Peter
Following the flashback episode last time out, Mythic Quest returns with episode 7 as Rachel drives Longbottom to work, deciding to say yes more often now. En-route though they take a detour, as Longbottom vows revenge on Peter. When they show up at his house, Longbottom introduces Rachel as his driver, while reflecting back on a picture of himself, Ann and Peter together. Inevitably awkwardness ensues as Longbottom still exhibits resentment and jealousy over their past. Holding onto this resentment, it turns out Carl actually missed Ann’s funeral. Peter refuses to apologize to his old colleague, as he too thinks Longbottom is to blame. The Nebula is the one thing between them though, as Carl and Peter continue to verbally spar, spilling over to dinner that night. With Peter no longer writing thanks to Ann’s passing and Longbottom unable to finish his trilogy, eventually the pair find solace when Carl finds the screenplay for Peter’s 20th book. He claims to still be tinkering with it (despite a very visible copyright on the front) but eventually caves and admits that he’s dying. A very drunk Longbottom then leaves, encouraging Rachel to drive away from the house. In doing so, Carl starts to experience flashbacks as he eventually passes out and dreams of Ann. When he awakens, he finds himself back at the house and in the company of Jenny, Ann’s daughter. After passing out in the car the previous evening, Rachel brought him back to the estate. Ann never resented him but infact kept the video game case for Mythic Quest as a memorabilia to remember him by. This is enough for Carl to let go of his resentment and patch things up with Peter before it’s too late. He takes his old friend outside. Sitting together, Carl listens as Peter reads out the screenplay for book 20.
The Episode Review
Much like last week’s chapter, Mythic Quest abandons the humour somewhat for a more dramatic and poignant episode. This one essentially serves as the second part to Carl’s story as we see him make peace with what’s happened between the trio in the past. The passing of time catches up to us all and Mythic Quest beautifully presents that here as Carl finally lets go of his bitter resentment and decides to patch up his differences with Peter. It’s a really touching and nice ending too, especially off the back of 30 minutes of bickering and arguing. Rachel’s inclusion is a bit of a third wheel, with her not given a whole lot to do other than act as a glorified chauffer. There’s a couple of gags about her sexuality but beyond that, the episode very much hones in on Carl and what’s happened to him. In a way, Mythic Quest is all the stronger for it. With lots more drama in this second season, Mythic Quest seems to have moved from comedic office sitcom to more of an expansive dramedy. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with that, a lot of the episodes here have completely deviated away from the video game material. Still, the ending looks to have wrapped up this story and next week should be on the verge of getting back to business as usual.
