Contributor: Henry T.
Written by Eileen Myers
Directed by Michael Offer
The disconnect between the various subplots on this show continues into this episode. It’s made worse by pushing more development on an awkward budding “romance” between an islander and what seems to be the sole remaining Navy SEAL left on Sainte Marina. Also, the subplot with Kylie and the mysterious “Order 998″ on the mainland was also lightweight. What was left to carry the episode was a ramping up of tensions between the island natives and the crew of the USS Colorado.
There would be no doubt that the submarine was going to stay intact throughout its mission, but there are increased stakes in play this time. Captain Chaplin has to make hard choices, ones that affect his crew and what his ultimate purpose on the island is. His crew is following the lead of their commander. They are fraying at the edges, and the situation is a powder keg ready to explode at any time.
It seemed like half of the episode had plots that were good and others that were underwhelming. The Navy SEAL, King, starts what seems to be courting of Tani, the local bartender. The actors do what they can with the story, but there isn’t any juice to it all. King looks bored and in need of something to do besides get drunk at the island bar so he has to express interest in the cute bartender. He learns more about her family history and even meets her father at one point. But what is the purpose of showing this subplot? Does this mean King intends to settle on Sainte Marina and build a life in an attempt to allay his guilt over his role in the attack on the Colorado? There has been no mention of any of that since “Captain”, and given this series’ odd penchant for dropping some plot points in favor of others depending on the episode, I wouldn’t be surprised if that suddenly popped up in a future episode out of nowhere.
Both Tani and King are blissfully unaware of everything else that is happening on the island, which adds to the detached feel of the storyline. Frankly, I think both characters need something else to do. That is also a sentiment I would apply to what Kylie is up to in this episode. The character is annoying whenever she comes onscreen, but the upside is that her rapid-fire speech pattern has reduced in intensity, and been replaced by a fear that someone high up in the government has the blueprints for the Perseus prototype that is currently in use on the Colorado.
Also she does relay a previously known plot point to another character, Admiral Shepard, and perhaps they will find out why “Order 998″ was issued through the Antarctic network. Progress on this subplot is slow, and I think it will get ignored in favor of other storylines that weren’t addressed in this episode (like what has been happening with Christine Kendal). This is a product of how busy the entire series is. It has only so much time allotted to each specific story so it has to dole out development in pieces.
As for the more enjoyable aspects of the episode, I would refer to the submarine scenes, which still remarkably retain a tension and drama that is missing from everything else on the series. I like that the actions on the submarine directly tie to what characters do on the island. The natives are engaged in a standoff with the many military elements who are there with no direction or purpose. Captain Chaplin is supposed to be leading this crew to one specific goal, and if he doesn’t quite know what that goal is, then the crew is beginning to question what master they should be serving. Serrat — the natives’ leader — takes advantage of this potentially explosive situation by playing one of the few bargaining chips he has: the three Colorado crew members he holds as hostages.
Getting Chaplin to retrieve some contraband cargo in exchange for the three missing crew members proves more troublesome than anyone following Chaplin expected. The submarine has to run a blockade full of US warships hunting expressly for it, and that does become somewhat dicey. Especially when the vaunted Perseus invisibility system glitches midway through the mission. The crew is helped at the last moment by Sophie (who miraculously happens to know exactly where the sub is and how to guide them through the bigger obstacles), but it is too late for one of the hostages.
“Last Resort” is showing that it is willing to take risks and that everything Chaplin or Kendal does has consequences here. Serrat murdered one of their own in cold blood — albeit because Chaplin missed the arbitrary deadline — and they will pay for that later. Chaplin showed remarkable restraint, which is laudable, but I do wonder if they will get the chance to enact vengeance for Redman. Ratings for the series have been trending downward so I won’t blame anyone if the next few episodes feel rushed. There is a good conflict brewing here. I think the writers would be wise to focus on that over the other elements on this busy show.
Score: 7/10
