The Man in the High Castle: The New Normal

December 14, 2015 1:06 PM - Season 1, Episode 5

Juliana returns home, only to discover new clues that lead her closer to unraveling the mystery behind the films. Meanwhile, Joe faces a tough debriefing upon his return home. Kido begins his investigation into the events surrounding the Crown Prince's speech, while Tagomi and Wegener make a last-ditch attempt to complete their mission.

I thought this was an interesting episode, as the tension around the Tagomi/Wegener mission becomes really key, at the same time as Joe's loyalties are being questioned by Smith.

posted by Happy Dave (4 comments total)

Tagomi/Wgener really made this episode for me. Tagomi is one of my favorite characters after this episode - I could watch a smash cut of just his thoughtful stoicism.

I was really frustrated with Joe and Juliana's communication in this episode. He could have just told her what he did and about his sister's death or the assassination. They are both involved in various subversive actions and it seems like keeping that from each other will be more dangerous than helpful.

Juliana's interview - gross. I thought that's where they were going with Mr. Eto and I hoped to be wrong. I'm glad she fled the room though. Gross.

Kido starts to seem more interesting at this point. I find it especially intriguing how involved he is in day-to-day investigations for someone who is so high level. I mean, maybe he's personally working the two biggest cases his department has but even if they're the most important work, you don't usually see the head dude doing gumshoe work. Oh, it's also around this point that I started to wonder when did Kido piss in Tagomi's cereal? Those two just hate each other. It's so passive aggressive and subtle though. I love it.

Joe's debrief was intense and I really like Smith's style here. He goes from the intense debrief to inviting Joe over for the celebration. It feels like a trap but Joe really can't get out of it gracefully.
posted by toomanycurls at 11:01 PM on December 14, 2015 [2 favorites]

Frank can't tell Juliana. That's the tragedy.
He's protecting her from the knowledge he has of things. He's a self-contained man of few words
posted by otherchaz at 4:30 AM on December 15, 2015

Nothing could be more heartbreaking than Frank's sad puppy face, except the way Juliana's interview ended.

Does anyone else get a young Brad Pitt vibe from Frank? I can't shake it when I look at him, which isn't necessarily a bad thing...
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 8:13 AM on December 15, 2015 [1 favorite]

It feels like a trap but Joe really can't get out of it gracefully.

Except I think Joe maneuvered that invite. He was about to leave the room but he turned around and zeroed in on the file that Smith was taking home for the weekend. I couldn't read the title though, crappy resolution on my laptop. Likewise I couldn't tell whose photograph that was when Juliana went to the police station.

Yes, young Brad Pitt and she's got that Kate Middleton hair thing going on. Did she do the deed or not? I guess we'll find out in the next ep if she's working there.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 1:54 AM on January 11, 2016