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Roswell, New Mexico: Black Hole Sun

“We’re out of time.”

If Roswell titles weren’t named after 90s hits, this one should have been called The Road to Hell. Everyone, with one notable exception, has such good intentions, but their secrets are barreling out of their hidey-holes, wreaking as much havoc as possible. Realistically, did we expect anything less?

I take it back. There is one person with nothing to hide. Given the number of brain cells she’s destroyed, Maria has no time for games. She invites everyone in the “here be aliens” club to help solve the soon-to-be murder. Unfortunately, in a classic case of Group Think, they jump to the conclusion the victim is Michael.

Like Alex, I’m not buying it. Mainly because he’s one of the leads and the show’s been picked up for a fourth season. I also find it interesting that Maria tells the group more about the vision than we ever got to see. However, given the amount of ground this show covers, I can see The Powers That Be not wanting to waste time repeating information. But I digress.

The other reason Maria, unlike Kyle, can afford to be so honest is she has no Hippocratic oath to maintain. She spills the beans about the upcoming murder and Max’s health condition to Liz at the first opportunity. Luckily, she is a font of information for all parties and gives Max the heads up that his secret is out of the bag.

Speaking of Kyle, Isobel is right. They have all treated that man poorly, and he needs to put himself first. It’s obvious no one else will. Between his father, the Manes family, and his friendship with Liz, he never had a chance of escaping alien secrets. That doesn’t mean he needs to be defined by them. Regrettably, nothing will change until he decides what he wants out of life. And I don’t think hearing his dead father through the radio is bound to help matters.

As much as I love the idea of Max and Liz, I’m glad the two of them are not together. They both have some growing up to do. Liz is a genius with the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives. And she bulldozes her way through anything and anyone in pursuit of that goal, no matter how much she cares about them. Max is the opposite. He’ll sacrifice everything for the people he cares about, including his life. Neither is a particularly healthy approach. Liz made the first step by admitting she was wrong, but Max’s fear of Mr. Jones kept him from telling her everything. Then again, he had good reasons to be afraid.

While I imagine most of what Jones said was true (the best lies always are), it’s clear he kept a boatload of information to himself. Besides, the way Jones played each member of our alien trio makes me wonder if he’s the Empath. He laced the tidbits he fed Isobel about her mother and the truths about her abilities with a healthy dose of fear and paranoia. “Max and Michael are drifting apart” and they are “destined to leave her.” If Isobel got past her abandonment issues, she could focus on more important things, like whether Jones is lying. If only she could sense his emotions...

Jones stokes Michael’s anger, which is never difficult. It’s even easier when the idea of Michael as the Dictator’s son plays into his belief that he’s a monster who deserves to die. Thank God Alex was there to burst Michael’s bubble. I’m not sure how much of Alex’s argument broke through Michael’s emotional barricade, but it’s more than anyone else could have done.

I was willing to take the charitable view that Jones didn’t know his psychic tether was making Max sick. After all, his only purpose on Earth is “to protect Max,” right? That story would hold a lot more water if Jones hadn’t riled Max up to where he shorted out the alien cage and then left Max locked up and unconscious.

Sidebar: As soon as Jones said the turquoise was an amplifier, I was convinced he would use one (or more) of the rocks to escape the cage. Boy, was I wrong.

Lest we forget, in a matter of days (weeks?), Alex has left the Air Force and joined Deep Sky, the “paramilitary murderers” he railed against in the first episode. I’m thrilled to see Alex finally defining himself on his own terms and not in relation to his father. It’s about time. However, does anyone believe Deep Sky was founded to discover humanity’s untapped potential or answer the secrets of the universe? The Lockhart Machine isn’t the only thing whose purpose might be for good or evil.

The one thing I’m not sure of is how Roswell’s Regiment fits in to our alien shenanigans. It’s taken up way too much screen time for its only purpose to be proof of Wyatt’s transformation. Then again, it could just be The Powers That Be pointing out our country’s systemic racism the way they used Arturo to discuss US immigration policy last season. Regardless, it explains Anatsa’s investigation of both the increase in racially motivated crimes and the Sheriff. Neither has to do with Valenti.

If the fate of humanity (or at least our little band of friends in Roswell) depends on our alien trio, the outlook is not good. Everyone’s secrets may be out in the open, but the air has not cleared. Michael is mad at Izzy for rooting around in his brain and broadcasting his feelings. Max is pissed that Michael and Isobel freed Jones without telling him. And now there’s an evil Max Evans doppelganger roaming around Roswell, which can’t be good. That said, Jones didn’t take Max’s uniform. He must have other plans.

4 out of 5 turquoise amplifiers

Parting Thoughts:

Soundgarden released "Black Hole Sun" in 1994.

In case you were wondering, The Men Who Stare At Goats was more than just a movie.

In another episode of “The More You Know,” the abyss gazing quote is actually a play on a quote by Nietzsche.

Gregory and Maria don’t need Alex’s permission, but I’m glad they have it.

I have a stupid question. If Deep Sky is such a covert operation, where does Alex pretend to work? Presumably, he still needs to pay rent or at least taxes.

So Jones is the reason Max came back to life in last year’s finale? Interesting...

Quotes:

Kyle: “Liz is going to hate me. And she’s also going to hate you, but you’ll be dead, so what do you care?”

Isobel: “The ET tuning fork wound up in the New Mexico desert, how exactly?”

Gregory: “I considered not helping you because you are a strong woman.”
Maria: “No, you can lift my keg anytime.”

Kyle: “Success at any cost has a cost.”

Alex: “This was Dad’s favorite activity. A little popcorn.”
Gregory: “A little xenophobia about aliens.”

Rosa: “Max is 100% responsible for what Max did. And so are you.”

Michael: “Maybe if you guys stopped hitting each other, you wouldn’t need four guys to commit one hate crime.”

Max: “What did he tell you?”
Michael: “What we’ve always known. I’m the tyrant. You’re the savior.”

Alex: “If you’re your father, then I’m mine. Which means I have a lot of torturing to do before the end of the night, so excuse me.”

Alex: “If it were you, I would not cover it up. I would burn the entire world down first.”

Max: “I should have found you earlier I just had things on my mind, so...”
Liz: “Like someone getting murdered or your heart failing?”

Max: “I choose them. I choose her.”

Shari loves sci-fi, fantasy, supernatural, and anything with a cape.

4 comments:

  1. The title reminded me of Chris Cornell and now I'm sad all over.
    And yes, Liz needs to grow some boundaries. Max should keep away from her.

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  2. At the moment I don't think Max or Liz are good for each other. Liz needs to take other people into consideration before she does the crazy science and Max needs to stop putting everyone else first. Unfortunately, neither of those things are likely to happen while Max is still on death's door.

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  3. Cracking episode (and review). So glad this show has already been renewed for s4. I didn't anyone was watching it.

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  4. Glad you enjoyed the episode as much as I did. And I was happy to hear about the 4th season pickup. Unlike a lot of shows on the CW, this show has been fairly consistent throughout its run. I have no reason to think it won't continue.

    And thanks for the compliment.

    ReplyDelete

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