It’s just convenient that the slime, which by now has mixed with Horseshoe Bay’s reservoir and even made its way to homes across town, is taking its own sweet time to take effect. Meanwhile, another situation involving a demon arises that Nancy has to deal with on top of trying to break Temperance’s curse that is keeping her from Ace. Episode 3 of Nancy Drew is all about Nancy and her friends trying to do their best to manage the supernatural. And that isn’t easy.
Spoilers Ahead
The Doll
The Plagonnia Doll gains the spotlight in Episode 3 of Nancy Drew Season 4. On the one hand, it allows the Thenellis demon to take control of a kid named Avery, who is bent on killing George’s sister Jesse and her friend Birdie. On the other hand, it has the ability to break the curse that keeps Ace and Nancy apart. But it’s not that easy a feat. Bess, who knows a lot about such stuff, speaks of a complex Greek ritual, an inoculation, a sigil, and many other things that Ace and Nancy will have to consider if they want to break the love curse.
Meanwhile, Avery’s mocking of the supernatural is taken very seriously by Jesse and Birdie, who decide to prove to him that the supernatural is indeed real. In other words, they intend to teach him a lesson, and maybe he deserves one too. But what they didn’t expect was for the ritual to go wrong. As a result, Avery is possessed by a Thenellis demon that will end up killing its host. There is also the risk of it taking control of multiple hosts, which, in this case, are Jesse and Birdie. This whole thing is, as we said earlier, the result of the Plagonnia doll. It is absurd how Bess leaves the doll unattended in the library despite knowing how dangerous it is. As a result, before Nancy can try to get rid of her curse, she needs to help Jesse and Birdie and pull the demon out of Avery. How? Well, the answer is obviously an exorcism. As all this is happening, Nick earns a seat on the city council and manages to persuade the head of the body to have the water in the city reservoir checked.
The Exorcism
The exorcism that Nancy carries out on Avery does work, but there is a catch. Midway into the exorcism, Nancy and his friends realize that the Plagonnia Doll will not be able to take the pressure of the demon that will be sent back inside it, and it will break. Without the doll, the ritual to break the love curse will be incomplete. However, Nancy takes the call. She knows that the exorcism is the only way to save the lives of not just Avery but also Jesse and Birdie. The exorcism is successful; the demon is gone, and the doll has been turned to dust. But it doesn’t take Nancy much time to find out that the Plagonnia Dolls come in sets of two, one carrying negative energy and another carrying positive energy. The one with negative energy has been destroyed. She then poses the question that, in my humble opinion, is the most cliched one she could have formed in her head: what if love and its positive energy are as powerful as the dark energy they just encountered? This single question judges the age group of its viewers big time. The makers could have skipped this dialogue because the answer has been practically spoonfed to generations of children in the form of stories, cartoon shows, and animated shows. But if we accept the show as it is, we will also have to accept Nancy’s words, i.e., that she is right. The power of love can be more powerful than that of darkness. And frankly speaking, we believe it is. Nancy and Ace get their hands on another Plagonnia doll, a “good” one, after Ace tracks one down from the Dark Web in the blink of an eye. His search and Nancy’s realization come so soon after they lose the doll that it seems that they didn’t even care to research it when they came across it in the first place. Meanwhile, Horseshoe Bay’s neighboring Ellsworth has agreed to share its water while Horseshoe Bay gets its own water tested, all thanks to Nick. But isn’t it too late already? The water in the reservoir must have made its way to numerous homes. To get it tested and bring water from another town will take a lot of time unless Nick had figured out a way to not let a single drop of water from the reservoir, reach the homes. The latter seems unlikely though.
Does The Greek Ritual Work?
The ritual that was supposed to break the love curse turned out to be a failure. And the fact that it almost kills Nancy only proves how strong the curse is. Temperance had apparently sensed that Nancy and Ace would try to break the curse and ensured that every fail-safe protocol was in place. Way to go, Temperance Hudson. The other bad news is that the head of the city council has pulled out of the deal with Ellsworth that Nick had suggested. Why? We do not know. It seems that the only reason why she gave Nick a seat in the council is to use his social media popularity to the council’s advantage. This means that Horseshoe Bay is still vulnerable to a potential virus if not something worse. Nick will have to find another way to prevent people from drinking water. This itself sounds impossible.
Nancy may have lost one chance at breaking the curse, but she believes that there are many more ways to do it. Unfortunately, Ace has had enough. To see Nancy almost die in his arms is something he cannot risk being subjected to again. To see the person you love in pain and struggling to live is the last thing you want. And since the only way for Ace to not see that again is for him and Nancy to remain as friends and nothing more, he accepts it. But Nancy isn’t willing to stop. She is ready to take the risk. But is it justified? By trying to break the curse, she not only risks killing herself but Ace as well. Maybe she will find a better means to bring an end to the curse, but who can tell how that will turn out? One wrong step, and it can be the death of either or both of them. Ace takes the call and chooses to end their relationship. No amount of convincing can help Nancy stop him. But her pain is one thing, and the scream of the City Council chief is another. Nick’s fear is starting to come true.
Nancy Drew Episode 3 ends on a sad note, garnished with fear. Will Nancy choose to take action against the contaminated water, or will she keep on searching for a way to break the curse? One will save the lives of countless others, and another will bring back the love of her life. Episode 4 will reveal how strong Nancy is, not as an investigator but as a person.
