'Welcome To Derry' Episode 4 Recap & Ending Explained: What's The Story Of The Well House?

So much happens in the 4th episode of IT: Welcome to Derry, that you might’ve just missed very important clues hidden very strategically in random places on the map. Why are they random? Because we don’t believe in maps over here. They’re lines on a piece of paper drawn by people who get a kick out of gatekeeping what they think belongs to them. Like Rose says. But fear not. Well, not only because the clown might sniff you out. But also because I’m about to spill all the tea about the cryptic hints and Easter eggs that say more about where the story is going than you might think. So let’s get started.

Spoiler Alert

Do we have a younger Mrs. Kersh in Derry?

You can’t really blame Lilly, Ronnie, Rich, and Will for expecting that the pictures they clicked at the cemetery would be groundbreaking in the investigation into the missing kids case. But they’re in the 60, a time when photographs aren’t a regular, everyday thing, and they haven’t gotten a chance to watch all the horror movies where the adults don’t believe the kids even after being shown creepy pictures because those movies haven’t been made yet. So I understand the spring and the rush in their steps as they barge into Chief Bowers’ office to show him the pictures of the ghostly missing kids and get Hank Grogan out of the lockup. But what do you know, in another magic trick which only we understand but the kids don’t, all the ghosts seem to have disappeared from the pictures. Oh, that’s right. Ghosts don’t show up in photographs. But Pennywise does. And that’s because he is no ghost or an apparition. IT’s a full fledged monster who’s getting ready with his fancy crockeries now that the adults don’t believe the kids when they scream that something’s coming after them. I gotta hand it to Rich for figuring out that this is like the movie Dracula where the monster doesn’t show up in photographs. But are there really no adults who’d even have a moment of patience to listen to them? Lilly thinks there is one. The head of the housekeeping staff at Juniper Hill. Now, I have got theories about this woman alright. For starters, I don’t think she’s as good and sweet as Lilly thinks she is. And second, you notice how she’s always trying to push Lilly further into this extremely dangerous investigation? Any sensible adult would ask a little kid who’s already considered “crazy” by the rest of the town to stop, stay home, and stay safe. But not this woman, no. She’s practically insistent that Lilly pursue this risky mission and get to the bottom of what’s happened to the missing kids. Gives me the creeps, this one. But that’s also because she mentions her father a lot. A father who apparently gave her a whole bunch of general life advice to live by. There’s clearly this sense that this woman wants Lilly to get closer to Pennywise. Now, coming to the big question. Is this woman Mrs. Kersh? Mrs. Kersh is the spooky character in IT: Chapter Two who takes a terrifying form of something monstrous and scares the hell out of Beverly Marsh. Now, this Mrs. Kersh character claimed that her father was Bob Gray. We know that Bob Gray is one of Pennywise’s human clown forms because Bob’s a circus clown. But what makes this interesting is that in the 3rd episode, when we saw a kid Francis Shaw walk into that Derry carnival, there was a man in a clown costume looking at him. There was also a little girl in clown makeup who watched Francis leave. My crazy theory is that the adult clown at the carnival was Bob Gray. And maybe, if only you dare, you could also come along with me and try to fit Lilly’s new adult friend into all this. One of the possibilities is that she is the same little girl in clown makeup in the 1800s when Francis arrived in Derry. But even if that isn’t the case, this woman is clearly from the same generation as Rose. So she’s been here for long enough to know that asking a kid to go around looking for dangerous monsters is the worst advice one could give. So maybe she is actually trying to feed Lilly and her friends to Pennywise. If she is in fact Mrs. Kersh, maybe her father was a circus clown who gave IT the idea to take a clown from to both attract and terrify kids. Some of us also believe that the version of Mrs. Kersh who spoke about Bob Gray was only a vision created by IT. But that could change if Welcome to Derry is keen on making her an actual person who aids the man-eating eldritch monster in getting his food nice and ripe. 

Why does Charlotte Hanson help Hank Grogan?

