Oh my Satan.

Yes, you read that right, as it seems the series has officially taken a stance on the existence of heaven and hell.

Based on the final scene of EVIL Season 1 Episode 12, it seems like Townsend is indeed a demon and was having his very own therapy session with the Devil himself. 

That was something I didn't see coming, but it was a great setup for the season finale nonetheless.

Something else that this episode set up was the possibility of Andy dying, which won't exactly have me losing sleep.

The character's been unlikable since before we even met him, and it's not just because he's an absentee husband who treks halfway across the world, leaving his wife to be the sole provider and raise their four daughters.

This episode further showed why Andy isn't deserving of a woman as badass and awesome as Kristen.

For a while, he's given Kristen grief regarding her work with the Catholic Church and for possibly considering to become an "unlapsed" Catholic.

However, it was revealed that Andy had been practicing Buddhism, something that's rather hypocritical given everything he's been chirping on about.

He made some bogus claim about Buddhism not being a religion but rather a way of life, but the same thing can be said for most religions. 

Kristen: So you’re a Buddhist now?
Andy: No, no, I’m just, uh, I don’t know, um, exploring. But don’t worry; I’m still me.
Kristen: No, I know you’re still you. I just, I mean I find it weird that you’re criticizing the Catholic stuff in my job while …
Andy: Oh, no. Buddhism’s not a religion. It’s a practice.

• Permalink: Buddhism’s not a religion. It’s a practice.

And then, when he couldn't get in touch with Kristen, he automatically assumed she must be having a tryst with Ben.

No other reason for her cell phone being off, like she was at work doing her job, crossed his mind, and he just presumed the worst about his wife.

He's just been an unwelcome addition to the series, and I wouldn't mind one way if he went back to hiking mountains or died some gruesome death.

A death seems more likely at this point, as he essentially asked for Laura's life to be spared in exchange for his.

Going into the hour, I wasn't sure what to make of the subplot involving Laura's emergency heart surgery.

I was afraid the storyline would detract from the episode as a whole, but I was pleasantly surprised with how things turned out.

There was barely any time devoted to the actual surgery, and by the time Kristen arrived at the hospital, Laura was recovering.

This storyline mostly acted as a catalyst to get Kristen and Andy to have some much-needed discussions and move the plot along.

Speaking of much-needed conversations, it was about high time Kristen gave Townsend a piece of her mind.

I expected her to go off on him, but the way she clapped back was nothing short of epic.

Finding out that Leland Townsend was a former insurance agent from Des Moines who changed his name after moving to New York following his second divorce was just the tip of the iceberg.

Kristen then went on to reveal just how much she had learned about Townsend and obliterated him.

Townsend: Hey, here we are. Just the two of us coming full circle. Your testimony went poorly today, didn’t it? I think the judge was leaning against Leroux until you testified. What do you think? And the sad thing is, you had so many chances to not get involved. How many times did I tell you to go home to your daughters? Don’t get involved in David. But then, every step of the way, you did the opposite. And now your husband’s offering this gift. Go climbing, and yet, here you still are. I’m gonna do for you what God did for Job. Job only had three daughters, and God killed them. You have four daughters. I’m gonna kill every last one, then your husband, then burn down your house. I’m not gonna touch you though, no, because I want you to live with the realization that you’re responsible for their deaths, that you let them die through your obstinacy, your need to win.
Kristen: God, you talk too much.

• Permalink: God, you talk too much.

It was one of my favorite scenes, second only to Townsend's therapy session with the Devil, as it was just so unexpected.

It completely came out of left field but was so satisfying to watch.

However, the revelations provided viewers with more questions than answers.

We now know more about who Townsend was, but we don't know how he became the man he is today.

He used to a shy guy in the marching band with two failed marriages, yet he somehow became a psychopathic forensic psychologist. And how does the Devil connect to all of this?

I thought Townsend was a demon from hell who took on this persona, but now it seems like he went to great strides to become this person.

He may have stumbled upon demons in his normal, everyday life, or he could have gone looking for something more. 

My theory is that he was "recruited" via a therapy session, just like he has done with countless others. 

