Personal Highlights
The Silt Verses: Chapter 21 – We’d Both Go Plunging Downwards. There was a focus on the intersection between science and faith in this world a couple of episodes ago, and in this week’s episode we take a deeper look at how politics works together with faith. The underlying message here, as we’ve seen so many times by now, is that these gods that humans try to use for their own purposes can’t be controlled. The different sections of society that we come across may try to create some kind of mutual benefit with their faith of choice, but the gods will always be more powerful, and will always win. While Carpenter and Faulkner are more in the background in this episode, I enjoyed how it highlighted the change of focus in this season – after the events of the end of season one, we’ve gone from a story of two pilgrims of an outlawed faith against the world, to the world versus an uncontrollable and destructive god and his followers.
Lost Terminal: 8.10 – Was it worth it? It’s the boss battle this season has been building up to, as Seth confronts the FAILSAFE satellite. It’s a lot, as he not only has to fight what has been a force of destruction and harm for others and himself, but he also comes face to face with his past. It’s an emotional sequence for Seth, as he is immersed in the memories of his life on Station 6 and his mother. It emphasises the lengths Seth will go to protect his friends, and it seems that this confrontation with the FAILSAFE has made him reflect on who is important to him. There are also some heartwarming details from some of these friends, and Nia, in particular, makes a happy realisation that I was glad to see put into words.
In Transit: Episode 2.16 – No More Than That. It’s the end of In Transit’s story, and I’m not going to lie, I spent a solid chunk of this episode just crying. I was full on sobbing during that speech by Alnitak to Cairo, and the beautiful montage towards the end of the episode set me off again. I never imagined the story would end up here when season one first started; but the closing monologue by Alecto wraps everything up perfectly, balancing the sacrifices and loss endured by her and her friends in their old lives, while also celebrating their new lives and beginnings.
The Pilgrimage Saga: 2.10 – The Handshake, Part One: Skyward. It’s a rollercoaster of an episode, as the crew of the Starstrider deal with the aftermath of defeating the ‘bad guys’. When they think it’s all over, and that they can start re-building some kind of normality… It’s heart wrenching how we’re reminded that Sascha was not meant to be on the ship at the beginning of this episode, only to be confronted with the life-threatening effects of this decision as it closes. It’s one heck of a cliffhanger, with everything at stake for Captain Harris and her crew.
Debuts
1972 is a new historical drama created by Yhane Washington Smith (Harlem Queen, The Courtship of Mona Mae). We meet civil rights activist Angela Davis, and Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm – the first Black woman to be elected to the United States Congress in 1968. This first episode depicts the events that led to Davis fleeing California, and how she was portrayed by white-controlled media. In Chisholm’s story, we see her support for Davis in Congress, and her fight for change within a racist and sexist structure that refuses to listen to her.
Bodies in Space’s first episode introduces us to a dysfunctional crew and the ever so slightly chaotic atmosphere aboard their spaceship. As well as three humans, there’s also AI Tyche, whose favourite pastime seems to be trolling people, especially Robin. Interestingly, they’re also getting a body, and after the shenanigans they get up to in this episode, I’m sure nothing will go wrong after they’ve installed themself in it…
Trailers and Prologues
Hand in Glove is an upcoming queer podcast set in the world of baseball, created by David Hanna. The show is due to launch on the 4th of July, and this week a trailer was released, introducing us to the main characters of Javy and Jake, both baseball players.
Badlands Cola’s second trailer introduces us to private investigator Sunny, who’s trailing a cult leader. As with the show’s first trailer, something strange and unexplained happens to Sunny, which leaves them shaken.
The Goblet Wire is a new surreal microfiction podcast created by Ester Ellis (Station Blue) and Justin Hellstrom (The Great Chameleon War), and featuring episodes written by Tau Zaman (CARAVAN) and Eli Barraza (The Far Meridian). In this Episode 0, we meet a new Player of the game, who phones the Operator. It’s an intriguing opening to the story, which leaves much for us and the Player to discover about the nature of the Goblet Wire.
Returns
It’s an intriguing start to Meteor City’s second season, with an immediate change in the story’s narrative structure. Bianca has a lot to deal with after the events we saw at the end of season one, with so much that she – or anyone else – is unable to explain. The shock at the end of this season opener ties up with the opening scene nicely, but leaves a huge question to be answered in the next episode.
A Sky Full of Pods 