This nosebreaking midseason climax, directed by Golden-Globe-winning actress Kyra Sedgwick, finds Margaret White accusing and doxxing Chris as the account holder of the infamous Instagram account.
When Chris’ father catches wind of the news, he counterargues Mrs. White’s claims by vehemently defending his daughter, demanding that she not relinquish her civil rights by sharing her phone to Principal Gayle.
Margaret weaponizes Carrie’s sympathy by momentarily expressing sentiment over her husband.
Emaline pressures Carrie to use her powers in the school cafeteria, where Sue demands that Chris delete the account and apologize to Carrie. Chris doubles down that she will not delete something “that is not mine.” Even still, Sue tries to reason with Chris, giving her the benefit of the doubt that Chris is acting out due to her college and familial instability.
When Chris does approach Carrie, she relentlessly pours the proverbial salt on Carrie’s father wound, pushing Carrie to telepathically break Chris’ nose. Emaline urges Carrie to activate her powers. Carrie admits that “it felt fucking good” to use her power to inflict pain against her adversary.
Carrie and Emaline test the limits of Carrie’s powers in a junkyard.
Margaret creates an Instagram account to publicly defame Chris’ character, using the law and the weight of other parents’ concerns against Chris to her advantage.
Billy and Chris break into the White household, where they unveil and steal mini cameras clandestinely placed by Margaret. Upon evaluating the footage, they discover more fuel against the fire against Carrie, especially as the doxxing intensifies against Hargenson.
With that, it is confirmed that Emaline is, in fact, a figment of Carrie’s imagination, as the private footage Billy and Chris uncovered of Carrie admitting to “Emaline” that she enjoyed breaking Chris’ nose, appears as though she is talking to herself.
Sue urges Chris one last time to delete the account. Chris, none-the-wiser to Sue audio recording the conversation, admits to moderating the account. Sue releases the recording to the guidance counsellor.
The introduction of Emaline takes me out of the development of Carrie’s agency. Production could have saved budget on the useless role.
The religious antics are more muted compared to earlier depictions of the White family. Yes, the praying room used to discipline the young protagonist is still featured, and yes Margaret is still protective, but turning Margaret into a vocal advocate feels as disingenuous as it does indignified. While the Emaline-Carrie scenes continue to feel purposeless, it was satisfying to see Carrie telepathically break Chris’s nose and for Sue to record Chris’s confession.
However, it makes one wonder about how such antics go without being noticed–same goes for when her screams caused lights to flicker in the first episode’s period panic. Do people simply not notice such phenomena in Stephen King universes?
Rating: 6/10