The episode is split into three. Plot 'A' predominantly shows events at DHS HQ, and as I said in a previous episode if you'd only seen this episode you'd be forgiven for thinking McLellan was the main character here. I enjoyed the disconnect between that HQ was thinking about Yuri - that they were beginning to believe their own lie that he was a terrorist - and Taylor's gradual realisation that Walzer is correct (or at least appears to be). I also really liked the combative Collins. We've seen a few lines of his head-to-head a while ago in a teaser and it was good to finally see the whole thing.
Something that struck me here is that McLellan and his men are not the good guys here at all, they basically spend the whole episode lying and scheming, but I found myself on their side (a bit like in Silence of the Lambs when Lector is escaping - you're on his side despite the fact he's the bad guy). Also, McLellan seemed to know that the off-stage Miller was about to be sacked. Is there a conspiracy here going all the way to the White House? We also get confirmation that some level of the Russian government knows about the cosmonauts. I thought this was a pretty big reveal as it tells us at least that this was a government backed enterprise (though I suppose everything was in Soviet Russia).
Back on the base story arc B continues to deliver. Yuri and Jane's romance (we can call it that now) continues to run its course. Why didn't Yuri know the word for lonely? Did Jane get it wrong (can anyone confirm?) or has Yuri never heard the word because he's lived in the same Martian tent with his parents all his life? Note also the way he didn't actually say 'Mars', but 'the world', I bet that's going to become important somehow. The big reveal plot-wise however, and one that almost got lost in the mix, is that Yuri can speak English.
One thing I don't get though: on suspecting a leak about Dr. Walzer's presence on the base, surely they would have immediately blamed Clive Anderton, the hired and fired source of another leak from episode 2?
The 'C' arc showed a number of different TV pieces of people opining and arguing on the events from an outside point of view. These were all skilfully done and gave an excellent perspective as the public begin to put the pieces together.
From a production point of view the little ps and qs are also getting slicker. One of the establishing shots of the DHS HQ seemed to pan round the building as if filmed from a helicopter, I've no idea how you do that on a budget of $6000. There also seem to be more extras knocking about in the background.
I'm going to round off this review by saying that there have been four episodes now: enough to get stuck into story properly, and it would be criminal for the creators not be able to make the story they want to because of lack of funds, so please donate. Not only will you be supporting a great TV show but also helping a paradigm shift in entertainment. History remembers those who shift paradigms, not those who tried to prevent them from happening.
Something that struck me here is that McLellan and his men are not the good guys here at all, they basically spend the whole episode lying and scheming, but I found myself on their side (a bit like in Silence of the Lambs when Lector is escaping - you're on his side despite the fact he's the bad guy). Also, McLellan seemed to know that the off-stage Miller was about to be sacked. Is there a conspiracy here going all the way to the White House? We also get confirmation that some level of the Russian government knows about the cosmonauts. I thought this was a pretty big reveal as it tells us at least that this was a government backed enterprise (though I suppose everything was in Soviet Russia).
Back on the base story arc B continues to deliver. Yuri and Jane's romance (we can call it that now) continues to run its course. Why didn't Yuri know the word for lonely? Did Jane get it wrong (can anyone confirm?) or has Yuri never heard the word because he's lived in the same Martian tent with his parents all his life? Note also the way he didn't actually say 'Mars', but 'the world', I bet that's going to become important somehow. The big reveal plot-wise however, and one that almost got lost in the mix, is that Yuri can speak English.
The closing scene showed Walzer on the phone, I'm assuming this was a colleague he'd been getting in to help him with something (maybe Dr. Avery Frank?) or was it something more sinister? And moreover, what wasn't 'a good idea'?
One thing I don't get though: on suspecting a leak about Dr. Walzer's presence on the base, surely they would have immediately blamed Clive Anderton, the hired and fired source of another leak from episode 2?
The 'C' arc showed a number of different TV pieces of people opining and arguing on the events from an outside point of view. These were all skilfully done and gave an excellent perspective as the public begin to put the pieces together.
From a production point of view the little ps and qs are also getting slicker. One of the establishing shots of the DHS HQ seemed to pan round the building as if filmed from a helicopter, I've no idea how you do that on a budget of $6000. There also seem to be more extras knocking about in the background.
I'm going to round off this review by saying that there have been four episodes now: enough to get stuck into story properly, and it would be criminal for the creators not be able to make the story they want to because of lack of funds, so please donate. Not only will you be supporting a great TV show but also helping a paradigm shift in entertainment. History remembers those who shift paradigms, not those who tried to prevent them from happening.
Thanks for the review! A few comments:
ReplyDelete"Something that struck me here is that McLellan and his men are not the good guys here at all..."
I guess it depends on who you talk to.
"Why didn't Yuri know the word for lonely?"
If we assume his story is true and he grew up in some kind of closed habitat with only a handful of other human beings, he would a) never have truly been by himself and b) would have no concept of "people" to feel separated from. For someone with no frame of reference, the concept of feeling "lonely" would be a difficult thing to grasp.
"on suspecting a leak about Dr. Walzer's presence on the base, surely they would have immediately blamed Clive Anderton, the hired and fired source of another leak from episode 2?"
As Larson intimated in episode 2, we can safely assume that they are watching Mr. Anderton very closely and would therefore know if the information came from him.
"One of the establishing shots of the DHS HQ seemed to pan round the building as if filmed from a helicopter, I've no idea how you do that on a budget of $6000."
That was a completely digital shot created by Bracey Smith in Adobe After Effects. Pretty cool huh? ;)
Hey Josh thanks for the replies. That was one amazing digital shot. It occurred to me that part of it was CG like the background or something but hadn't occurred to me the whole thing was.
ReplyDeleteAlso wanted to say I kinda guessed about Yuri's 'lonely' thing. Thanks also for clearing up about Clive, I guessed it was soemthing like that, or at least that the story wasn't ehading back to his character, if you see what I mean.
Also sorry I couldnt find as amusing a pun as for episode 3, but there you go.