A change in personnel at Ground Control is the trigger for the normally unflappable Lu to lose her cool, causing more issues for the crew as they continue their voyage.

Picking up Lu as this episode’s focus for some background exploration, the show makes a big deal out of the one fact about her which has been very obvious from episode 1 when Mei Chen is removed from Capcom and reassigned, leaving her spot to be taken by Jack Wilmore. Lu takes this news rather more badly than the rest of the crew for several painfully obvious reasons, and while the others write it off as nothing, it bugs Green enough to try to ask her about it. This will prove important as events unfold.

Because it turns out that despite being set in a reasonably utopian future where mobile phone service is so amazing it can call deep space instantly (when I can barely get signal to call my in-laws less than a hundred miles away sometimes) and the major world powers have united to forge a path into space for the common good, some things never change. It’s bad enough that the China of this timeline still frowns upon homosexuality enough as to deny it officially. It’s worse that The Russian Stereotype character, who’s been shown to be the closest crew member to Lu, is also a bit of a homophobe, especially after his partial rehabilitation last time out. But to have the other crew members so oddly fascinated by the possibility of a gay colleague as to be gossiping about it among themselves in speculation such that it causes what it causes just rather beggars belief.

Back on Earth, between Matt’s slow recovery and Lex’s struggle to resume a normal life while she worries about him, the show finds time for a little bit more casual (and possibly unintended) ableism by setting the bar for greatness in a child low enough that ‘treats another girl who has Down syndrome with basic dignity’ is the qualifier. Wow. Plus ca change, I guess…

Underneath all this nonsense is basically another bit of emotional grappling, but at least this time someone other than Swank gets to do it. In fact, Vivian Wu and Nadia Hatta steal the screen with a pair of powerhouse performances, both in the flashback scenes detailing their complicated personal/professional relationship and in their present day exchanges. It’s genuinely moving stuff, and unlike most of the show manages to avoid coming off mawkish or overly done at all.

Not to worry though, because the Greens have us covered there, including a particularly egregious bit of dialogue wherein the writers feel we need it spelled out to us that Lex is trying to ‘be’ her mother in looking after Matt. God forbid the audience should draw a conclusion ourselves.

I’ll give it props for having Jack Willbourne ‘do the right thing’ though the move from ‘bitter asshole who likes to get one over on the woman who replaced him’ to ‘genuinely contrite decent man trying to make amends’ is so fast I’m surprised he didn’t fall out of his chair.

Verdict: Troublingly inconsistent (and occasionally borderline offensive) treatment of certain themes don’t quite manage to overshadow a great pair of central performances that, for once, don’t rely solely on Hilary Swank. It’s holding on, for now. 7/10

Greg D. Smith