On the previous episode of SurrealEstate, you might have needed to do a double take to make sure you were watching the right show since it involved a mini-Wynonna Earp reunion. This week, the crew manage a pair of properties with tragic pasts.
Susan deals with some buyers from hell who are high maintenance divas. They already bought a nice home with ocean views but slipped in a clause that if they’re not completely satisfied within five days, they don’t have to pay the Roman Agency their share of the sale. Worse yet, the clients are full time influencers. They knit-pick about the shade of white used to paint the walls and complain about random puddles that are, unbeknownst to them, caused by spirits.
This storyline continues to develop Susan and Zooey’s relationship that SurrealEstate has been doing the past episode. The pair, in effect, have a girl’s sleepover as they investigate the strange activity. There are some bonding moments over drinks as Susan reveals her superpowers and Zooey opens up about her first love. It’s a fun friendship that has grown between the two so far as they bitingly tease each other at times but you can feel how they are starting to genuinely care for each other.
Father Phil determines the sad history of the house. It’s a compelling tale of a lighthouse keeper who overslept while visiting his wife in town and failed to return to work in time to prevent a naval accident that claimed many lives. In order to prevent the sailors’ spirits from returning to extract their revenge on the owners of the home, Susan uses her pyrokinesis to light up the night so the ghost ship can see the land and turn back. Who would have thought an unassuming real estate agent was so hardcore?
Elsewhere on SurrealEstate, Luke is hired by a housing development where some residents experience the same destructive phenomena simultaneously. It all traces back to a jilted lover who built a dream home for his fiancé and made a special room for her only to be cheated on with his own brother.
To add insult to injury, his work partner stole the design of the home after he died and implemented it into the housing project. The original designer’s home serves as a voodoo house with whatever commotion he causes in his domicile is felt in the track homes in the community.
Luke’s client, who happens to be a rival, would prefer he “end” the spirit. It brings up an interesting dilemma for our protagonist because although these supernatural entities are dead, they still happen to be people. We receive a greater look at Luke’s philosophy of trying to help these ghosts resolve their issues from the past and move on rather than destroying them. He even begins to take his own advice as he tries to overcome the wickedness of his deceased mother and start a romance with Megan Donovan.
One aspect SurrealEstate does well throughout the season is planting little seeds here and there and allowing them to grow at the right moments. It can be something contained within a single episode such as the light and horse rider references early on in “A House is Not a Home” which help solve the case at the ocean front home. Others, take a little longer for its payoff such as Susan’s powers. It is a really engaging moment when fire shoots out of her hands and illuminates the sky.
The episode also does a good job expanding on the other cast members. Early on, we focused on Luke and Susan but now we’re receiving more time with the other employees at the Roman Agency. We’ve already discussed Zooey and Susan’s growing friendship but now, Father Phil and Auggie are on screen more and we’re getting a good beat on who they are. Although, I wish we get more Auggie because he seems to the be one we least know about.
The entire cast has good chemistry with each other so it’s a shame that they always split up the team and have two different properties to sell. They should take advantage of their camaraderie and throw in a week where they all work together on a single home.
“A House is Not a Home” involves two properties with fascinating and unusual histories and brings up some intriguing moral questions with regards to dealing with the undead ghosts. Plus, Susan has some kick ass powers.
New episodes of SurrealEstate air Friday nights on Syfy.
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