The roots of the tree run deep.
The blood of its victims run deeper.
The blood of its victims run deeper.
Widower Montrell and his daughter Vivie move into a new home in Oregon after the death of his wife. However the house and land are haunted by ghosts, and at the center of the horror is a tree in the front yard that is more that what it appears.
Tropes featured in this episode:
- Ancient Keeper: The elderly Franny, who lives nearby and warns Montrell about the tree and it's evilness and how it took her father. The problem is, there's no public record of her living in the area. She turns out to be legit when she takes down Clara and helps Montrell reunite with Vivie.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Clara appears to be a helpful, friendly woman selling a house on her property to a widower in need. She even helps Montrell look for Vivie. But it was all an entire ruse to lead Montrell and Vivie to their deaths to feed the tree.
- Botanical Abomination: The tree in the front yard that feeds on black people and their blood. But as Clara finds out in the ending, it does not discriminate on who it consumes.
- Cheerful Child: Vivie, despite losing her mother.
- Does This Remind You of Anything?: The episode touches on the history of Oregon and it's racist history (Montrell is even writing a book on Oregon's Black exclusion laws
). And there's the supernatural element of the tree being feeding on black people for generations due to a racist white family leading them to their deaths. - Earn Your Happy Ending: Montrell is able to rescue Vivie thanks to Franny, and take down Clara. Franny is also able to get closure when she sees her father's spirit after Clara is defeated.
- Fertile Blood: Clara tells Montrell that the tree acquired a taste for black people's blood. She finds out that the tree just wants any human blood when she's eaten by the tree.
- Foreshadowing:
- The home seller Clara says that the home has been great for her family and vineyard for generations. The tree itself feeds on black people to nourish the land and soil and helps breed the vineyard's grapes.
- When Montrell says the tree in the front yard needs care, Clara says he's the perfect person to bring it back to life. She means that literally.
- Man-Eating Plant: The tree in the front yard that feasts on people and uses their blood to nourish the land.
- Missing Mom: The very first scene is of Vivie asking her dad Montrell whether her mom can see their new house from Heaven-he says yes. We don't learn why she'd dead, but it was recent and they're still dealing with it. He didn't used to put Vivie into bed or fix her hair for instance.
- Missing White Woman Syndrome: Montrell complains of this as the police are pretty apathetic when his daughter Vivie goes missing, saying if she were white they would probably start an intensive search. Instead, they just tell him to wait two days and then file an official report, leaving without any further action, simply underscoring one more way black people are mistreated, which the episode's focused on.
- Never Mess with Granny: Franny takes down Clara with a hatchet and from there, the tree feeds on her.
- Unexplained Recovery: Vivie is consumed by the tree but she returns completely as opposed to a spirit once Clara is defeated. Clara is still half-alive in the ending shot, so it's possible Vivie wasn't completely gone by the time Montrell and Franny defeated Clara.