I have so many more questions that need to be answered, and I'm hoping EVIL Season 2 will provide me with some of those answers.

We also saw the return of two serial killers: Orson Leroux and Dwight Farrell. Though after the courtroom proceedings, Leroux is no longer considered a serial killer as the judge had the bad foresight to overturn his conviction.

This storyline didn't necessarily get the time it deserved, as the whole legal side of it felt rushed.

Townsend: She has this way of getting to me. I’ll be feeling all-knowing and all-powerful, and then, she’s in my face, and I just feel impotent.
Satan: When you say impotent, do you mean sexually?
Townsend: No, she’s talking about Jake The Flake and the marching band, and why do people make fun of marching bands? That’s a worthy entertainment, and I should have just ripped out her heart.
Satan: Why didn’t you?
Townsend: It’s not part of the plan or has that changed?
Satan: Do you want the plan to change?
Townsend: No.
Satan: Good. Then find someone else to take her heart out, and you and I will eat it together. Now tell me about your dreams.

• Permalink: Now tell me about your dreams.

All it accomplished was setting Leroux free and giving Kristen a prime opportunity to let Townsend know who he was dealing with.

Unless Leroux somehow plays a bigger part in the season finale, I'm not sure it was worth the screen time.

It was also disappointing that Kristen and Leroux didn't get any one-on-one scenes.

Their back and forth during the pilot was great content, and I would have liked to see that again.

The lawyer questioning Kristen about their past interactions just didn't have the same je ne sais quoi.

Lastly, Acosta's storyline, which revolved around the "case of the week" was mostly a standalone arc.

With Kristen testifying and Ben off doing something else, Acosta was left to help a woman in need of spiritual advice.

However, things didn't exactly go according to plan for the priest-in-training, as he ended up injured, again, and tied up in a basement.

Being a member of the Catholic Church should come with hazard pay.

Having only a vague knowledge of the genocide in Rwanda and the conflict between the Hutus and Tutsis made it a little hard to connect to Sonia's plight.

I felt bad for her and listening to the atrocities committed against the Tutsis was heartbreaking, but it felt like something that happened half a world away, which it indeed did, making it somehwat hard for me to relate.

Acosta: Sonia, don’t. Look at me. you said you felt this thing, this evil oppressing you. Killing him is evil.
Sonia: He broadcast for the next hundred days.
Comedian: Wasn’t me.
Sonia: He encouraged the Hutus to take to the streets, to breaking into homes, churches, raping Tutsi women, hacking innocent people with machetes exactly like this.
Comedian: I did not. I did not I swear. I’m just a comedian.
Sonia: Two million Tutsis murdered, hacked to death by their neighbors. Two million.

• Permalink: I’m just a comedian.

I did appreciate the storytelling arc though. It made sense why Sonia would want revenge justice for her people, and why she targeted the comedian.

There is no way for her to confront the Hutus who murdered her sister and two million others and make them pay for their unspeakable actions.

She was, though, able to take her anger out on the comedian, a man who may not have wielded a machete himself, but whose words encouraged, or even justified, others' actions.

Was it right to hold him accountable for the atrocities committed by others? I can't say, but it was something she felt she had to do.

I also liked how she called the police after killing him. 

She was unapologetic for her actions and was willing to accept the punishment. It was a refreshing twist on what consistutes as evil.

Some stray thoughts:

• Kristen's friendship with Mira is probably over, right? She threw her friend under the bus to make sure Leroux wasn't released from jail. All the good that did, as Leroux was still set free. Guess it's time to find another friend in the police department for favors like running DNA of random men.

• Though we didn't get any answers on the season's larger mythology, I have to hope some of our questions will be answered next time. However, it was worth it, as tons of fun tidbits were revealed about Townsend, which was a win in and of itself.

So what did you think EVIL Fanatics?

Is Andy a goner?

How did Townsend become who he is today?

What mysteries will be solved in the season finale?

Don't forget to hit the comments below to let me know your thoughts. If you happened to miss the season's penultimate episode, don't worry. You can watch EVIL online at TV Fanatic.

Jessica Lerner was a staff writer for TV Fanatic. She retired in October 2021.