Date of release: April 13, 2018 (Netflix)
written by: Ed McCardie
directed by: Vincenzo Natali
I am having a hard time trying and figuring out why some episodes have flashbacks, and why some other episodes have the opening credit sequence. So far, the flashbacks have been in odd-numbered episodes, and if the ninth episode of the season has the opening credits (after the third and this sixth episode), at least someone can say that the producers were having a blast with number sequences, but it is not like numbers are part of the general premise of this show. When you look at BLINDSPOT and its episode-naming conventions, it at least makes sense and in a way, as it is a way to keep the fans engaged beyond just the TV show, but for LOST IN SPACE, nothing makes sense when it comes to the writers choosing when to do flashbacks and when the producers choose to put the opening credit sequence in episodes. I would like some answers. But I am too unimportant in this digital world to get any.
These 64 minutes were okay. They were very slow and sometimes boring at times, as if the writers were putting a brake on the narrative or trying to keep the budget of the show low, as it essentially only had one action set piece (the Jupiter falling over the cliff) and one dramatic twist (the robot falling over the cliff). It was nothing I would consider spectacular or interesting, but it was an hour that looked a tad bit different from the mainstream rest of the show, since the writers tried hard to make sure that Angela’s story and the robot’s fate are connected, as evident during the scene in which Smith and Angela had their session (which took too much time to get to the point), while John thought it was a splendid idea to show Will the meaning of responsibility through placing a bunch of heavy little rocks on a much bigger rock (which took too much time to get to the point). I would have loved to get some symbolism out of this intercutting of sequences, as Angela was telling her story and Will put the rocks together for an impromptu memorial, but I was unable to do so, since I got where the story was heading considering Smith “manipulated” Angela into finding the gun, and the only thing that mattered was where the story would end and how many people would get hurt in the process. There was not a need for going extra symbolic and special during these scenes, although I appreciated that Smith thought her mega-awesome master plan was going to work. And it looks like it does, even though I would love to know why she thought she could still have the robot all to herself, now that it took a step towards death.
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| Oh no! A gun in the woods! |
I mean, she was hoping for Angela to find the gun, and she was hoping for Angela to be disturbed as heck, so she would shoot down a robot, and then she had to hope that the robot would go mean again and that Will would not be able to stop it. Granted, she even planned to get Will out of the Jupiter 2, so the robot has free reign for murder and destruction without hurting the boy (and without Will stopping the robot), but Smith had to hope for luck and even more luck for her entire plan to work smoothly.
What I did not understand is why she wanted the robot to be evil in the first place. I have no idea why she wants to cause mistrust among the survivors, and what her ultimate goal is. Yes, she said two episodes ago that she would love to have the robot as her sidekick when getting back onto the Resolute, but making the robot seem villainous beforehand is making me feel like Smith did not think that much ahead, as a villainous machine at her side would not help her at all – it would make the survivors even angrier and threatening towards the robot and anyone who is on its side, which means Smith is essentially planning to risk her own life just for protection on the Resolute. All that does not guarantee her a spot on the Resolute, because people would try their hardest to prevent her from getting on the ship to begin with.
This entire episode was basically here for that ending, and I rather would have had another A-story in its place. Judy and Don and the other folks going for the fuel of Smith’s Jupiter was a nice little story and brought some little excitement when the Jupiter was about to fall over the cliff (there was another THE LOST WORLD: JURASSIC PARK moment here – the high-tech trailer slipping over the edge during a rainstorm and a T-Rex attack), as well as some entertainment when it comes to Don and Judy’s story. And it would be weird if they started making out. For one, they have no chemistry, and number two, she is supposed to be 18 years old. Even Penny’s story was okay, although I was not in it for the love story of it all, but the poem led very nicely to that kiss (I was touched by the “no girl broke this heart” line). What I really wanted to see more of became the most minor plot of the episode: The eventual death of the planet they are all on. For some reason though, the writers figured this episode was as good as any to put a little bit of romance into the show and make Don as much of an asshole as possible, just to stand there at the end like he has been the hero all this time. I do not like the guy.
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| One small step for a robot, one giant leap off the cliff. |
Anyway, the writers just created a ticking time bomb with the planet’s fate, which by itself is a nice new element to the narrative for the remainder of the season. Maybe they could have teased it a little bit during Maureen’s trip to the upper atmosphere in the previous episode, because I did not get the existence of a black hole out of it (all I thought was that some really major solar flare activity was about to rain down onto the planet and radiate everyone to death), but it is an exciting enough story for it to have been the major pull in this one, or certainly in the next four episodes. And I generally do not like the idea that one or two characters know about the end of the world while everyone else is living their life like a dream, having fun, thinking about the future and such. Seriously, the characters are on a dying planet, they should be fearful of it and strategizing their exodus. But no, the season finale is still a few hours away, so the secret needs to be kept for the sake of being a secret. That is pretty idiotic, and besides me hating Don, I also hate Maureen for wanting to keep that a secret.
