Owl House Spoiler Recap: Them's the Breaks, Kid

The Owl House came for my shipper heart this week by giving us an entire episode about how Eda met Raine Whispers in “Them’s the Breaks, Kid.” I’m going to point to the title of this article to note this is a spoiler recap. Because we’re starting with the end of the episode first because it’s one of the biggest game-changing moments of the season.

Here’s your final warning for spoilers!

Freaking Raine Whispers, everybody. What an amazing badass they are. They’re easily one of the MVP’s of the series!

It is revealed at the end of the episode that Raine is not being mind-controlled as we thought. They have the ability to use their bard magic to change the attributes of liquids. This allowed them to neutralize the mind-warping effects of Terra Snapdragon’s potions she’s been giving them. Raine has been playing her for a fool this entire time to continue to gather intelligence to try and find a way to stop Emperor Belos and the Day of Unity. This is such a freaking mind-blowing moment and showcases just how insanely strong of a witch Raine is.

That’s not the only bombshell! We also get to see an abomination passing information off to Raine. We’ve only seen one person have abominations with an eye in its hair. Coven Head Darius is in on the rebellion too and is helping Raine. I would almost have to assume that Eberwolf is as well. Eber is almost always with Darius. It would make sense that they both helped set up Raine’s capture in “Eda’s Requiem.” That makes three Coven Heads revealed to be against the Belos and his machinations. But it’s also a very dangerous game they’re playing.

“Every Sport in a Storm” hits differently now. I had talked about the divide between the Coven Heads and the Emperor’s Coven. It seemed that Darius wanted to test Hunter’s loyalties to the Belos as possibly a way to sway the young man away from his uncle. But now with “Them’s the Breaks, Kid,” there is definitely a split among the Coven Heads too as Terra is clearly not part of Darius and Raine’s plans. This could also be why Raine was snooping around Kikimora in “Follies at the Coven Day Parade.” Perhaps they were trying to see if she was wavering in her loyalty to Belos like Hunter was.

The final few minutes of “Them’s the Breaks, Kid” is easily one of the biggest game-changers of the show! Raine and Darius discover that Belos is setting up some kind of draining spell through the coven brands. Perhaps he’s planning on committing a genocide by wiping out all witches in one fell swoop. Or maybe it won’t kill the witches, but Belos will used all of their magic to open a portal door to Earth. However it plays out, the Day of Unity will be a tragic event that must be stopped.

But on a character level, it definitely shows how dire the situation is getting for everyone.

Raine purposely had to hurt Eda to protect her in “Follies at the Coven Day Parade" which makes their tears in that episode all the more heartbreaking. It wasn’t their real feelings breaking through a memory wipe, but instead their true emotions knowing they were harming the woman they loved. This reveal also shows how far they're all willing to go to stop Belos. In “Eda’s Requiem,” Eda and Raine were willing to sacrifice their lives with their music spell. It also means that Raine was ready to take out their allies as well if Darius and Eber were always on their side.

Raine, Darius, and Eber more than likely have a pact of some kind. They understand that to stop Belos, their roles as Coven Heads puts them in heightened danger. If they must for the greater good, they’re all probably ready to die as we’ve seen. Which definitely gives Raine the extra motivation to keep Eda away. They don’t want her to get caught in the crossfire of whatever is coming for all of them.

Raine, Darius, and Eber also probably got their first insight into the true nature of the coven brands in “Eda’s Requiem.” While Raine was the one who was knocked out, Darius and Eber witnessed Kikimora using the brand to restrain Raine. Maybe this was Darius’ wake-up call that something far more sinister was happening. If this was the first time he saw that the brand could be used against him, perhaps Darius reconsidered his role in the entire system. Regardless, everything is different now and Darius is on the ally team for the time being.

It also again emphasizes the importance of glyph magic, something I briefly mentioned last week. If Darius believes that Eda is the key to stopping Belos, what is something that she has that the Coven Heads don’t? If this was season one, it would have been her ability to do all magic as she never joined a coven and doesn’t have her sigil. While she is still brand-free, Eda lost her ability to do magic like a normal witch. The answer is Eda, Luz, and Lilith’s ability to do glyph magic that sets them apart from the rest. This is a skill they’ve started to teach to other people like Amity, Hunter, Willow, and Gus. Pair that up with King’s own powers developing, and we’re seeing the only way our heroes have a fighting chance to stop the Emperor.

