{"id":4300,"date":"2014-12-18T08:00:07","date_gmt":"2014-12-18T16:00:07","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/?p=4300"},"modified":"2014-12-09T11:14:31","modified_gmt":"2014-12-09T19:14:31","slug":"mark-watches-the-sarah-connor-chronicles-s02e01-samson-delilah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/markwatches.net\/reviews\/2014\/12\/mark-watches-the-sarah-connor-chronicles-s02e01-samson-delilah\/","title":{"rendered":"Mark Watches ‘The Sarah Connor Chronicles’: S02E01 – Samson & Delilah"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the first episode of the second season of\u00c2\u00a0The Sarah Connor Chronicles<\/i>, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m fucked up, you\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re fucked up, everything is fucked up. Intrigued? Then it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s time for Mark to watch\u00c2\u00a0The Sarah Connor Chronicles<\/i>.<\/p>\n

Jesus, what a ride\u00c2\u00a0that<\/i> was.<\/p>\n

This was a bold and incredible way to open up this season, and it signals a massive shift in the storytelling. The focus is changing for John Connor, for the arc of season 2, FOR MY OWN PERSONAL WELL-BEING. And lord, this is going to be so much fun.<\/p>\n

Ellison<\/b><\/p>\n

While I am desperate for him to have a larger role this season, I actually liked that his presence here was so serene. Ellison has just witnessed the most traumatic thing in his life, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s shaken, so much so that he sort of drifts from scene-to-scene, constantly unable to process how much his worldview has been destroyed. At the very least, he knows that he is alone. The only other person who might have believed him at the FBI \u00e2\u20ac\u201c Greta Simpson \u00e2\u20ac\u201c is now dead. He can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t explain the true course of events to his superiors, and he can\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t find solace in his faith or in any other person. I think that this is all done to give us this subtle parallel between Ellison and John Connor. Both of them realize how\u00c2\u00a0lonely<\/i> this world has become because of their experiences with different Terminators, and I feel like \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Samson & Delilah\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is a quiet acceptance on their part of the destiny that sits before them. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a lot more obvious for John, but I think Ellison is going to use his power at the FBI to continue pursuing this.<\/p>\n

Catherine Weaver<\/b><\/p>\n

Look, there are a lot of spectacular things in this episode, but giving us Shirley Manson as a goddamn T-1000 Terminator is perhaps the most incredible thing in the universe. I LOVE EVERYTHING ABOUT IT. I love that we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t actually understand her purpose aside from knowing that her interest in the Turk\u00c2\u00a0feels<\/i> sinister. I love that she gives that entire monologue about humanity, and it makes her seem like a cold and calculating CEO AND INSTEAD IT\u00e2\u20ac\u2122S ACTUALLY FORESHADOWING HER REAL IDENTITY\u00c2\u00a0OH MY GOD<\/i>. I love that after that one dude says something misogynistic about her, SHE TRANSFORMS FROM A URINAL INTO HER HUMAN FORM AND THEN KILLS HIM. I have no idea what her purpose here is, I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t understand how she was able to become head of this business, and I don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t know how long she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s infiltrated our world. DOES SHE KNOW ABOUT JOHN CONNOR? What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s her endgame? Is she actually creating Skynet? Oh, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122m just so excited, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all.<\/p>\n

John and Cameron, Samson and Delilah<\/b><\/p>\n

I was so upset, y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all. I was so upset for most of this episode because I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d grown to like Cameron so much, and then the show reminds me that she is a literal killing machine, and I had to accept that this might be it for her. Summer Glau is BRILLIANT throughout this episode, portraying a range of emotions we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve never seen in Cameron. Initially, though, we have to watch in horror as her programming is reset to default mode after her chip is damaged in the explosion. I loved that they made her\u00c2\u00a0physically<\/i> broken as well, since the visual imagery of her torn face was so striking. That\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s one aspect of this that I did appreciate: practically everyone was physically harmed in this massive fight, and their injuries aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t ignored.<\/p>\n