No matter which way the case goes, Hank Grogan is about to go through a storm that’ll upheave everything. He’s facing Shawshank. And because he’s Black in a town and a country that would take a mere frown from a POC as a vicious attack, Hank is already on the papers as the prime suspect in the case of the children who disappeared at the Capitol Theatre. Now, I thought it was racism that “placed” him somewhere out on the street and destroyed his alibi of being home with his family. But turns out, Hank wasn’t home on that night. And it really doesn’t bode well for him that he’s kept his mouth shut about where he actually was on that night. Just one lie, and Chief Bowers has got Hank locked up without bail. That doesn’t sit right with Charlotte. It’s nice to finally find out that no matter how much Leroy may want to muffle her voice, Charlotte is not one to take it sitting down when she sees awful things happening to innocent people. So even before she finds the pictures from the cemetery in Will’s drawer, confronts him with them, and finds out that someone is still out there hunting Derry’s kids, she’s invested in Hank’s case. She knows how a Black man’s name being remotely associated with a crime, even without a crumb of evidence, is a death sentence for him and the end of the road for his family. But now, she has much bigger reasons to call out Chief Bowers’ questionable investigative methods, sitting right in front of him in his office. You see, Leroy Hanlon is pragmatic about where he stands in the world as a Black man in the 60s. Charlotte’s also realistic in her expectations. The only difference is that in Charlotte’s case, she demands the basic respect and human rights that an American is accorded by the laws and the constitution, at least technically, even before the American society is ready to think of her as their equal. That’s why she walks into a room, any room, with her head held high. Unapologetic with every click of her heels. Now that I know that Russo’s a snitch who saw her walking into the police station and told Leroy about it, I kinda respect him a little less. I don’t go for all that “boys stick together” stuff. And I don’t think Charlotte does either. She does what she wants to whether Leroy approves of it or not. She knows that he will never cross his boundaries to contain her. And she’s okay with him complaining as long as it’s about Leroy being worried that she’ll get herself arrested again. Oh yeah. Charlotte here is a Civil Rights Activist from the south. It’s practically genius how she says “you know what I’m used to” to Chief Bowers to make sure that he treats her with respect. He wouldn’t want her to think that Derry’s more racist than the south. But there’s one hitch in Charlotte’s path to helping Hank. She’s neither an attorney, nor family. So even to get to meet Hank face-to-face, she has to get a letter from his mom. And it’s not like they want to let her meet him even with the letter. That’s when the claws come out. And is Charlotte a sight to see when she revolts! Turns out, Charlotte is tight with the Freedom Riders. And MLK, RFK, JFK, and all the FKs are only a phone call away when Charlotte finds a Black person’s rights are being wildly violated. In case you don’t know who the Freedom Riders were, they were a very real, very brave group of Civil Rights Activists who fought against segregation in the 60s. The mention of them in Welcome to Derry is also an ominous signal for the emergence of the KKK equivalent in Stephen King’s universe, The Legion of White Decency. Because why should the South have all the racists? The truth about where Hank was that night only comes out when he’s in the comforting present of Charlotte. She’s positive that she can see to it that he gets bail and is placed on house arrest before the case goes to court. But without the truth, no one can save Hank. So why’s Hank still silent? Well, that’s because he’s dead either way. He happens to live in a time when Black men were hunted for even thinking about being with a White woman. Those were the rules. And it’s not like interracial couples aren’t still persecuted in today’s time. But back in Hank’s days, he would hang from a tree if people found out where he really was that night. He was with a woman. A married, White woman. Oh Hank! I don’t think the people of Derry will see much difference between Hank sleeping with a White woman and Hank murdering a bunch of kids. And think about the woman when her husband finds out. I really don’t see a way out of this for Hank unless he makes up an alibi that he can actually back without him and other people dying in the process.

What does Will figure out about Pennywise?

