'The Strain' Recap: 'Last Rites' Presents Corey Stoll's Ephraim In A State Of Lockdown!

Based on the best-selling Dark Horse Comics adaptation, Guillermo Del Toro's The Strain is just an episode away from its first season finale on FX. As the vampire apocalypse has taken down New York City a notch, Ephraim Goodweather (Corey Stoll) has to keep his tired team moving before The Master finds them in 'Last Rites.'

Eldritch Palmer (Jonathan Hyde) is just an inch away from dying. Thomas Eichorst (Richard Sammel) listens to him as he can barely speak his next words. Palmer still has faith that the Master will save him. 

The group returns to the pawn shop exhausted and defeated. After taking his pills, the old vampire hunter, Abraham Setrakian (David Bradley) remembers a time when he was younger and married to Miriam. He promises her that when his mission is over, they will start a family and have children.

Abraham makes his way deep down a well and stumbles upon a vampire's nest. The whole thing was a set-up to get him far from his home, away from Miriam. By the time he climbs out of the well, Miriam has already been turned into a vampire.

In the present day, Abraham stares at Miriam's heart, which he cut out himself. While the old man sleeps, Dutch (Ruta Gedmintas) returns to the pawn shop with a plan. She has the equipment to hack into the emergency alert system, where Ephraim (Corey Stoll) can send out his warning message to the masses.  

Elsewhere, gangster Alonso Creem (Jamie Hector) discovers Gus (Miguel Gomez) sitting in the backseat of his car. With a gun pointed at the back of his head, Alonso drives Gus to his office at the docks, where he is expecting a shipment to arrive. Knowing he has the money and guns to fight the plague, Gus wants to see what's inside one of Alonso's containers.

When Alonso opens up the container, he accidentally wakes up the vampires sleeping inside. Gus has to toss Alonso a loaded gun because a swarm of bloodsuckers is heading straight towards them. This is where Alonso betrays Gus and starts shooting at him.

As the shootout intensifies, all of a sudden, the vampire vampire hunters show up. After the vamps are taken down, Gus is kidnapped and thrown in a moving van. 

Just as Dutch predicted, Eph is able to send out his warning to the TV audience. In those 40 seconds, he shows them video proof of the existence of vampires. Before Eph could finish his message, they all hear Nora (Mia Maestro)'s mother screaming.  

The rock star arrives, releasing his stinger on Nora's poor mother. Thomas is leading an invasion into the pawn shop. While the group locks themselves into the basement, Abraham explains his escape plan. But before she can leave, Nora has to chop off her mother's head.

The Master finally arrives to see Palmer on his death bed. After cutting his own finger, The Master then feeds the dying man his ancient blood. Palmer gets up from his hospital bed and laughs as the rain pours down on him.

Just when Eph and his team strike a win, they lose something in return in The Strain. Readers, what did you think of Last Rites?