Mark Watches ‘Sense8’: S02E04 – Polyphony

In the fourth episode of the second season of Sense8, EVERYTHING IS HAPPENING ALL THE TIME. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Sense8. 

There are so many moments I want to dig into in “Polyphony,” so I’m just gonna jump into it. 

Escape

I said this on video, and I’m certain I’ve said a version of this before, but I truly, truly will not tire of watching the cluster work together to solve a problem. It’s not just that this cast is fantastic, or that the writing is so electrifying. I am obsessed with the way this show is edited, and the editing is absolutely a part of the storytelling. The show is able to communicate so much with the rapid cuts that intersperse each of the sensates into a scene. IT IS POETRY, I LOVE IT SO MUCH. And I love that Lito’s dramatic talents were used to get Will out of the museum. INCREDIBLE. 

Kala

I’ll address the protest montage/cluster scene in a bit, so this is more about the continued growth of Kala. I am not sure what role Ajay is going to play at this point, but it’s clear he’s attracted to her. And maybe there’s some reciprocation, but Kala has demonstrated that she’s fiercely loyal to Rajan, that she does feel strongly for him. Even that is a change, since she was not that sure of herself when she first married him. But I also say this because she’s avoided being with Wolfgang BECAUSE of her loyalty to Rajan. So why would she consider anything with this new person? I wonder, then, if the intent here was to give Kala an experience that would cause her to leave the room, to mirror this experience with Wolfgang, and then get her to confront him. God, it’s so forward of her, and I was so thrilled to see what Wolfgang’s response would be to her direct questions. BUT THEN LILA INTERRUPTS THEM. Damn it!!! I wanted to know what he would say!!!

Bug

So, you can clearly see my excitement at the prospect of Nomi telling Bug the truth. My initial take was that she’d feel so relieved! The sensates are required to keep such a huge, all-encompassing secret to themselves, and it’s clear that it weighs heavy on all of them. So, that was my thought! Nomi would finally be able to tell Bug the truth, and he’d be a great resource! He already has been, I should note, but imagine if he knew what he was working toward! Plus, the dude is so ridiculously open-minded that he wouldn’t disbelieve Nomi, you know?

And while his reaction is pretty much exactly what I anticipated, I am now just as worried as Nomi. Was this a good decision? Is he going to blab to someone online? Gods, what happens if Nomi and Amanita do leave the boat, and Bug isn’t kept in check as he is now? UGHHHHHH. I feel like the chase sequence is hinting that Amanita and Nomi really are going to leave, at least to throw off Bendix and to help Nomi feel less trapped. But then what???

Symmetry

Ugh, that scene where two protests—in Kibera over water, and at the temple because of Rajan’s father’s anti-religious laws—are mirrored with one another was so damn stressful! This show doesn’t ignore ramifications, and it’s interesting to see not only how these stories affect individual characters, but how they’re still part of a whole, too. Kala’s husband’s family has caused her a great deal of strife, as has Bendix for Nomi and Amanita. Capheus, on the other hand, is not just used to strife but has long fought against it. One thing I like about Capheus’s characterization is that he always seems willing to find light in the darkness. Because it was a grim situation, and that crowd so quickly turned to a riot. Yet it’s because of his sense of wrong and right that the man who controlled the water truck finally conceded in giving it up. Kala’s near-riot did not end so peacefully, though. And that’s understandable, given what Rajan’s father did and how there’s been no solution offered. The temple really is threatened by that law! 

So I saw this as a chance to grow these characters’ individual story. I saw it as a commentary on the titular concept of “polyphony,” of how multiple aspects work together to shape the whole. Isn’t that exactly what the cluster experience provides? It’s texture; it’s layers; it’s one life laid upon another, twisting a melody around a central theme. 

Puck, Lila, Raoul

So, we’ve got a few leads regarding BPO that are seeded within this episode. The drug that Whispers uses to block out Will is real, and Croome really did give him the actual thing. That suggests that he wasn’t a pawn of Whispers, which has an even more important significance: Croome likely wasn’t lying about the group within BPO that dislikes the changes made to the organization. So, for the interim, Will now has a way to keep Whispers out of his mind. But I’m curious if any more information about the drug will help in tracking down BPO!

And then there’s Lila, who outright confirms that she and her cluster have made some sort of deal with BPO. I don’t know if that means Wolfgang can trust her, but my gut instinct is that Wolfgang shouldn’t trust her with any information about himself. What if her whole mission is to identify and compromise sensates? It’s possible she has her own agenda, that she believes she can work within the organization to take it down. Plus, if that’s the case, she wouldn’t immediately trust Wolfgang either. UGH, I just want to know!

Finally, my heart is BROKEN for Raoul. I don’t think he’s alive any more (didn’t Angelica or Jonas confirm that their cluster is all dead?), and it’s clear his father believes the same thing. I just loved the scenes with Lito and Mr. Pasquale. They were quiet, sad, and terribly intimate. It’s not just because this uprooted so many of Lito’s complicated memories of Raoul; the actor playing Mr. Pasquale is so beautifully talented at giving us a portrait of a father in grief, of a journalist who can’t let go of a story, of a man who has gotten the first glimpse of a light at the end of a very, very dark tunnel. 

So, sterilization? That’s what BPO was testing with? And lord, they used Todd for their tests, the sensate who hated his powers? FUCKED UP. 

Sun

HI, MIN-JUNG IS ONE OF THE BEST SECONDARY CHARACTERS IN THIS WHOLE DAMN SHOW. My heart??? It’s too much??? Min-jung is someone who long ago accepted her fate, so much so that even when she is offered freedom alongside Sun, she refuses it. “What else can they do to me?” she asks Sun, and my heart broke all over AGAIN. I would watch entire show just based on these two escaping from prison and learning how to live a (very complicated) life of freedom again. Just??? Why must you hurt me so?

I also want to note (as I did on video) how incredible that scene of Sun doing yoga was. We’ve seen her do this before, but it was always through the cluster experience. This time, she was outside. In the air. Feeling the sun over her skin. She was free. 

And I can’t wait to see what happens when she finds her brother. IT’S GONNA HAPPEN.

Jonas

So, I’m selfish, and I don’t want Jonah to die because I love Naveen Andrews. I am worried that he will die in the opening of the next episode, though. What purpose does he serve for BPO anymore? They keep getting thwarted when they try to use Jonas to get to Will. So why keep him around anymore? His death could easily torment the cluster, and we’ve seen the joy that Whispers gets from torturing this cluster. But… maybe something or someone will save him??? HELP.

The video for “Polyphony” can be downloaded here for $0.99.

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