The Magnus Protocol Reviews: “Slipping”

“Slipping” Is An Offputting Episode Of This Series

“Slipping” takes the format of Protocol and pushes it to the absolute extreme. There’s implying a horror story through the medium of whatever technology or multimedia thing we’re exploring that episode, and then there’s burying it so deep in that framework that it feels like a twist when the shift happens.

And even with the reveal, it’s still not clear how this relates to the overall story. I have speculated a lot lately about the rules of this world—and we know there are organizations, like the O.I.A.R., that deal directly in fear—but this is another level if it’s not a throwaway. There’s a group of people out there who randomly fund horrors with truly absurd amounts of money? And one of them was trying to do something positive with a monstrous creation?

In Archives, sure, I’d accept this premise for an episode. It’s very The Stranger coded, with a heavy dose of The End, and good intentions being hijacked by gods is very cosmic horror. Especially this franchise’s brand of cosmic horror. A monster that eats dead bodies to then look like a person is only a few steps away from the Not Them, after all. Though I’d argue it’s similar to the point of almost being derivative. But besides a—I think—reference to “Out of the Box,” it feels truly random to do this now, with the current trajectory of the series. It opens doors and questions that don’t seem to be the focus.

“Slipping” Feels Very Oddly Placed In This Season

That’s not to say I didn’t like “Slipping.” I love the satire of objectively horrific and violent moments being filtered through the most dry corporate speak possible. It makes for some deeply morbid comedy, and really quickly gets across the kinds of people that would be involved in the upper levels of something like this. It would be very late for new big villains to be hinted at, and very odd considering how isolated everything so far feels from the “normal world,” but I’d be willing to have some faceless unempathetic suits be major players going forward. We already have implied government agents and paramilitary groups.

“Slipping” isn’t scary, though—which was kind of what I’m here for in a horror series. And it doesn’t really encourage a re-listen either, not unless this is the start of a different plotline. Sure, it’s got a few small moments for Celia and Alice’s personal storylines, but those don’t seem related to the statement—those moments could’ve been put around any statement—and feel like very small steps toward some kind of destination for either of them. The writing and voice acting were great as always, and Alice full-on forgetting someone died horribly near her has very odd implications, but that’s about it.

I hate to call “Slipping” a weak episode, but considering how many good episodes we’ve been getting, that’s my only conclusion. I can’t say I have many more positive things to say about it. It’s likely totally filler, and forty-six episodes in, I’m not much a fan of filler.

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