'Helstrom' Episode 2: How did Ana unleash dark forces as a child? Her mom has some startling revelations
With its second episode, 'Helstrom' establishes itself in the realm of hell and darkness. Dark forces are percolating around the world, possessing people and causing them to commit horrific murders before they die themselves, while the Helstrom siblings Daimon (Tom Austen) and Ana (Sydney Lemmon) struggle to understand the demonic forces that have been unleashed.
In Episode 2, Daimon meets his estranged sister Ana and the meeting is not entirely a pleasant one. Far from exchanging niceties, it's safe to say there is a cold animosity between the two of them. Both of them have deep scars from their childhood, and both have dealt with it differently. Ana is seemingly cold, curt and uncaring about their horrific past, while Daimon is unwilling to let go.
Their mother lies possessed in a psychiatric hospital and she has only a few moments of sanity before the demon overpowers her again. Daimon is soft towards his mother, Ana is not. She feels that their mother didn't care enough for her as a child — or rather, she knew about the monster that their father was and she did not nothing to protect them.
Ana has a burning resentment towards Daimon as well and throws barbs at him for being her "favorite" son. In a moment of fury, Ana slaps her mother in the hope that she will talk. The demon wins and she is sent flying across the room. After being yelled at, Ana tries talking to her again and the demon responds. A crucial revelation is made at the end of the episode: Unintentionally, Ana is the one who unleashed all the dark forces in the world.
In a flashback, Ana remembers a key that was handed to her by him. The demon tells her that she and her father are quite similar and Ana leaves the cell, trying to hide her tears as she realises the gravity of the situation.
We know that Ana's father is a powerful and mysterious serial killer, who had abducted her as a child, and he used Ana for his own means and set free the havoc that is reigning in the world at the moment. There are many questions to still be answered, about his identity as well as the horrific demon that has taken over their mother. Will Ana and Daimon be able to fight it?
'Helstrom' is streaming on Hulu.