The Strain: "Gone Smooth" Review

Note: Full spoilers for the episode follow.

The Strain’s third episode, “Gone Smooth,” isn’t an instant cure-all for the problems of the first two hours. But it is a noticeable step in the right direction, with some of the more interesting characters getting more screen time while others take the week off. The show’s greatest strength is (and probably always will be) its horror elements—the most consistent thing about all the episodes so far is that they come to life when it’s time to get creepy. The trick is to keep the audience invested in people to care about in between those set pieces, which has been the weakness thus far. “Gone Smooth” features several character scenes, not all of them good, but the ones that are point to a more interesting show starting to take shape.

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