On this episode of Sleepy Hollow, “Dawn’s Early Light,” Pandora switches sides, Abbie and Crane formulate a plan to defeat the Hidden One whose powers continue to grow and Reynolds learns the truth.
The Hidden One is punishing Pandora for her deception. He fears he’s been too indulgent, after all, she’s just a human. A human with a life span of 4,000 years. Pandora insists that she didn’t betray him, but she did forget to mention the Witnesses had the Emblem of Thura, and it nearly resulted in his downfall. Pandora insists she’s seen the error of her ways and reminds her beloved that she did free him once again. Good thing she did so because that’s the only reason he’s keeping her alive.
A Family Affair
Abbie and Jenny’s father pay them a visit. He brings with him a photo album full of pictures from their childhood. Abbie’s warming up, but Jenny isn’t ready to forgive and forget just yet. Crane arrives and meets Ezra, but there’s tension in the air, and Ezra leaves. Crane’s a bit thrown off by the dysfunctional family dynamic, but Abbie and Jenny don’t bother to fill him in on all the details.
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A Friendly Warning
Crane heads to the chamber and finds Pandora poking around. She needs the rest of her box. It was forged by the gods themselves to contain their power, and it’s the only thing that can stop the Hidden One. Crane questions why he should believer her and Pandora says because if he doesn’t, they’ll all be extinguished. Crane believes there has to be another way to stop the Hidden One, to restore the box. Pandora says the box can’t be repaired, but it can be regenerated, but only in the place where it was forged, the Catacombs. There’s no way to travel back since Abbie and Crane killed the Tree of Fear. If they can find another path, there’s still hope.
Crane tells Abbie about Pandora’s visit. The Hidden One is approaching full power, and they have 48 hours before he destroys humanity. Abbie isn’t thrilled to hear they need to find a way back to the Catacombs. Crane says it appears to be their only option, but Abbie wants him to consider the source. Abbie may have put aside her trust issues regarding Pandora for Crane’s sake, but she isn’t anxious to team up with the woman again. Crane knows Abbie is still recovering from her ordeal, so he won’t proceed unless she’s on board, but he does make it clear the future of humanity rests on her decision.
The Map to an Alternate Dimension
Abbie doesn’t see a way for them to get back, but Crane’s formulating a plan. Paul Revere recovered the Eye of Providence for Washington, and according to Pandora, the Eye was previously in the Catacombs. They know Betsy was there because Abbie used Ross’ knife as an escape route to get out herself.
Crane says the last time Ross and Revere were together was Christmas Day 1776, just before Washington crossed the Delaware. Washington told Crane to stay behind, and he lost sight of them in the fog as they crossed the river. Crane and Abbie suspect Washington wasn’t heading to Jersey after all, they were going to the Catacombs.
The painting of Washington crossing the Delaware was created by a man named Emanuel Leutze 80 years after the actual event. He based it on an eyewitness account General John Sullivan in his journal who also happened to be a Mason.
There’s a replica of the painting on one of the walls of the Archives, and Crane studies it diligently. He notices one of the men in the picture is wearing what was Betsy Ross’ hat. Leutze assumed from Sullivan’s description that everyone on the boat was male, but Betsy was there after all. That girl got around.
Crane recalls the day of the mission. He was peeved to be left behind. He questioned if Betsy was going, and she said she was not. Instead, Washington asked her to complete a new flag. Betsy believed that if the mission went as planned, the flag might be the only thing she’d be remembered for in spite of all those other numerous missions that have factored into Crane’s recollections.
Crane and Abbie figure out Betsy thought the flag would be her greatest achievement because the gold thread she used allowed them into the Catacombs. This means Crane and company need the flag. The last time Crane saw it, Paul Revere had it. Revere would never let anything so vital out of his possession. Joe figures out it could be at the Paul Revere House in Boston.
Abbie and Crane head to Boston while Jenny and Joe stay behind to figure out how to use it.
The Eternal Soldier
At the House, Crane brings up Abbie and Jenny’s father. He’s pleased they seem to have reconciled. Abbie says they aren’t all the way there, but they are making progress. Abbie’s closer than Jenny, but Abbie says she’s come to a point in her life where she’s open to change. Because of this new attitude, Abbie is contemplating telling Danny Reynolds the whole truth about her secret monster-fighting life. If she wants a relationship with him, she’s got to be honest.
They put the personal chit chat aside and locate the flag. Crane realizes the flag they’re looking at wasn’t sewn by Betsy. She used a very specific stitch. Someone took the original flag and left a counterfeit in its place.