Man, I love this little guy! A lot of kids are smart, sure. But Will is smart in the pattern-recognition way, you know. He learns things, and then he applies those learning to solve new problems. He’s got an application oriented brain. That’s why Will is the first one among the kids to figure that what’s happening in Derry can’t be a new thing. The fact that they have to look into Derry’s history to figure out what exactly it is they’re dealing with is also his idea. And when nothing comes from the adults, and it’s again on Will to try and understand what this monster wants from them, he’s right on the money with his first guess. They’ve been wracking their heads over why the monster killed some kids and is only scaring them as of now. That’s when Will remembers having read about fear hormones–cortisol, adrenaline, what have you–and how these being released into the bloodstream of the prey makes for a scrumptious meal for the predator. But I’m with Rich on this one. If I’d just found out that the monster hunting me wanted to eat me and I didn’t know any way to beat it, I’d wanna be in denial too. But too bad for Rich, and the rest of the kids, Will’s right about Pennywise’s hunting pattern. He waits until his prey is absolutely overcome with fear before he eats them. I did not see Lilly coming up with the idea that she does! I mean, in hindsight, it makes sense that a little girl who’s been medicated most of her life is uncomfortably comfortable with pills. But it’s still absolutely hilarious, and utterly wild that Lilly steals some “mommy’s little helpers” from her mom’s purse. It’s code for Valium. Since Lilly has always seen her mom pop one of these magic pills and rave about how they make all her worries melt away, she thinks this would be a good way to stay calm if the monster comes after them again. He’ll only eat them if they’re scared, right? So it’s not totally the worst idea for the kids to pop a valium every time they’re attacked by Pennywise. Beats being his food. But things get messy when Patty gets Marge to lure Lilly into a trap for a cruel prank. Can you imagine just how cruel Patty has to be to even contrive awful schemes against a kid who’s already going through a lot, especially considering what Derry, and America as a whole, are facing in their timeline? Actual terror is cartoonized in the video alerting the kids to the dangers of nuclear fallout, should the Cold War escalate. Duck and cover. And there’s Bert the Turtle again, a symbol of Maturin, the protector of life and everything good. But all Maturin and the instructional cartoon can do is warn the children of the threats to come, nuclear or eldritch, and show them how to protect themselves. But Patty’s busy getting Marge to manipulate Lilly so that they can humiliate her in front of the whole school. I don’t understand bullies. Through the process of telling Lilly that she wants to fix their friendship and trying to convince her that the cutest guy in the school likes her, Marge is constantly stung by her conscience and guilt. But she goes through it anyway because she’s terrified of losing Patty’s approval. Sense does dawn on Marge, but a bit too late. When Lilly’s in the bathroom trying to freshen up before she goes and says hello to the cute guy, Marge does the right thing. But like I said, she is too late. And I guess it’s the stinky blend of all the awful feelings in Marge that draws in Pennywise for an afternoon snack. Lilly tries to slip her a valium, but it conveniently falls in the toilet. It’s really too bad that the last thing that Marge was majorly spooked by were the snails with parasites in their eyes. They were learning about them through some acutely stomach-churning footage of worms that make their host snail’s eyes grow upright until they burst out of them with their babies and everything. Uh.. I’d skip that class. It’s too bad that Marge didn’t. That’s why her worst fear manifests in her own body when her eyes grow out of the socket like the snails in the video. A terrified Marge saws one of her protruding eyes off in the bio room in one of the most freaky scenes in the show. But when Lilly tries to help her and keep her from stabbing her other eye, Marge’s scream draws in the other kid, all of whom now think that “Loony Lilly” blinded Marge in one eye. If Lilly is sent back to Juniper Hill, I really don’t see how that won’t be the end of her life. What an awful thing to be cool with just because this particular case is fictional. But this only proves that Will was right about the minister’s agenda. Does that keep him safe, though? Nope! He would’ve kept things from his father like his mother suggested, but then Charlotte makes the mistake of trusting Leroy to know what Will likes. It’s Charlotte who suggested that Leroy and Will spend some time together. A solid idea. But leave it on Leroy to bring his boy out for an activity that he has no interest in. They’ve come fishing, because the only way Leroy knows how to be a dad is by mimicking his own father to the t. Hopeless guy. But it gets fun for Will when he does catch a fish, even though it ultimately eats the bait and scoots. You know things are about to get really bad when Leroy leaves Will alone in the water to get some fly from his car. Alone? In water? Would’ve been simpler to just pack Will up and DoorDash. Oh right. We’re in the 60s. It’s creepy as hell when the fish comes back to Will. Cute, but definitely creepy considering it’s clearly a vision created by the sewer clown. But I’d much rather take the fish over what comes out of the water next to pull Will in. It’s his father. Well, a version of his father that’s terrorized his subconscious ever since Leroy’s plane crashed and he came back from the brink of death. A big part of Leroy’s body was charred in the crash, and ever since, Will has had recurrent nightmares about losing his father in another crash. Pennywise knew about that. And that’s why he took a burning Leroy’s form to try and terrify Will. If Leroy hadn’t gotten there in time, Will would’ve died. And Leroy wouldn’t have believed Will if his wrists weren’t all scratched up. Finally! A good adult who believes that there’s something in Derry hunting for children. There’s that red balloon floating above the creek! Pennywise is very close. Remember, the more he eats, the stronger he gets. 

