#Ratched Season 1 Episode 8 Review: Mildred and Edmund

Brilliant. 

Ratched Season 1 Episode 8 brought many of the biggest plots to a close, and served as the perfect jumping-off point for a revamped series. 

Putting Mildred on a collision course with Edmund was not the development I expected, not after the way Mildred fought to keep her foster brother safe. 

After Governor Wilburn opted to essentially set convicts on fire to sway the votes at the election in his favor, Mildred knew the writing was on the wall. 

Her internal struggle about letting her brother succumb to the death penalty was a painful watch, but I appreciated how she tried to think of the most humane way for Edmund to perish. 

Killing him in the barn in a painless death with the animals he had grown to love would have been the easiest way for him to go. 

What stuck out for me through all of this was the way Bucket offered to kill Edmund for Mildred. These two women were sworn enemies, but somewhere along the way, they became genuine friends. 

Who would have thought that would ever be the case?

Surprisingly, the hospital is in great hands with Bucket, who has recognized the error of her ways under Hanover’s rule. 

Charlotte showing back up, acting as though she was Hanover was a wild development, but it also helped save Edmund, so I’m not as frustrated with it as I should be. 

Charlotte was seemingly cured of her disassociative identity disorder, but Hanover let the other personalities out to play when he locked her in the closet. 

Are we supposed to blame him for everything? 

Charlotte, Edmund, and Louise joining forces to make a killing squad was shocking, but it heightens the stakes considerably for Ratched Season 2. 

Mildred went three years, always looking over her shoulder and worrying that she was about to be killed by her brother. 

Little did she know that she had three people coming after her. 

Sarah Paulson’s performance continued to be riveting, and the final scene with her telling Edmund that he was not coming for her because she was coming for him was perfect. 

It seemed like Mildred was genuinely terrified, but it seems she is more worried about what Edmund and his gang could do to the people she loves. 

Mildred is finally in a happy relationship, and Gwendolyn appears to be battling the cancer, but it was inevitable a curveball would be thrown in to complicate matters. 

Louise has been a vile opportunist since Ratched Season 1 Episode 1, and Bucket probably told her about where Mildred was, likely leading to the mission for them to go on the road and kill people. 

Initially, I thought the entire series would revolve around the hospital, but it appears that there is a much larger world out there for us to explore with these characters. 

It’s unfortunate that Huck did not get to stick around. Charlie Carver has been a delight in his role as the unlucky in love nurse. 

He was elevated to head nurse, but he was no match for the deranged Charlotte. It was inevitable we would lose someone on the season finale, but Huck was one of the characters that seemed untouchable. 

Hopefully, Mildred gets to take down Charlotte and says something along the lines of, “This is for Huck,” not that Charlotte would understand what she means. 

Charlotte is so far out of it that there’s no chance she will be able to return to her normal life when this is all over. 

The tribute from Edmund to Mildred was rough, but it solidified to Mildred that she had to make a plan of attack to take these people down before she became the target. 

Gwendolyn would be a big get for Edmund, but something tells me Mildred will hide her somewhere nobody can get to her. 

It’s a shame that, just as Mildred was embracing her new life, it all came down in flames before her eyes. 

Edmund’s motives are a bit sketchy. He was set to have a grisly death, but Mildred wanted to do something less sickening for him. 

Has Charlotte poisoned his mind so much that he thinks Mildred is awful for her actions?

It sure seems that way. 

Ratched Season 1 has had more ups than downs, but it could not have ended in a better way. 

Having these two distinctly different sides as they embark on a mission to kill the other will make for a lot of fun. 

Mildred has, for the most part, managed to subdue her murderous tendencies, but if she descends into madness on Ratched Season 2, it will make it completely different. 

What are your thoughts on Mildred vs. Edmund? Did you think there we would get this big battle? 

Were you surprised Mildred and Bucket were friends? What are your thoughts on Charlotte returning and posing as Dr. Hanover?

Hit the comments below. It’s the end of the season. I want to know your thoughts!

Ratched streams globally on Netflix, and was the No. 1 show in the world when it launched. 

Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.