Hide and Seek
Following the incident in the bedroom, episode 2 of Haunting Of Bly Manor begins with Dani confronting the kids. They apologize about the door and the mud in the hallway but Dani doesn’t believe their story about the footprints. Miles grabs the doll under the dresser and throws it in the chute to the basement below. The result of this sees Miles cleaning up the mud while Dani heads down to the basement alone. Flora decides against heading down, calling it “perfectly dreadful” down there. Dani grabs the doll – which is eerily standing upright – and takes it back upstairs. As she closes the door behind her, something stirs in the distance which looks like a child amongst a load of dolls. With Miles finding solitude alone, we cut back six months to find Miles at school with his teacher, Father Slack. It’s Spring term and this teacher talks about different gospel accounts and how they differ. The story itself centers around possessions and this feels very much like foreshadowing for what could be going on. Anyway, after class an accident (or so it’s called) serves as the catalyst for the ensuing trouble to come. This sees Miles climbing high up in a tree and falling to the ground, breaking his arm in the process. Only, his friend sees the story very differently – believing Miles jumped off. Whatever happened, it’s only the start of Miles’ trouble. He chokes out Hooper, nearly killing the boy, and seems to be in a delirious state. Father Stack takes Miles aside and tries to reason with Miles given the grief he’s suffering from. Stack pleads with him to open up, showing pity on Miles and trying to lend a sympathetic ear. Miles continues to spiral though, sneaking into church and killing Father Stack’s bird. This action eventually gets him expelled but before he goes, Miles is convinced that “dead doesn’t mean gone.” Miles is less than remorseful for his actions too, believing he should have gone further and was trying to find Stack’s “key.” Eventually Miles is sent home. The only remnant left from his time there happens to be a letter from Flora telling him to come home. Back in the Manor, Hannah notices a suspicious crack in the wall. Anyway, it’s no time to dwell as Jamie arrives and they sit outside watching Dani work with the kids. After some mischievous teasing, Owen is tongue tied when asked if he likes the look of Dani. Hannah asks Jamie to check on the crack in the wall but when she gets there, there’s nothing of the sort. She does find a rather suspicious-looking Miles though, who uncharacteristically calls her darling. He also calls Dani away from the others who are distracted by a ringing telephone and no one on the other end of the line. Miles apologizes for locking her in the closet and hands over some flowers. It turns out those flowers were cut from Jamie’s rose garden outside and she’s furious. More alarming though is Miles and the way he spoke to Dani, seemingly like he’s possessed. As the night draws on, Dani decides to reward the kids with a game of hide and seek in the dark. As you do, of course. Not the smartest of moves but one that sees Dani counting and trying to find the kids. This, unfortunately, sees her heading into the off-limit wing and an ominous music box suddenly starting by itself. While Dani looks over the contents of the box, Miles suddenly grabs her from behind and starts choking her out. He starts counting and rushes off as Dani turns the lights back on and goes hunting for the kids. On the way though, she sees the ghostly image of a man outside and suspects that someone is watching her. This man, as it turns out, is the same one she spotted on the parapet. Miles meanwhile, collapses on the ground after moaning how he doesn’t feel too well. As he’s helped up by Dani, Miles looks over her shoulder and sees this man at the window smiling ominously.
The Episode Review
While most of this episode is a slow-burn drama diving into the past, the game of hide and seek at the end is a nice touch. It seems like Flora knows about these ghosts and doesn’t seem to be too phased by them, especially by her shushing. Miles meanwhile is very clearly being possessed. Could it be that he tried to bring his parents back but ended up possessed by demons? It seems to hint at that but right now it’s still unknown. This has been a real slow-burn so far, with no jump scares or psychological chills to speak of. Hopefully the show can step it up a gear going forward.
