Although some fans may disagree with me, I personally thought that was one bang-up entrance for Mr. Quinlan (Rupert Penry-Jones) last week. I mean, landing in a private jet in Jersey and tearing through a reinforced security fence sends a clear message that we’re dealing with a force not to be reckoned with. But, if that introduction didn’t do it for some of the viewers, I suspect the opening scene in tonight’s episode will. Clad in a long black coat and leather boots and arriving in NYC in the back of a frozen seafood truck, Quinlan is a formidable presence, and I think it would be wise for everyone to step back and let this daunting figure pass.

However, that’s not the last we see of  Quinlan tonight as there is a fantastic meet-up between him and the Ancients later on. But, in the meantime, don’t fret because this episode is chuck full of action and doesn’t miss a single beat all the way down to the final scene.

SURPRISE, SURPRISE — DR. GOODWEATHER’S STRIGOI VIRUS IS DERAILED

One thing that Dr. Goodweather (Corey Stoll)  should have learned since that fateful night at JFK with the plane full of 206 dead bodies is that there are powerful forces at play. He knows what Eichhorst (Richard Sammel)  and the Master are capable of, and he knows through Dutch Velders (Ruta Gedmintas)  that they are backed by the influence and endless financial resources of Eldritch Palmer (Jonathan Hyde),  who has his own unsavory reputation and doesn’t take well to not getting what he wants. All of this should have been enough for Eph to at least proceed with caution. But, of course, he’s pumped with adrenaline, actually think he’s won this war, and so, pushes full forward, even if that means endangering his own life as well as that of his friends.

Once in Washington D.C., Eph heads straight to the house of his friend, Rob Bradley (Tom Ellis, “Lucifer”), that he spoke of at the end of the episode “The Silver Angel.” Coming off an all-night booze binger, I can see why Dr. Goodweather and Bradley are such good friends. But, putting formalities quickly aside, Eph shows him the work he has done with Mr. McGeever, giving him proof-positive that he has found a solution to this epidemic (and epidemic, by the way, that everyone outside of NYC seems to insulated from). Eph admits that it’s crude and it needs refinement, but ultimately, it does work — and Rob is thoroughly impressed. So impressed that he contacts his friend, Leigh Thomas (Nadia Bowers, Corey Stolls’ real-life wife BTW), from Chemarol, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the country. And, the ball is officially rolling now.

And, it continues to roll right up to when Eph meets Leigh face-to-face. They immediately hit it off, and just like Rob, she is impressed with Dr. Goodweather’s work. She makes a call to the company’s Chief Research Officer to set up a meeting, telling him that this new drug has her full support. Although I have no doubt that Leigh does genuinely believe in Eph’s work, after looking at these 2, it makes you wonder if she’s a tad more interested in the man. And, if you thought that, you would have been right because before the night’s end, Eph is back at her place.

Okay, I’m going to have to say it — I have major, major issues with Dr. Ephraim Goodweather in this episode. First, he waltzes into D.C. and brings his best friend plus a good friend of his own into the middle of his vampire nightmare, and without taking a single precaution. Maybe being straight-up with Rob about how dangerous these strigoi, as well as their human associates like Palmer, are would have been a good first step. After all, you can’t protect yourself against something if you don’t know the danger, and poor Rob and Leigh had no clue what they were getting into. Then, Eph sleeping with Leigh the first night they met? Isn’t Eph supposed to be with Nora? And, let us not forget that Nora is the one back home taking care of and protecting Eph’s son from his freaky strigoi Mom. Nice, Ephraim, very nice.

In the end, Eph, Rob, and Leigh’s plan to mass-produce the drug backfires, as I suspect most viewers guessed it would. Somehow Eldritch Palmer got wind of either Dr. Goodweather’s location or his plan to neutralize the epidemic, because a hired hit man (Jerry Rector) shows up at Rob Bradley’s house, killing both Rob and Leigh and injuring Eph. Dr. Goodweather does get one shot off and manages to injure the assassin, but because the guy did not complete his mission, I’m sure these 2 will eventually meet again.

A COZY MOTHER AND SON REUNION

As soon as Eph left and got on that train for D.C., I suspect most of the viewers knew what would be coming next. Yep, Kelly and her creepy-crawly kids, thus leaving Nora to protect the son of her lover — who, as we know, is all comfy in D.C. and cheating on her with a bitch he just met.

It all goes down when Nora (Mia Maestro)  and Zack (Max Charles)  are on their way home, police escort and all, after meeting with Justine Feraldo. The police car is ambushed by the feelers, forcing Nora and Zack into a nearby church. But, these aren’t your traditional vamps from the days of the Dracula movies and a church with its crosses and holy water do nothing to ward off the strigoi’s attack. Next are some fantastic scenes and clearly exemplifies why The Strain is one of the scariest shows on television.

Thinking they are safe inside the church, that feeling is quickly shattered when Nora and Zack see the shadows of the spider children crawling along the steeple — and when Kelly (whom Zack instantly recognizes as his Mother) appears at the alter of the church. But, just when Nora thinks they are surrounded and Kelly has won, reinforcements arrive and just in the nick of time. Fet (Kevin Durand),  Setrakian (David Bradley) and oh, Mr. Fitzwilliams (Roger Cross), who had just met up with the group and dropped the deets on some of Palmer’s major real estate plans.

A big battle breaks out, and while Zack is saved from his mother and the Master (for now), it wasn’t without a cost. Mr. Fitzwilliams, not being well-trained in the art of vampire hunting, is bitten by one of the spider children, and then in probably the most shocking scene of the episode, immediately beheaded by Abraham before he could even say anything. Wow. Setrakian doesn’t mess around.

