THEM: The Scare – Season 2 Episode 4 “Happy Birthday, Sweet Boy” Recap & Review

Happy Birthday, Sweet Boy

Episode 4 of THEM: The Scare begins with Edmund listening to his usual self-care tape and visiting the creator. Turns out, it is the architect, Dr. Gaines who also happens to be Edmund’s former foster father. He tries to talk to Gaines, his mom and his sister but they try to make him leave.

It is revealed that they had adopted him but because of his tantrums they dropped him at a foster home on his 12th birthday. He wants to know why they left him and Dr. Gaines reveals he needed to protect Lacey, his real daughter. 

Elsewhere, Dawn pretends to be a cop’s wife and approaches Mrs. McKinney who lets it slip that McKinney wasn’t home on the night of Curtis’ murder. Dawn tells Diaz who reveals that McKinney has never gotten more than 2-day suspension for any brutality complaints. And back in 1982, a murder case was dropped while his partner, Stenson retired.

Dawn visits Stenson who reveals that McKinney is in a blue group which consists of corrupt cops who cover for each other. He shows her the case files of the ‘82 murder and it show a Black boy beaten to death. Mrs. McKinney had claimed the cops had done it but when he brought it up, he was forced to retire. He was part of the group too and for initiation, he had to get a tattoo which he later sliced off.

That night, Edmund picks up a hooker but starts insulting her for not having a life. He locks her in the car and is about to get physical when cops arrive. They think he is the Southside Slayer and he acts the part. The cops find audition tapes of him fumbling through the same lines and let him go which angers him as he thinks it means he is not a good actor.

Meanwhile, Athena finds Dawn’s hypertension pills which are laid out in a trail to a box. She then hallucinates Dawn telling her that she is lying.

As for the real Dawn, she follows McKinney from his home to the blue cult-like group’s gathering. There are several White cops doing target practice and drinking. They catch her and McKinney threatens her to stay away. She arrives home to Athena crying and revealing that she and her husband adopted her.

The hypertension Dawn has is from her real father and the note in the box is the only thing left behind by her biological mother. Dawn is shocked and unable to process the sudden revelation.

Meanwhile, Edmund messes up Donovan’s home and watches a tape of his 6th birthday. As Donovan arrives, Edmund ambushes him and throws him in the trunk of his car. 

It cuts to the same scene we see at the beginning of Episode 1. Turns out the man held captive is Donovan and they are in the basement of the arcade. Edmund makes him watch his birthday tape and forces him to enact it. Donovan begs Edmund to let him go. Well, if only it was that easy… Edmund unties one hand only to break it. Donovan attacks him but Edmund traps his leg and breaks it at the end of THEM: The Scare Episode 4.

The Episode Review

THEM: The Scare Episode 4 starts giving us backstories from the shocking pasts of McKinney and Edmund to Athena’s secret. By the way, is it a coincidence that both Dawn and Edmund were adopted? But there is one thing for certain, it is getting intense. 

And wait a minute, so is the killer Edmund? And if Donovan is his first target, does it mean he is in a different timeline than that of Dawn? But there are a lot of things that don’t make sense such as the killer not leaving a single evidence. With Edmund being a rookie, there should be mistakes like shirt fibres or something.