Orphan Black - Variable And Full Of Perturbation - Review: "Tony Time"

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After last week's comic relief in which we witnessed some rather hilarious stuff happening in Alison's wonderland, BBC America's Orphan Black was right back on song last night, with some very interesting developments in what was an action-packed episode.

Right from the word 'go', in the season's eighth episode, we were introduced to another of the clones created by the Duncans. S(he) went by the name Tony, though Art did some digging and found her to have also operated under the name "Antoinette Sawicki." Tony and an associate, Sammy were seen fleeing a crime scene with the latter having sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen, which resulted in his demise.

I had a gut feeling that we would see another clone introduced toward the end of the season, as that's exactly what happened at the end of the series' freshman season, when we saw Rachel for the first time. If one thing is for certain, the clones we have seen range enormously in background and upbringing, and Tony is no different. If he (she) stick around, his background should provide access to a criminal underworld and some more shady characters, among others. It'll be interesting to see what he brings to the clone club.

Soon after Tony's introduction, Siobhan, Kira and Felix reunite for the first time since early in the season. They are under the impression they hold a position of power over the Dyad Institute since they have control over Ethan Duncan. More on that later.

I didn't expect to see much of Alison or Donnie in this episode, nor did I expect that Alison would come home from rehab. In true Alison Excentrix-Hendrix style, she finds Dummy Donnie taking refuge in bed among some booze as he ponders the next course of action in relation to the dead body that is Dr Leekie sitting in the trunk of their car. I'm thinking some of the other clones are more proficient with the disposal of bodies, so I'm expecting someone to get a clone phone call next week. It is worth noting that no one outside the Hendrix's currently knows the truth about Leekie's death - not even Rachel, who spread the news in the first place. This will be an interesting mini-arc to watch being played out. In addition, it was clever work by the creative team to tie in Alison's admission over Aynsley's death, and use both to effectively unite this chaotic couple.

At present, Cosima is the current generator of urgency for the other characters. Her health continues to decline despite the treatments provided by the late Dr. Leekie, Scott and Delphine. In the closing moments of last night's episode, Cosima hit the deck in the midst of what appeared to be a seizure. Perhaps fortunately, she was in the presence of Delphine, Scott, and Ethan Duncan, though she was definitely in a critical condition when we left her for Kira's bedroom. Though the right people for the job are now together, it seems as if they're going to have to produce a miracle to save Cosima at this point. It's a possible season finale cliffhanger.

Once again absent from tonight's episode were the Proletheans and Helena. Given the direction the story is headed in at present, I don't think they'll play much of a role next week either. This is good, though, because it shows the creative team know when and when not to deploy specific parts of the storyline if they aren't currently relevant or needed. A lot of other series use minor or recurring characters when they aren't needed, or don't use them when they are. You do notice the difference.

Interestingly, Paul is, it appears, AWOL. He has disappeared without a trace, though Tony did hint that he may be tied in with her (his) current difficulties. Some would argue that he is expendable, but Dr Leekie wasn't and he still met his fate, so anything could happen at this point.

I touched on the Dyad, Rachel and Ethan earlier. It was interesting to note, in their meeting in Leekie's former office, Rachel setting the ground rules in regard to her and Ethan's relationship remaining professional, though Ethan tried to bring out some childhood memories. Later, Ethan handed Rachel a list containing equipment he would need to unlock the sequences contained on his drives. But most curiously for me, he made reference to Kira being the prize, and also, when probed by Rachel, that Sarah was a failure in being able to reproduce, and that the others, in effect, were a success. Rachel then sends Ethan with Delphine, while telling him to begin fixing his mistakes.

I mentioned that Siobhan, chiefly, thinks she is in a position of power because she controls Ethan, when really, she doesn't. Ethan is the one man who holds all the cards. The information he contains is unmatched now that Leekie is out of the picture, and he will be well aware of that. I think we've only seen the tip of the iceberg.

Finally, Kira. She was in the final scene of the episode, having woken early to read the book given to her (planted) by Ethan, which contains a hive of information pertaining to chemistry scrawled neatly throughout its pages. Kira's eyes lit up at the sight, almost as if she was sucking it all up and storing it away in her mind. Her powers of observation are the main trait that's presented itself throughout the series. She is extremely aware of what's going on around her, and she never misses a beat. Is anyone else thinking there's an extremely high IQ combined with an Eidetic memory going on here?

Thanks for reading! Share your thoughts and theories in the comments below.
Jimmy

About the Author - Jimmy Ryan

Jimmy Ryan lives in New Zealand. He is an avid follower of drama television and has a keen interest for television ratings and statistics. Some of his favorite shows right now are Person of Interest, Scandal, House of Cards, Orphan Black, The Blacklist, The 100, and Castle. You can visit his television ratings website, www.seriesmonitor.com or follow him on Twitter, @SeriesMonitor.

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