Staystillreviews: Friday the 13th the series - Tails I Live, Heads You Die

Friday the 13^th the series - Tails I Live, Heads You Die

PLOT - A reporter trails a violent cult of devil worshipers calling people back from the dead. After discovering their coven, he contacts Curious Goods. It isn't long before Jack, Ryan, and Micki investigate only to have tragedy strike.

LOWDOWN –L I've slowly begun to cover each one of my all time favorite episodes based off the highly underrated show Friday the 13^th the series. For those who read this blog, you'll know right off the bat that I'm a huge fan of this show that sadly only lasted three seasons. Mostly swept under the rug for being associated with the Friday the 13^th films but lacking our favorite hockey mask killer and having zero to do with the films, this is a show that is still being discovered even today to fans old and new. Thanks to re-runs, and being released on DVD, this popular show has found a cult status and high respect from many fans who adore the original film series.

I being one of them.

Tails I Live, Heads You Die is by far one my all time favorite episode of all time.

Airing back in season 2 (which was my favorite season out of all three.) was packed in-between some pretty awesome and hardcore episodes. In fact the episode that aired before this one was the very popular “And Now The News.” Which features my all time favorite cursed object, the haunted radio.

In this episode we deal with a cursed coin, which packs a pretty powerful punch since in this episode it ends up killing one of the shows leads for real.

Yep, that's right.

The coin of Ziocles, is the cursed coin in question which has a ram's head on it. This coin was used in witch craft and had the deadly power to kill at will whenever somebody tossed it into the air. Wherever the coin landed, a bolt of light shoots out killing the unfortunate soul who's standing close, killing them dead. In return, when placed on a corpse it has the power to make the dead come back to life.

Well, in this episode a scared reporter happens upon the coven where is underneath a taxidermy shop. Watching a dead man come back to life, the reporter completely frightened contacts Jack one stormy night at the store. It isn't long before the reporter is captured and killed and our favorite trio find some very interesting clues left behind from him. Seeking out the taxidermy shop, they begin to put two and two together but sadly Micki gets trapped there while spying with Jack. Left behind and helpless she finds a dead end only to have the leader of the cult toss the coin towards her. Nearly instantly the coin zaps out killing our beloved Micki instantly!

Jack returns to the shop only much to his horror discovers that Micki never made it out of there. Is is where my inner fan girl squeals. Ryan hears that the coven discovered Jack and Micki and went after them before they split up. Rushing out with Jack, the two decide to go back to the shop to see if Micki is still there. Sadly, when they reach the parking-lot they find the car still there and the police.

And...Micki's dead body.

Poor Ryan screams, crumpling to the ground holding her lifeless body, screaming and having a complete mental breakdown. To some John D Le May's acting seems a little over the top. To me it's utter perfection. You can't help but feel horrible for this poor guy who truly loved this girl more than the audience thinks. (Now as a huge fan girl, I always liked to believe that Lloyd, Micki's ex- fiance' was sorta right in season one. Even though, they were second cousins (my marriage remember.) you can't help but watch the playfully little banter between the two as the show progressed. Both always seemed to be flirting and jealous whenever one of them gained a love interest. In fact I'm ALMOST certain had the show continued with the Ryan character, they would have ended up having these two hook up. I mean in the last episode of season two, their practically spelling it out how much they care for each other.) Fuck the Johnny character being added in for a love interest, and fuck season two. I am and forever will be a John D LeMay fan.

Hey if fan girls can have Twlight, and Dr. Who...I can have this.

Watching poor Ryan break down over Micki's very shocking death really makes the episode. It's tragic and heartbreaking at the same time. I love the scene where Ryan is clutching her body crying and begging for her to wake up, only to have him tell Jack he's not leaving her. Afterwards them alone in the shop and how Ryan totally lost in grief almost attacks Jack blaming him for leaving Micki behind. This is a side of Ryan we've never seen before and I really gotta hand it to D LeMay, he played this episode like a pro.

I mean if you think about it, by season two time line wise, Jack, Ryan, and Micki have been at the store collecting back these objects for almost a year. Micki broke off an engagement, Ryan opened up about his past and loosing his brother, and even lost his father. They risked their life's and faced evil together. Slowly they became strangers who ended up caring for each other like a family. I love how Ryan tells Jack after their done killing the witches who got Micki, he's finished (yet again.) since he doesn't want to go through this when Jack dies. Heartbreaking...

The ending scene of course is very clever, and thanks to some switching around they end up using the coin that killed Micki only to bring her back to life! As the coven becomes to crumple and cave in, Ryan looses the coin by accident and the three of them barley get out alive as the witches and coin are buried underneath thousands of pounds of rumble.

This is yet another object that comes back, and this time it comes to haunt Micki in the episode “Bad Penny” in season 3. This time without her Ryan to fight for her. I've seen only a few bits and pieces of this episode since I've really never fully watched a whole episode from that season. Sorry kids, when D LeMay, so didn't I.