by Faith-Ashleigh Wong

What happens when an Eisbiber refuses to pay a bridge toll to the Hässlich who believes they own all bridges?  This week Nick finds himself yet again in the middle of a long standing conflict between these two Wesen.

A construction worker who gets killed by being forced in to cement soon leads Nick to a new type of troll-like Wesen who have a strange affinity for bridges.  When the suspect Sal Butrell, who is a Hässlich, is questioned he soon discovers that Nick is a Grimm.  He seems extraordinarily threatened by this (which I did find a tad unusual) and decides to summon Reapers to get rid of Nick.

Luckily, being the experienced Grimm that he has become, Nick has foreshadowed an occurrence such as this.  At the beginning of the episode we see that Nick is undergoing "Grimm training" – with help from Monroe, of course! – so he can be better prepared for the increasingly dangerous Wesen that he will no doubt face in due time. 

However their relationship is taken to places they have never ventured before when Juliette insists on having Monroe over for dinner.  Nick and Monroe come to realize that while they have become close, their bond stems from hunting Wesen not from an actual friendship.  The dinner was so awkward but so entertaining to watch!  I am actually surprised that Juliette bought their story because it was not convincing in the slightest!

Bud, the Eisbiber refrigerator repairman that got caught spying on Nick and Juliette is back and it looks like Nick has found another ally to help him with his Grimm duties.  I thought it was really great to see Wesen in a community environment, in particular these beaver-like Wesen who operate as a democratic society.  With the help of Bud (who is uncommonly brave for an Eisbiber) rallying the rest and eventually convincing them to trust that Nick is on their side, Nick manages to pin the murder on Sal.  

I hope this isn't the last we see of Bud and the rest of the Eisbiber clan.  It really is good to see that the show creators seem to be actively ensuring that the series stays fresh by changing things up every so often.  By expanding Nick's Wesen network especially, it keeps things from being too predictable and formulaic.  

My favourite part in this episode was Nick's showdown with the two Reapers.  That was pretty "badass", I have to say!  Those German big wig Wesen better be quivering in their boots because clearly Nick is ready to go to war.  And with any lucky he will have an army of Eisbiber at the helm ready to fight with him.  If their gift baskets are anything to go by, I think they will!