(This article contains spoilers)
It: Welcome to Derry goes back in time, in 1908, at the root of the Creature’s current form. We already saw it in a different form in the past, inhabiting the body of a stag. In the early 20th century, it’s reintroduced as a young boy, then as Pennywise the Dancing Clown. But to become the killer clown we know, it had to choose the right target first.
Pennywise was the stage name of Robert “Bob” Gray (Bill Skarsgård), a circus performer who lost his wife and is now performing in a small wandering circus with his young daughter (Emma-Leigh Cullum), Ingrid, as his assistant and soon stage partner. Bob was a loving father, and loved by his daughter. Everything changed when It found the clown. What better host than one that attracts children? Using its current host as a young boy to lure him away from the circus, It devoured him and took his appearance. That day, everyone assumed Bob died in the woods, killed and eaten by wolves.
Back to the present, the show picks up right when it left in the previous episode. The Black Spot is raided by masked white men looking for Hank (Stephen Rider). Justice is long forgotten, they want him dead. Of course, the group of black men, military men for many of them, refuses to let their attackers do whatever they want and is ready to retaliate. That is, until Hank surrenders himself under the eyes of his daughter, Ronnie (Amanda Christine). Hank knows it can’t end well, he knows whatever happens, the blame will fall on the black people present, and no justice will save them.
But his friends, his people, won’t let him go. Everyone knows Hank is innocent, and if he goes, it’s the end. The people of the Black Spot resist, forcing the attackers to back off… but not give up. Look, if you know your history, and if you know how dark the hearts of racist people can be, you immediately know this is not the end. And without failing, as the mob leaves the Black Spot, the sound of chains is enough to know what’s going to happen.
As they set the place on fire, they’re also shooting at whoever they can see through the windows. There is no escape. This is a massacre. Inside the Black Spot, it’s all chaos and death. In the middle of the general panic, Hallorann (Chris Chalk) has a vision of a dead soldier crossing the place. The dead man leads him to a hidden escape path, under a fridge. But as he’s about to leave, Hallorann sees another spirit coming from the past: Sesqui (Morningstar Angeline). It’s a powerful vision to have, especially right now, and one that definitely means something.
The desolation soon becomes a free hunting ground for Pennywise, who feasts on the victims of this atrocity. This is this cycle’s apotheosis, the climax before he goes to rest for the next 27 years, made possible by none other than Ingrid Kersh (Madeleine Stowe) herself. Her obsession with her dead father has reached new highs, and she has sold her lover’s location to the white men of Derry looking to kill him in order to lure Pennywise, who she thinks is her father.
And as Hank, Ronnie and Will (Blake Cameron James) find an escape route, Marge (Matilda Lawler) and Rich (Arian S. Cartaya) find themselves trapped. There’s no way out for them, no secret passage, no adult coming to help. Rich finds an empty freezer that could protect them from the fire, knowing full well it’s not big enough for two. As he pushes Marge to get in it, he closes the door behind her, lying down on top of it to make sure she stays safe in it until…well, until the end. Until the fire stops. Until help arrives.
This is a heartbreaking scene as he recalls the first time he saw her, the moment he fell in love with her, and as they confess their love for each other. They’re just kids, but it doesn’t make their feelings any less real. Rich dies that day, protecting the girl he loves. It: Welcome to Derry is serving horrors and heartbreak like no other show. Rich was such a good character, a good kid, a good friend.
This marks the end of the augury. After a last meeting with Ingrid, Pennywise now goes to sleep after this last feast.
Is this the end of this cycle? For Pennywise, it should be. But the military is not done, Shaw (James Remar) is not done, and they’re still out there trying to find a way to use Pennywise’s power for their agenda. Their plan was to find the pillars to use them, but use them how? To trap Pennywise or to release him? After unearthing one of the pillars, Shaw unveils his true plan: he wants to free the creature and use it to control the country, use fear to subdue the population, to make people so afraid of being killed, they’d “behave”. And if it means having a few children killed in the process, so be it.
This is enough for Hanlon (Jovan Adepo) to go against his superior and his orders, which could cost him his life. His priorities are to protect the city, the country, but most of all his family, and Shaw’s plan means massive destruction and deaths. This is the point of no return for Hanlon, who now needs to stop Shaw at all costs.
Meanwhile, Pennywise, cozy in his little blood pool, awakens. The barrier keeping him prisoner has been broken, the breach is calling him. His first move is to reach the children, starting with Will.
