Ben’s mother’s DNA test of Helen reveals an unexpected surprise. Ryn struggles to maintain authority over the pack as she gets weaker from being out of the water. Dale receives unwelcome news from his deputy.

So after their little bust up last episode, Xander and Ben aren’t really on speaking terms. Xander is understandably upset that the specific mermaid who killed his father now seems to be under Ben’s protection and perhaps that’s why he seems intent on consistently missing that his new girlfriend isn’t all that she claims to be (or any of it, come to that). Or maybe he just got dropped on his head a lot as a child. Either way, he continues to be the weak link in the show – a character whose wilful dumbness is only overshadowed by his monumental ability to completely change his feelings on a matter on the turn of a dime. I guess the show needs someone to fulfil this function, I just wish he could catch a break or wasn’t so obviously written.

Anyway, Ryn is struggling to maintain control over the pack, or specifically the ex-leader, and is trying to hide the fact that her time away from the water is starting to tell on her physically. Ben and Maddie naturally try to reassure her that she won’t be allowed to come to harm while they are around, and both are a little surprised about the fierceness of her response – this is her fight, and it isn’t for them to interfere. Guess which of the two of them is better able to assimilate this message?

Dale gets a visit from his deputy asking for his advice after she found Ben and what she presumes to be a ‘bunch of tweekers’ at the family cabin after a rough night (and having had a call about their adventure in the gas station). Dale does his best to run interference but then gets blindsided by her other piece of news that’ll take him out of town for a while, if he takes it up. Meanwhile his wife continues to feel shut out by both Dale and her daughter, and we see possibly the first hint that there’s a little more to her return than she’s been letting on.

And Ben’s mother comes clean with him after he confronts her about her holding back the trust money from Helen, showing him the DNA test she’s obtained after stealing Helen’s used coffee cup. Turns out the results weren’t what she expected at all, and that’s potentially good and bad news for Helen all rolled into one.

As Ben and Maddie formulate a plan to get the mermaids the seawater exposure that they need, tensions mount and the inevitable starts to happen. This leads Maddie to question once again the profundity of the effect of Ryn’s song on Ben, and they decide to try to capture the song on a mic so they can analyse it and see if there is any way they can block it. Only problem is, Ryn can’t sing to an empty room – she needs a human to sing to, and there’s other revelations to come from her that may alter the balance of this odd little love triangle significantly going forward.

Verdict: Ambitious in just how many plates it’s trying to keep spinning, and mostly doing a very successful job with all of them. If only they could sort out some decent writing for poor Xander. 8/10

Greg D. Smith