I just watched the episode and it was one hell of a spectacular one in terms of acting, set design, camera angles, action and of course especially cinematography. Cinematography and color grading in particular, was what kept me at the edge of my seat and tuned till the end.
18 Reviews
Well, that was dramatic.
W011y4m57 December 2020
This one did manage to be emotionally engaging but lacked coherent logic. As I've mentioned before in reviews for previous episodes, the quality plummeted once Ridley Scott departed the director's chair & his absence is increasingly becoming more noticeable as the season gradually progresses.
Mother also conveniently seems to possess whatever super-powers the plot requires of her - which essentially makes her in to the character equivalent of a talking deus ex machina - & by this point, the absence of specificity in regards to her limitations seems like a deliberate creative decision, made with the intention of allowing space for vague, lazy writing which ensures we continue to be as clueless about the answers to those questions as the creators evidently are.
It's not bad. Neither is it particularly good either.
Mother also conveniently seems to possess whatever super-powers the plot requires of her - which essentially makes her in to the character equivalent of a talking deus ex machina - & by this point, the absence of specificity in regards to her limitations seems like a deliberate creative decision, made with the intention of allowing space for vague, lazy writing which ensures we continue to be as clueless about the answers to those questions as the creators evidently are.
It's not bad. Neither is it particularly good either.
1x06
formotog18 December 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This was a strange episode. It had some really excellent sequences, but it also had some really shoddy writing. Throughout the season, the writing hasn't exactly always been amazing, but it's usually one of two small things here and there. This episode showed that the frequency of questionable writing decisions is increasing, and the severity of such decisions is also getting worse. For example, Marcus not killing Mother because of some unexplained voice in his head? And Sue not even attempting to dispute that? Yeah it was just one instance of the writers writing themselves into unnecessary corners. It kinda ruined what until that point would've been a really great ending. There were other moments as well, like Campion reacting in such a forced, unbelievable manner when Paul uses his fungus, and Mother's ability to use the force apparently??? That said, the cinematography continues to be really really good and there are still good elements to the writing, notably the investigation of Mother and just how much an android can be like a human. I did like it but the shoddy writing has to stop
Mid 7
Mid 7
A great episode !
aboalhyjaa18 September 2020
What can i say ? Wow.
This episode is full of emotions from emotionless people and androids. We smile, we cry and we laugh with them.
What about the cinematography? From another world! Just wow.
Loved this episode and its the best so far.
Hard to believe
lucianoterres6 October 2020
I could not understand, maybe I missed something.
The mother was locked in the simulator, as easy prey, and the believers prepared an ambush. Why they simply didn't bury that bomb below the machine and wait for her show up. Blow her up while she was plugged and helpless was the logical thing to do. But no, they had to use that strange mirror and wait for her wake-up.
All that advanced technology, weapons, spaceships, androids, computers but the group of believers can't make a proper plan, an easy one. It's not that difficult, isn't it?
White spirit
xmasdaybaby19663 October 2021
Warning: Spoilers
So after 6 episode, I have finally grabbed the fact that Marcus and Sue and the gang are the bad guys and, just like something out of Batman, when the bad guys have the chance to claim ultimate victory, they don't take it.
I, so it would make for a poor final 4 episodes but it just marks me that one shriek and the bad buys are dead but mother and father can have fluid coming out of all places yet can be reassembled.
I guess, it's a modern story of mum and dad doing their best despite their faults while Hunter and Tempest are being moody teenagers.
Surely, modern science would have kicked those nasty habits by then.
They could have shown more of Sue grabbing Paul.
What is to become of the dysfunctional family.
Is the Otho dead? Is his voice over artist dead too?
Why couldn't they use the real actors voice? Is it too South African?
It reminds me of Darth Vader having his voice dubbed because green cross code men from Bristol can't be baddies as was the case with all the Aussie actors in the original Mad Max yet this show is littered with Aussie actors.
I guess I am old school. I hate CGI. I feel as though I am being conned.
Watchable as long as you don't have a brain.
I, so it would make for a poor final 4 episodes but it just marks me that one shriek and the bad buys are dead but mother and father can have fluid coming out of all places yet can be reassembled.
