Witches of East End Episodes 8 Recap: Jewelry With A Bite

Episode 8 entitled "Snake Eyes" revealed a TON of new information about the Beauchamp ladies. Let's take it by the storyline:

Story #1: Freya and Killian are still flirting at the bar. Amy catches them and breaks up with Killian. Meanwhile some poisonous flowers are delivered to Freya. Are they from Dash (who is at a medical convention in London)? No they are not. They are from Penelope. We learned previously that Penelope is actually Athena (Ingrid's evil boyfriend's daughter from a past life). She is out to get Freya and this time she almost succeeds. Penelope drugs Freya and sucks the soul out of her. Just then, Dash arrives and saves Freya's life. The couple is back together but Freya has lost her magical powers. And the last we see of Penelope, she is all glowy eyed and making the weather go crazy. Uh oh. That couldn't be good.

Story #2: We learn more about the researcher at the library (Mike). He is in East End because he believes there is a portal there to Asgard. Is this the same Asgard as in the "Agents of Shield"? If so I am definitely confused. He tells Ingrid he believes witches are real. Well he didn't believe at first but his father who was an archeologist gave him the scoop before he went crazy. Ingrid tries to blow Mike off but fears he's onto something.

Story #3: Previously the shape shifter and 1906 Ingrid were searching for the key. Wendy thought it had been destroyed centuries ago. But noooo. Joanna actually had it buried in the back yard. Wendy is initially afraid and wants rid of it immediately. She looks the snake key in the eye (bad idea) and puts the bracelet on. It bites her and poison courses through her veins. She must get to the portal NOW. The rest of the episode has them fighting throughout the house.

The sisters were exiled from Asgard by their father. He said if they returned, he would kill them. Joanna has been cursed with watching her daughters die and be reborn again and again but we don't know exactly why. Joanna had been holding onto the key in hopes of being reunited with Frederick someday. I at first thought he was her husband but he's actually her son. He chose to stay in Asgar when they left. We also learn that her husband is somewhere nearby but has no presence in their lives. Anyway, after much fighting, Joanna finally destroys the key and saves Wendy's life. She will never get to see her son again though. There is lots of crying and hugging all around.

Other observations:

Is it just me or is Julia Ormond's (Joanna) accent much thicker than usual in this episode? Or is she doing that on purpose?
And what does this symbol mean? It is somehow related to Asgard.

Grade: 5 Monsters (out of 5). An excellent episode. There are only two episodes to go but, luckily for us, the show has been renewed for season 2. Thank goodness!