Critic’s Rating: 3.5 / 5.0
3.5
Home is where The Ark is, and there is no place like home! At least, not one where you might run into your clone from time to time.
Certain staples are almost impossible to avoid when you’re creating science fiction. One of those is that there must be some sci-fi creature.
There are many ways to do that, but The Ark has settled on an ingenious one that works perfectly with the show’s themes and focal points.
You can’t go wrong with clones.
Whether it’s a long-lost twin or a genetic experiment, bringing in alternate characters for a single actor is an easy and effective way to refresh any story.
The Ark Adds A Refreshing Plot By Keeping Clones Close To Home
As we saw in “The Other You,” alternate versions can introduce a fun new perspective on fan-favorite characters.
It’s possible the writers wanted to test the waters by giving more characters a chance to be clones.
That would make for an exciting plot if it hadn’t already been done. I’d say The Ark has milked all the clones they can get for now.
Not to mention, Lane is probably about to spend multiple episodes spiraling and questioning his entire life.
Why was he the only clone who had a family? Why didn’t his father ever tell him the truth? I should’ve known Spencer’s daddy issues were far from over.
However, my previous prediction that Lane is Garnets Juno Project match is even more likely now.
And if she is supposed to mate with Lane, the same could be true for his not-brother. I smell a clone love triangle on the way!
The idea was already seeded in the first season surrounding Captain Garnet’s (Christie Burke) clone status.
It seems the writers are far from done with Sharon’s arc. Especially considering she could snap and kill everyone at a moment’s notice.
And here, everyone was worried about Kelly when they had a ticking time bomb running command.
Wasn’t There A Murderer On Board That Everyone Was Worried About? What Was Her Name Again?
It’s starting to seem like the writers have less of an idea of what to do with Kelly than the crew of the Ark One does. Not a damn clue.
The character made such a splash in the first few episodes that it’s been a bummer to see her more or less sidelined.
What I want to know is why Garnet and the crew are letting her keep the device that allows her to regulate her implants.
Shouldn’t they want the possible mass murder to be as weaponless as possible?
It’s an odd choice and a plot hole at best. Also, is there no way to keep the implants turned off indefinitely?
Kelly is so worried about having them taken out, but she can treat them like an appendix. It’s there if you need it, but it’s unimportant.
Marsh, played by Jadran Malkovich of Ted Lasso, and Kabir got her brain bomb out, which seemed like a top priority.
That said, it was a little lackluster that the characters spent a good bit of time staring at each other over the dangers of removing Kelly’s brain bomb.
And then what happened? It cut to Marsh casually removing the explosive from a little cut in Kelly’s neck.
Either the surgery was cut for time, or the writers didn’t feel like writing it.
All in all, they could’ve covered that part by just having Dr. Marsh alert the captain that the deed was done.
It would’ve left more room for Kimi to continue her snooping.
Calling Kimi To The Bridge. You’ve Been About As Subtle As A Shotgun
As the former head of security at Ark Fifteen, Kimi is not exactly subtle when gathering intel.
Sure, it’s been a significant number of episodes since Kimi and the Fifteeners joined the Ark One with lots of team-building catastrophes to bond everyone.
Still, is that enough? Has the original crew of Ark One moved on and dropped their guard?
At least we now know that the lieutenant she’s staking out isn’t Captain Garnet but a rather handsome Scottish lad who has made his way around The Ark.
If I had to venture a hypothesis, I would say that Kimi is researching Brice’s (Richard Fleeshman) mission that went sideways and left Lane’s father dead.
However, all of it goes back to the Eastern Federation, which could mean anything to Kimi.
We still don’t know if she’s working independently or gathering information for Maddox.
Either of these will damper the full-blown romance between Eva and Brice.
The Ark Maintains Balance Among Its Characters, So When One Falls, Another Flourishes
Brice and Eva had it easy for the first three episodes of The Ark Season 2.
They just slept with each other when they weren’t walking around The Ark, being ridiculously attractive.
However, since Brice went to that parallel universe, those two can’t seem to catch a break.
Eva has had it particularly hard. First, she came under suspicion, and then she watched her brother literally get lost in space.
The writers finally gave the character a reason to always look like someone just surprised her.
With how things are going, it might be time for circumstances to pull Eva and Brice apart.
TV couples can only be in bliss for so long before it becomes boring. I don’t make the rules.
But don’t worry, because to keep the balance, another couple has to blossom. There must be some hope and light amongst all the mayhem and madness.
This brings us to the cutest possible couple on The Ark, Angus (Ryan Adams) and Alicia (Stacey Read).
Those two nerds have been making doe eyes and stealing soft kisses for long enough.
It’s time for them to hold hands through that bleak cafeteria and announce that they will repopulate a planet with super genius babies.
No, seriously, it’s time for the “will-they-won’t-they” to get a little more of that “they-better.”
If nothing else, Angus needs something to do because Adams’ character has done nothing but lie on med bay beds and walk around the ship.
The Ark’s showrunners and writers are definitely trying out some new things in Season 2. For the most part, everything has worked.
From the electric tentacle to parallel universes and trekking onto Mad Max-esque planets, The Ark is a series that likes to mix things up while staying true to itself.
No matter what is thrown at the crew, The Ark keeps things close to home. Something the characters don’t realize they’ve already found.
Do you think Brice or Eva are Eastern Federation spies?
Could Spencer’s clone brother go down the “evil twin” route?
Drop a comment below to let us know, and join me again when I review the next episode of The Ark!