The undead come calling in both “Mombie Dearest” and “Death Keeps Knocking on My Door” in a pair of episodes that help to explain just where all the mystical creatures are coming from and why they are so driven to find the knife. On Lizzie (Jenny Boyd) and Josie Saltzman‘s (Kaylee Bryant) 16th birthday the school is visited by Jo Laughlin (Jodi Lyn O’Keefe), their biological mother and the love of their father’s life. In “Death Keeps Knocking on My Door” its Rafael‘s (Peyton Alex Smith) girlfriend (Erinn Westbrook) who returns from the grave. The arrival of each, and the rise of less lovable zombies in the school’s graveyard, can be traced back to the Necromancer (Ben Geurens), the latest forgotten mystical creature who is driven by forces he doesn’t understand to acquire the knife. Geurens proves to be a fun guest-star as he toys with Hope Mikaelson (Danielle Rose Russell) and the others for his own pleasure.
While painful, both apparitions help characters find closure with the loss. There are some touching moments among the Saltzman family as they deal with the unusual situation and help the spirit return back to where she came from. Each apparition also only proves to be a distraction allowing the Necromancer to acquire his goal. Although digging around in the Necromancer’s mind does give Hope some answers about the knife and about Malivore, along with finding some family closure of her own, the creature is always two-steps ahead of her as the series continues the ongoing theme of Hope taking things a step too far while leaving others to deal with the consequences. Enlisting MG‘s (Quincy Fouse) help may have also unintentionally stared the young vampire down a dangerous path as the situation eventually leads him to try, and acquire a taste for, human blood.
