Warning: FULL SPOILERS follow for Castle Rock Season 1, Episode 8, titled “Past Perfect.”
In last week’s episode, titled “The Queen,” Castle Rock delivered its best episode yet, featuring Sissy Spacek’s harrowing and beautiful portrayal of a time-traveling superhero struggling to cope with dementia.
This time around, Castle Rock turns its attention away from Ruth and back to the cumbersome supernatural elements surrounding Henry (Andre Holland) and The Kid (Bill Skarsgard), in an episode that’s often too cryptic for its own good.
While “Past Perfect” is not a bad episode per se, it does spend an unnecessary amount of time on the mystery of The Kid and his connection to Henry’s father. Sure, these are important aspects of the overall plot, but they are not the series’ prominent strengths. Character development is where Castle Rock shines, but sadly, this outing feels like it’s more concerned with setting up the final two episodes than it is with creating a compelling self-contained, hour-long narrative.
Source: IGN.com Cast Rock Is Too Cryptic for Its Own Good