The best things in life come after an intervention!

“Mariachi Shelley’s Frankenstein” is a tough act to follow. The claustrophobic slasher mixed up the series’ rhythm and offered a set of plausible resolutions. In an attempt to keep up the pace, the show counters with an episode entitled “Abigail B.”, where the GBI races against the clock to save a trafficking victim.

The main case of the episode focuses on Will, Faith, and Marion interrogating a suspected kidnapper in the hopes that he’ll spill the victim’s location. Throughout the episode, the story has them run through their routine to get a suspect to break, messing with their sense of time and confidence. While these cat-and-mouse games play out, the perspective switches to show how the case affects Will.

Given Will’s background growing up in the foster care system, this case ends up affecting him the most. The sharp and savvy exterior Will projects cracks numerous times throughout, signalling unresolved trauma. Unfortunately, the episode never goes beyond the surface level of these issues and leaves an interesting case without any bite to latch onto.

While the episode’s kidnapping case leaves an empty flavour profile, there’s more promise in the APD’s case file.

Angie takes a well-deserved break from detective work after everything that happened in the previous episode. Her journey through this episode sees her starting to move on from her relationship with Will. On her road towards self-reliance, a chance encounter with a cycling (or more like crashing) doctor may hold the key to brighter prospects on the horizon.

Meanwhile, Ormwood also gets his own chance to see a different future. Much like Angie, this episode has him spending time away from the office. Unlike Angie, however, Ormwood’s home-life situation leaves him little time for downtime, and he has decided to take on a security gig.

In a departure in tone from the rest of the episode, Ormwood’s first day on the job is filled with missteps and blunders. Behind the comedic heart of this side story, however, lies a much-needed escape. While Ormwood’s divorce hasn’t been front and centre recently, it has been hitting him hard, and a little trip into the surreal world of reality TV and bad guys is the release he’s been needing.

After the last episode’s shocking thrill-fest, the eighth instalment of Will Trent’s third season doesn’t quite stick the landing back towards normality. “Abigail B.” fails to bring the high level of character drama we’ve come to expect from the series. The investigation of this episode is interesting; it just lacks an element of complexity that elevates it to a higher standard.

I Give Abigail B.: 6.5/10