Sleepy Hollow Recap “Magnum Opus”: The Last Crusade

In the latest Sleepy Hollow recap, Ichabod and Abbie search for a sword powerful enough to kill Moloch but the Headless Horseman is searching for the same weapon and it’s race against time to see who gets there first….

By Damon Martin — Editor/Lead Writer It’s a sad fact but the second season of ‘Sleepy Hollow’ hasn’t been doing all that well in the ratings. There are times to face facts and as the show reaches the mid-season point with this week’s episode titled “Magnum Opus” and next Monday night’s show, the once freshman darling just hasn’t been pulling in as many fans for a second helping of ‘twistory’ with a side of British charm. In reality, I’m the worst person in the world to critique ‘Sleepy Hollow’ because I love the show and maybe I’m blinded by how much I enjoy it that other people just aren’t digging this second season compared to last year. Sure, there have been a few down episodes, but one thing that’s great about ‘Sleepy Hollow’ is even the least interesting parts still offer up Easter eggs and bread crumbs leading to some other plot point later in the show. Each episode has still offered up a MacGuffin and the results of what happens if it falls into the wrong hands remains the central focus. Whatever the case may be, this week’s episode was some of the finest writing ‘Sleepy Hollow’ has seen all year long. From the sparring matches both verbally and physically between Ichabod and Abraham to the conniving that takes place to rescue a mythical sword capable of killing evil in one fell swoop, ‘Sleepy Hollow’ this week was nothing short of phenomenal. Let’s see what happened shall we?

Join, Or Die

This week starts out with Ichabod and Abbie playing a game of Heads Up, but the colonial soldier just doesn’t get it. When his screen reads George Washington and Abbie’s clue is ‘he never told a lie”, Ichabod nearly pops out of his trousers. George Washington was one of the biggest liars in history! He started a spy society for Pete’s sake! Ichabod’s enraged, game over. Good thing because there are more important matters at hand like Katrina calling on a mirror to mirror communication to tell her wayward husband that Moloch is still alive in human form and she has no chance now to kill him. Plan has been foiled. She gets interrupted before she can say anymore and Ichabod is left to focus on the real mission at hand this week. On the downside, Katrina is an idiot once again and didn’t bother to think that the mirror she was using was already enchanted so when she leaves, Henry pops up and watches everything Ichabod and Abbie do to find this magical piece of history that could be a great weapon against the upcoming end of days. Ichabod and Abbie are looking for the sword that Grace Dixon teased in her diary hundreds of years ago. The dynamic duo have been pouring over the journal for days now, but they aren’t any closer to finding a location or description about where to find the sword. When they finally figure out a clue, the dominoes start to fall in place in a hurry. The journal contained a picture that could only really be viewed through a distorted image and in there Ichabod sees something twisting and turning like a snake. It reminds him of the famous ‘Join, or Die’ cartoon drawn by his old pal Benjamin Franklin. When they find the ‘Join or Die’ cartoon they notice that the snake is leading state by state to the head where there’s a tongue pointing directly at the location where the sword has to be hiding. Oh and about this sword — it belonged to Methusalah, son of Enoch, who was said to kill 1000 demons with this weapon. Like so much of ‘Sleepy Hollow’, there really was a Methusalah (his name literally means man of the spear) and he was the son of Enoch. He’s mentioned in the Bible after living to be 969 years old and he’s also grandfather to Noah (the Ark guy). He was said to have killed demons with the spear but it was closer to 100 than 1000. Regardless, the Franklin picture pointed them right to the point where they could find the sword and hopefully have the ultimate weapon to use to defeat Moloch if he does rise again on Earth. Over at camp evil, Henry is sending Headless to track down the sword because after he was eavesdropping on his dear old dad and his future stepmother, he heard every word they said about the sword, where it could be found and what it can do. Headless is off to find the sword without much time to go until sunrise so he better get to killing quick!

Best Friends Forever

Throughout this episode, Ichabod continuously tracks back to at time in his life where Abraham was his best friend and not his mortal enemy. He remembers the times they would spar with fencing swords, trading blows back and forth while Abraham did his best to convince Ichabod to abandon England and travel with him to the new world as a solider. To this point in his life, Ichabod was the man his father wanted him to be, but he wasn’t destined to be a professor.

“Were you to teach history or to make it?” ~ Abraham

Ichabod then followed Abraham to the new world where he met Katrina for the first time. She became his lover and they betrayed Abraham together and Katrina turned Crane to the side of the Americans, rallying against the British forces. Once again somebody led him down a path without his choosing. And now all these years later, Ichabod and Abraham are back on the same path looking for this sword that could end the world. Is Ichabod strong enough to finally be his own man or is fate just intervening and forcing him to realize that his life will only go as far as Abraham and Katrina have commanded it?

