By Brandon Nolta

So, Sam (Bret Harrison) is dating the lovely daughter of Mimi, the hottie who the Devil (Ray Wise) had been stringing along for years, and Sock (Tyler Labine) and Ben (Rick Gonzalez) are concerned that Sam may dating the descendant of Old Scratch. Considering Sam’s less-than-stellar run with Andi (Missy Peregrym) and their own lack of success with the distaff persuasion, you’d think they’d be more supportive. But, they do have a point, highlighted by a mean little prank Satan plays on Sam before the credits even stop rolling. That rascal.

Anyway, Satan sets Sam on the trail of another escaped soul, this one a bank robber who boosted a cool $10 million with his partner. The tricky twosome dug under two city blocks, hid the money, and then shot each other dead in a fight. Smart fellers. They did one thing right; the money was so well-hidden, nobody ever found it until the escapee popped up and started buying gaudy McMansions with the gains. So, Sam and the boys head over to the soul’s house and try to flick the magic Bic at him (the vessel’s a lighter this week), and the soul starts going ghost on them, running through walls and such. When they catch the soul, though, he does something novel: he tries to bribe them. Then he tries to shoot them, at which point Sam gets it right and traps the dude. All well and good, and now, they not only have the escaped soul, they have the $6 million left over from the original heist, sitting in boxes out in the open. What to do, what to do …


The answer is to get on task, because as usual, Satan left out some info. Turns out both of the bank robbing souls escaped, and the dangerous one’s still loose. Since the vessel won’t be accepted until both souls are trapped within, Sam’s back on the job, except now with the ongoing distraction of his new date buddy and the $6 million in cash in his room. But, the boys are distracted too, so they’re all messed up together, at least until the young miss demonstrates to their satisfaction she’s not Devilspawn by proving she doesn’t have the Mark of the Beast anywhere on her. In a hot tub. We don’t see this, which is just as well, because the boys have to reciprocate, and I don’t need to see that.

An interview with a guy long thought to be the souls’ inside man gives them a tip on where to find the undead robber, and Sam and Ben use Ted’s knowledge of high-stakes gambling (which is the managerial dweeb’s addiction) to hunt down the bad guy. Unfortunately, as dumb as the robber may be, the boys manage to outdo him, and they get themselves caught. Ben gets taken hostage, and Sam and Sock are forced to think fast and take action. Good thing Sam’s getting lots of practice at this.

Lots of fun, and hints of pathos with Sock and his ex and Sam and his present flame; it’s still possible she’s sporting some brimstone in her DNA, and the writers are intent on keeping that possibility alive for as long as they can. While REAPER is primarily a comedy, it’s a good idea to keep some dramatic tension in the storylines, and the possibility of Sam being in love with Satanic offspring is a good way to do it. Keep it up, REAPER, for as long as the strike lets you.