I have to admit I’m very sorry to see Reggie go, but at the same time, I’m not surprised by his death. Much like Jim Kent from season 1, he had indulged Palmer in his quest for immortality knowing full well the plan that he was becoming an accessory to. Jim Kent redeemed himself by leading the team to Eichhorst, and in a similar fashion, Reggie finds redemption by unloading to Setrakian what Palmer has planned next and where it’s all going to take place. The character had served its purpose, and so, the only logical next step was death.

But, what will the next steps be for Kelly? Unfortunately, all of the feelers are killed (which was almost as tragic as Reggie dying because I loved watching those little boogers scurry about!), and so, how will Kelly seek out her precious son, Zack, now? We know the Master has big plans for the boy, and so, I’m sure he’ll come up with something, whether it’s more feelers or something completely new.

MEET THE NEW MASTER — AND THE SHUNNED EICHHORST

I think most of us have known this moment would come since the season 2 premiere. That the Master would eventually select a new body, that it was likely going to be Bolivar and that it was definitely not going to be Eichhorst. Well, it finally happens tonight, and as much as I loathe Eichhorst and am thrilled that the Master is finally sticking it to him, it actually turns out to be a very painful scene to watch.

Bolivar is brought to the Master’s resting place and is expecting to witness the “wondrous transformation” that Eichhorst had spoken of. Eichhorst is there, feeling self-entitled and is expecting to be “wondrously transformed,” and the irony is neither happens. With his eyes closed and on his knees, Eichhorst is fully expecting to be crowned King Strigoi until the very end, and only in the final moments does he open his eyes and is horrified at what he sees. It’s Bolivar, in his faded jeans and leather biker jacket, being promoted to the position that Eichhorst had been working towards for the better part of 80 years. All Eichhorst can do is collapse to his knees and sob as the Master’s lifeless body falls to the ground. I’ve fantasized about killing this horrible wretch in 20 different ways, but even I felt sorry for the guy — at least for a brief moment. One fantastic scene, and definitely one of the funniest ones for a series that is, by nature, very dark.

But, now what? Will Eichhorst fall in line and serve Bolivar as the Master as he did Sardu as the Master for almost 80 years? Eichhorst may be a little off-balance now, but I suspect he will, especially considering his only choices are being #2 or being nothing at all. He’s a sh*t, but he’s not stupid.

However, then again, Eichhorst I’m sure is pretty pissed. Hmmm… I must admit the idea of Eichhorst revolting against the Master does sound interesting, but I’m not sure the writers of the show would go there.

QUINLAN TELLS THE ANCIENTS OFF — BUT HE HAS A PLAN

In the promo for tonight’s episode, we did get a brief glimpse of Quinlan meeting with the Ancients, but as it turns out, that was just a tiny teaser of what actually goes down. Q’s initial meet-up with the Ancients is hands-down THE best scene of the episode, and I’m certain will be one of the most memorable and talked-about of the entire season.

Pitiful. This city of New York.

I expected Constantinople, Baghdad before the Mongols, Rome…Ahhh. Those were cities. This is a factory, a machine. I can see why he started here.

You indulged him, you looked the other way far too long. Perhaps you’ve grown complacent. You should have stopped him 70 years ago, if not 7 centuries ago. 

I get no pleasure from your anxiety. I trained Vaun and the others to be better, but they failed us. I’m here now.

I will stop him, but for my own reasons.

I sensed him when he was injured. I need to know who got close enough to hurt him.

And, I need human hunters who can work during the day. That is, if you have any left — Mr . Quinlan

Holy sh*t, hot damn! At first I called this little monologue a “speech,” but after watching several times, I see it more like Quinlan telling the Ancients off. Too funny. It’s almost like someone visiting their elderly parents and scolding them for letting the unruly, rebellious sibling raid their bank accounts only to take off for the Bahamas for a vacation filled with partying, booze, pills and girls. The parents were gullible and had to have seen it coming, just like the Ancients should have known better and blotted out the Master centuries ago. They brought all of it on themselves, and it is left to Quinlan to clean up the mess.

Besides the obvious of Quinlan sitting the 3 old vamps down on their asses, there are lots of other goodies in this rant. First, kudos and plaudits for the shout out to Vaun. We finally learn that, yes, Quinlan is the master trainer of the sun hunters, which is something that I think most of the die-hard fans suspected from the get-go, but it’s still nice to have that confirmation. My only hope now is that it will be Quinlan who ultimately takes Palmer out, as a sort of revenge for murdering his proteges (and forcing him to leave his beautiful home and come to this dreadful NYC! ). Palmer meets a different fate in the books, but then again, Vaun and his SWAT team aren’t in the books either. So, we’ll have to wait and see.

Second, isn’t everyone just flipping out about that last part! Quinlan will now officially be looking for Abraham and Gus, which means the group meet-up that all fans have been looking forward to is likely to happen very soon. How do I feel right now? Pretty effin’ excited and so pumped for next Sunday to get here, like right now!

So, if you enjoyed tonight’s episode and all the Quinlan goodness, then you will absolutely LOVE next week’s eppy. Titled “The Born,” this is the episode that will likely explore the backstory of the Ancients’ new weapon, Mr. Quinlan. If you’ve read the books, you KNOW the wonderful bunch of awesomeness that is coming. And, if you haven’t? Well, sit back and enjoy one of the most beautiful stories of The Strain trilogy unfold before your eyes.

The Strain  airs on Sundays at 10/9c on FX.

Critic Grade — A