When we last left our involuntary race partners, Arthur and Grace, they had survived the first leg of the Blood Drive amidst a climax of obligatory sex and violence. But the race goes on. Next stop: Pixie Swallow.
“Welcome to Pixie Swallow” is technically episode 2 of Blood Drive but, in an effort to truly entrench ourselves in the aura of grindhouse cinema that this show is showcasing, we’re going to call it “Part 2,” and will continue with this idea throughout these episode breakdowns. Of course, if this show continues to be called Blood Drive into the second season, we may need to change things up a bit, but we’ll cross that road when we come to it.
The race’s next stop is at a rest-stop called Pixie Swallow in Arizona, where our sadistic drivers stop for some good, char-grilled burgers. Unknown by all of them, these burgers aren’t made of your normal cows. They’re ground chuck people, meant to serve the cannibalistic hillbillies of the area. The drivers bond in a bloodbath of carnage. One finds himself on the menu. Others find friendship. One even finds a partner for the race!
While this is going on, our gore-spattered MC, Julius Slink, is anxiously waiting at the offices of Heart Enterprises, killing a new employee in the process. He learns that Heart wants to make the Blood Drive public, which suspiciously surprises Slink himself. Can’t have “The Man” spoiling your art, is what Slink seems to be thinking, but we’ll see where this goes.
Meanwhile, Officer Chris is still missing his eye, but is recruited to Heart Enterprises by Aki. For what, we don’t know, but we do know that something is off about Heart. Apparently a giant fissure opened up in the American Midwest, and society started going south, figuratively. Heart Enterprises somehow brought order, if what we’ve been seeing is any sort of order. I guess it is. Order isn’t exactly peace. Of course, something is up with The Crack and Heart Enterprises. I’ve watched the film The Stuff enough to know that, when a corporation starts commercializing a weird goo that comes out of the ground, you’re going to have a bad time.
What’s great about “Welcome to Pixie Swallow” is that it sets the stage for how each episode will probably play out. Before seeing a single episode, I had thought that maybe there was a chance that each episode of Blood Drive would be its own short movie with a gradual plot connecting it all, like a linear anthology series. That seems to be the case in this episode. We have our ridiculous plot device that is usually a feature-length horror or exploitation film, cannibalistic hillbillies, connected to the larger, seasonal plot that is fueling the Blood Drive. It makes the episode hard-hitting but not repetitive. It’s enough to make me excited for the rest of the sequels. Er… episodes.