Orphan Black: The Next Chapter - Episode 2 Review & Recap

***Contains Spoilers***

Orphan Black: The Next ChapterToday Serial Box releases episode two of Orphan Black: The Next Chapter, a continuation of the popular BBC America television series. The second episode is written by Mishell Baker, a different author than the first (written by Malka Older). I liked the idea from the beginning that they were bringing in other writers, as they often do with episodes of television series, but I was afraid it would not blend well together. Thankfully it does, and it feels like one complete story.

I was really happy to have more characters from the original series return, especially Alison. The author has her down to a T. I always loved the show, and as likely most people reading the series, I am doing so to read about the original characters’ adventures rather than just about the universe of the show.

I love how the story continues to feel like it’s just another episode of the series. The idea of weaving in evidence from the case that started a lot of the problems for the clones is a cool idea, and the border patrol really raises the stakes.

The new character of the investigator introduced in the episode is also interesting. I know that she could become a problem digging into old cases that could potentially lead her to the clones, but for some reason I feel that she could be a positive asset to them, now that Art is no longer on the force. Only time will tell which she is.

I also liked Sturgis more this episode and found myself chuckling at his inability to stay under the radar. I can envision him easily. I’m curious what part he will play if he does make it to the end.

I’m also excited to see what will happen now that Vivi told Arjun about her doppelgängers. That could either turn out to be a blessing or a very bad idea.

More than anything though, I can’t wait for Vivi to talk to her sisters and learn the truth.

I admit that it’s hard only getting a bit of the story at a time, but I actually really like the idea of “episodes,” because it will make the story last longer, and it also gives you time to digest the new information each week.

If you haven’t already purchased the series, I suggest you do so and stay tuned for episode three.

RECAP

Sergeant Jaysara Priyantha of the RCMP investigates the explosion at GRIT. The evidence is scattered because of the blast and the rain. They found blood at the scene but no body. She assumes it belongs to Sturgis, but has it sent for analysis. It’s unclear if he was the target or even if it was deliberate. It could be a bomb set by extremists, but since it wasn’t in a public area during the day and there was no manifesto, she doesn’t think it’s likely. She thinks it was premeditated; it looks like some file drawers were emptied before the explosion. If it was a bomb, it was also placed perfectly to wipe out electronic data. They also had no luck recovering security footage.

Jay gets the results of the blood in a text message: it matches Katja Obinger.

Delphine leaves for the BioThreat meeting. She and her wife are both a bit snippy. She promises to find out what she can and asks Cosima not to get involved in what’s going on.

After she leaves, Cosima gets a text from her neice Kira saying she’s safe but to “be cool.”

She decides even if she isn’t supposed to become involved in GRIT, she could at least send some money to the sick clone until they figure out what to do, but the webpage is gone.

Cosima gets a call from Sturgis, telling her that he’s alive and needs to talk to her. She agrees to meet him at the Happy Helix pub. He’s very bad at being inconspicuous.

At the meeting, they are arguing over whether to stick to the original agenda and discuss the threat posed by Giles Sauveterre’s Quebcois separatist group or to talk about the GRIT explosion. Lieutenant-General Eloise Thibault thinks it’s connected and that his group are the perpetrators.

Delphine questions about Sturgis and the men at the meeting aren’t happy she’s giving her input.

Ignoring her, one of the men talk about the border security element. They have evidence that Sauveterre was in Toronto meeting with known agents of the extremist anti-biotech group 46Pure. They have members in at least three countries. He wants them to implement biometric screenings at the borders to keep track of them to make sure they don’t come in or escape.

After Delphine interrupts again, the men decide they don’t want her to stay at the meeting, because she is a civilian. She’s not happy but leaves.

Thibault leaves the meeting and stops her. She agrees that she shouldn’t be there for the sensitive information, because it’s true she is a civilian, but she thinks they do need an ethics consultant, unlike most of the men. She tells Delphine if she needs her, to “use” her. It’s unclear to Delphine if she is flirting with her. She agrees to at least give her a briefing of what she can later, if she meets her at the café across the street.

At the pub, Cosima meets with Sturgis; he’s scared. She doesn’t want to be involved in what’s going on, but he says she’s the only link he has to all of it who isn’t trying to kill him. He tells her about her doppelgänger spy who almost broke his arm.

She just wants to know how he knows what she is and who else knows. He doesn’t think his bosses do. When he started to doubt their motives, he kind of went rogue and contacted a very highly placed friend, which he now realizes was probably a bad idea, but what he showed him led to him researching DYAD. He had suspicions, but they weren’t confirmed until the identical spy showed up.

Cosima thinks at first it could be Helena, but after he describes her, she says she doesn’t know her.

She questions that he said he didn’t mean to hurt anyone and gets him to admit what he did. He tells her he found a way to customize phases (types of DNA) to any bacterial sample, which would make antibiotics obsolete, but his bosses realized that it could apply to viruses as well, which they could use to target anyone by a genetic marker: a biological weapon that could cause a designer plague.

He gets scared and says that if anything happens to him, he’s kept what she needs close to his chest and tells her cryptically to look for the platinum under his arm. He leaves before she can figure out what he means.

Cosima calls Charlotte and tells her about Sturgis and also that the webpage disappeared, but Charlotte remembers the sick clone was at the Lydia Folger Fowler Hospital. She tells Cosima that she should go there with Delphine to vaccinate her. When she shoots that down, she suggests she let her go herself, and Cosima eventually agrees - if someone accompanies her.

Meanwhile Art Bell is at the CBSA’s lake office having left the force. Jay comes to see him. Obinger’s blood lead her to one of his old cases, but they’re sealed. Art doesn’t know what to do, but obviously is worried about helping her. He tells her that he’s tried to forget about what happened during that time of his life, and to give him an hour to jog his memory. She agrees.

Vivi has been hurt by glass but has stitched her leg up. She is staking out Cosima’s neighborhood when she sees a minivan pull into the drive and Alison get out. She has another memory-flash about “pretend Vivis.”

She sees Charlotte come out of the house and notices she also looks a lot alike. Neither of them are her age, so readers may be supposed to infer she is twenty-eight like the sick clone, but it’s not confirmed.

Vivi follows them to the airport, and on the way, she calls Arun and tells him about the biological weapon she thinks is called TAG and about the women who look like her. He says he’ll look into the doppelgänger thing.

Meanwhile, Kira shows up at the headquarters of the nonprofit GeneKeep that she wants to volunteer at, which will help her get into a top college. She meets Emmaline Francis, the Junior Community Liaison, who gives her a tour, and they hit it off.

At the Pearson airport, Alison and Charlotte wait in line, and it’s taking forever. While waiting, Charlotte finally answers Art, whose texts she has been ignoring. He tells her how they found Katja’s blood and that he wants her to stay away from the house in case Jay shows up randomly. He tells her to have all the clones lay low and warns that they are doing cheek swabs at security checkpoints to find DNA matches to Katja or the separatists they are trying to pin the bombing on.

After hanging up, she tells Alison and they leave the line, only to be shocked by running right into none other than Vivi, who is being led by a security guard. Alison isn’t sure if he is detaining her or keeping her from falling down as she is pale and bleeding. The guard is stunned to see a lookalike, so Vivi uses it as a distraction to run away. Alison yells that her “sister” stole her ID, so he runs after the other clone. Allison and Charlotte head to the exit.

Charlotte questions to herself how she is supposed to carry on a normal life, let alone save a dying clone, if the feds are hunting for her DNA.

Latest Articles