The flashback which was the majority of the episode did give us a lot of insight into many of the adult characters.

Of course, the heart of “Them’s the Breaks, Kid” is about how Eda and Raine met, but what I found fascinating was seeing the earliest of wedges between Eda and Lilith. While Eda’s motivations are all wrapped around her sister, there are some hints to their future storyline. In the opening scene when Lilith is quizzing Eda, Eda’s natural intellect shines through and is able to correctly answer very detailed questions without hesitation. This bothers Lilith who we know studies relentlessly. Then at the end of the episode, Lilith leaves Eda at lunch which opens the door for Raine to come in and take a place that Lilith was previously filling in her sister’s life. While small now, it’s small sparks like these that will set off the inferno that will tear the sisters apart.

We also got to see a lot of Principal Bump when he was younger. I would absolutely argue that Bump is one of the most underrated characters that the fandom does not talk about enough. He is such a pivotal character in the catalyst of change, and what makes him great is fully on display in “Them’s the Breaks, Kid.”

Bump is clearly uncomfortable with everything Terra and Faust are doing. The well-being and safety of his students is always at the forefront of his mind. He believes in Eda when no one else does, a sentiment that leads them to have a good relationship in the present. When Bump wanted to make sure his students got their palismen, something vitally important to him with his disability, it was Eda who he turned to for help. Not only did that get all of our main characters minus Luz their palismen, but it also allowed for Hunter to receive his cardinal companion too. It is a vital step in Hunter’s character development.

Bump probably had to fall in line a bit, as we saw in season one that he was following the Coven System style of teaching. But it didn’t take too much pushing to let Luz, Viney, Jarbo, and Barcus bend the rules to learn different kinds of magic. This definitely had a ripple effect. If Bump hadn’t given in, then Jarbo wouldn’t have been able to express to Hunter his resentment of the Emperor’s Coven. This, in turn, put doubts in Hunter.

It all comes back to Bump who allowed change to happen in his school. It seems he’s always realized that something was off about the Covens thanks to Terra’s actions. While mild manner, he pushed back against it and supported Eda no matter what. Eda probably doesn’t hear often that someone is proud of her, and there is Bump showering her with praise for acting out while his job was on the line. We’re really seeing that early season one groundwork coming into play now. Principal Bump is such an important figure in this show. So many plot points are because of his actions. He needs way more love in the fandom.

It’s also revealed that Belos declared the Boiling Isles an empire, meaning it had another kind of government previously. Thanks to “Elsewhere and Elsewhen,” we did get a glimpse of a pre-Belos world. While we didn’t get to see the leadership at that time, Belos creating an empire can imply a few things. There’s the possibility that each of the towns was self-governing and took care of its own business. Perhaps the Isles were a republic or a democracy. Whatever government they used to have, somehow the leadership was removed to where only Belos remained. It’s chilling to think how many people befell the same fate as Blue Fang.

Some random thoughts to round out Them’s the Breaks, Kid:

-Alador and Darius used to be friends! Like I said last week, I would love a prequel series about all the adults. It would also inform so much about the current world of the series, showing Belos’ hold on power for their generation. Also, what if we got Young Steve!? I want Young Steve!

-Seeing all the adults from Willow’s fathers to even the Eye-Eating Prisoner was so much fun.

-While it’s the quickest scene of the episode, it has to be mentioned that Luz created the same gooey appendages that Belos made in the season one finale. It’s further proof solidifying that Phillip Wittebane is Belos.

-Of course, Raine would be the one to introduce Eda to Apple Blood, her favorite drink.

-I didn’t talk too much about Terra, but what a freaking lunatic!

While I won’t give spoilers here, I have looked at the episode synopsis for the rest of the season, and oh boy! Things are about to get really tense, you guys! I am not prepared and look forward to what’s coming after all of the big reveals this week!