Blind Leading the Blind

Ichabod’s strange mood aside, he and Abbie find the hiding place where Benjamin Franklin pointed, but a certain Headless Horseman shows up looking for the exact same thing. He takes a plaque from the wall while Abbie and Ichabod hide far from sight. Enough of this nonsense, it’s time to distract the Horseman and allow Abbie to make a run for it. Ichabod tangles with his old friend for just a few moments before the sun rises, forcing him to mount his red-eyed horse and make a run for it before he goes up in flames. Thanks to a weather application Abbie installed on his phone, Ichabod was able to predict the sunrise and save their lives. During the distraction, Abbie was able to get a look at the plague Headless stole and she deduces that it was a snake eating its own tale — better known as ouroboros — which gives Abbie the clue she needs to find the sword. One of the meanings behind the ouroboros is ‘as above, so below’ and it’s a literal translation that helps Abbie figure out that the plaque Headless stole was just giving the final direction to where the sword was hidden — buried underground in a secret chamber. The pair dig and find a secret door leading down into a hidden passage. Down there, Ichabod and Abbie are greeted by statues of people from many different times and eras. One of them happens to be a descendant of Grace Dixon, leading Abbie to question her own mortality as if she’s destined to die as a witness like all of her relatives before. But reality quickly sets when they start looking closer at the statues. They’re not statues at all. These are people who came in the chamber searching for the sword of Methusalah, but ended up coming face to face with its protector — a multi-headed snake creature known as a Gorgan. Most people would recognize this creature as Medusa, the ancient Greek legend known to turn anyone who looks at her to stone immediately. Ichabod and Abbie know they are in trouble if they stay down in the chamber so they quickly run back up the stairs to get away from the Gorgan. The only problem is the sword is down there so they have to go back, but they have to combat the Gorgan. Now what person do they know who not only has the skills and power to beat the Gorgan, but actually has no eyes to do it with anyways? If it takes you more than one guess, you’re fired.

Canada, Eh

The one offshoot story this episode involves Jenny driving Captain Irving to Canada where he can hide out until the heat is off and he can return to ‘Sleepy Hollow’. Jenny’s trying to help, but Irving just wants to fight for his soul and prove that everything he did, he did for his family. It looks like he’ll get his wish because just before entering the Canadian border, the pair runs into road blocks put up by the Sleepy Hollow police department and Irving has to jump from the moving car to getaway. Jenny tries to contact him later, but Irving’s message is clear — he’s fighting for his soul and he’s fighting to save the world. Canada will just have to wait. He’s going back to Sleepy Hollow

The Rebirth

Teenage Moloch is growing up so fast and Henry knows it’s almost time for his ascension. He pulls out a mythical horn that gets blown three times to signify his arrival and he can’t help but laugh at his mother’s feeble attempts to stop him with weak magic and poison potions. Poor Katrina just can’t catch a break this week. She’s still rocking the corset and jeans look so no matter what she’s still more than tolerable on screen. Katrina did manage a great line this week when she saw Henry with the horn — “it’s nice to see you’ve taken up an instrument”. Henry’s not playing games, however, and once this horn sounds, Moloch will begin his march on Earth.

Sword and the Stone

Once nightfall happens, Ichabod and Abbie wait for Headless to show up and when he finally does they make a mad dash to the basement while he’s stuck left behind with the Gorgon attacking him immediately. The two creatures battle, but Headless eventually gets the upper hand and lops off its head with his axe. While this is going on, Abbie and Ichabod retreat to a back room where there’s an alter filled with water an it’s surrounded by swords. Only one of them can be the sword of Methusalah and choosing poorly could result in an earthquake and a whole bunch of Nazis getting swallowed up by the Earth. Oops sorry that’s the plot to ‘Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade’ but you get it right? Same exact story. Ichabod knows his destiny is forever tied to Abraham so he rushes out into the fray to distract his ‘old friend’ while Abbie rescues the swords. When she finally pulls one out of the ground, everything turns to snakes and before she knows it, Ichabod and Headless are battling back into the room. When the fighting stops momentarily, Icabod and Abraham have a little heart to heart. Abraham is ready to kill Ichabod and put an end to this once and for all and go back home where Katrina will be waiting for him. A strange thing happens next — Abbie and Ichabod can both see Abraham’s head attached to the Headless Horseman’s body. In this room, a person’s true self is revealed so they can see him in the same way Katrina sees him when she’s wearing the amulet he gave her. Ichabod and Abraham argue, but they are cut short when he hears the horn sounding the arrival of Moloch. He has to go and knowing that his father and stepmother Abbie will likely be suffering more than most after the end of times gets started, he allows them to live for the time being. Headless rides off into the sunset convinced of his own great job. Only problem is Abbie and Ichabod are smarter than the average bear and they figure out the one thing all those statues outside had in common. They were all by themselves. The dynamic duo then realize that the water in the alter at the middle of garden of swords is actually oil. When Abbie and Ichabod place their torches in the water together, the flames burst and a sword is revealed. The real sword of Methuselah.

Time is Running Out

Abbie and Ichabod are super happy because they now have a weapon to actually fight big bads like the Headless Horseman and Henry Parrish not to mention Moloch when he arrives. The problem is he’s already here. A secret ceremony shows Moloch reborn on Earth and the fate of the planet has now been sealed unless two witnesses can find a way to send him back to purgatory or even better yet, straight to hell. Part two of the ‘Sleepy Hollow’ mid-season finale will air next Monday night at 9pm ET on FOX.