If you felt like the previous two episodes of It: Welcome to Derry were a bit of a slow burn, then don't you worry. That slowburn is over, my friends. The third episode, entitled Now You See It, finally introduces our primary group of kids while also ramping up the supernatural tension with several glimpses at the clown we're all amped to see terrorize the not so fine folks living in Derry.
So, here's what happened and what you might have missed. The episode opens by taking us back to 1908, revealing the shared history between General Francis Shaw and Rose, whom we met briefly in the previous episode. As a child, Shaw experiences a carnival where he's terrorized by the skeleton man, whom we quickly realize is an early form of the menacing entity Shaw will attempt to track down decades later. Rose saves him using a slingshot, forging a bond based on shared trauma that explains their complex dynamic in 1962.
In the present, Shaw is desperate to locate the entity. He pushes Dick Howeran to use his emerging psychic abilities, his shine, to track it. While on an aerial survey with Leroy Hanlin, Howeran astral projects into the sewers. There, he finds the creature's lair, complete with a circus wagon labeled Pennywise. The vision turns violent as the entity senses him, leading Howeran to give Shaw a chilling warning. It wasn't supposed to see us.
Meanwhile, Derry's new group of young investigators, Ronnie, Lily, Will, and Rich, try to clear Hank's name. Theorizing the monster might be an orisha, a spirit taking the form of deceased loved ones. They attempt a seance in the cemetery to try and capture photographic proof. The plan seems to go terribly wrong when they are attacked by ghastly apparitions of their recently murdered friends. Though they escape, they believe they failed until they develop Will's final photo, revealing a blurry, grinning clown lurking in the dark. Pennywise has officially entered the chat.
Now, on to what you may have missed. Firstly, during the 1908 carnival sequence, keep an eye on the background games. One stall features a knockdown game where a turtle is prominent among the targets. This is yet another somewhat subtle nod to Matarin, the ancient cosmic turtle from King's Mythology, who is the sworn enemy of Penny Wise's demonic alien form. It's a deepcut reference if you haven't already noticed the seemingly dozens of other turtle references we already got in the previous two episodes.
The creepy atmosphere of the 1908 freak show was enhanced by this manic piano player. That's none other than Andy Mushetti, director of the IT films and executive producer of this series. In the present day, when Howerin is overwhelmed by his vision in the sewers, the ghost of his grandmother appears to pull him back. This isn't just a random spirit. It directly connects to lore established in The Shining, where Dick tells young Danny Torrance that he inherited his Shining abilities from his grandmother.
Following his traumatic encounter with it, Howerin asks General Shaw for a safe, leak-free place for him and his fellow black soldiers to blow off some steam. This heavily foreshadows the creation of the Black Spot, a tragic location from King's novel that becomes the site of a horrific racially motivated arson attack. It's also where we get our single mention of Howerin in the novel. The dinner scene between Howerin and the Hanlands further emphasizes this tension, grounding the supernatural horror in the very real social fears of the era.
Other than those things, there's not much to delve into here. Episode 3 was fairly straightforward. What did you think? Many fans were unimpressed, but I'd like to know where you stand on the matter. Let me know in the comments.