The journey between faith and the science of Evil has concluded on Paramount +, with the fourth season of the supernatural drama.
 |
| Image Credit: Paramount+ |
The time has come to say goodbye to agnostic psychologist Kristen Bouchard (Katja Herbers), Catholic priest David Acosta (Mike Colter), and Muslim physicist and technology expert Ben Shakir (Aasif Mandvi). Created by Robert King and Michelle King, Evil was produced from 2019 to 2024 for four extraordinary seasons that have kidnapped us and transported us into a world made of supernatural, religion, and mystery. To complete the story worthily, the Kings have added four episodes to the ten episodes planned for the fourth season.
A horror film that investigates – precisely – the supernatural and demonic possessions in search of the truth, Evil is a psychological thriller that, initially, avoided taking a clear position on this issue, but that – from a certain point on – between religious and metaphysical reflections, began to give some more answers, clarifying some points. Is it a strong point? The irony is that, despite the macabre tone of the series, has never been lacking. In Italy, Evil is available for streaming on Paramount+.
 |
| Image Credit: Paramount+ |
Evil: the fight between science and faith
Evil has managed to make its audience reflect on the relationship between science and religion, Good, Evil, the Church, and what could be true and what could not be. Throughout the series, without mincing words – for example – the Church appears as a sexist institution: Sister Andrea (Andrea Martin), humble, cultured, and capable of truly defeating the demons that populate the Earth is rarely taken seriously by those in power. Relegated to simple cleaning, she is not allowed to have a position more suited to her abilities. Kristen will also say in the final episode of the series, 4×14 Fear the End, that the Church “is a patriarchy that forces women into a well-defined role”.
Sister Andrea is the only one to understand that the Black Mass in preparation since the Sixties – in the last episode – is, in reality, a set-up to eliminate the Entity – the Vatican secret society – that is hunting Evil: “If you think they are so obvious, then you are wrong!”. Yet, no one listens to her… except David. She calls him and explains: “David, you have to talk to the Entity. The Father doesn’t want to listen to me. He has to hear it from you. They think the Sixties are meeting at Saint Joseph’s Church and they’re wrong. The demonic forces are gone: the demons were here all last week, but they’re gone. They’ve escaped. You have to convince him.” And in fact – once again – she proves she’s right, but no one had listened to her. It was a trap, because the Sixties were, in reality, meeting comfortably on Zoom (Evil has always been like this: a mix between horror and comedy).
The supernatural drama has managed to maintain a procedural crime scheme and it has done so even in the last episode of the series, still talking about technology: it does so with the meeting on Zoom of the Sixties, with the app that allows you to find your doppelgangers in the world, but also with Kristen’s four daughters who fish out the VR viewers that she had hidden in the first season. Through these viewers, the girls believe they can see the future: the death of their mother. These, however, seem to show the fears of those who wear them: to them, Kristen's death at the hands of the villain Leland Townsend (an extraordinary Michael Emerson, Benjamin Linus in Lost), to Ben, his sister's death, to Kristen, the social workers who take her daughters away from her, and to David, the discovery that nothing exists except Evil (although, in fact, Leland tries to kill Kristen twenty-four hours later).
 |
| Image Credit: Paramount+ |
Technology, racism, social media, and the paranormal
As mentioned - throughout the series - the fantastic trio was called to investigate cases that could have to do with the paranormal but, at times, these were explainable by science. In addition to machismo, themes such as racism were touched upon - David had problems, despite being a priest - and the influence of social media and technology in the world. If there is one thing that Evil has been able to do, it is to make us reflect on how Evil can be inherent in human nature, regardless of the supernatural and also through technological tools.
Reality is often depicted – and rightly so – as more terrifying than the paranormal. From the beginning, we experienced the cases through the eyes of the agnostic Kristen and the skeptic Ben, as well as through those of the believer David in a constant struggle between faith and science. Soon, we realized that Evil really exists, as does the Divine (although, precisely, the human being is often capable of giving its worst even alone). While some mysteries were often associated with atypical and toxic human behavior, the series gradually showed us a world of demons, angels, and biblical concepts as real as they are frightening.
In the final episode of the series, Ben, David, and Kristen discover that the interface of the VR viewers connects to various regions of the brain – such as language, pain, creativity, touch, hearing, and so on – which represent precisely the “sixty seals” of the Sixties. The Kings show us how Evil uses technology to instill despair directly into the human brain, without any effort: we see it when many people show up outside Kristen's house, in a panic and everyone is using VR viewers. The ending is - clearly - conclusive while leaving a glimmer of hope for a possible continuation in the future: David and Kristen are in Rome, in the Vatican, to continue their fight alongside the Church, while Ben has changed jobs and little Timothy - son of Kristen and Leland, who had stolen an egg from her - could still, despite his baptism, be the Antichrist.
Evil: evaluation and conclusion of the series finale
With its fourth and final season, Evil has confirmed itself as an intriguing series capable of mixing drama, supernatural, horror, and psychological thriller, exploring profound themes such as faith and science. It has done so, however, in an in-depth manner, trying to never fail to respect the different religions. The three protagonists were able to work seamlessly together, enriching each other with their points of view and always trying to analyze the facts objectively. Evil has traveled a long journey between different ideas about faith, maintaining a perfect balance between introspection, suspense, and provocation. One thing is clear: Evil continues to exist and has not been completely defeated. With intelligent, sharp, and witty writing and its twists, Evil remains an original series and a small must for those who want to reflect on the supernatural and human nature.
Post a Comment