By Owen Quinn author
On the eve of their senior year, Scott McCalland his friends find themselves facing the possibility of a future without one another, a next phase of their lives that might take them in different directions despite their best intentions. Little do they know that outside forces are already plotting to break the pack apart long before they ever see graduation. New villains use a combination of science and the supernatural for a malevolent and mysterious purpose that will eventually pit Scott and his friends against their greatest enemy yet.
Teen Wolf had long shrugged off the image of Michael J Fox and drew totally on the horor aspects of the supernatural. Four seasons in and it was popular. Scott had become the alpha of his own pack but they had endured heavy losses. His girlfriend, Alison, had been killed at the end of season three but had found love again with Kira (Arden cho).
Their enemies were fierce and this show was not afraid to go full out horror . The monsters were great, the villains complex and alliances shifted as Scott became the wolf he was truly meant to be.
But season five would bring a terrifying new enemy that was like nothing they had seen before. The Dread Doctors arrived with an agenda of their own. They liked to cross supernatural species to create chimeras that they could control. They spliced together creatures to see if they worked. |if not, they would murder their own creations.
But before they arrive, we see Lydia, catatonic and being abused by mnurses in some sort of hospital.She triesd to escape using her banshee screams but is stopped. She cries out that sll her friends are going to die and she has to warn them. Police officer Parrish who is really a hellhound, is sent to investigate a noise complaint and is slashed across the chest by a werewolf hybrid, Belasko, that wants Scott.
The direction is excellent here as Parrish fades in and out of consciousness, comforted by the illusion of Lydia until he is found by Sheriff Stillinski, Stiles’ dad.
Buffy was famed for good battle choreography but Teen Wolf equals that and more. The wolf fights Scvott and Kira in a rain drenched backgroiund, charging from a waterfall as the drains are overflowing. This wolf manages to spear Scott and begins draining his power from him but Scott gains the upper hand. Scott being the balanced man he is gives the wolf the choice to run away rather than kill him on the spot.
It is also sees the arrival of Theo, an old school friend from years previous and whom Stiles immediately has suspicions about. As we would find out, Stiles is one hundred per cent right. It will be revealed that Theo is working with the Dread Doctors to create his own supernaturally charged pack and kill Scott. While the horor unfolds we get the balance of the friends worrying about their final year and losing contact with each other. This is particularly a concern for Stiles. he has the friends he wants and doesn’t want to lose them when they go their separate ways.
Belasko runs to the Doctors who have enhanced his ability, begging for more power so he can remove the obstacles. The Doctors kill him where he stands. The Dread Doctors are a brilliant concept. They are a mix of steampunk Borg alongside Cenobite elements with a medical degree. They are seen in slow motion, their faces behind masks, giving the impression their steampunk implants are powering them and their instruments. They have electronically augmented voices which are flat and emotionless almost like a Cyberman. These doctors are not the type you really want at your bedside. They do not give second chances and they are racing against the clock. Belasko is a failure and not worth any more time.
But the final scene reveals that this is a flashback. Lydia is in an asylum being questioned by one Doctor Valack who wants to know what happened to everyone. We get a series of flashbacks which show all of our heroes in danger or possibly dead. But since L:ydia cannot remember, then Valack will preform trepanning on her so he can get the information he wants.
So the mystery is set. Who are the Dread Doctors? What is their connection to Scott and Belasko? Is Theo really to be trusted? Things are going to get a lot darker before the end of the season but that’s what Teen Wolf does best. Heroes will get savaged and innocents will suffer.
After four seasons the cast are fluid and comfortable and you believe that they are a team. Writer and creator Jeff Davis knows his stuff and works the darker elements seamlessly with the day to day worries like having to order in food because there is nothing in the fridge. Jeff is also a great advocate for the gay community and brilliantly serves up fiuly fledged, three dimensional character to further diversity long before anyone else did. And by the time the season ends, Davis will once again show the world why they should be watching Teen Wolf.
The Time Warriors and Beyond 