The Taelons unveil a process which makes people young again, and everyone volunteers for the procedure. However, there may be something more sinister going on during the technique than just de-aging.
It’s the main plot of this episode that is something of a problem. There was plenty of interest to be had in the concept of eternal youth, or the return of lost years, but this is sent more to the background as the Liberation decide to choose a new leader and Liam and Hayley infiltrate Second Chances to uncover what is really going on. The odd thing is that their subsequent discovery means we never find out what was happening, aside from a desire to be nice to Taelons being implanted. In fact, the whole (admittedly pretty cool and impressive) Mission: Impossible style commando expedition seems to be intended to bring Hayley and Liam to an understanding, and we never find out what the problems are with the Taelon process that makes the man seen in the opening teaser go mad.
Aside from this rather lazy plotting, the episode does serve up another interesting one-to-one between Da’an and Liam when they both give their views on betrayal, and some more of Doors’ politicizing (which is getting a bit wearing now). These actually add more depth to the characters, as we see how their views affect their actions.
But back to the Liberation. Now ensconced in what appears to be a multi-storey car park rather than their previous hi-tech facility, they offer the job of leader to Lili who would seem a natural choice. What’s really annoying is that one commando raid later, they have changed their minds and would rather vote in Liam. This is a real shame, as it could have been a great chance to further explore Lili’s character and self-confidence, but now we’re left with the obvious choice once again. It’s even more ridiculous after Lili has proved her worth by helping Liam and Hayley evade security detection at Second Chances. This would be pretty good if it weren’t for the lack of explanation.
***
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