Just as they make this discovery, they are attacked by a creature burnt beyond recognition. It’s strong and isn’t slowed down by bullets, so Abbie and Crane take off. Once in the car, Abbie wonders what the hell it was. Crane recognized the garments it was wearing. It was the uniform of the 8th Virginia Regiment. Most were killed during the Battle of Monmouth, but some defied orders and escaped. Crane recalls an entry in Franklin’s notebook discussing how after Washington captured one of the deserters, the Sisterhood of the Radiant Heart tarred and bandaged the man, using infernal materials. They transformed him into a creature known as the “Eternal Soldier.” Crane believes Revere assigned this soldier the task of protecting the flag, and when they attempted to remove it, the Soldier was awakened.
Abbie is confused since that wasn’t the actual flag. Somebody replaced it and knew how to get around the Soldier. Fake flag or not, they roused the beast, and it will not rest until it hunts them down. Now they have to find the real flag and avoid be roasted by an overheated guard. And the clock is still ticking where the Hidden One is concerned.
A Star-Spangled Message
Abbie sends photos of the flag to Joe and Jenny, hoping whoever took the original left a clue behind. They notice a pattern of symmetrical holes that turn out to be musical notes. The notes comprise the “Star Spangled Banner.”
Francis Scott Key wrote the anthem during the War of 1812, long after Washington crossed the Delaware. There was no way he could have been involved in the crossing. But Key was a Mason. During the war, the British were attacking the country and ransacking artifacts from everywhere, including the Capitol and the White House. Key secured the flag elsewhere.
Being a Mason, Key would have known about the Eternal Soldier and how to avoid triggering it, but he left behind a clue as to where he stashed the real one. Key wrote the anthem at Fort McHenry in Baltimore, so off they go, leaving Jenny behind to figure out how to deal with the Soldier.
On their way out, Abbie and Crane are intercepted by Reynolds. They are being blamed for the destruction at the Paul Revere House, a national monument. He wants to know what Abbie was doing in Boston and why Crane is always with her. His patience is up, but before Abbie can offer an explanation, the Eternal Soldier attacks. Reynolds actually says “FBI. Freeze.” Of course, the creature fails to listen and Danny shoots. That fails, and the creature produces a ball of fire in his hand and hurls it at the agent. And the hits keep coming. Crane manages to get the car, and the threesome make a daring escape.
No time better than the present for Abbie to tell Reynolds what is up. He takes the news pretty well, and it explains all of Abbie’s odd behavior. But Reynolds doesn’t get to go along for this ride. The Soldier is only after Crane and Abbie, so they drop him off.
The Break-Up
The Hidden One isn’t cutting Pandora any slack. He wants to know why she hasn’t brought him any more sacrifices to replenish the Hourglass. She breaks the news that she will no longer be providing for him. She’s tired of being treated like the hired help. Pandora’s learned a thing or two from the Witnesses. They are stronger because they love each other, and they have each other. The Hidden One loves only power. He tries to strike her down, but it’s Pandora’s astral form. She’s taken refuge somewhere else. The Hidden One tells his ex if she loves humans so much, she can die among them.
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Welcome to the Club
Back at FBI headquarters, Reynolds has a chat with Sophie. He’s figured out that she’s been in on this whole supernatural secret for some time. She tells him she got clued in when they were hunting for Abbie. He wants to know why Sophie didn’t say anything, but how likely was he to believe that Abbie was trapped in an alternate dimension, and they’d have to fight demons to get her back? She warns him that once he’s pulled into this world, there are consequences and there’s no going back.
The Fire Man Gets Extinguished
At Fort McHenry, Abbie and Crane spot a statue of Orpheus. He used a lyre to enter the underworld, and there’s one located on the monument. Abbie plays the first few keys of the “Star Spangled Banner” and opens a secret entrance. Once inside, they find the flag. But they aren’t alone, The Eternal Soldier is there with balls of fire in hand. This guy is like the Terminator. Jenny and Joe arrive with some liquid nitrogen and turn Mr. Hot into Mr. Freeze.
Crane figures out that if he holds the flag up in the dawn’s early light a map appears-the path Washington took to the Catacombs.
I still can’t help but think we haven’t seen the last of Betsy given the huge role she’s been playing, but big stuff is brewing for next week’s finale. We’ll just have to wait to find out.
Sleepy Hollow airs Fridays at 8pm on FOX.
(Image courtesy of FOX)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Jennifer has worked as a freelance writer in the entertainment field since 2012. In addition to currently writing feature articles for Screen Rant, Jennifer has contributed content ranging from recaps to listicles to reviews for BuddyTV, PopMatters, TVRage, TVOvermind, and Tell-Tale TV. Links to some of Jennifer’s reviews can be found on Rotten Tomatoes.
