Critic’s Rating: 3 / 5.0
3
I was just thinking that this show needed a superpowered individual.
To be sure, I wasn’t expecting the Nazi connection, but okay. By the way, that was a LOT of swastikas.
It’s also about time that one of the Librarians — not you, Vikram — explored having a social life.
The Librarians: The Next Chapter, “And the Red Rock”
One of the most delightful elements of The Librarians: The Next Chapter is how much it leans in on its Belgrade-local lore and legend.
On The Librarians: The Next Chapter Season 2 Episode 5, “And the Red Rock,” they incorporate the area’s history of Nazi-occupation with ancient Slavic mythology, and conjure a modern-day superhero whose very existence triggers a crime wave.
At the same time, Lysa is dating a sweet geologist who dreams of saving the planet. And has a shard of Nazi-superpower-stone in his arm. Well, nobody’s perfect, right?
Full disclosure: I still have some trauma triggers associated with the last show I saw Oliver Dench on, The CW’s travesty of a sci-fi series, Pandora.
But I made a sincere effort to assess Dench on his portrayal of Robert, not my memories of Xander. Look at me, being all professional and stuff.
Yeah, so Robert’s not nearly the dumbass jerk that Xander was. But that doesn’t mean he makes great choices either.
His search for the Alatyr stone — a real thing, I looked it up — dovetails with his discovery of a secret Nazi Ahnenerbe — another real thing — research lab, and he doesn’t see that as a red (no pun intended) flag?
Superhero Vibes
I had previously commented that The Librarians: The Next Chapter Season 2 had been magical being-heavy so far. A demon, a genie, Peter Pan, and a pair of demon siblings have kept the Annex hopping.
The Alatyr stone is the first magical artifact wielded by a mortal — or is Robert a mortal wielded by the Alatyr? 🤔 — that the Librarians must contend with.
And Lysa’s affection for him assures him of more opportunities to rectify the situation than they offered any of the previous opponents this season.
Mind you, Charlie seemed pretty intent on cutting that shard out of Robert’s arm with that big knife of hers, but I’m sure she would’ve knocked him out first. Or at least anesthetized the area.
A Protective Instinct
A weird sort of parallel that runs through the two major conflicts in the narrative is how both Robert and Vikram are trying to do the “right” thing.
They’re just going about it wrong.
Robert wants to make the world a better place by beating up bad guys. What he doesn’t understand is that being ready for a fight guarantees that one will happen.
Vikram wants to protect Lysa from harm by imposing his outdated idea of protocol and propriety.
What he doesn’t understand (until their final scene together) is that the best protection he can provide is a sympathetic ear and a safe place for her to express her fears and insecurities.
Lysa’s built up a lot of defenses ever since her parents passed. She’s let some down among the Librarians, Charlie, and Mrs. Astolat, but getting out and dating is a huge step.
Outside of the Annex, her only friend is Suki, whom she discovered on The Librarians: The Next Chapter Season 1 Episode 8, “And the Hangover From Hell,” had lied to her from the beginning of their relationship.
So dating Robert is a great start, until it turns out that he’s infected with magical superpowers.
What are the chances?
The Price of the Job
“And the Red Rock” examines Lysa’s feelings about the solitary life of a Librarian, at least as far as romance goes.
Just as Charlie learned to balance her responsibilities to her team with her responsibility to herself on The Librarians: The Next Chapter Season 2 Episode 3, “And the Vanishing Bankers,” Lysa realizes that she might need more than science and magic.
Vikram: The Library tells us to avoid romantic entanglements, but we are human. We have human emotions. It is up to each of us to sort that out for ourselves.
Lysa: Did you know that when you were with Anya, or did you only realize that now?
Vikram: I only know that the heart wants what the heart wants.
Lysa, like Connor, accepted the offer of “a life of mystery and misery, loneliness and adventure.”
As a team, they’re probably never lonely enough to appreciate what they’ve given up, but it makes sense that occasionally they might wonder what the blue pill might’ve tasted like.
Too Few To Mention
At least the next time Lysa goes on a date, she can probably count on Vikram keeping his nose out of her business.
And who knows? She might run into Robert again. Although he may have returned to his first calling and entered the priesthood by that point.
It was fascinating that quoting a biblical passage broke his enthrallment. I don’t think that’s ever been a solution in a Librarians adventure before.
What did you think, Fanatics? Were you Team Robert or Team Red Rock? Any thoughts from the peanut gallery on his costume?
Hit our comments section with your episode-specific feedback and rate the episode in the poll below!
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On The Librarians: The Next Chapter “And the Red Rock,” the team investigates Belgrade’s new superhero & Lysa’s love life. Read our review!
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On The Librarians: The Next Chapter, “And the Recipe for Disaster,” the team must crack the magic of a deadly cooking show. We review it all!
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On The Librarians: The Next Chapter, “And the Vanishing Bankers,” Charlie gets the chance at a second childhood! We review how that goes…
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