Wow, I can’t believe that the first season is over, but I am absolutely looking forward to the next. I applaud the writers, director, and entire creative staff for doing a great job of tying up enough loose ends to give us a sense of closure while leaving others wide open to bring us all back.
I believe that this episode would have been better if it had been longer, to eliminate some of the rushed feeling I got from the way in which the Fifth Column’s mission to destroy Anna’s eggs was scripted. It just didn’t seem plausible enough, but still that only diluted a little of my enthusiasm for “V”. Only two of the major characters bit the stardust (ha-ha) during “Red Sky” and as the episode closed, one of them was brought back! (At least soap operas wait until the next season to bring the dead back, right? But then again, this is Sci Fi!). Still, the surprising revelations, reversals of fortune, and unexpected twists and turns made it all worthwhile.
Anyway, as expected, the hybrid did make its appearance, although all we saw of it was a glimpse of its tail while being held by Ryan (Morris Chestnut), where he had found Val (Lourdes Benedicto) in Anna’s custody aboard the New York ship, thanks to her Soldier. The High Commander herself made sure that Val did not long survive the birth and does a fairly good job of convincing Ryan that Val would have lived if he had brought her to the ship earlier. Revelation- Anna knew he was Fifth Column (for how long, I would like to know) and recognized the strategic importance of turning him back to her side. He is now at his weakest moment, due to the “human emotions” that he has developed and she offers him a return to her Bliss (and perhaps more, wouldn’t Chad be jealous!). However Ryan is not the only Visitor who will experience pain and loss before the end of the hour, but more about that later.
Faith to one’s allegiances is one of the larger themes of the episode, and Ryan is not alone in questioning his. Chad (Scott Wolf) is rocked by Father Landry’s (Joel Gretsch) disclosure that there are Visitors in the Fifth Column and that the shuttle accident was a setup by the Visitors. Chad runs to confront Anna and give to her the letter the Father wanted delivered to the Medical Bay, thereby exposing Joshua. Why Landry did that does not compute, because giving him that letter, clearly would (and did) put Joshua (Mark Hildreth) and the other Fifth Columnists at risk; unless Landry is feeling traitorous himself. There is no trace of betrayal, however, when the Father delivers his sermon about the evils of the Visitors, in defiance of his superior, risking his pastorship. Maybe it was just one of the writers having a really bad idea. It certainly appears that Chad himself has been “turned” after Joshua tells him the truth about his aneurysm and where to find the room where humans are being experimented on/tortured.
Decision, decisions, Lisa (Laura Vandervoot) has to make one too, as Joshua reminds her. Even though she at first declares that she will not betray her mother, in the end she not only frees Joshua from imprisonment, she gives Erica (Elizabeth Mitchell) both her assistance and a blue energy grenade to destroy Anna’s eggs. What is very interesting and almost assuredly a foreshadowing of events to come, is that Joshua calls Lisa his queen when she tells him her choice has been made. Joshua is killed creating the diversion that Erica needs to get to the egg chamber, but at the end of “Red Sky” we see him “resurrected” and welcomed back to life by… Marcus (Christopher Shyer). What is Anna’s second-in-command up to? Is he about to turn Hobbes, who has apparently, whether knowingly or not, been working for him for years? Who is the mysterious “her” that gives him a hold over our favorite commando? The setup for Season 2 continues!
The ending is pretty standard for a season finale, although it is still rather well done. The best part is not that Anna initiates “the sequence”, over Marcus’ objections, but the reason why- for vengeance because of the destruction of her eggs. As Marcus informs her, after she finishes flipping out, she has experienced her first human emotion. I guess they really are infectious! See what slumming among us lowly humans gets you, Anna! And what about Lisa’s secret smile at Anna’s “alien” reaction?
So, we are left with a lot to think about over the summer, which is how a good finale should leave us. I admit that I am really interested in seeing what the fall brings and how these various plot threads will play out. Will the Fifth Column find a way to stop Anna or will she just self-destruct in an emotional breakdown? Who will be the next to switch sides? Why is Tyler so crucial to Anna’s plans (and who is his real father, not Darth Vader, I hope!!!)? And what about the hybrid? What about the hybrid? Until next season, live long, prosper, and support the Column!
