In the third episode of Disney+’s series, The Mysterious Benedict Society, “Depends on the Wagon,” we see the four youngsters begin to learn more about the inner workings of the Institute. Reynie (Mystic Inscho) is unsurprisingly thriving in the environment run by Mr. Curtain (Tony Hale), who we officially learn is Mr. Benedict’s (also Hale) twin brother after it having been teased at the end of “Carrying A Bird.”
Reynie’s willing to accept it all, but Sticky (Seth B. Carr) is a bit put-out, given that this makes for a secret Mr. Benedict – a man whom they barely know before agreeing to infiltrate a secret island institute – kept from them. What else might Mr. Benedict be hiding?
A lot, it seems, as Benedict tells the story of he and his orphaned brother to Rhonda (MaameYaa Boafo) and Number Two (Kristen Schaal) while handyman and bodyguard Milligan (Ryan Hurst) is tasked with recovering a necessary envelope from Benedict’s study. During this mission, Milligan is forced to hide within the walls of Benedict’s mansion while operatives from the Institute hide cameras within the study where the envelope is being kept.
It’s an episode that uses everyone possible, and in a frantic and frenetic pace which ably matches the madcap adventures of Trenton Lee Stewart’s first book in the series. Reynie is being singled out, while Constance (Marta Kessler) and Kate (Emmy DeOliveira) begin to work together as a slightly at-odds team.
All of this, and there’s yet another new character and plot twist introduced. Reynie’s former school inspector, Mr. Bloom, is a worker on the island who doesn’t recognize him at all, leading him to hypothesize that his brain has been swept clean, much like the lowest-performing student, Charlie, who has been put on a boat and sent home. Given that Constance and Kate are nearing the bottom, this worries the Society, and they ask Benedict’s advice, which ends up being to cheat.
We also meet Curtain’s adopted son, S.Q., who is an artist and stays apart from the rest of the Institute. He and Reynie bond before the latter has a dinner with Curtain, who reveals more of his story after being separated from his brother, and suggests that Reynie trust no-one.
Frenetic and frantic indeed, especially given that Reynie’s teacher, Ms. Parumel (Gia Sandhu), calls the Boatwright Academy to find out why Reynie hasn’t been responding to her letters, only to discover that he’s not a student there at all. Ending an episode on yet another cliff-hanger such as this will guarantee viewers tune into the next episode with alacrity when it drops.
