Sleepy Hollow 1.07 “The Midnight Ride”

The Rundown: Following up from the last episode, the Headless Horseman has returned to Sleepy Hollow to claim his head once again. Every episode with the Horsemen is a treat, but this episode has the heroes getting their heads out from the sand and taking some action. Really badass.

Well, the trend of awesome episodes continues with episode 7, “The Midnight Ride.” In this episode, as predicted in the previous episode, the Headless Horseman has returned to Sleepy Hollow. His mission remains the same, regain his head and usher in the apocalypse. This time, however, the heroes are not going to be caught defenseless and unaware. With Ichabod’s new allies, the Masons, they try to find a way to destroy the Headless Horseman before he can get what he wants.

This episode contains all the elements that make this show really fun to watch, with the exception of Jenny Mills. It has the horseman, as silent and badass as ever, going forward with merciless efficiency as he slices the heads off his enemies. It also has movements of pieces from both sides of the supernatural conflict taking place beneath the surface of the town of Sleepy Hollow, and it also hints at greater meaning behind the individual events of each episode that has preceded it, as well as this one.

I cannot stress enough how awesome the Headless Horseman is in this show. As I’ve said, a villain with a clear motivation, who doesn’t monologue or hesitate to dispatch the good guys, is one that is a pleasure to watch, and gives a real sense of dread to every episode he’s in. This is also the first episode I’ve seen that uses Ichabod’s historic roots in a way that doesn’t make it feel like it was just shoved in there to make it relevant. Using Paul Revere’s ride as the backdrop helps, as it was a historic event that was experienced by many people, and so it is more believable that he was there.

This episode also sets up a more important role for Abbie Mills’ ex-boyfriend, as he is approached by an agent of the enemy, and warned about the upcoming awfulness embracing Sleepy Hollow. While it might be interesting to see someone who Lt. Mills is close to turn on her, the two of them have practically no chemistry on screen. You never get a sense for what their relationship was before, and there seems to be very little affection between them now. This makes that angle very hard to get excited about, but despite this, the rest of the episode really shines.

So, if you were on the fence about this show, I’d say this episode might solidify your opinion of it, one way or the other. If you still hate it, you’re not going to like it, because this episode is an example of the show at its best. The ending just blew my mind, and made me really excited to see where this show is going. So for all you Headless Horseman fans, keep watching! For the rest of you… why are you reading this?