The ninth episode of FROM begins with a big new trouble that was teased in the final time of the last episode. Reggie comes out shouting with blood in his hands as Boyd and the group get into action to see what happened, and what they find is more shocking than they expected. Paula was lying on the bed with her body torn apart, just as the monsters do when they find any human outside in the night.
Paula's death was shocking, because not only she was inside her home, but it was also the daytime and the killer monsters only appear at night. Reggie explains that she was just sleeping on the bed when it happened. Boyd and the group gets terrified as he asks to alert everyone in the town regarding this as the night approaches.
Things are really getting out of hand for Jim after Randall kidnaps Donna alleging that she and the whole town are playing this game and killing the visitors. Jim tries to calm down Randall, but he doesn't listen and both get into a fight until Boyd arrives with a gun.
Julie heads to her home to warn her family while Kristi takes Mari and Reggie to the Colony house to warn the others and be safe, but Reggie is so terrified that he scares everyone present there. People begin to question what has happened as a terrified Reggie warns them not to sleep. Mari is still not in her right mind, but she gathers herself and moves to a room with Kristi, but soon things begin to spiral out as she starts hallucinating and destroying the windows. Kristi ties Mari to the bed and leaves the room, but it's not over for her as she begins to hear and see Cicadas, who have now filled the room, and enters her body as she cries and shouts. Kristi and Boyd enter the room, but Mari is struggling to survive and soon becomes unconscious with her eyes open and white.
Kenny is locked in with Sara at the Sheriff's station. Both confront each other about the recent happenings, Sara explains and apologizes for what she did, but Kenny asks her to shut her mouth. The ninth episode titled, Ball of Magic Fire delves into the story of all the lead characters and moves it forward for all of them.
Meanwhile, Boyd, Jim, and Donna are caught with Randall, who threw the keys of the van into the woods. All four of them decide to spend the night in the damaged vehicle in which Jim and his family arrived. Randall continues his allegation against the group, but Boyd shuts his mouth and handcuffs him. As the night takes over. Monsters start appearing and approaching their new home, but something stopped them at a fair distance. The group wonders as they hear the creepy music box and it doesn't take time to realize that something worse is happening. They gather themselves and head out to the parked van while Randall decides to take another route and runs into the woods.
The episode is gripping and made me stick to the screen for all its 45 minutes. It has all the horror elements, the drama with a hint of science fiction and suspense that makes you curious. Without a doubt, the second season is heading for a big finish.
The episode ends teasing a big season finale on the way. Randall is running into the woods, but the Cicadas catch up and take him down. He is down on the ground and it is unknown whether Randall survives or is gone. The same thing happened with Mari and Julie as well, as both of their fates are hanging in the balance as the episode closes.
Final Score - [8.5/10]