Recap
After a gas explosion last week leveled most of Chinatown, the 2nd mass plays search and rescue as they try and find Tom, Dingaan, Maggie and anyone else they can find alive. Hal manages to find Maggie but she is unconscious and is carried into the bomb shelter on a stretcher. Anne determines that she is paralyzed and all she can do is make her comfortable. Hal is desperate for a way to save her and the first thing he comes up with is using Denny’s spikes as a way to save Maggie. The fluid created by the spikes is what gives Denny and Ben the ability to heal so quickly. Cochise says that while it is possible to extract the fluid, if they are not careful it could kill Denny. Maggie refuses to have alien DNA inside her and would rather die, but Hal doesn’t tell anyone she objected and they move forward anyways. It doesn’t work.
Meanwhile Ben wakes in what looks like a former slaughterhouse/warehouse with Lexi looking over him. When he tries to leave the room he finds the door is locked and he hears screaming and yelling. Ben soon realizes that the place Lexi has taken him is a processing facility for turning humans into some new form of monster/alien. She insists this is the evolution of the species, a peaceful alternative. Ben refuses to accept that and Lexi takes control of his spikes after he grabs her and begins to hurt him to the point that blood comes out of his eyes. He comments to her “Are you going to kill me, just like you did Lourdes?” and after he drops to the floor he tells her “go ahead make me your slave, the Espheni already did that to me once”. She wants Ben to come with her but after seeing inside her head and the truth of what she was capable off, she ran and she didn’t stop him.
Tom and Dingaan continue to try and dig their way out, but find they are buried under the beamer and Tom decides they should try to get inside. He finds a port on the side of the ship that appears to be a biometric type of port that when he sticks his hand it, it bites him but the hatch opens up. Once inside Tom realizes he has something in his arm trying to take over to which Dingaan must cut out. The spear that Dingaan pulled out however was attached to a bomb inside the ship. The beeping sound brought back memories for Dingaan of when he lost his family and he went into shock.
When Ben finally makes it back to Chinatown, he finds out about Maggie and insists that Anne get Cochise to provide the equipment needed to do a full spike transplant to Maggie to save her, even if it kills him. During the process, Anne manages to get 3 spikes out of Ben before he starts to convulse along with Maggie. At this point they stop transplanting for fear it will kill Ben. After a few hours, Tom and Dingaan make it out after the bomb inside the ship goes off and Maggie awakens able to walk again. She goes up to Hal and slaps him for not listening to her and then kisses him for saving her. Hal tells her it wasn’t him who saved her, but Ben. The group has a camp fire goodbye to those they lost as they prepare to pick up the pieces.
Review
Tonight’s episode has finally begun the love triangle that is Ben/Hal and Maggie with the transplant of Ben’s spikes to Maggie in order to save her. This explains Drew Roy’s comments in our interview at the start of the season that the love triangle comes from a very unique situation that is not your normal brother taking older brother’s girlfriend. Ben also sees inside Lexi’s head and gets a first hand view of the human skitterization process, much to his horror.
One of the funnier moments, was that we have completed the Mason Hitting Pope bingo card with Matt finally take a shot at Pope. Only this time Pope is genuinely sorry for having said Tom was dead in front of him. I think in some ways Matt reminds Pope of his kids. Another theme that seems to repeat itself is Tom getting an eye worm, or alien implant or simply getting into trouble all the time. Tom, you’re drunk go home. It’s time to let your other family members get into trouble, like Ben. Ben has gotten himself into some fairly sticky situations and so has Hal. So how about we give Matt a chance to get into trouble, mmmk?
As we push into the later part of the season, the mythology involving the moon and the Espheni’s real plan for humans is slowly peeled back. There are sure to be ramifications sharing spikes with Maggie. The spikes were part of a whole harness, and thus are connected as individual spikes. What will that mean for Maggie? What powers will she get? It appears whatever is on the moon is able to power the beamer, so does that mean the enemy’s power core is on the moon?
Another situation popped up where we got a goodbye to those we lost, something that Dai never got and Uncle Scott never got. Again it goes back to lazy writing at the end of season 2 and start of season 3 but its something that will forever bug this Falling Skies fan.
