Freeform's Cloak & Dagger - Episode 2.01 "Restless Energy"
Now living very different lives, Tyrone and Tandy try to stay under the wire while still honing their powers. After coming to terms with their destiny, the two now find it difficult to just stand by and do nothing while bad things continue to happen throughout the city. Brigid is struggling with her recovery.
In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the season premiere of Freeform's Cloak & Dagger.
"Restless Energy" was written by Joe Pokaski and directed by Jennifer Phang
The first season of Cloak & Dagger ended in such a big and climatic way. Tandy and Tyrone were literally saving the world from the evil corporation that was playing with forces that could destroy it. And now, the stakes are relatively small at the start of the second season. There has been an interesting role reversal with Tandy and Tyrone. Tandy is the one living at home and forming a stronger relationship with her mother now that she knows that her father was actually an abusive husband. And Tyrone is the one living in the abandoned church because the police still have a warrant out for him in connection to the death of a police officer. Connors may be gone but his influence still looms large over Tyrone's life. It mostly just means that Tyrone and Tandy are trying to adjust to their new normals. They succeeded in prevailing against their enemies. The things that were motivating them have been dealt with. Tandy exposed Roxxon and Tyrone got justice for the wrongful death of his brother. As such, they don't really know what to do with their lives. The show is a little restless as well. It doesn't quite know how to move forward with no clear antagonist or direction that should be pursued. So, that means Tandy and Tyrone are just taking on some of the drug trade in the city. At first, it presents as something that Tyrone is doing completely by himself. He is going out at night removing drugs from the streets and ensuring the leaders don't profit off the sales. In doing so though, he is compromising an investigation that Brigid has been working on for awhile. He disrupts the order of this delicate ecosystem. As such, he may be pitting two rival gangs against each other. That will spur a new conflict over territory that will only increase the blood on the streets. He doesn't fully understand the consequences of his actions. Brigid yells at him but he still goes out trying to make things better. That time he needs to be rescued by Tandy. She has been engaging in her own vigilante justice. She and her mother attend a support group for victims of domestic abuse. It's meaningful to them and allows them to develop a stronger, more honest bond. Tandy sees her mother as being heroic for trying to shield her daughter from this pain. But Tandy still has plenty of anger towards the world. She wants to punish the men who could abuse women like this. She doesn't want to sit idly by when she has the powers to actually do something. She wants to take a stand. But she too doesn't think through the consequences of her actions. Instead, she may just be painting the abuser in a more sympathetic light which makes his girlfriend only more committed to stand by him. That is devastating to her personally. But again, it's a little difficult to see how all of this is going to drive conflict and story moving forward. It's also just more entertaining when Tandy and Tyrone are together discussing these conflicts within themselves. They are both feeling restless and want to act. They have control over their powers. They apologize for their mistakes. Then, they go right back into the field to hopefully make a difference. They may not have learned their overall lessons though. In fact, this premiere closes with the tease that a larger threat may be coming sooner rather than later. That will probably empower them. It will give them something to fight against which would be a welcome addition to the narrative at this point.
