetti (which, of course, is supposed to harm vampires). He also helps her recall that, yes, she had killed their mom (Jerri Tubbs) and dad.

The conclusion

After Andrew cleans up his sister’s mess (that is, their deceased parents), he regretfully informs Lola that he must now decapitate her. However, they both deduce that it was Grace who bit her and infected her with vampirism (which she mistakenly remembered as a sexual encounter). The two decide that they should defeat Grace, out of revenge, and Lola bites her brother so he’ll be a powerful vampire himself.

There is a showdown, and it seems Grace is definitely defeated. As an added courtesy, Lola and Andrew seem to attack and kill Mrs. Porter. It’s not entirely clear why, aside from their vampirism, but there’s also the possibility they’ll use their powers to commit additional crimes. This Creepshow tale lacks a crystal clear moral, but who says every story needs one?

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