In a major departure from the original series, Ben leaps back to the late 1600s.

The setup of this episode differs greatly from its predecessor in the nature of Ben’s leap. On the other hand, also unlike the original, this iteration never – to the best of my recollection – set the limitation of ‘within his lifetime’. Another note about the differences: Ben again leaps into a woman in this episode. And again – and wholly unlike the original – it is simply no big deal. The Sam Beckett version did a wonderful job for its time; Ben’s version is refreshingly free of gender-centric melodrama thereby driving home the point by showing it’s no big deal. Overall, the show benefits by not hewing too religiously to the source material.

This time Ben leaps us back to the tiny village of Middletown, located between Salem and Boston Massachusetts. Naturally the specter of witch trials raises its ugly head, a trope that’s not just tired but exhausted. Fortunately this episode uses it to good effect as a character study not of the townspeople, but of Ben and the others.

Magic returns (apropos in episode about witchcraft) and it’s nice to see him back in the driver’s seat. The interaction among the whole cast is as engaging and appealing as always. We learn Ian is – more than a bit? – into astrology and the supernatural which kind of doesn’t quite mesh with what we’ve already seen of them. At least some hints setting it up would have been good. The friendly rivalry between them and Jenn to be Ben’s contact does mesh, however. A nice touch that continues to add to the chemistry among the regular cast. Plus they lay the whole Ziggy issue to rest with finality.

This installment contains a whole lot of nice directorial touches having to do with wells and rain and sulfur and charcoal. It also includes a slightly off-kilter incident of a surreptitious key exchange – when no one else is around to cause any need for secrecy. We also see Jenn returning with an armload of books from a library because there were no electronics from that long ago. Clever and cute enough that I’ll even give them a pass for not at least mentioning they can’t find digitized archival records.

The episode nicely resolves what happens to all the guest stars. More, however, what it really does is reflect on the situation with the regulars, particularly Addison and Ben. And it is here where the series shines brilliantly and reinforces themes from the old show to an exponential degree. Never give up or settle, push through fear and always trust your gut, and – most importantly – there is always a choice. Not that people can pick what happens to them, but everyone can always choose how they respond. Ben urges the townsfolk to reject anger and bitterness. This becomes a mirror of Ben rejecting his bitter feelings about what happened between him and Addison after his being lost for three years. It’s a nice resolution to that particular arc as well, and looks as if the show’s interpersonal relationships are now all finally back on an even keel.

Verdict: This show sometimes follows its predecessor and other times goes off in a different direction. Thus far it does a great job at choosing the best of both worlds. 8/10

Rigel Ailur

http://www.BluetrixBooks.com