What’s the story of the house in the ending?

Leroy’s not like the other adults in Derry. Plus, since he’s actually seen evidence of what clearly is something supernatural, Leroy can’t just lie to himself and pretend that his son isn’t in danger. That’s why he runs over to Hallorann, the only man who has a deeper understanding of Derry’s darkest secrets, the secrets that the air base Leroy works in is desperately trying to unearth. But Hallorann’s on the moon right now. Bouncing off of all the dreams and plans he and his friends have for the decommissioned storage unit, courtesy of the grateful Colonel Fuller. Not a great start for what will become the infamous The Black Spot in the IT universe. Hallorann’s grandma drops by from beyond the grave to warn him about the things he’s been messing with for a few perks. Duck and cover, Hallorann. He’s lucky to have the gift that lets him see visions of what’s to happen to him and his precious nightclub-to-be. It will be burned down by the White supremacist group that haunts Derry in broad daylight. But Hallorann can’t really be deemed lucky since we know that he’s not going to take this warning to heart. When Leroy Hanlon shows up looking for answers, it’s not like Hallorann isn’t completely horrified after learning what happened to Will. And yet, I think there’s a psychic pull working against Hallorann, almost forcing him to exhaust his gift in search of something that should stay buried in the core of the Earth. Hallorann’s grandma’s spirit asked him to lock up his mind. I think it was a warning about the repercussions of Hallorann opening up his mind time and time again to the world of the alien monster. But it’s like he his brakes aren’t working. That has to have something to do with the effect Pennywise can have on a person’s mind, especially when his stomach is full of Derry kids. 

