Michael is slaughtering people with brutal efficiency and
a lot of humans are hiding and cowering from his wrath. Ok such a random
non-sequiter is clearly another example of starting an episode half way through
Yup, we’re not spinning back to 2 days earlier. Have I
mentioned how much I hate this prologue nonsense?
Alex is being held by/working with Gabriel who is getting
irritated by the lack of Alex’s success in deciphering the god script all over
him. Gabriel helpfully reminds us he’s getting Alex to co-operate by agreeing
not to kill Claire who is pregnant with Alex’s baby. Alex actually makes me
vaguely agree with him for once since he accuses Gabriel of having daddy issues
(God agrees, since he sets the magic writing writhing on his arms visible only
to Alex).
Noma, the undercover angel and now prisoner, is also
there and would rather he didn’t share god’s secrets with the evil killy angel.
Alex decides to taunt Gabriel instead. In punishment for their actions they ram
steel spikes into Noma’s back
But now it’s the human’s turn – a plane flies over and
drops a huge bomb on Michael’s fortress
In Vega, Claire and Arika (representative from the
city-state, Helena) count their chickens long before they hatch and celebrate.
David (evil politician who is evil) disapproves of this
and voices his complaints because a) he wasn’t informed because he’s so very important
and b) if Gabriel isn’t dead he is now Pissed. Claire isn’t listening to his
whining and to rub some salt into his wounds, she also plans to spread the
wealth a bit more and help the V1s (poor people at the bottom of Vega’s very
rigid and cruel class system). This is awesome, alas David has an Ace – if she’d
worked with him she’d have his resources like knowing his people were watching
Gabriel’s eerie and knew Alex was inside. Who she has no presumably killed
But Claire, despite a brief hesitation, stays firm – she controls
the military, she already had this intel and chose to go ahead despite Alex’s
death (also she probably knows about his epic plot armour). Having put David
rather awesomely in his place she can now be all mopey about Alex. I’ll allows
some mopeyness so long as it comes with nice dollops of putting David in his
place
To the utter surprise of no-one, Alex is live. To my
considerable surprise, so is Noma – and he help pull the iron spikes out of her
back and tries to use them on Gabriel (also alive) but is stopped by Furiad (yet
again, also alive – though that may change since Noma stabbed him). Alex tries
again to stab Gabriel but many more not-dead and pretty much uninjured angels
start getting up. Really this bomb was pretty damn awful. Was it set to
property damage only or something? Noma instead encourages Alex to run before
the legion of no-dead angels catch them.
Plan B is to go to New Delphi: his logic is that he doesn’t
want to lead Gabriel back to Claire. This assumes Gabriel doesn’t know where
Vega is, a place he’s been, can’t figure out who bombed him AND doesn’t know
that Alex is a damn fool who will do anything if you imperil Claire. In other
words, it’s a terrible terrible plan. The real reason being that Michael
expressly told them not to go to New Delphi so of course Alex has to go because
he’s a whiny manchild. Noma is not a fan of Alex’s surrogate daddy issues and
would really like to call Michael – but Alex refuses.
His vague plan is to actually use his tattoos to try and
get an army from New Delphi. Of course, despite her misgivings, Noma is
definitely going with him.
Along the way they have to stop for supplies at a school –
with terrible flashbacks of the anti-possession lessons and evil possessed
teachers. Abandonned schools also make the CREEPIEST of settings (far worse
than graveyards).
This leads to the inevitable attack and Noma, thankfully
with an infinite ammo gun, holding them back while Alex gets the truck up and
running. Also has this show become more gruesome since last season? I don’t
remember squished brains and stuff?
They’re ambushed further on the road – and Alex shows off
a new power, he can hug the evil out of possessed people! (Well he holds them,
prays and his tattoos drive out the angel. Exorcism hugs!). Noma marvels at
this super power even though she thinks the human is dead. But when they leave
he gets up.
Hugging will save the world! It’s like Supernatural meets
Care Bears.
The man catches up with them, utterly thrilled and happy to find people – and less so for them to point guns at him (and be stunned he’s not actually dead). Seems the guy, Pete, doesn’t remember anything while being possessed – so he doesn’t even remember the war, he doesn’t know what 8 balls re and doesn’t know the world has collapsed. He, rather surprisingly sensibly, points out if they leave him alone they may as well kill him. Alex does think it’s worth keeping around for study purposes.
Michael, meanwhile, has decided to go to the beach. Naked.
Angel’s don’t care about skin cancer and Michael has crafty means to ensue we’re
on his side. Hey Alex, Michael just raised your shirtlessness with added
backside – your turn. He’s been watched by a woman enjoying the view so much
she only runs when he notices her.
