IT: Welcome to Derry S1E7 Recap: “The Black Spot”

The following recap contains spoilers for IT: Welcome To Derry S1E7, “The Black Spot” (written by Jason Fuchs & Brad Caleb Kane and directed by Amdu Muschietti). Spoilers also include plot points from the films IT (2017) and IT: Chapter 2 (2019)

The Augury has finally happened in Derry in 1962. What is supposed to be the culminating violent event in Pennywise’s feeding cycle every 27 years occurs in Episode 7, but it also provides some very interesting bookend scenes beyond these intense and tragic moments.

Before we get there, however, the opening scene of Episode 7 flashes back to 1908, providing an origin story for the character Robert “Bob” Gray (Bill Skarsgaard) and his daughter, Ingrid (Emma-Leigh Cullum), who would later become the mysterious Mrs. Kersh (Madeleine Stowe) from IT: Welcome to Derry and the IT: Chapter 2 movie.

Pennywise performs at the fair in 1908 — Screenshot/HBO

This sequence establishes the human background of the man whose likeness Pennywise would take. Bob Gray is depicted as a carnival worker and the original performer known as “Pennywise the Dancing Clown,” a kind of clumsy man who genuinely enjoyed entertaining children and had a kind heart. Ingrid, his daughter, is shown enjoying her father’s act, and shows the loving, normal relationship they shared before things in their life became tragic.

The flashback establishes the connection between the Gray family and the entity that would soon become a part of their lives. Bob’s love for his daughter is clear, as they only have each other after we understand that Ingrid’s mother has died.

This warm relationship stands in contrast to the evil monster that operates in Derry and would eventually take Bob’s form. The scene suggests that the real Bob Gray disappeared or was killed around this time, likely a victim of some version of IT, which then absorbed his memories and his form, including his love for his daughter. IT decided to use the form of the clown to lure children because it observed how effectively the costume and act entertained them all those years ago.

Pennywise waves goodbye to the audience — Screenshot/HBO

This history lesson helps to explain the motivations of the adult Ingrid Kersh in the 1962 timeline. Believing that her father had been abducted and possessed by a monster, Ingrid spent decades attempting to “free” him. Her actions, which involve taking children from the Juniper Hill Asylum to Pennywise and later leading the mob to the Black Spot, are driven by some hope that by giving the monster what it wants, she might somehow be reunited with her actual father.

After this 11-minute lore-enhancing opening scene, the episode picks up immediately after the cliffhanger from Episode 6. An angry, armed, white mob led by the disgraced former police chief, Clint Bowers, surrounded The Black Spot, the popular nightclub owned by several Black airmen stationed nearby.

Tensions have been escalating in Derry, fueled by the town’s racism and the general paranoia and fear that Pennywise feeds on, especially concerning the recent murders of children Phil, Teddy, and Susie that the mob mistakenly blames on Hank Grogan (Stephen Rider). The mob learns (with a tip from Ingrid) that Hank is inside the club, along with a number of other customers, military men, and children. Marge (Matilda Lawlar), Richie (Arian S. Cartaya), Will (Blake Cameron James), and Ronnie (Amanda Christine), and many other main characters find themselves trapped in the building.

Inside The Black Spot, characters such as Leroy’s (Jovan Adepo) son Will, Richie Dick Hallorann (Chris Chalk), and others desperately try to protect the people within the club, knowing what the mob’s intentions are after they refuse to turn over Hank to their group.

Richie tries to save Marge from the fire — Screenshot/HBO

The mob demands Hank Grogan be handed over, believing he is the child-killer, an assumption that is certainly fueled by Pennywise’s manipulation of events and the town’s existing prejudices. The people inside The Black Spot refuse, understanding that handing him over would mean a lynching. The situation quickly devolves into chaos and violence, with gunfire erupting and the building being set ablaze after the mob locks the doors from the outside.

The burning of The Black Spot is shot as an absolutley brutal and chaotic sequence. It is the major massacre that serves as Pennywise’s final feast before its hibernation cycle. As the fire spreads rapidly, trapping many inside, the episode delivers its most devastating moments.

Characters are seen struggling to survive the raging fire and the gunfire. The most tragic moment involves Richie, who sacrifices himself to save Marge by locking her inside a walk-in cooler, ensuring her survival while he sits on top of it and perishes in the flames. The fire leads to a large number of deaths, and even as the episode ends, we are still dealing with the fallout. What we know is that Hank, Dick, Ronnie, Marge, and Will survived. Richie and many supporting characters did not.

Dick Hallorann tries to find a way out of The Black Spot — Screenshot/HBO

The event is a defining moment for Derry’s history, and is referenced both in the IT book and in the subsequent 2016 and 2019 movies. Dick, using his psychic “shining” ability, is aware of the massacre and is believed to have helped save some survivors, including Leroy, and many others who would have been trapped. The horror of the fire is made even worse by the fact that Pennywise is actively feeding on people during the fire, and preying on the fear of others to make his meals taste that much sweeter.

As the episode heads towards its conclusion, The Black Spot is in ashes. The survivors are left to deal with the physical and psychological trauma, including the loss of another child and the growing racial divide between the citizens of Derry and what is around the town.

In a closing scene, Will is seen back in his home after the events of the day before. All seems normal until he receives a call from one of his friends, and the voice begins morphing into the horrific sounds of Pennywise. The monster appears, opening its mouth to reveal a sort of light that puts Will in a comatose state, and ends on a cliffhanger where we do not know Will’s fate.

The events of “The Black Spot” serve as a violent but expected setup not only to the finale next week, but also as a bridge to the future IT stories, ensuring that the cycle of terror that plagues Derry. will continue at least until the events of the second movie.