After a few pretty good episodes in a row, “Birth Pangs” disrupts any and all sense of momentum V had built up. I tried not writing my review as early as usual because I was so annoyed and frustrated with this episode, but it turns out the extra day didn’t really change any of my thoughts.
It seems fairly obvious to me that after ramping up the story in some sort of mid-season cliffhanger over the past two episodes, “Pangs” is supposed to serve as a transitional episode between the final few, hopefully exciting, episodes. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot of transitioning being done here. Instead, this episode slams on the brakes and decides to present really obvious plot points as something surprising.
For whatever reason, this episode wants us to think that Erica’s absolute confirmation that Anna wants to use humans for breeding is some sort of shocker. Erica and company’s reaction to this development is laughable because I am fairly certain that we in the audience have known all about this development for at least four episodes. And from everything I remember from the past few episodes, Erica had this knowledge as well. But here she is in this episode, looking around wide-eyed with surprise and confusion on her face. I appreciated the little moment where Chad smartly ties the DNA and mating projects with the Live Aboard program, but that doesn’t forgive how unbelievably stupid everyone looked when they “discovered” this information. I don’t have a problem with bringing up the plot point again, but treating it as a major revelation is just stupid.
Similarly, for all her intelligent manipulation of the human race, Anna continues to be fully blind in her ability to perceive Lisa’s actions. She ordered Lisa to get close to Tyler by any means necessary and has been moderately suspicious of her activity for countless episodes, but suddenly here it hits her that OH MY GOD LISA MIGHT BE FEEEEEEEELING. Again, much like Erica’s “revelation” about Tyler I have no problem with this little beat being mentioned and explored again, but it’s disrespectful to the audience to pretend like this is a huge deal. It also makes your supposedly deadly, cunning main villain look like a fool. That’s probably not a good thing.
And after a few episodes of suggesting some major movement on the Fifth Column front, “Birth Pangs” messed that all up as well. At the end of the last episode, it seemed like Erica was finally ready to throw down against Anna, but here, a lot of that motivation appears to be gone. There are a few throwaway lines about her mental state and what that means for the missions going forward, but mostly Erica appears to be fine. Similarly, Erica and Hobbes travel overseas to meet with some of Cohn’s trusted lieutenants, but it doesn’t really lead to anything but more stalling and dead-ends. I understand that Scott Rosenbaum and his team couldn’t jump head-first into the Fifth Column-Visitor war on the off-chance that the series could come back for a third season, but pushing forward strongly for three episodes with the suggestion for more development in the future, only to slam on the brakes is an annoying practice.
Finally, so many of the legitimately new developments seemed completely out-of-the-blue or simply dumb. Apparently there are more candidates for breeding aside from Tyler, which does sort of raise the stakes for his life but still feels like something that anyone with common sense could have guessed. Anna forcing Lisa to seduce one of those possible candidates created more conflict between mother and daughter, yet Anna still didn’t put two and two together that Anna wouldn’t seduce the guy because of feelings. That’s just dumb.
I was growing to like V again until this episode. Sigh.
Other thoughts:
- Apparently Ryan isn’t dead. That’s nice.
- Erica and Hobbes shared a moment. It’s going to be awkward when she finds out that he’s moderately responsible for her ex-husband’s death.
- Jack and Chad have absolutely nothing substantial to do here. Sigh.
2 Comments
Hmmmmm…..:
When characters find out information that veiwers may have already know they should react accordingly. Yes, Erica and her team knew the V’s were up to something. To find out it was breeding would be very disturbing.
Anna’s inability to fully comprehend Lisa’s emotional growth is due to her own complete lack of knowledge of emotion and soul. The writers of this series have made the Vs as a whole much smarter, stronger, faster and impervious except through their ignorance of emotion. In that context for Anna to be uncertain about Lisa is understandable. She is a Titan, but that’s her Achilles heels, and it very far Fromm her head. But she is starting to take a closer look at it. Remember, when she was being overcome by emotion she was unsure of it until she burst.
I agree that the 5th column’s activities were stalled. I also feel that Cohn’s group now equals the 5th column, and Erica has control of the entire anti-V movement on the planet. This shrinks the scope of a show that is trying to be grand. Why does the main character have to be the leader of the ‘good’ army? Because she’s the chosen one….com’on.
Again emotion is the V’s foil. It is something that they do not comprehend. It makes sense that Anna is only suspecious of it in Lisa.
The fact that Jack and Chad wave nothing substantial to do is OK. Imagine if there were only Erica and Hobbes talking in that basement room as they worked on this project of eradicting the Vs. That would be more awkward then Jack and Chad just standing around. People are always need for support even if they contribute little to nothing during the planning phase of a project.
I felt that this episode did not succeed, but for different reasons. One I already gave above. Another, and this is in regards to the entire series, is the concept of emotions is mishandled. The V’s do not comprehend emotion, but they are not fully robotic. Otherwise Anna would not have overthrown her mother. The V’s, especially Anna, constantly display aggression. Not the ‘I’m going to take over your world’, but more like hatred.
Another, is that the V’s forget that they are stronger than the humans. For example, why was it so easy for Erica to pin down and cut that V doctor? Why didn’t the doctor attack them before jumping off the balcony? Doesn’t she have a tail?
And others….
Sorry, I getting tired of typing on this phone. Please excuse any grammar mistakes.
Well, you obviously watched a different episode than I did.
I agree with Banjoe that just because the viewers know what’s going on doesn’t mean the characters do. Viewers see the whole of it and the characters only bits and pieces. As a ‘reviewer’ you are not a very good ‘critic’ IMHO.
SPOILER!!!
Most of the major cast will die in the final (series or season?) episode.
Hold on to your cowboy hats boys and girls, the war is about to commence to begin!