Teen Wolf season 5, episode 19, “The Beast of Beacon Hills,” just finished airing! Is Mason really The Beast?

This episode picks up right where last week ended. Corey has taken Mason down into the tunnels to keep him away from Scott. Mason denies he’s The Beast (you and the entire fandom, man!), but he can’t remember what he was doing any time the creature showed up. It’s then that the Dread Doctors find them and take Mason away, knocking Corey out in the process.

Theo, Tracy, and Deucalion goad Josh into putting on the fourth Dread Doctor mask. Deuc in particular seems to know a lot about its origins, saying one of the Doctors, The Surgeon, went to the farthest reaches of pseudoscience to manipulate electromagnetic fields and infuse the masks with a unique and deadly power. But Josh ain’t so stupid to think he can handle the mask.

The quiet moments in this episode really stand out to me. Sheriff Stilinski and Lydia attempt to stop Parrish. They tell him that by leaving Beacon Hills, he may actually be sentencing all those people in his dreams to die, and Holland Roden’s conviction is a scene-stealer here. As are the moments of normalcy like Scott missing a scholarship deadline, Stiles being his adorable, uncoordinated self, and everyone gathering around to help track down Mason.

Scott also shows off his badass side here, grabbing at an invisible Corey from behind him using his wolfy senses. It’s now that Corey admits the Dread Doctors took Mason and we see them stabbing a needle into the back of his neck.

It turns out Deucalion has been faking his weakness the entire time, and just when I was hoping he’d take Theo out of the equation, he teaches him a valuable lesson instead. Deuc does get in a good swipe at Theo, but it only relays the message that pain takes life, which takes power. Theo, ever the good student, immediately tests this out by killing Josh and taking his abilities. He is now able to put on the mask.

At this point, Lydia and Parrish arrive at the Nemeton, and when he touches it, he sees Lydia, dead. Her throat is slashed, and it’s important to note that in next week’s preview, she’s in the hospital with a bloodied bandage across her neck. On top of this, the Nemeton begins glowing, and I have to wonder if Parrish is adding more power to it, allowing it to grow further. Will this help or hinder those trying to protect Beacon Hills?

Scott decides to do something he clearly does not want to, in that he takes Liam to meet up with Theo and Tracy. They need to team up because they both want to get to Mason. They want him for different reasons, but if all goes according to plan, Mason will still survive his capture.

But when does anything go according to plan?

The group meets at the Dread Doctors’ underground lair, where the man in the tank is missing. Theo explains this was an Alpha werewolf, a Nazi, whose powers were keeping the Dread Doctors alive for all this time. This is a unique power source, which will need to be on the telluric lines in order to work. If they can find the tank, they’ll find the Dead Doctors, and then they’ll find Mason.

The group does just this, coming upon a cabin that houses Mason. He’s connected to the man in the tank, and he says he can feel something messing with his head. (At this point I’m still like, ‘Fear not, shattering heart, it may not be Mason!’)

But it turns out that Mason is actually a genetic chimera. He was born with fetal absorption syndrome, which means he ate his twin in utero. (Time to be afraid, dear heart.)

The Dread Doctors say Theo was not a complete failure because they learned something vital from him in that if they corrupt something truly good, they can make something truly evil. This is why Theo did not become The Beast, but it is how Mason (yes, really Mason) did. We see Mason transform before our eyes, and there’s no questioning now who The Beast really is.

But there’s a problem. Well, there are a lot of problems, including Kira asking the Skinwalkers for help with her sword no matter the price, and Malia and the Desert Wolf now being trapped in the same house together.

The main problem, however, is how they pack will save Mason without killing him. Gerard does not seem concerned, but it’s nice to see Chris still hanging onto hope. They’re after the pike that killed The Beast the first time around, hoping it will be able to stop it once more.

As The Beast rampages, it kills two of the Dread Doctors before Parrish shows up. They throw a few punches before The Beast turns into the person Theo saw in the mask from the beginning, Sebastien Valet. He scampers off into the forest, leaving us wondering if it’s already too late for Mason.

What did you think of ‘Teen Wolf’ season 5, episode 19, ‘The Beast of Beacon Hills’?