Review: Primal “Feast of Flesh”

Overview:

Primal‘s third season continues on Adult Swim with the latest episode, “Feast of Flesh.” Spear encounters horrifying flesh-eating ghouls, but a friend might not be far behind.

Our Take:

Last episode, we saw Spear deal with the forces of nature. This time, he faces the creatures that lurk in the shadows. Of course, being a magically reanimated corpse, he fits right in. Unfortunately for him, he encounters hungry, faceless ghouls who think he’s good enough to eat.

First things first, however, we are treated to the calm before the storm. Spears wanders around in a lush, green landscape where he is enthralled by the local insects. In fact, they even start triggering his memories, such as him having an animal companion himself once upon a time. Soon, he follows one such bugaboo as if it’s become his newest sidekick. In a tense moment, Spear even saves his insect friend from a hungry chameleon. Without saying a word, the animation will make viewers happy to see a grasshopper live another day.

Unfortunately, the sweet moments come to an end when Spear falls down a tunnel. Soon, he’s in the fight for his life, for lack of a better term, against hungry molelike flesheaters. They’re small, but there’s power in numbers. And Spear learns the importance of quantity over quality as they pile on top of him before the commercial break.

Spear wakes up, however, to find that the creatures have left him hanging where they keep the leftovers. Cue macabre images of hanging, bleeding corpses, displaced organs, and the creatures feasting. Spear’s even lost the flesh from his arm. It immediately becomes clear to viewers that the only reason Spear is still kicking is that you can’t kill what’s already dead.

Fortunately, the cavalry arrives when Spear’s new cricket friend arrives to help, driving the creatures into a frenzy with its noise. Spears also learns that it can come in handy to have some sharp bones on hand.

Tragically, having repaid its debt, Spear’s bug friend loses its life in the conflict. Losing his new friend drives Spear to fight as mindlessly as the ghouls around him, allowing him to triumph with a truly horrifying visage.

However, things take a tender moment when Spear appears to mourn his fallen friend, preparing it a tomb made of rocks. The moment is somewhat ruined by one of his organs falling out of a hole in his torso. Fortunately, he is surrounded by plenty of spare parts.

Venturing out into the light, he encounters a number of identical bugs, implying that his friend may live on in spirit. Of course, this, and a newly acquired tooth necklace, have Spear thinking back on his old friend, Fang.

Overall, despite the macabre nature of the episode, it has a touching story at its heart. Fans will never be happier to see a bug arrive on the scene, nor mourn it getting squished just as much.