I guess, it's a modern story of mum and dad doing their best despite their faults while Hunter and Tempest are being moody teenagers.
Surely, modern science would have kicked those nasty habits by then.
They could have shown more of Sue grabbing Paul.
What is to become of the dysfunctional family.
Is the Otho dead? Is his voice over artist dead too?
Why couldn't they use the real actors voice? Is it too South African?
It reminds me of Darth Vader having his voice dubbed because green cross code men from Bristol can't be baddies as was the case with all the Aussie actors in the original Mad Max yet this show is littered with Aussie actors.
I guess I am old school. I hate CGI. I feel as though I am being conned.
Watchable as long as you don't have a brain.
I LAUGHED at some points
afonsoponto118 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Damn, this episode actually has a good story line but man oh man.. they did messed some parts up, didn't they?
Like: two survivalists leaving traces behind (the food can, that's some poor writing); Mother's eyelashes trembling when Marcus touches her face (a robot wouldn't react that way during that procedure, and they could easy solve that with proper editing); that remote bomb not working was so cliche that made me laugh in disbelief; that rock-levitating scene was SO upsetting (her powers now make no sense at all, that whole scene was totally out of tune to all the other stuff they already have showed us, that really was the lower point to me); the shooting scenes... Oh dear, ok shooting may not be the easiest thing out there but remember they are SOLDIERS (those whole shenanigans were embarrassing, again the editing could have improved drastically that scene, but clearly DIDN'T); that cutting-her-necklace-loose scene was also bad cuz "why wouldn't Mother be able to reach him?" (Again, editing could/would/SHOULD be able to solve that, but yeah, you know.. they didn't); but THEN the best was Marcus being able to knock Mother down with a SINGLE hit!! Minutes prior to that Father took MANY shots and was still functioning fairly well (that scene also ends up remembering us how poor the shooting scene was earlier).
Oof that was a ride, but I must say, this is still a great show and the story telling seems to be promising BUT having an episode with this many problems makes me question if they are going to be all I was hoping this Series could have been.
I honestly hope this was only a glitch.
Mother v. Plot needs feat. discount crusaders
allnewsuperfake29 October 2020
Part of the suspense so far was not just to see where the plot was going, but the question if I'm watching a story that wants to be told or writers who desperately need to tell a story because it's their job.
If the writers knew where they were going when they started, or if they made it up along the way. If the flashbacks dive deeper into a lore that already exists, or if we get to watch the writers filling in the blanks for themselves because they got stuck.
And I'm afraid this episode answered that question in the worst possible way. Watch characters, motivations, decisions and even abilities and allegiances get hammered into shape at all costs, breaking the Sci in Sci-Fi and wrecking havoc on the already thin world building. Watch everyone getting put into place instead of having them get there through character development and narration, in many cases by putting them off the board or, worse, obviously pretending that they get killed.
The ongoing great performances and overall high technical marks can cover that up to some degree, but it's something that one won't be able to un-see in the coming episodes.
If the writers knew where they were going when they started, or if they made it up along the way. If the flashbacks dive deeper into a lore that already exists, or if we get to watch the writers filling in the blanks for themselves because they got stuck.
And I'm afraid this episode answered that question in the worst possible way. Watch characters, motivations, decisions and even abilities and allegiances get hammered into shape at all costs, breaking the Sci in Sci-Fi and wrecking havoc on the already thin world building. Watch everyone getting put into place instead of having them get there through character development and narration, in many cases by putting them off the board or, worse, obviously pretending that they get killed.
The ongoing great performances and overall high technical marks can cover that up to some degree, but it's something that one won't be able to un-see in the coming episodes.
Good but...
prhwmvli1 November 2020
This is where it really stopped making sense
ajmurmann17 October 2020
Warning: Spoilers
Why do the two atheists disguised as religious zealots not just side with the atheist Android's? Especially once most zealots are dead?
Why does it take mother significantly longer to fly back to the settlement than it takes the soldiers to run there?
The answer of course is that that's what the writers needed to make the story work the way they wanted. What an embarrassment of a show!
