‘Nancy Drew’ 4×04 review: “The Return of the Killer’s Hook” brought a familiar face back to Horseshoe Bay

Life imitated art during this week’s episode of Nancy Drew. I’m a sucker for a cheesy horror movie, especially slashers, and “The Return of the Killer’s Hook” satisfied every one of those cravings. But it wasn’t just about the setting of a horror movie that made “The Return of the Killer’s Hook” an enjoyable time, it was in its character development and a return to Nancy’s case of the week. Sure, the plot tied back to the mysterious black goo in the water, but it perfectly balanced the standalone case with an ongoing narrative.

The return of Lacey was a welcome sight for the Drew Crew. She was a great help during Nancy Drew’s Season 3 mystery, and she balances the rest of the group with her love and skepticism of the supernatural events around her. Lacey’s friendship with Nancy isn’t the most complex aspect, but they have a deep respect for each other. You can tell that they understand each other on an unspoken level and what it means to work in this world. Plus, her return as a movie director was great growth for her. We love seeing people level up in their careers and put the work in!

And kudos to Bess for scoring a role in the movie. Sure, she knows Lacey, and it’s a movie filmed locally in Horseshoe Bay. However, an acting gig is still an acting gig. She is going to kill in her role as Victim #1. (Pun intended.)

The strange happenings on the movie set were a fun red herring. In the world of The CW’s Nancy Drew, it would be expected that a paranormal spirit was sabotaging the movie and causing havoc. We had the death of an angry movie director who created the original film, so it made sense that his spirit would be back to sabotage the remake. However, for the reveal to not be a spirit, that twist changed up the flow considerably. It felt refreshing that the plot threw us off and made us look at everyone as a suspect when the pieces started coming together.

The black goo is still a mystery, but we’re getting a better idea of who it’s targeting and why the reactions are triggered. In this case, Brie’s missing memory of the deadly prank was the key to unraveling this attack on the movie set. This is now the second time someone has forgotten a crime they committed, and the black goo was the only way they got their memories back. The supernatural curse is probably trying to clean up the mess in town; it’s unraveling all the secrets that were buried within the town, especially those hidden by The Black Door. We need more answers about this secret society, but we probably have to prepare ourselves for more cases like this to come in future weeks.

Does anyone else think George and Nick will eventually get back together? Their chemistry was off the charts during “The Return of the Killer’s Hook.” Their adventure hunting down Brie and interviewing her brought back plenty of the vibes whenever they were together. Plus, the looks they were sharing seemed like they were crushing on each other. I wouldn’t be surprised by the series finale if they found their way back to one another.

Also, we should start counting down until the moment Tristan calls in a favor to Bess and Nancy. They broke his supernatural stomach-pump machine, and I have a feeling he’ll want more than just to hold onto Bess’s earrings as collateral. Tristan might be friends with the Drew Crew, but he’s still a Glass. Something will come up in the future that he’ll need. Horseshoe Bay is waiting for that moment.

One of the best parts of “The Return of the Killer’s Hook” was the scenes between Nancy and Ryan. Sure, he didn’t raise her like Carson, but he’s easily slipped into Dad mode with her. Their relationship has verged on being friends, but there’s always been an underlining theme of love and respect as a family. It was so adorable how Ryan was there to help Nancy during her heartbreak over Ace. And the scene of him laughing when Nancy was afraid while watching the horror movie was one of their best moments together yet. His absolute joy of seeing her scream perfectly captured how different they were and yet how they complemented each other.

“The Return of the Killer’s Hook” was a bloody good time that hooked us in! (Yeah, I’ll stop with the puns.) The case balanced both sides of the types of cases we’ve come to love about Nancy Drew, and the reveals of Brie and the movie’s infected stunt crew as the criminals were very satisfying. The character moments between the Drew Crew, including Ace separating himself from the group, grew their plots and pushed them forward in a strong direction. Overall, a great episode and a good time.

Nancy Drew airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on The CW.