2020-08-01 14:26:15 ¶ ●

on my way into The Return. the black+white symbolism from the original runs even stronger through this one, and Part 8 in particular seems to be pushing the idea that the two are one and the same. not only in being set in the 40s and 50s and being filmed in black and white, but also in the Woodsman character’s mysterious poem:

> This is the water, and this is the well. Drink full, and descend. The horse is the white of the eyes, and dark within.

the container and the contained, the water and the well, the white and the black of the eye, are being conflated with each other. another character in this episode who doesn’t seem to hold any other significance mentions a zebra on the loose; a horse that is both white and black.

we’re also reminded of the black and white horse costume near the original series’ climax, and of the white horse symbolising death which has appeared in both the original series and The Return but is thus far yet to be contrasted with a black counterpart.