Scream – Dawn of the Dead

By starrymag | June 29, 2016

By: Allison Schonter

 

 

Lockdown

 

After the discovery of Jake’s (Tom Maden) body, the high school is put into lockdown much to the dismay of worried parents gathering outside. One by one, the students are questioned by Sheriff Acosta (Anthony Ruvivar). Brooke (Carlson Young), on the other hand, is momentarily saved from questioning. Instead, she is forced to remain in her clothes soaked in the blood of her boyfriend as Maggie (Tracy Middendorf) takes pictures of the evidence.

 

The other students are ushered into the learning center room, where they sit and wait until it is either their turn to be questioned or until the lockdown is finally lifted. Gustavo (Santiago Segura), the ever-so-creepy sheriff’s son, suggests that the call is coming from inside of the house, or rather, that the killer is within the school (nice nod to When a Stranger Calls). Emma (Willa Fitzgerald) discovers that Jake’s phone has been planted in her bag, something that could have only happened at school.

 

Interrogation

 

Dawn of the Dead sees the interrogation and questioning of nearly all of the main characters and each has their own opinion on what is happening. Noah (John Karna) is the first to be questioned and he speculates that the killings are starting again because Emma is home and Piper’s accomplice is finishing the job. He later confides in Zoe (Kiana Ledé) that he believes Jake’s body was revealed so publicly because it is the killer making an announcement that he/she has returned. The killer is emboldened and they all have a bull’s-eye on their back.

 

When news spreads that the police are searching lockers, Kieran (Amadeus Serafini) freaks out; there is something that he doesn’t want found and it sends him and Noah on a mission. Unfortunately, their mission fails and Kieran is caught by a deputy, who discovers a gun in Kieran’s backpack. He reveals that it is his father’s gun and he carries it to protect himself and his friends, something Sheriff Acosta uses this to his advantage. He needs an in to the other students, someone who can provide him with information that he otherwise wouldn’t receive. Acosta offers Kieran an ultimatum: become his in or he’ll be arrested, put on probation and kicked out of school.

 

Meanwhile, Emma is still freaking out over Jake’s phone being placed in her bag. Eli (Sean Grandillo), who had been standing behind a bookcase and watching Emma when she discovered the phone, tells her that she needs to wipe off any fingerprints and ditch it. He even goes as far as offering to get rid of it for her. Before either can do anything, Sheriff Acosta, his deputy and Kieran walk into the room, asking Emma for the phone. It turns out that Kieran took Acosta up on that deal and Emma is whisked away to be questioned.

 

Her questioning is short and sweet and while Sheriff Acosta probably shouldn’t just let her go, he does. He has his own plans, which involve the use of Stockholm Syndrome to his advantage. The students are all bottled up in a room and tensions are rising, but he is being the good guy, which means that sooner or later they will begin to come to him.

 

Revelations

           

Many huge revelations are also made throughout the episode. For starters, Audrey (Bex Taylor-Klaus) reveals her suspicions about Gustavo to Noah, but Noah believes that Gustavo isn’t someone to worry about. Audrey feels very differently, and even outs him to the rest of the students, showing them what he’s been drawing on his iPad. This later leads to him threatening to break something that she loves.

 

Sheriff Acosta discovers that Seth Branson (Bobby Campo) is back and may very well be the one who murdered Jake. Acosta also discovers the extent of the tense and rigid relationship between Jake and Brooke’s father, Mayor Maddox (Bryan Batt). He gets into Jake’s phone and looks through the messages that the two had exchanged, which probably only throws suspicion on the mayor.

 

Perhaps the biggest revelation; however, comes in the form of even more text messages. Audrey slips and reveals to Noah that she’s been receiving calls from the killer, but she quickly recovers and says that she meant text messages. This piques Noah’s interest and he ends up slipping Audrey’s phone into his pocket. By the end of the episode, he has managed to get into her phone and as he is looking through the texts that she has received from the killer, he comes across the video of Audrey with Jake’s body in the storage locker. Perhaps Noah will be adding another name to his list of possible suspects and maybe Audrey’s connection to Piper will be revealed.

 

Final Thoughts

           

So, there’s still a pretty long list of possible suspects. After Dawn of the Dead, most of them are looking even more suspicious, making it hard to narrow it down. First we have Gustavo, who I’m pretty sure is going to remain on this list for quite some time. But is he really the killer or just some kid obsessed with the Lakewood Six (now five) and the brutality of the murders?

 

There is also Zoe, who also has a mild obsession with the Lakewood Six. She’s a fan of Noah’s podcast “The Morgue” and she’s now had a front row seat to the killings. As of right now, I think she may be all right and near the bottom of the “Possible Killer” list. But lets add Mayor Quinn Maddox to this list. He had a not so great relationship with Jake and we know that he’s been involved in some criminal activity before. So, I think he deserves a spot seated near the stop.

 

But, as of right now, I think that Ms. Lang (Austin Highsmith) has won herself a position as the #1 most likely character to be the killer. I could be wrong, but something seems awfully fishy about her. She is a Psychology teacher, so she understands what these murders are doing to the people living in Lakewood. Let’s not forget that she locked Emma in a room and left her alone in the midst of a near panic attack and that Ms. Lang was secretly recording her conversation with Emma not too long ago. That’s just a little too creepy and suspicious.