While \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Samson & Delilah\u00e2\u20ac\u009d is largely a frightening cat-and-mouse game between Cameron and the Connors, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the moral and emotional beats present within this that made this episode feel so monumental. Like the audience, John has to navigate his own complicated feelings about Cameron; it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s clear he has an affectation for her, and he also knows that she possesses information about them that could get\u00c2\u00a0everyone<\/i> killed. So he and his mother do what they can to trap Cameron, all in the hopes of removing the chip. AND I GENUINELY THOUGHT THEY\u00e2\u20ac\u2122D GET IT RIGHT ON THE FIRST TRY, BUT\u00c2\u00a0NOPE<\/i>. What\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s so scary about this is that we are never allowed to believe that Cameron won\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t destroy them. That whole fight sequence in the Los Angeles River drains (a nice callback to\u00c2\u00a0T2<\/i>) perfectly demonstrated Cameron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s abilities and her willingness to be cruel.\u00c2\u00a0This is what they do<\/i>. And this character we\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d grown to like is perfectly capable of being just like Cromartie and every other Terminator in this fictional universe.<\/p>\n

So what\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s the solution to this? Look, I\u00e2\u20ac\u2122ve seen shows kill off a major character in a season premiere, so I believed that this was entirely possible. Plus, that seemed like the only solution! They\u00c2\u00a0had<\/i> to kill Cameron because the information she possessed was so vital. As if I needed to question my moral stance any more than I already was, the writers decide to unleash the most unfair scene imaginable on us: Cameron begging John not to remove the chip because she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s \u00e2\u20ac\u0153fixed\u00e2\u20ac\u009d AND HER FACE IS SO UNFAIR, AND\u00c2\u00a0WAS THAT A REAL MOMENT OR A TRICK<\/i>? Regardless, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s still an unsettling sequence because it really\u00c2\u00a0did<\/i> look real. Is that the sort of emotional capacity that Cameron has? Did she really believe her \u00e2\u20ac\u0153life\u00e2\u20ac\u009d was about to end?<\/p>\n

When John does eventually decide to repair Cameron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s chip and to resurrect her in defiance of Derek and Sarah, it signals his change. Well, I should point out that it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s not\u00c2\u00a0just<\/i> this decision that influences him. In that stunning filmed\/edited opening sequence, we find out that\u00c2\u00a0someone<\/i> killed Sarkissian. WITH THEIR BARE HANDS. I was ready to type that Sarah was responsible, but now that I think about it, we don\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t actually get to see who killed that man. It seemed obvious to me, given Sarah\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s emotional state at the end of the episode, that she\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d finally killed another person and was upset because of it. (Good god, Lena Headey, how are you real? WHY DON’T YOU HAVE A MILLION AWARDS JUST FOR YOUR FACE ACTING ALONE?) Was John so cold to her\u00c2\u00a0because<\/i> that\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s what he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122d witnessed? I think that makes a lot of sense, and I think it could also explain his defiance to Sarah, too.<\/p>\n

While I stick to that theory, I think it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s important regardless that this signifies John Connor becoming\u00c2\u00a0the<\/i> John Connor in the future. This is the first major decision he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s made all on his own, and he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s committed to it. The way the entire thing is framed establishes a visual separation between John and the adults, and I feel like it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s a fantastic way to outright state that John is not a child anymore. He is not there to take orders from others; he\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s ready to make them on his own. I\u00c2\u00a0loved<\/i> the reference to Samson having his hair cut off here, though it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s John who cuts off his own hair in the end. After betrayal, John finds strength instead of having it taken away from him. And part of that strength? It\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s in the very person who betrayed him.<\/p>\n

Y\u00e2\u20ac\u2122all, that episode was so amazing. Holy shit.<\/p>\n

The video for \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Samson & Delilah\u00e2\u20ac\u009d can be downloaded here for $0.99<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Mark Links Stuff<\/b><\/p>\n

– Mark Does Stuff is now on Facebook<\/a>! Feel free to Like the page, which I’m running myself, for updates and SILLINESS.
\n– If you would like to support this website and keep Mark Does Stuff running, I’ve put up a detailed post explaining how you can!<\/a>
\n– Please check out the MarkDoesStuff.com<\/a>. All Mark Watches videos for past shows\/season are now archived there!
\n– My Master Schedule<\/a> is updated for the near and distant future for most projects, so please check it often.\u00c2\u00a0My next two Double Features are now in the schedule! I will be watching <\/b>The Sarah Connor Chronicles<\/i><\/b> and then <\/b>Leverage<\/i><\/b>. <\/b>Commission away!
\n– I will be at quite a few conventions and will be hosting events throughout 2015, so check my Tour Dates \/ Appearances page<\/a> often to see if I’m coming to your city!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"