Just when I thought that ‘The Killing’ couldn’t get any crazier, this week’s episode actually heads to the asylum.

This show has gone so completely off course that it’s almost fun to watch how outlandish the storylines are becoming. When we last left Linden, she was rooting around in the top floor of the casino trying to find any sort of evidence about what Rosie had done up there. Right when she found a blood-spattered key card, she took a Maglite to the noggin and was knocked unconscious.

As she awakes on Day 23, we’re astonished to see what Linden looks like in a t-shirt. After twenty-three days, this is the first time Linden has gone sans-turtleneck, and truthfully, it’s a little disconcerting. I think I’d lose it completely if there was an entire episode without rain. I expect a few things to be constants in this show since plots are flying around faster than Holder’s white-dude Ebonics phrases. These constants keep me rooted: Linden’s turtlenecks, Seattle’s infinite rain, Stan Larsen’s pouty face and Holder’s hoodies. Losing the turtleneck stings a little. If more than two of these things change, I don’t know what I’ll do. If by chance Holder comes to work in a suit, you might as well lock me up in the loony bin alongside Linden.

Isn’t it convenient that after giving her a blunt-force knock to the head, the Evil Indians were thoughtful enough to drop Linden off at the same exact psychiatric ward she had stayed in when she lost her marbles on a past case? That was really kind of them to do, so that we can dive straight into Linden’s bygone craziness. Also, does anyone else find it funny that one of the rules for Linden’s incarceration is that her own psychiatrist can sign her out, but at no point do the doctors ever try to contact him? I’d think the psychiatrist would be the first call put in by the hospital after a person like that was admitted.

In other news, we finally get to see Bennett again, now sporting a brand new neck brace. Stan feels a tad guilty about almost killing the guy. So, to make amends, he fixes his porch light. This is brought to our attention with a not-so-subtle camera pan set to end-of-episode ‘Killing’ music, followed by a quick cut to Stan turning on a light. “Sorry for beating you so badly you had to pee in a bag for two weeks. Hope this new porch light helps the healing process.”

Holder is starting to piece together the entire mystery, which involves everyone from the Evil Indians to the Evil Poles, and of course, Michael Ames. The conspiracy grows and my patience decreases. There’s just something so uninteresting about a conspiracy, simply because it’s almost always used as a plot device to draw out storylines as much as possible. With conspiracies, you can keep adding layers upon layers of information without revealing much of anything. It’s a frustrating storytelling device.

Lieutenant Carlson is proving to be a by-the-book police disciplinarian ripped straight from any buddy cop movie ever made. His no-nonsense attitude will last just long enough for all of us to hate him. Then, magically, he’ll redeem himself by finally listening to Holder and Linden. The previews for the next episode prove as much. He’s put up this brick wall just long enough, but he’ll easily tear it down when the next episode rolls around. His character has proved to be nothing more than a convenient stumbling block for Linden.

Did I like anything about this episode? Well, yes. Beneath all the out-of-place t-shirts, conspiracies theories and new one-eyed dogs that pee on floors, there are a couple of scenes with Linden that are worth watching. Yes, the entire situation of her ending up in the same psychiatric ward where she stayed long ago feels forced, but learning about her past seems genuine. Mireille Enos really is a great actress. She was fantastic in ‘Big Love’, and I can’t wait to see her in ‘World War Z’ and ‘Gangster Squad’ later this year. She may be stuck in a TV show that feels like it’s treading rain water, but she does the most with what she’s given. If there’s a bright spot in this murky character melodrama, it’s Enos’ acting.

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