This episode largely centers on Eve and Levi's group and the ramifications they face from entering the fort. There are a couple significant developments in a couple of other storylines as the show begins to grow the seeds that have been planted over the last few episodes.
Gavin and Izzy don't have too much to do in this episode. The most they can do is wait around for Dr Nathan to shut down the radar at La Brea so Gavin can sneak down in his massive airplane into the hole. She's as desperate as Gavin to get a rescue team down there as she lost someone in the Mojave (called it!) as well, her fiance Diana. Unfortunately she goes radio silent after running into the man she works with who has increased security on the hole, unwilling to risk another earthquake being caused. That makes a lot of sense and I appreciate that he's not being painted as some government villain impeding their progress. Sure, he is in the way of Gavin and Dr Nathan's goal but I can't blame him for wanting to keep the hole secure to prevent even more casualties.
Back in the survivor camp, Ty organises a game of softball to try and get Lilly to open up but when Lilly talks about how her dad was a softball coach, he tells her this doesn't match up with the strict and mistrusting image Veronica painted. Lilly shuts down after this, leaving Ty more confused than ever and certain there is something more going on with the sisters.
And it turns out they're not even sisters! Lilly tells Ty that a year ago, she was at a picnic with her family, went for a walk by herself and got kidnapped by Veronica and her father. This was definitely a different twist to the religious cult one I'd put my money on and it raises a lot of questions about Veronica and her behaviour towards Lilly. She does seem to care about her in some twisted way but the scary and chilling moments she has sometimes are concerning. I'm sure we'll find out why she helped kidnap Lilly but for now she's run off into the woods.
Over at the fort, the group splits up to explore and investigate. Josh and Riley find some food and Riley places down some boundaries by pointing out she's in college and he's high school age. Josh's apparent jealous reaction to her defense of Lucas was a little cringy, partly because that's just not good behaviour and partly because him liking her is a pretty predictable path for the show to take. I did like his insistence on finding Eve when the villagers arrived though, despite Riley's doubts. He segues from giving her a hard time to giving her a moral pep talk pretty quickly but I think he was probably justified in pointing out her hypocrisy in wanting to leave when she had been so angry about Eve leaving Sam.
It's one thing I like about this show. The kids protect the parents just as much as the parents protect them. Josh's insistence on finding Eve, Riley doing surgery on her dad, Izzy telling Gavin she'll be fine without him and insisting he go down into the hole to rescue Josh and Eve. Even that kid whose granddad has been creeping on the La Brea survivors helped Eve and Levi get out of the fort!
I was definitely expecting those kids to give them up and start yelling so I was pleasantly surprised when he covered for them. It helped to keep the fort storyline moving pretty smoothly, at a fast enough pace that it didn't feel at all like a forty-minute episode. I'm very interested in who the woman is who let them go. I get the impression she's some kind of spiritual leader in the camp and am I right in thinking she is she Diana? Is that the same woman who was in the picture with Dr. Nathan? Or am I way off base?
Scott and Lucas also continue their weird dynamic they've got going on this episode. Lucas is definitely growing a little irritating. I genuinely thought Scott was just going to leave him there in that temple for a minute and I mean, who would really have minded apart from Marybeth?
The episode ends with Aldridge showing Gavin and Izzy a construction/excavation site where they are unearthing the bones of the survivors who'd made camp there which is kind of ominous as it presents a possible future where they never get rescued. I'm okay with that to be honest, I kind of want all the action to end up in the past ultimately anyway because that's where the show seems to be heading to me right now. The only really significant characters in the city arc are Gavin, Izzy and Dr. Nathan and it wouldn't be too much of a stretch that they go into the hole to be reunited with their loved ones.
In any case, Aldridge tells them the light will be closed by this time tomorrow which raises the urgency for the next episode as the survivors watch the light in the sky begin to shrink. Izzy urges her dad to continue with the mission and not worry about her but hey! Simple solution is to just go with him!
I find that this show just keeps jumping to greater heights with every episode. I'm very excited that we're beginning to get a proper insight into the society these other survivors from other sinkholes have built. The next thing will be the meaning of the handprint and why they're killing people. Some kind of sacrifice? You'd think there'd be a bit more empathy for other survivors falling from the sky but there's no indication yet as to their motives or what the Mojave scientist did to be killed. By the state of his body, he hadn't been killed that long ago which implies he'd made a life for himself as well so is there another sect of survivors the fort-dwellers have been picking off?
And how long have the people living in the fort been in the past? The kid calls Eve and Levi 'Sky People' which suggests he was born down in the sinkhole, so I think it will be good as the show progresses to get a better sense of the timeline of when exactly each sinkhole has opened up.
What did you think of the episode? Do you want all the action to ultimately end up in the sinkhole? Sound off in the comments below!
