‘Defiance’ 2.06 Episode Recap and Review: This Woman’s Work

Viceroy Mercado is back in Defiance with news of a coming Arkfall. He wants Pottinger to take a team (specifically including Nolan) to retrieve an energy source from the Ark. Nolan’s preferred team consists of himself, Tommy, and… Berlin? Nope! Don’t think so. Tommy explains that he told Irisa to stay home, since his ex and his current don’t get along too well. Nolan grounds Tommy, citing that Ark-hunting requires that someone be able to think with the brain that isn’t attached to one’s manly parts. Tommy has a snit and quits the force entirely, with Berlin backing him up. She talks Tommy into signing up with the E-reps so that they can GTFO of Defiance and go to Texas.

Later, Tommy sees Irisa following Random Casti Businessman #2 and catches up to her just in time to witness the brain-sucking. Since he rather lacks a sense of self-preservation (it’s okay, it works for him this time), he agrees to hang out with Irisa to see if her latest victim wakes up the way she says he will. In the midst of their time-killing conversation, we learn that Irisa no longer believes that whatever is inside her is Irzu. (We also get to hear about Tommy and Berlin’s meet-cute, but there are many more important things going on.) The Castithan eventually wakes up, startling the dickens out of Tommy. He makes the choice to request stationing in Defiance in order to help Irisa. When he tells Berlin, she justifiably kicks him to the curb.

Meanwhile, Pottinger, Nolan, Churchill (Pottinger’s bioman), and an entire E-rep regiment have arrived in the general vicinity of the fallen Ark. Nolan takes a team of five (including the only other two named characters) to the Ark itself, virtually ensuring that the two redshirts are going to die painfully and quickly in the next ten minutes. When they get inside, Nolan discovers that the Ark was never a refueling ship in the first place: it’s a Galani transport vessel. Galani are energy creatures that can only exist inside special environmental suits. (Think Vorlons, but less cryptic and more stabby.) Unfortunately for all involved, one Galani survived the crash and got out. By the time Nolan, Pottinger, and Churchill return to camp, she’s already killed the entire unit.

Nolan, Pottinger, and Churchill go back to the ship to improvise a weapon to save their own hides. Pottinger sends Churchill out on a suicide mission to distract the Galani and give them a few more minutes to finish the trap. It works, and Nolan lets Pottinger do the Galani-killing honors “for Churchill.”

When they return to Defiance, Viceroy Mercado is not amused. He gives Pottinger marching orders out to the Dakota Reach mag lev as punishment for failing in what could have been a politically advantageous mission. Now Mercado is going to take over the town. Oh, goodie.

Nolan is chatting up Amanda in the Need/Want when she has to break off the conversation to console a now seriously depressed Pottinger. He’s then approached by Berlin, who seems to be out looking for a drink and a spot of trouble. They have copious amounts of what I can only assume is revenge sex. Ain’t nobody going to be happy about this.

At various points in the episode, the Viceroy, Amanda, and Ho-jay from last episode all make some reference to “stepping outside their skin,” which turns out to be code for a secret, underground, alien cosplay bar. Mercado is really into the scene, while Ho-jay convinces Christie to try it out in order to better understand the family that she’s married into. Once there, a Casti-fied Mercado starts flirting with the equally Casti-fied Christie. I’ll be interested to see how this plays out in later episodes.

Speaking of Castithans and their customs, Stahma has finally come up against a bit of a wall in her bid for personal freedom. The local holy man, Favi Kurr, wants to see Stahma on a shaming rack for usurping her husband’s place. Surprisingly, Datak had nothing to do with the public verbal attack, but he sure is giddy to hear that it happened.

Stahma goes to Amanda, who seems to be her one actual friend in town. Amanda tells her about the human history of women’s lib, then advises her to talk to the other Casti wives and see if she can start a grassroots movement. Stahma does just that, inviting some of the Castithan wives (including Favi Kurr’s wife) to a sewing circle. Mrs. Kurr makes it starkly clear that neither she nor the other wives in attendance will support what Stahma’s been trying to do. Stahma falls back to plan B – poisoning the sewing circle with “special tea.”

The second half of plan B involves spreading the rumor that Mrs. Kurr and the other wives had been discussing women’s lib. Therefore, their deaths are blamed on Favi Kurr, who is then stretched and killed on the shaming rack, himself. I’m honestly not sure whether Datak was afraid or turned on during that whole scene. Possibly both.

So I’m assuming the whole Berlin/Nolan thing is the opening gambit in a larger scheme on Berlin’s part, otherwise that didn’t make a lick of sense. I mean, I get the revenge aspect of boning your ex’s former boss and the Other Woman’s father figure, but surely there was something more to it than that, right? Berlin’s pretty intelligent. I need to know that there were other wheels turning in that scene.

I’m also kind of fascinated by the alien cosplay bar. By the way the other characters were handling it, it seems to be either illegal or, at the very least, a taboo. Jesse Rath told us at Comic Con that Alak really loves Christie’s humanity. Do you think this will drive a wedge between the two?

Things to Ponder:

• Is Pottinger actually gone now, or is the Dakota Reach mission just a couple of weeks?
• Who or what is actually possessing Irisa?
• I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure cream makeup doesn’t provide the fantastically smooth coverage that Casti-Christie achieved. Ah well…