We started this episode with the Copelands once again separated because heaven forbid they all stay together for an entire episode. At any rate, Karen has been trapped by a rock slide on Mt. Rainer, Matt and Brianna are inside the bunker and Joshua is outside looking for Dana.
When Joshua finds Dana, he has to battle with her to get her to put on the protective breathing gear because Dana is claustrophobic. Dana cries and tries to push her father away but Joshua is adamant that she need to keep the gear on. When Joshua and Dana hear the sound of pre historic birds, they decide to take cover under the RV. The bird lands close to the RV but doesn't attack because it is dying. Joshua tries to figure out why the bird landed where it did and wonders if the birds are trying to show the family which direction to travel in.
In the bunker, Matt is freaking the hell out because he is desperate to get to Joshua and Dana. He begins to randomly pull switches and push buttons in an attempt to get the door open. Brianna has to resort to punching Matt in the face to get him to calm the hell down and start using his brain. Matt figures out that if the control registers limited oxygen in the bunker that the door will open and so he starts a fire. Once the door opens, the first thing they see is a dead pre historic bird dying. Matt reaches out and actually strokes its head despite Brianna's clear repulsion.
Matt and Brianna meet up with Dana and Joshua and though they are happy to be together, there's the little matter that Karen is still out there and the RV isn't functioning. Dana is the only one who is hopeful about Karen's survival, even though Brianna encourages her to cry for her mother. The two sisters reflect on everything they've been through since the world went to hell and Dana realises that time is functioning differently based in how close they became to Devyn and Martin. It really is a leap but we're supposed to go with it because Dana is the smart one. At any rate, the conversation quickly goes back to Karen and Dana points out that because of where their mother was, she could have survived the eruption. It takes a bit but Dana manages to convince Brianna and together they convince Joshua and Matt to look for Karen.
As aforementioned Karen was buried under rock when the volcano exploded. Her flashlight attracts Kevin, a volcanologist, who just happened to be on the mountain when it exploded. Having lost his climbing partner, Kevin is more than happy to help Karen climb up to meet him. Once eye to eye with Kevin, the first thing Karen does is to pull her gun until she can ascertain that he's not infected. Kevin has been badly wounded and so Karen sets his leg and doses him up with morphine before wandering around trying to find a way out. It's not long before Kevin becomes hysterical and starts yelling about Karen and the fact that she's military. Karen finds some carvings on the wall and when she touches them, she sees a sun going super nova and the ghost of the woman she shot appears. The woman taunts Karen about murdering her and demands Karen take back the bullet used to kill her. Things go wonky for a bit and Karen awakes to find that it was all a hallucination but somehow she still has the bullet in her hand which has turned into rock.
Luckily for Karen, before things can get any worse, her family arrives to save her. The Copelands rejoice about being together again and hop in the RV to head home. Brianna talks about how Devyn wanted to farm on their property and her plans to never leave home again. For the Copelands, returning home offers the possibility of normalcy in their lives once again. The dream dies quickly when they arrive home to find that a good portion of their home has been burned and the land has been salted to prevent it growing any edible food.
The Copelands hear a loud crashing noise and so Joshua and Matt grab their guns. Karen is quick to order them to put it away when she realises that the people causing the noise are Robert and Corrine. It seems that Robert has been infected and so Corrine has been going along with Robert because she fears that he will kill her. Karen is not in the least bit emotionally moved by Corrine's plight and hands Corrine a handgun, telling Corrine to use it on Robert, because he's going to kill her anyway. The Copelands discuss leaving their home behind and Karen says that it's part of the past and that all they have now is the future together. They decide to head east, following the prehistoric birds. They all hop into the RV, leaving both Corrine and Robert behind. As the Copelands drive away, Corrine shoots her husband.
The one thing Aftermath seems to just love to do is to drop little nuggets explaining the world that never go anywhere. So now we know that time is not functioning the way it normally does. It's Dana's observation and it goes absolutely nowhere. I have no idea what this even means in context with everything that has happened to date. I don't even know why I should care at this moment either. Throwing shit against a wall and waiting to see what sticks isn't good television, it's just guessing. I need this meta to start making some sense yesterday.
Then there's the whole dragons or rather pre historic birds are being helpful. Ummm didn't we just see one pick up an entire cow for a snack a few episodes ago? We're supposed to believe that for some unknown reason they're acting as compasses for the Copelands? What exactly makes this family so special that prehistoric birds have decided to help them?
The whole thing about the bullet is clearly meant to give us some insight into Karen. We already knew that she was military, what we didn't know is that she felt emotionally convicted about killing those women when she thought Dana was dead. The bullet turning into a rock clearly means something but what? Right now, I'm on the side of I don't give a shit simply because that's all Aftermath does, drop nuggets that go absolutely nowhere.
The Copelands hear a loud crashing noise and so Joshua and Matt grab their guns. Karen is quick to order them to put it away when she realises that the people causing the noise are Robert and Corrine. It seems that Robert has been infected and so Corrine has been going along with Robert because she fears that he will kill her. Karen is not in the least bit emotionally moved by Corrine's plight and hands Corrine a handgun, telling Corrine to use it on Robert, because he's going to kill her anyway. The Copelands discuss leaving their home behind and Karen says that it's part of the past and that all they have now is the future together. They decide to head east, following the prehistoric birds. They all hop into the RV, leaving both Corrine and Robert behind. As the Copelands drive away, Corrine shoots her husband.
The one thing Aftermath seems to just love to do is to drop little nuggets explaining the world that never go anywhere. So now we know that time is not functioning the way it normally does. It's Dana's observation and it goes absolutely nowhere. I have no idea what this even means in context with everything that has happened to date. I don't even know why I should care at this moment either. Throwing shit against a wall and waiting to see what sticks isn't good television, it's just guessing. I need this meta to start making some sense yesterday.
Then there's the whole dragons or rather pre historic birds are being helpful. Ummm didn't we just see one pick up an entire cow for a snack a few episodes ago? We're supposed to believe that for some unknown reason they're acting as compasses for the Copelands? What exactly makes this family so special that prehistoric birds have decided to help them?
The whole thing about the bullet is clearly meant to give us some insight into Karen. We already knew that she was military, what we didn't know is that she felt emotionally convicted about killing those women when she thought Dana was dead. The bullet turning into a rock clearly means something but what? Right now, I'm on the side of I don't give a shit simply because that's all Aftermath does, drop nuggets that go absolutely nowhere.