Why does it take mother significantly longer to fly back to the settlement than it takes the soldiers to run there?
The answer of course is that that's what the writers needed to make the story work the way they wanted. What an embarrassment of a show!
Unexplained Superpowers
coup_de_grace-1188517 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This is a great episode let down by one scene: when we discover mothers powers of transvection. Mother is now an overpowered god when she has her eyes.
I'm afraid what this might mean for the rest of the series. I guess we will find out.
I'm afraid what this might mean for the rest of the series. I guess we will find out.
kinda weird
Lythas_8527 February 2022
Warning: Spoilers
I guess the most intriguing aspect of the storyline is the mysterious voices the asian small girl has been listening to.. which is the same one communicating with marcus and told him not to kill the droid..
I disagree with another reviewer.. the shotting scene, father took some non vital shots but did get seriously hurt when shot certer mass.. and mother took a full axe swing right on the middle of her chest while not on super sayan mode.. dude that was massive that she was bleeding and twitching like crazy.
But yeah, some things are weird.. they seem like useless droids.. they should be able to run faster, be stronger.. more accurate.. react way faster than humans.. etc etc
my point is... i still cannot figure out what the writers want to do here.. is it about a killer robot who now wants to be a human? Or some supernatural being manipulating everybody? Where is the parkour dude from the previous episode?
I disagree with another reviewer.. the shotting scene, father took some non vital shots but did get seriously hurt when shot certer mass.. and mother took a full axe swing right on the middle of her chest while not on super sayan mode.. dude that was massive that she was bleeding and twitching like crazy.
But yeah, some things are weird.. they seem like useless droids.. they should be able to run faster, be stronger.. more accurate.. react way faster than humans.. etc etc
my point is... i still cannot figure out what the writers want to do here.. is it about a killer robot who now wants to be a human? Or some supernatural being manipulating everybody? Where is the parkour dude from the previous episode?
What complete, utter nonsense...
forizsandras18 September 2020
What a complete, utter trainwreck this show is turning into. (Westworld says hi)
Basically going downhill from the first two episodes at an accelerating pace
From a promising, elegantly laid out setting to plain, ad-hoc, nonsense, that would belong in a direct to video short from the 80s. Poor or just plain lazy writing, cheap cliches after artificial problems with laugh out loud resolutions.
Laughable directing and acting in some places. What the hell?
Would be really surprised if this would make a comeback by the end of the season, that could only vaguely live up to it's original premise.
Sad.
Kudos and +1 star for Amanda Collin's acting though.
Basically going downhill from the first two episodes at an accelerating pace
From a promising, elegantly laid out setting to plain, ad-hoc, nonsense, that would belong in a direct to video short from the 80s. Poor or just plain lazy writing, cheap cliches after artificial problems with laugh out loud resolutions.
Laughable directing and acting in some places. What the hell?
Would be really surprised if this would make a comeback by the end of the season, that could only vaguely live up to it's original premise.
Sad.
Kudos and +1 star for Amanda Collin's acting though.
Super cheesy - doubt the show will recover from this one
chaakar18 September 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The show had some good things going for it, but Mother's yearning to know her Creator morphing into an ill-explained sexual desire/distraction that results in neglection of duties and ultimately the "(Loss of a) Paradise", this too between a (stoic) robot and it's Maker of all things... how silly/cliche/nonsensical -- have my fingers crossed for some sort of proper reasoning that takes the show somewhere meaningful, but not very hopeful; such an all around tragedy.
Famous Last Words
theminorityreporter17 September 2021
Warning: Spoilers
"Something's wrong." Mother chooses to continue returning to the Wreckage Sim day after day for the feeling of personal satisfaction and self-discovery. Adore is ALWAYS ADORE. A dangerous enemy sees her return and decides to find out where she's been going.
Vita makes a voodoo doll and Tempest plays an off-key rendition of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star". Tempest tells Mother about the nightmares she has of being raped while in the sim, but Mother doesn't know what it's like; she doesn't experience nightmares because she has control over her mind's functioning.
