Grimm - Season 2 Premiere - Video Recap and Review - Bad Teeth

Tonight's “Bad Teeth” resets us in the world of Grimm after the chaotic season one finale. When we last left, Nick (David Guintoli) had revealed to his girlfriend Juliett (Bitsie Tulloch) the truth: he's a Grimm, and can see people for what they truly are. He even got his bludbat friend Monroe (Silas Weir Mitchell) to transform as proof. Of course, the shock caused her to faint – or perhaps it was simply the scratch left by the poisoned claws of (former Hexenbeist) Adalind's cat. Either way, the stakes are higher for Nick than they've ever been, with the love of his life trapped in a coma, and Reapers potentially around ever corner, out to rid the world of Grimms. This is to say nothing of the attack that closed last season, with Nick nearly being killed but for the intervention of a mysterious woman in black, who reveals herself to be Nick's mother – you know, the one who's supposed to be dead.

For 18 years, poor Nick has believed Kelly Burkhardt (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), his mother, to have been killed alongside his father in a tragic car crash. Of course, last season we discovered that it hadn't been an accident, but a deliberate act, as someone had set out to kill the Burkhardts. We learn a lot from Nick's mother, who insists that she left after the crash to go seek revenge on those responsible for her husband's murder, not knowing how far or how deep the investigation would take her. She also claims to have left in order to keep Nick safe. Naturally, Nick isn't really buying the sentimentality, and instead harbors a healthy resentment for her having left. For her part, Kelly isn't all that happy that Nick is friends with a blutbad and a Fuchsbau, respectively, and so despite the elder Burkhardt's rescue of her son, the reunion is an icy one, plagued by misunderstandings from 18 years of absolutely zero contact. Kelly laments that she wasn't the one to teach Nick about his heritage, and the pain is plainly there in her eyes, particularly when she looks into Nick's, as if searching for the boy who's no longer there, and hasn't been for a very long time. “I never wanted this for you,” she says. Too little, too late.

Meanwhile, we get another glimpse into the possible motivations of Captain Renard (Sasha Roiz), who confides in Adalind's mother, Catherine, that he worries about Nick potentially quitting the force over what's happened to Juliett. We learn from Kelly that Royals need Grimms to keep the Wesen under control. As a Royal, Captain Renard has a vested interest in Nick's well-being, made all the more unbalanced by the fact that Nick doesn't know the truth about his boss.

Of course, while Monroe and Rosalee (Bree Turner) work overtime trying to devise a remedy to Juliette's incapacity, Nick still has a day job. A man has turned up dead at the harbor, and Kelly believes she can provide crucial aid to her son in the investigation. She remains concerned for his safety, given that he still possesses the Coins of Zakynthos, which makes him a prime target for power-hungry killers – such as our perp this week, who attacks the FBI agents investigating the case in order to lure Nick into a trap. As Nick appears, we discover there is a second beast with which to contend, and as the creature lunges at Nick, the screen goes black, and we're left with “To Be Continued” playing across our screens.

"Bad Teeth" is a fast-paced premiere, not lingering too long on any one particular story element, as the season needs to be able to remain accessible for new viewers who are only now discovering the show (which airs its premiere, as well as the next three episodes of the second season, on Monday nights, in order to accommodate a potentially new audience, given the sudden hit status of the show – Grimm returns to its regular Friday time slot on September 14th). As the show has found its footing, a new confidence in its storytelling abilities accompanies Grimm. There is a larger arc at work here, and the smaller moments of the premiere (such as Monroe and Rosalee's glowing satisfaction at declaring to Kelly that they helped Nick defeat a Hexenbeist; and also Kelly's ridiculous-but-totally-serious Lord of the Rings-esque solution for destroying the three coins) help the ensemble feel like components of a rich, fully-realized world (although I found myself missing Hank, especially since I wanted a bit more of a follow-up to his sudden realization about the presence of Wesens in the world, but I understand why they left it out). The thematic elements inherent in the fairy tales from which the show draws its inspiration also serve to further flesh out the premiere, borrowing a line from the poem “The Second Coming” for its opening quote: "The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere the ceremony of innocence is drowned." The implication is clear: the gloves are off. While Juliett might not be safe, Nick is the one that really needs to worry.

http://www.nbc.com/assets/video/widget/widget.html?vid=1412166