Michael, alas, gets dressed and has lots of angsty
visions/dreams/hallucinations. He finds a bunch of lesser angels (known, alas,
as 8 balls because this show is good at stripping the menace from its villains
with bad nicknames and daddy issues).
He finds a human settlement and lots of angels creeping
up on the place. They seem to be having some kind of religious ritual but a
woman there agrees to talk to him. He’s curious how such a completely
undefended settlement hasn’t already been crushed. She credits divine
intervention – and apparently god really loves bonfires because it’s their big
town wickerman that keeps them safe. They also have, a rarity in a world
overrun by murderous angels, a church. Michael wonderously examines this rarity,
even if he’s not exactly welcomed by all the residents.
The woman tells him more about how they created an
entirely new faith – which definitely includes the Chosen One with a pure heart
(Alex) who is supposed to be the healer of angels and mankind – or who will
destroy them all.
Which is when Noma decides to get out her wings and send
Michael a message –probably about the new hugging for redemption power.
Still he has more pessing concerns – including the
suspicious guy trying to roust him out of town (he is quickly taught the error
of his ways) and the whole town losing their shit because it starts raining and
they’re afraid their big-god-pleasing-fire will go out and god will decide he
doesn’t like them any more because they didn’t care enough about forest fires
or something.
Their superstition seems to be true – because as they get
the kids to the shelters, 8 balls appear. They attack in overwhelming numbers
and the humans are clearly overmatched (we’re back to the scene at the beginning
of the episode) – only now it’s clear Michael is slaughtering the possessed,
not humans.
The woman leading the humans is pretty impressed or
shocked or horrified or possibly all of the above and maybe horny by his epic
skill. Especially since it also manages to make the rain stop and the fire
light again – which drives off the 8ball and makes the remaining ones
spontaneously combust.
The fire tricks convince Michael and he goes to the
church, calling to his father.
Back to Vega, the military reports back to Claire &
co that their bombs were actually just pretty pretty light and failed to do
more than crack the architecture by being massacred by angels (air power vs
angels isn’t the best way for humans to win, it seems). David is not impressed
and chews Claire out (kind of deserved) in a highly patronising manner
(definitely not deserved).
Afterwards Claire has major doubts about her decisions
because of Alex while Arika is much more coldly practical about the danger of
letting her emotions cloud her decisions. She also wisely warns her against
David but Claire, foolishly discounts that
Which is unwise because David is currently rallying the
council against her, using her support of the V1s, misogyny and her
incompetence. Oh and having a council member strangled (everyone else seems
relatively blasé about this) for daring to speak to Claire. Step 1 of his evil
plan is to make the space given to the V1s uninhabitable.
Creepy William, David’s son, is still alive and doesn’t
think it’s entirely wise to strangle loyal followers but I don’t exactly blame David
for not following the angel-worshipper’s advice.
The floors of the casino Claire decided to give to the
V1s are burned on David’s order – and people in them are hurt. Time for a plan –
one of Arika’s –which involves a possessed person.
William is equally disgusted by David’s minions burning
people alive; William also ruins his dad’s attempt at victory by reminding him
how he nearly killed his own son. David druinks – and William disappears, a
hallucination
Back to Gabriel’s eerie and, contrary to what we’ve seen,
apparently many angels did die. Possibly including Uriel (the actress left the
show, so I’m guessing this is the clumsy killing off). Grabriel decides to burn
Vega to the ground and skin Alex.
Over to Alex, Noma and Pete as they approach New Delphi –
and find the body of a higher angel tied to a tree as a warning. This works on
Noma since Higher Angels are pretty hard to kill. They run on since they’re
chased by 8balls. As they run they’re brought down by electrified nets
Ok the people of Mallory, disillusioned people of many
faiths, got together and created a new faith. With crosses and churches and
candles and statues of Mary – so this entirely new faith is basically
Christianity. I don’t know what’s worse about these shows which basically
decide that Judeo-Christian mythology is proven right (for a given level of
right), when they completely ignore that other faiths exist and the
implications for that. Or when they pretend to draw upon several faiths while
still being overwhelmingly Christian. I think I prefer the former (especially in
a setting that has such a divergent take on the mythology).
David vs Claire has the potential to be interesting with
lots of political wrangling – but it doesn’t quite hold together. The concept
is good, David resorting to misogyny and belittling is not – it’s unnecessary
and skews the whole storyline a great deal and is just lacking. It’s not like
he can’t speak out against her in less misogynist terms – and certainly I don’t
see how lashing out at her as a “bitch” is going to help sway a council which
contains women
That council is also annoying – why so silent, why so
impotent? These are supposed to be the main powers of Vega – get your power
together guys!
I also think the show is going to be very simplistic good
vs bad and ignore that we, effectively, have two despots vying for position.
I still don’t like Alex.