While collecting firewood, Vita's an enthusiastic participant and hers looks like a snake. Paul meanwhile uproots a sapling for a big surprise he's devising, and Campion buries subhuman bones with pensive conviction to the annoyance of Paul who's not such a baby anymore. In a conversation with Father, Hunter advises knowingly that the friction between Mother and Father may lead to a break-up and offers to tune up Father to be cleverer so Mother won't get the better of him anymore.
Later, in a particularly important puzzle lesson, Paul proves to be "very impressive" at arranging sticks spatially, to the pensive annoyance of Campion.
Mother's enemy finds her simulation pod and examines the activity logs to see what she's been doing, discovering she spends long hours lying there unable to sense anything happening around her. He says "When she's plugged in... she's vulnerable. This is how we're gonna get the b**ch."
Paul makes a "very clever" automated death trap using Campion's vegan food discovery as bait. Its declared purpose is "to ensure nobody gets hurt". Paul is specific that he doesn't particularly want to kill the creatures, and Campion responds abundantly to the misappropriation of his discovery; making two fists and hitting Paul relentlessly. When Campion is reprimanded for assaulting Paul, he lies abundantly and the mass-murderer says "Do as I say, not as I do".
Mother's indiscretion with the other machine is disclosed on a public wall. When she tries to clear it, it smears all the more. She accuses Father of tormenting her with it, but it turns out Father isn't the author and Mother has only made the situation worse by evoking his curiosity with her accusation. In distress, she returns to the simulation hoping to learn the identity of the perpetrator, lying down prone on a trap laid by a perpetrator.
It's a joyful event when Mother realizes she's been lured to the simulation with emotional manipulation and her hijacker is a virus that's infected her and caused her to malfunction. She's very special and eternal and pure there; happy and confused and convinced of the irrelevance of worldly goals. As she rolls around vainly in transient self-indulgence, she gets a lot of special attention from an internal perpetrator with poisonous fangs and from an external perpetrator with filthy fingers. She finds herself, covered in blood and facing a high-powered attack formed against her as she slept.
A misappropriated and poorly understood technology is used to attempt to neutralize an uncontrollable and poorly understood technology so that some conventional and poorly applied technology can be used by a man to blow his own hands off. Also contrary to foretold expectations, the Necromancer actually gains power from the feedback loop with the super great mirror and develops a sudden expansion of her existing anti-gravitational capacity, raising massive immovable rocks into the air and blasting them to shrapnel at the team attempting to decommission her.
Back at the barracks, Hunter clearly and categorically levels an insult at Tempest, saying "No offense, but..." which is met with an equally clear and categorical insult. Campion meanwhile prepares with sticks and stones to do violence again, and Vita cutely plays with voodoo dolls and a dead girl. Father's finely-tuned sensors perceive intruders on the premises and he mounts a lethal-force response, exacting a brutally gory death on a human with Paul's convenient death trap. Mary-Sue's been a bit impulsive again and she's advanced the team for the offensive prematurely, reclaiming Paul at the expense of human casualties only for the sake of risking further reprisal as the Necromancer returns. At the end of the conflict the survivors have fled and Father's laid out not dead next to all that remains of a human being: a splatter of bloody pulp, a chunk of guts, and a perfectly intact gun.
An apparent axe murderer heaves a massive axe blow into a woman's chest after having his boy dangerously lure her to him. The axe is jammed inside her now and he drags her around by it as she struggles futilely in a satisfyingly agonizing scene of blood-sputtering bewilderment. He yanks out the axe and she cries out and falls prostrate and powerless to the ground, gushing blood. When she manages to get up onto to her knees, he slashes her deeply across the back and she's again sprawled out beneath him. She gags and convulses and bleeds as the boy and his 'mother' watch nearby. The boy's 'mother' seems slightly concerned, about something or other, and interestingly the man is compelled to stop short of decapitating the woman when he hears a voice in his head. The woman suffers abundantly as the boy surrenders the source of her greatest power and the man congratulates his 'son', saying "Good boy".
Vita makes a voodoo doll and Tempest plays an off-key rendition of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star". Tempest tells Mother about the nightmares she has of being raped while in the sim, but Mother doesn't know what it's like; she doesn't experience nightmares because she has control over her mind's functioning.
