I doubt Rolf injected Hope with anything, as he was using a scalpel. Maybe inserted a slow acting chip?? or slow melting something. Agree, it is taking a while, & she seems to snap back into "Hope" mode, but her trances, staring off into space, etc. are becoming more frequent, and for longer duration. As Hope, surprised she doesn't suspect something, since she went thru this before.
And yes, Rolf in small doses is one thing. Wandering around Salem with his mad scientist persona is just not entertaining. I hate sci-fi, zombies, monsters, etc. Salem was a nice town when Tom & Alice were alive. Had the good guys, the bad guys, the romances, adventures, & was enjoyable.