And Hallorann’s not a regular person. There’s almost this sense that Pennywise is moving him in the wretched direction for a purpose. Maybe to ripen Derry up for more tragedies to come. What Hallorann is doing for General Shaw is already working in the clown’s favor. And Leroy will find out about that soon enough. Pennywise can’t keep away from will. His ghoulish eyes are staring right back at Will when the nightmares wake him up, and he peeps on the street with his telescope. Quick! Get that valium! Will’s once again saved by his father, who, as you remember, is incapable of feelings fear. But is Leroy incapable of feeling worry too? I don’t think so. And he should be really worried after finding Will screaming, running out, and seeing that red balloon up in the tree. So you can understand why Will would break all protocol and walk right into Shaw’s office to find out what it is that they’ve been looking for out in the dig site. Shaw doesn’t want to hide it anymore either. Plus, he’s already gotten things in motion by opening up the dig site gates to let the Native American kids in. Their surveillance caught the kids, one of whom is Rose’s nephew, Taniel, peeping into the dig site. Now, Rose has played it smart and given Shaw all the wrong locations as the “places they should stay out of.” But now that Shaw knows that Rose is on to him, there’s nothing holding him back from causing some real harm to these people anymore. He only let the Native American kids walk right into the dig site because it was a trap to kidnap Taniel, the only person other than Rose who knows about the exact location of the monster. I don’t think Leroy gets any pleasure out of watching Hallorann break Taniel with his Shine ability. Hallorann’s nice enough to let Taniel know beforehand that it will be painful when he gets into his mind. And so it is! It’s excruciating for Taniel as Hallorann invades his hall of memories and walks through the door to a particular one, the one where Taniel’s aunt told him a secret he’s never supposed to share with anyone. I have to hand it to the writers of Welcome to Derry for thinking up the most perfect way to communicate the entire lore behind who Pennywise is, how he came to Earth, what he wants, how he’s been contained, and everything else that comes after. Hallorann and the audience are simultaneously made privy to the evil entity’s story in Derry when, in the memory, a little Taniel recites the story to his aunt to reassure her that he hasn’t forgotten anything. But not before his aunt tells him something that changes his entire perspective on the tales he’s heard from the elders. Rose mentions The Galloo, and I guess this is the name that the Native people of Derry have been calling the monster since before Derry even existed. The Galloo is real, though many other ghosts and ghouls in the stories Taniel have heard may not be. In the story of The Galloo, the eldritch monster was cast down inside a falling star, long before Earth was populated by the first ancestors of the Native people. The wisest among the ancestors figured out that The Galloo only feared one thing, the star that had caged it and fell and shattered on Earth. So he made a weapon with the magical stone of the star and protected his people until the settlers came and did what they do best. They messed everything up. Before the White settlers dismissed the Native American warning about The Galloo, it had been contained within the western woods. The Native people kept themselves safe by never going anywhere near the western woods. But the settlers, people who had the least respect for boundaries, went into the woods, got eaten alive, and made IT all the more powerful. That one weapon made from the star wasn’t enough to contain him anymore. There was talk of everyone leaving. But Necani, the young daughter of the village’s war chief, couldn’t digest the thought of leaving their home behind. So without her mother, Sesqui’s knowledge, Necani gathered her friends, borrowed the special dagger, and walked into the woods to hunt down The Galloo. Brave bunch! But Sesqui quickly followed them with her own army when she found Necani and the dagger missing. They had nothing to protect them against The Galloo. So they inevitably fell prey to the terrifying visions he’d tailored to fit each of their worst fears. Sesqui’s worst fear, understandably a Christian missionary priest with fire in his eyes, grabs her before Necani gets there with the dagger. Interestingly, the same alien baby that came out of the creepy woman in the first episode, nabbed Matty, and ate the kids in the Capitol Theatre, is the one that comes out of the ghostly priest and stabs Sesqui. Necani couldn’t save her mother. But she quickly dried her tears and went to find the fallen star with her trusted friends. They found the star, and with the magical shards that repelled and terrified the most terrifying creature on Earth, they bound him within the western woods again. They made a circle, and they each buried a shard from the fallen star deep into the ground, nestled inside turtle shells because only Maturin can be trusted with holding his rival down. Can I just say that Hallorann’s an awful person for doing this to Taniel, Rose, the Native people, and absolutely everyone in Derry? He knows that what he’s trying to find will be apocalyptic, and yet he can’t stop. So it amuses me to watch Taniel give him the right direction in his memory. Shaw and Hallorann are probably searching for the location of the shards so that they can use them to tame and exploit the power of the extraterrestrial creature. But Taniel has other plans for Hallorann. Instead of showing him where the pillars are, Taniel shows him a very old house in the ending of the 4th episode of Welcome to Derry. If you remember this house from the IT universe, you know that this is the lair of the eldritch monster. This is the Well House, the creepy house on Neibolt Street where an old well is connected to the sewers. And you know who likes to frequent the sewers? That’s why the Well House is considered IT’s home, so that’s the last door that Hallorann should knock on. 

...