While collecting firewood, Vita's an enthusiastic participant and hers looks like a snake. Paul meanwhile uproots a sapling for a big surprise he's devising, and Campion buries subhuman bones with pensive conviction to the annoyance of Paul who's not such a baby anymore. In a conversation with Father, Hunter advises knowingly that the friction between Mother and Father may lead to a break-up and offers to tune up Father to be cleverer so Mother won't get the better of him anymore.
Later, in a particularly important puzzle lesson, Paul proves to be "very impressive" at arranging sticks spatially, to the pensive annoyance of Campion.
Mother's enemy finds her simulation pod and examines the activity logs to see what she's been doing, discovering she spends long hours lying there unable to sense anything happening around her. He says "When she's plugged in... she's vulnerable. This is how we're gonna get the b**ch."
Paul makes a "very clever" automated death trap using Campion's vegan food discovery as bait. Its declared purpose is "to ensure nobody gets hurt". Paul is specific that he doesn't particularly want to kill the creatures, and Campion responds abundantly to the misappropriation of his discovery; making two fists and hitting Paul relentlessly. When Campion is reprimanded for assaulting Paul, he lies abundantly and the mass-murderer says "Do as I say, not as I do".
Mother's indiscretion with the other machine is disclosed on a public wall. When she tries to clear it, it smears all the more. She accuses Father of tormenting her with it, but it turns out Father isn't the author and Mother has only made the situation worse by evoking his curiosity with her accusation. In distress, she returns to the simulation hoping to learn the identity of the perpetrator, lying down prone on a trap laid by a perpetrator.
It's a joyful event when Mother realizes she's been lured to the simulation with emotional manipulation and her hijacker is a virus that's infected her and caused her to malfunction. She's very special and eternal and pure there; happy and confused and convinced of the irrelevance of worldly goals. As she rolls around vainly in transient self-indulgence, she gets a lot of special attention from an internal perpetrator with poisonous fangs and from an external perpetrator with filthy fingers. She finds herself, covered in blood and facing a high-powered attack formed against her as she slept.
A misappropriated and poorly understood technology is used to attempt to neutralize an uncontrollable and poorly understood technology so that some conventional and poorly applied technology can be used by a man to blow his own hands off. Also contrary to foretold expectations, the Necromancer actually gains power from the feedback loop with the super great mirror and develops a sudden expansion of her existing anti-gravitational capacity, raising massive immovable rocks into the air and blasting them to shrapnel at the team attempting to decommission her.
Back at the barracks, Hunter clearly and categorically levels an insult at Tempest, saying "No offense, but..." which is met with an equally clear and categorical insult. Campion meanwhile prepares with sticks and stones to do violence again, and Vita cutely plays with voodoo dolls and a dead girl. Father's finely-tuned sensors perceive intruders on the premises and he mounts a lethal-force response, exacting a brutally gory death on a human with Paul's convenient death trap. Mary-Sue's been a bit impulsive again and she's advanced the team for the offensive prematurely, reclaiming Paul at the expense of human casualties only for the sake of risking further reprisal as the Necromancer returns. At the end of the conflict the survivors have fled and Father's laid out not dead next to all that remains of a human being: a splatter of bloody pulp, a chunk of guts, and a perfectly intact gun.
An apparent axe murderer heaves a massive axe blow into a woman's chest after having his boy dangerously lure her to him. The axe is jammed inside her now and he drags her around by it as she struggles futilely in a satisfyingly agonizing scene of blood-sputtering bewilderment. He yanks out the axe and she cries out and falls prostrate and powerless to the ground, gushing blood. When she manages to get up onto to her knees, he slashes her deeply across the back and she's again sprawled out beneath him. She gags and convulses and bleeds as the boy and his 'mother' watch nearby. The boy's 'mother' seems slightly concerned, about something or other, and interestingly the man is compelled to stop short of decapitating the woman when he hears a voice in his head. The woman suffers abundantly as the boy surrenders the source of her greatest power and the man congratulates his 'son', saying "Good boy".
See also
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