Reviewer Rating: 3.2/5.0
3.2
For a TV series that prides itself on focusing on the humanity of its characters, “Ark” has undoubtedly taken a detour.
It’s not like the series hasn’t introduced or at least hinted at anomalies before.
However, Ark Season 2 Episode 3 takes things to another level.
When you make a space odyssey series, it’s inevitable that some sort of space creature will pop up.
While Anomaly went in some interesting directions with this electric tentacle monster, not everything stuck on the landing.
The writers took a chance and reallocated resources for this episode.
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Still, despite the misses, there are plenty of moments that remind fans why they tune in every week.
Not even the Ark can escape the turbulence of a space odyssey
Let’s not delay the inevitable and get straight to the heart of this review.
I especially praised the series for everything they did to make the story great.
However, that doesn’t mean I don’t see glaring mistakes made during the creative process.
The first is dialogue.
Generally, “The Ark” perfectly balances sly satire and meaty dialogue with little in the way of exposition.
The series knows how to walk a tightrope, but this time, the balance may have been tipped off.
More specifically, many of the lines seem cheesy or just meant to fill silence.
Then there’s the matter of performance.
In this case, a lot of it feels a little too “trying” as a way to inject more drama or action into the scenes.
Instead, much of it feels bland or, at worst, embarrassing.
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For example, Griff and Angus’ scene in the hospital port should have been hilarious, given all the attempts at physical humor.
The whole scene is uncomfortable, both in its timing and in the lines themselves.
However, the most important offense came from the interaction between Felix and Kimi.
Do you remember their conversation where Kimi asked Felix how he could trust her?
What happened at the end of that conversation?
Kimi saves Felix from an electric tentacle attack.
This may be meant to be dramatic, but the whole thing is extra on an unflattering level.
While the Syfy series may have hit a speed bump in FTL, Ark is still a series that stands out.
Are those electric tentacles on your chest, or are you just happy to see me?
Where there’s bad, you can also expect a lot of good.
Sure, the dialogue and some of the acting suffers, but it’s probably worth it.
Despite its flaws, this episode was packed with action and there wasn’t a dull moment.
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At the end of the day, a show or movie can have the best creative writing, but if it doesn’t entertain, what’s the point?
The crew of Ark One was definitely no stranger to one disaster after another, but this was a completely new situation.
From the Season 2 trailer, we know the stakes are going to be raised to eleven, and this episode is all the better for it.
Many of the episode’s cheesy bits work while containing the electric “abnormality.”
Captain Garnett, played by Kristy Burke, needs to be wary of more space creature stowaways.
Still, this episode had very little impact in terms of destruction, and thankfully it didn’t slow down Ark One.
Ark can finally take a breath, and the audience can finally laugh.
Considering everything that’s happened so far, you’d think the Ark’s crew could use a morale boost.
But not these intrepid travelers!
After nearly escaping an exploding planet and nearly being blown up by Maddox, the captain and her crew are safe and sound.
In fact, if they had had time to think about Juno, they would have done better than good.
On the one hand, it’s eerie that the system has so much information about each person that it can genetically match them.
On the other hand, it would make for an interesting arc that might lead to more comedy than drama.
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Speaking of comedic moments, whether intentional or accidental, Captain Garnett completely walking in the door after seeing Bryce and Eva kiss is iconic.
As a fan of the series, I want to see more of Garnet’s hilarious moments.
This character has been through so much and it’s time for her to smile.
It wasn’t the only perfectly timed moment of hilarity, either.
If you watched my exclusive interview with Ryan Adams, you may have spotted an Easter egg.
During our conversation, Ryan revealed that creator and showrunner Dean Devlin wanted to take Angus’s glasses off.
Sure enough, Kelly’s “super passion” succeeded.
Now, it remains to be seen whether Angus will eventually become a “space super soldier.”
Conspirators, creatures and missing crew members, oh my!
If this episode’s finale is any indication, Ark may need all the help it can get.
The episode spent a fair amount of time fleshing out the distrust between Felix and Kimi.
But now we think Ark One’s security chiefs may have discovered something.
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As seen in the final minutes of “Anomalous,” Kimi briefly talks to a member of the Ark of the Covenant 15 crew about unknown plans.
While this set-up seems orchestrated to depict deception, shows like Ark are great at misleading.
Therefore, this may not be a plan with hostile intent.
It could go beyond the obvious and tie Sharon’s origins into a deeper plot.
But a reversal of this situation is also possible.
Maddox may have sent Kimi and her crew to learn about the Captain’s cloning genetics.
No matter the situation, everyone on board has more important problems.
They landed somewhere in starless space.
How can this be?
Nonetheless, there is a more pressing issue at hand.
Where did Bryce, played by Richard (Rayne), go?
He just disappeared into thin air, and more importantly, without any clothes on.
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For Ark One, we needed to understand where he went with a lot of visual detail.
You know, for science and stuff like that.
While Ark Season 2 Episode 3 fell short in some areas, it was still an incredible and exciting journey through the vastness of space!
What do you think Kimi and the Ark Fifteen have planned?
Do you have any theories about where Bryce might have been or what led to his disappearance?
Let us know in the comments below, and join me again as I review the next episode of Ark!
