Defiance: Slouching Towards Bethlehem

August 9, 2014 3:07 PM - Season 2, Episode 8

After the Earth Republic arrests a spy for the Votanis Collective, the knowledge he has of the Tarrs and other Votanis Collective operations makes his death an immediate necessity. Stahma seeks out Datak with a proposition, while Amanda receives a phone call from a mysterious stranger who claims the impossible if Amanda takes care of the problem. While Nolan is mainly distracted with the prisoner, Irisa encounters the woman she attacked in the first episode of the season outside of Defiance and questions arise.
posted by Atreides (9 comments total)

This may have been one of my least favorite episodes this season so far. A over arching story in the form of the spy was basically used to string together all the jumbled bits of the episode: 1) Datak and Stahma moving progressively closer - though I enjoyed her muscle's warning that the crew won't tolerate reconciliation with Datak; 2) The touch off that everyone who has been touched by Irisa's alien device thingy is now being drawn to Defiance for Arkrise; and the biggest "twist" element, 3) Kenya is alive! I really don't know how to respond to this development. Obviously, it could definitely stir things up with Stahma, but otherwise, it seems to setup the opportunity to kick Amanda back out of the Need/Want and into the mayorship when the Votanis Collective takes over the town (It'll happen, TRUST ME.)

There was also more foreshadowing for Nolan and Irisa. For the last few episodes, Nolan has repeatedly been asked by others, "Would you X to Irisa, like you're asking me?" This seems to be telegraphing that in the season finale, Nolan will have to make some kind of choice regarding Irisa. Do we really have a good idea of what Arkrise is? The activation of the super weapon to conquer the earth?

Last points: William Atherton, woefully used in this episode. Nolan has no problem torturing someone, not surprising. The manner in which Berlin brushes off Stahma's reveal that she's been sleeping with Nolan, "It's just sex." Tommy in an E-Republic uniform, it did look good. Awful point - Amanda in Ywell's office. Ywell should have caught on.
posted by Atreides at 6:21 PM on August 9, 2014

I don't like Amanda's sister returned. It undermines the picture of Stahma that the show spent so much time telling. Plus the big threat rang hollow. The possible victims were just too far away and unknown. And once more, the ER soldiers are absent when something is happening. In their own damn jail cell.

Stahma outing Berlin was great and Berlin's "we're just having lots of sex" was terrific.

Stahma and Datak going at it? That was sexy. (Sookie and Bill, take note.)

The kids didn't show this ep and that helped, a lot.
posted by Ik ben afgesneden at 6:30 PM on August 9, 2014 [2 favorites]

I think Amanda sold the scene with Doc Ywell. Her reason for wanting the drugs were slightly plausible. The kind of thing Amanda would do to score drugs.
posted by Ik ben afgesneden at 6:37 PM on August 9, 2014

Isn't this this the exact title of a Buffy episode?
posted by Ik ben afgesneden at 8:44 PM on August 9, 2014

Amanda's attempt to score was TOO obvious. I'm surprised Ywell didn't suspect an endgame there.

However the whole episode I kept yelling "how the hell is Kenya alive?!"
posted by miss-lapin at 6:19 AM on August 10, 2014

However the whole episode I kept yelling "how the hell is Kenya alive?!"

I suspect they will tell us next episode. This did not lessen my own grumbling about the matter, either.

Isn't this this the exact title of a Buffy episode?

You were super close. It's an Angel episode title. (I had to look it up, myself).
posted by Atreides at 6:52 AM on August 10, 2014 [2 favorites]

P.S. Here's the description of that episode from IMDB:

"Cordy returns from being a Higher Power and Team Angel is thrilled to see her. Unfortunately, she has amnesia and can't remember anything about her life or the monsters that she deals with on a daily basis. Meanwhile, Wolfram & Hart learns that she's back among the corporeal and decides to see what she might know about life on the Higher Plane. "

Inside joke among the writers? "Hey, bringing Kenya back makes me think of that time Cordy came back on Angel...."
posted by Atreides at 6:53 AM on August 10, 2014 [1 favorite]

There are so MANY potential Buffy/Angel jokes on this show, but then I love the Buffyverse so I am always happy with more Buffy.

One thing I said to a friend was "Does Defiance seem to you like Firefly 2.0?" Kenya as the companion, Nolan as Capt tight pants, Ywell as Simon Tam, Irisa as River Tam, Amanda as a political Zooey, and I am still working on Jayne, Wash, and Kaylee. (Kaylee incidentally was on s3 and 4 of the killing!)
posted by miss-lapin at 10:23 AM on August 10, 2014 [1 favorite]

Isn't this this the exact title of a Buffy episode?

It's a reference to The Second Coming by William Butler Yeats. This and Angel aren't the only genre shows to use it to refer to upcoming changes to the status quo. In this case I assume that Irzu is the beast whose hour has come at last and is waiting to be born.
posted by Uncle Ira at 11:22 AM on August 10, 2014 [3 favorites]