In the modern era of uncertainty and constant cancelations, streaming series showrunners need to exercise restraint and avoid ending on a cliffhanger. Willow may only be accurately judged after the grand payoff of its final episode. With that in mind, this episode is primarily setup for what's to come. When judged on its own merits, it isn't the series' high point, but it might fare better when watched alongside its payoff.
Willow showrunner Jonathan Kasdan has a writing credit on this episode, along with returning talent, Julia Cooperman and Bob Dolman. The editing is credited to one Tara Timpone, late of The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window. Her style is noticeably different, as this episode feels choppy and off-putting in parts.
Chapter VII: Beyond the Shattered Sea takes place immediately after the team of adventurers' successful jailbreak in the previous episode. This episode splits its time between the continuing emotional back and forth of the principal players and the unique new wrinkles of Arik's captivity. Arik's interaction with Lili, the girl in the cage beside him, is strained and uncomfortable. Dempsey Bryk, the actor behind Arik, seemed a lot better in his role earlier in the series. Lili comes across as strangely confrontational. She isn't given much time to develop as a character and her primary personality trait seems to be disgust from the instant she sees Arik. This element of the episode only exists to push the story along, but that doesn't stop it from being mildly annoying.
In the meantime, Willow and his crack team of teenagers are ready for the most dangerous leg of their journey. The eponymous Shattered Sea is essentially an endless field of silt. It can be stood on or walked across, but it stretches out into eternity with no clear destination. The long trek gives the team plenty of time to explore their pathos during multiple stops. Boorman is still one of the most compelling characters, but he's busy trying to find the perfect moment to break out his magical armor. Elora Danan and Willow are getting deep into magic lessons, leading to a long series of duels with both parties hurling glowing blobs at each other. There's nothing particularly compelling about the way the show uses offensive magic. It's reminiscent of the Harry Potter franchise, which very rarely used the endless possibilities of spellcasting and almost always fell back on the magical equivalent of a handgun.
Kit's romance with Jade remains one of the most wholesome and compelling aspects of the series. After they finally confessed their feelings back in episode five, their sincere relationship has been very charming. Kit probably has the most going on of the primary cast. Beyond her new girlfriend, she's searching for her brother, she's dealing with the loss of her father, she's distrustful of Boorman, and she's feuding with Elora, all at the same time. Not all of those subplots work. Kit and Elora's bickering fails to be entertaining every time it's brought up. It feels like they're metatextually fighting for the show's main character role, despite the series bearing the name of one of the other characters. The show works very hard to ensure that almost every character has a few notable interactions, but some of the ongoing threads are insufferable.
Willow is a bit of a mess. Characters keep pulling hitherto unmentioned magical powers and sacred weapons out of nowhere to save the day. Case and point, the show is one episode away from a conclusion and Graydon does magic now. It hasn't come up before, the character has spent 90% of his screen time whining about how useless he is. He does some magic to get the cast out of a jam, then they move on. Just like Willow's flamethrower from a few episodes back, Graydon's powers pop up, save the day, and go away. Elements of the show feel pieced together at random. The editing is poorly paced, and it manages to feel like anything is possible in a bad way. Is the show better for an audience that isn't paying much attention? The epic high fantasy adventure, the earnest teenage romance, and the fun sense of humor are all still there, but the show just can't put its pieces in order.
The finale is almost here. It's entirely possible that when Chapter VIII comes out and the show is laid out as a finished product, it will become more than the sum of its parts. It has a ton of good parts, but it struggles to present them satisfyingly. Willow feels like a show that several people put a lot of time and effort into, only to be negatively affected by a series of studio notes. But, with so many fun aspects, performances, scenes, and ideas on display, it's hard not to root for Willow to stick the landing.