Orphan Black “Transitory Sacrifices of Crisis” Review (3×02)

“You don’t fight in these conditions. You run.”

This season of Orphan Black is exploring the idea of community, of families in all definitions of the word. In a world that’s all about survival, you have to figure out how to balance the needs of the family and the needs of the individual, and it oftentimes comes down to several incredibly difficult choices; in the end, you’re just hoping everyone makes it out safely, and even though you’d kill to stay with your loved ones, sometimes, letting go is necessary.

Of course, everyone in the Orphan Black universe is caught up in this battle, whether he or she likes it or not. There’s a sense of fatigue permeating the environment, and we get the sense that these people simply want this all to end; after all, the opening scene of the premiere was a fantasy of a warm world without constant danger. Sarah would love to continue playing floor hockey with Cal and Kira, and Mrs. S would love to finally be able to relax for once; as Felix says, however, “you don’t get to sit this one out. None of us do.” Yes, S has “done a lot already”, but there’s still lots to be done. It’s tough to swallow that fact.

It’s also tough to swallow the fact that you might have to let people go in order to save them. With Sarah, she’s advised to “take Kira away” and is told that “Cal’s pretending you can have a life here” (I’m paraphrasing). In addition, when Facial Hair Paul shows up later and confronts Cal with a gun, he ends with his own piece of advice: in reference to Sarah, he says that “you need to get her out of here, Cal.” Fighting as a team–as a family–is a great feeling, but once again, survival comes into play at the forefront.

In terms of the Seth-Rudy storyline, there’s another tough decision to be made. Sarah asks Rudy at the end: “Is this what this is about? Protecting your brother?” The male and female clones are extremely different kinds of people, but the sense of connection between them are similar. When Rudy ends up firing two bullets into Seth’s chest at the end, he’s not exactly “saving” him in the life sense of the word, but he’s sparing him from pain. He’s essentially protecting his brother, and as tough as the decision must be, he does it because of the connection they share. Sometimes, letting go is necessary, and once that happens, the real fight begins.

GRADE: B+

OTHER THOUGHTS:

-Cal, Sarah, and Kira playing floor hockey is a wonderful sight to see.

-It’s tough watching Helena–or anyone, for that matter–get waterboarded, but Helena’s still very entertaining to watch.

– “Fist me! Fist me!” “Fist you?”

– “Yeah. Don’t doubt our stones. We have ample stones.” I really want to see Donnie and Alison go all Breaking Bad on this. They’re going to be the only ones left standing after all is said and done.

-The woman from the opening scene: “I didn’t sign up for this!” Yeah, tell that to pretty much every single character in the show.

– “I met your brother. He was ugly.”

-Damn, that closeup of the burn at the end.

Photo credit: BBC America, Orphan Black

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