Nancy Drew season 4, episode 2 made it pretty clear there are two major mysteries going on this season: How to break this Nancy/Ace curse and whatever is going on with that black goo we’ve seen in two straight episodes.

While I’m sure we’ll have plenty of episodes with one-off issues and spirits, it’s become pretty obvious that there are two big threads holding this season together.

1. Figuring out a way to break this Nancy and Ace curse

It may have taken the first two episodes to get Nancy on board with trying to find out a way to nullify it, but I never doubted that Ace could convince her to try. They’ve never taken a curse lightly before, but they’ve also never admitted defeat before even trying, either. And now, post-Nancy Drew season 4, episode 2, we know that Nancy has decided to give Ace and her a chance, to look into this curse, to fight.

I can only imagine that the near future will involve Bess doing lots and lots of research for Nancy, looking for any and all star-crossed love spells and trying to figure out how to loosen the grip Temperance’s final breath has on them. And if there’s any way to assess the boundaries of the spell, especially determining what exactly violates the “act on your feelings toward each other” part. So far, we know when they get close, glass breaks, but they need to know what’s on the approved list. We know hugs and car rides and laying next to each other on a bed are all on the approved list, but what else could trip them up? It’s better to know than to try and guess later.

2. What is this black sludge? Where did it come from?

And how can it be stopped from infecting every citizen of Horseshoe Bay? Is someone controlling it? Does this involve the Glass’ in some way? There are waaaay too many questions at the moment regarding this season’s central mystery, but that’s not abnormal for episode 2 of a new season of Nancy Drew. And Nancy Drew season 4, episode 2 gave us a lot of progress, as we watched both Abbott and Nancy suffer the effects of the corrupted water, even if they were both affected differently.

The end of the episode brought us George putting some pieces together about those re-animated corpses from the cemetery and the black goo that might have infected the town’s water supply. While I definitely want to see Nancy on the case for the full 13 episodes, I’m kind of excited to see George and Nick take on the lead investigator role for a bit, maybe? I mean, if Nancy and Ace are focused on figuring out how to be together without triggering his death curse, George and Nick will have full control over this investigation. Especially since Bess has her hands full with a still-new relationship, and her new role as Keeper.

Odds and ends

All that’s left now is to tie up the odds and ends that we haven’t talked about. Especially Ryan Hudson and the Glasses. He is most closely tied to them, since he found them and ended up in their debt at the end of last season. It felt a little weird, not seeing him at all in Nancy Drew season 4, episode 2, but I’m assuming that had more to do with all the things that needed to be handled, and not because Ryan’s not going to be playing a meaningful role.

The Glasses are definitely going to play the role of antagonist at the very least, but I haven’t eliminated the possibility that they’re tied into the season’s big black sludge mystery, either. After all, this all started after they moved to town. It’s fishy.

We also have a new lobsterman, the Glasses’ son who has no interest in his parents’ supernatural exploits, and that definitely feels like some sort of foil for Nancy and Ace. I’m hoping his role will be more significant to the central mystery, and his tangential interactions with Nancy are just a minor distraction.

Lastly, we also missed seeing Carson Drew in Nancy Drew season 4, episode 2, but I’m curious if that didn’t have more to do with his actor preparing to direct his first episode. We learned last week that Scott Wolf took the helm for Nancy Drew season 4, episode 5, so I’m sure if his presence is a little less in the preceding episodes, it probably has more to do with minimizing his screen time to allow for more preparation.

As long as all the episodes come chock-full of that patented Nancy Drew charm and snark, I will be loyally watching week after week. Nancy Drew season 4 is off to a spectactular start, and I am so eager to see how this season will shape up. After all, the creatives behind the show had the knowledge that this would be the last, so I’m certain that will play a part in what mysteries and storylines take center stage.

So, until Nancy Drew season 4, episode 3 hits later this week, I’ll just be here, rewatching the first two episodes, absorbing all the details I possibly can, and hoping we’ll get to see Nancy and Ace be happy for more than just the last few seconds of the last episode of the season. **fingers crossed**

Check out all our other great Nancy Drew-related coverage here, and if you’re just a massive Kennedy McMann fan (like us), you won’t want to miss this great article about her next new project.

You can find all the official Nancy Drew Season 4 info, as well as catch the latest episode, on the CW’s website.