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'The Magicians' Season 5 Episode 2: The results of Alice's ill-advised spell breaks fans' hearts

The aftermath of Alice's spell had many fans shedding tears as the show continues to explore how grief is handled

Spoiler alert for Season 5 Episode 2 of 'The Magicians' 

The season premiere of 'The Magicians' ended with Alice Quinn (Olivia Dudley) performing a ritual, seemingly in an attempt to resurrect Quentin Coldwater (Jason Ralph). The spell appears to have worked, though not in the way that Alice expected. 

In a classic case of what-you-need vs what-you-want, the spell resurrected a child version of Quentin (Luca Padovan), to give Alice the chance to say goodbye. Child Quentin retains the wisdom of his adult self and helped Alice figure out a way to move on and start a new chapter in her life. Fans were in tears following the emotional scenes, for the double-whammy of seeing Quentin again and watching his friends grieve him. The official Twitter account 'The Magicians' promoted the heartwarming scene online. 

The fans connected strongly to the scenes with the young Quentin. "BBQ is so precious and I did not emotionally prepare for these Quentin feelings in the year of our lord 2020" said one fan on Twitter, with another writing, "Damn it writers, my heart. You all have done your jobs too well tonight." 

"Yes, I am crying. Little Q is wonderful and breaking my heart again," posted by on sentimental user and it was echoed by many others online. The final scene between Alice and child-Quentin was especially heartbreaking, giving Alice a chance to say a proper goodbye to him. "Alice had to lose Q again. My emotional state is unstable," tweeted a fan.

The episode was a complete tearjerker and fans of the show have been hailing fans for it. The exploration of the different ways they show the protagonists handle grief has been said to be the focus of the season and fans appreciate how it's being done, with one saying, "The way you guys are tackling grief and the lengths you will go because of it have been great to watch so far." 

The next episode of 'The Magicians' airs January 29 at 10/9c on Syfy.