This weeks episode takes us on a flashback as well, but this time its eight years ago, and in Chicago. That’s right, we’re diving into the past of the Reeva Page. It’ll be interesting getting some character knowledge on her as she’s presented as never giving much away. We witness her standing her ground in a community group meeting trying to decide on the best way to make an impact. She disagrees with knocking door to door kicking humans out of their houses, saying “how is that going to make them less afraid of us?” Similar to Jace’s backstory, it’s a leading flashback. She then talks about things with the leader outside the building, purifiers arrive (or at least anti-mutant radicals) and threaten them both, before attacking her friend, who after damaging one with her powers, gets stabbed and bleeds to death in front of Reeva. This was, we can assume the beginning of her molding herself into the stoic, cold and unfeeling creature that she is in the present day.
We see Lorna (Polaris) making a huge show of trust when she asks Esme to mind her child while she goes on the mission, granted, Esme has to take herself off the mission, but this is a juggernaut-sized deal, holding out an olive branch this big is something it would be very hard to say no to. Given its implications.
Jace gets summoned for a meeting ‘from above’, the highest rank there is within the Purifiers, he’s also mandated to get tested for any X gene that could be lurking in his system, even though Jace previously worked for Sentinel Services (and logically would have been extensively tested) he has to do it again. What it is, is a meeting with the newscaster that’s been following each story ‘Peter Gallagher’ who opposes mutant rights and supports everything xenophobic. They want Jace to come on their show, tell of the failings of Sentinel Services and get a ‘message’ out to the public. He initially disagrees and walks out but all too damn quickly he’s easily manipulated into it.
Reed Strucker’s condition is getting worse and worse. He’s lost all control of switching this power on or off and is at its mercy constantly. I’ve got a hypothesis that him learning to control his power is gonna be pretty similar to Esme in Frozen, fear will worsen it, love/acceptance will quell it.
We find out who the mystery person that Reeva had been messaging was…. As she ends up on a dinner date with him, in a very un-Reeva like manner, actually behaves like a real human being. Quite surprising, humanizing. Purposeful. Quite a nice little use of a cinematic trick, humanizing the perceived ‘enemy’ before witnessing them doing something even worse, and more unimaginable. We witness a real human connection between Reeva and her dinner date.. until she lures him into Esme and her sister’s thrall. He happens to work for a company that does business with the corporation that’s their next target.
He’s their foot in the door. They make quite a Femme Fatale appearance (well.. including Andy..)
After having successfully infiltrated the building and everyone playing/ doing their part perfectly, Rebecca stumbles and is momentarily unable to do hers, Andy reminds her the think about what was done to her in the hospital, think about every single time she’s been hurt, beaten, tortured, medicated, and use it, use the swell of emotion to her advantage.
Things go considerably questionably… throughout the episode (and partially in previous episodes) we begin to wonder how dangerous and volatile Rebecca really is. This episode in particular, throughout the entire mission we see her wanting to cause more destruction, injure more people, something Andy is very obviously not on board with. Nor are Lorna or Reeva, this mission has been planned with military-like precision, all of the consequences and benefits of it have been thought out and projected onto furthering the cause of the Inner Circle, and projecting a certain image and message to the world. Though the initial purpose of the mission (Data gathering and access to the files that the company has) the murder of countless people in that room undoes everything that the Inner Circle has created for itself in regard to public opinion and support. Rebecca literally blows this up, when at the end of the mission, she wants to kill one or many of the people locked in the room. Reeva and everyone involved tell her it’s not the plan and not their way, she agrees. Before turning back and decimating a room of dozens of people.
To the horror of everyone, she’s with. An interesting way to end the episode… the fallout will have to be examined in next weeks installment.
