S01.E09: Trials

[maraleia]

 

Rachel and Chandler ask for six volunteers to participate in human trials of her vaccine, but the tests could be a living hell as the virus and the vaccine do battle inside their bodies. Meanwhile back in the States, Chandler’s wife and father are doing everything they can to keep their family alive.

 

[ottoDbusdriver]

Rachel and Chandler ask for six volunteers to participate in human trials of her vaccine, but the tests could be a living hell as the virus and the vaccine do battle inside their bodies. Meanwhile back in the States, Chandler’s wife and father are doing everything they can to keep their family alive.

 

Why does this sound like an episode description for 'Friends: The Later Years' ?  Will they remember to preserve recordings of Ross' music ?

[ZoqFotPik]

Why does this sound like an episode description for 'Friends: The Later Years' ?  Will they remember to preserve recordings of Ross' music ?

I've been watching this show from the beginning and I only just now noticed the 'Friends' names. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

As soon as Dr. Rachel mentioned it being an auto-immune response, my Dr. House reflex kicked in -- did anyone test for Lupus ?

Edited August 18, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[Arynm]

You make me want to love again!!    Seriously? I snorted, I was laughing so hard. 

 

The episode was nerve wracking and quite intense, and then the writers had to bust out with that line. 

If I was looting a town, in a place I did not know, I would wear a mask. I would also quarantine myself for 2 days after I went anywhere, so I would be sure I didn't give my kids the virus. I would also leave with the new guy because he is Titus Welliver for goodness sake!

[Enero]

 As soon as they said, they’d missed something with Cara's bloodwork I knew she’d be pregnant. So she survived, but what about the baby? The doctor said the baby would be born immune, but is it realistic that it could have survived and be healthy with Cara having a fever that spiked to 103+ not to mention all the other changes her body went through trying to fight the virus?

 

I was so afraid for the Master Chief when he volunteered. I really like his character. I’m glad he didn’t die.

 

 

.If I was looting a town, in a place I did not know, I would wear a mask. I would also quarantine myself for 2 days after I went anywhere, so I would be sure I didn't give my kids the virus.

 

Exactly! It made absolutely  no sense that the wife would be wondering about town without a mask. Even if the store she was looting didn't have folks who'd died from the virus on the floor, what if she ran into someone who was sick (eta. like the woman the gunmen ran into outside the store).Ok so the Captain’s wife is now sick, there goes his whole family. I guess it’s now going to be a race to get to them and give them the cure before they all kill over

 

 

 

 

So now that they got a cure and next week are going to make port, how will them being on the ‘last ship’ come in to play? Perhaps with the US and I’m sure everywhere else being pretty much in a state of anarchy, they’ll eventually have to retreat back to the ship. Also, does she have enough of the vaccine to inoculate the entire crew on the ship?

 

 

Predictable episode, but good nonetheless.

Edited August 18, 2014 by Enero

[FormerMod-a1]

I didn't expect them all to die, so it wasn't that suspenseful for me, but I did still enjoy it.  I'm not sure I like the pregnancy, but with a big lag in seasons, maybe it can mostly happen in the off season.  I hope we see more than the captain's family soon.

 

How will they make enough vaccine and cure for the world?  How many people are going to attack them for that.  Having these things is power and also puts a giant target on your back.  My first thought on making more vaccine and cure was to get to a pharma lab somewhere, with 80% of the worlds population gone they can probably find one.  But then there is distribution, etc, etc, etc.  Of course, that's assuming nothing gets stolen or ruined.

[Frost]

I'm confused.  Didn't one of the female volunteers die?  I thought it was Kara, but then suddenly she's both alive and pregnant.  Plus, didn't the teaser clips show Bertrice ill?  I guess that was her being weak from donating blood, but I hate lying teasers! 

 

I too was aghast that the wife wasn't more careful.  It's one thing to risk yourself, but what about your kids?  And if the virus is airborne, couldn't the groceries she brought back be contaminated too?  Not the food inside the cans, but if the cans themselves were handled by someone sick?

 

I like noble hunter Papa Chandler.  Very kind to leave the whole buck for the sick family to eat.

 

How very convenient that Rachel's vaccine not only prevents but actually CURES the virus!  And just in time for the Captain's soon to be deathly ill family!  What a serendipitous event!

 

I like the possible story lines with the anarchy on land. The Nathan James better keep good security on the cure.  They'll soon have more than the Ruskies after them.

[HalcyonDays]

A bit of a slow episode but not too bad. Some bad science and medicine though. Dr. Scott using an Eppendorf pipette improperly or at least no reason to use that particular pipette. Correct me if I am wrong, but vaccinations don't take effect immediately. You need a bit of time for your immune system to respond, first creating IgM then IgG antibodies. Takes a bit of time (hours to a couple of days). Though I understand it's in the interest of time to have it immediately effective. Again, I could be wrong, forgotten stuff. Also, injecting Bertrice's plasma into the others would also expose them to other anti-bodies that could potentially kill them. On top of that, blood type matters. You better hope she's blood type AB, because otherwise, her plasma will contain antibodies that would destroy the other person's blood cells.

 

Also, the autoimmune attack - these people will have organ and tissue damage. It doesn't just reserve itself. They all will have some lingering and permanent effects.

 

Wasn't happy about the pregnancy - too cliche. When they mentioned the pregnancy, I actually though that somehow in the second season, the amniotic fluid or something would somehow provide a actual cure or vaccine or something.

 

I am surprised that they found the cure so fast - it's like the show didn't think it would get renewed, so technically they could wrap it up next week.

 

Looks like Chandler's wife was exposed to the virus.

[bagert]

I am surprised that they found the cure so fast - it's like the show didn't think it would get renewed, so technically they could wrap it up next week.

 

I think it's more like, the producers wanted to provide closure if the show did not get renewed.  More than one ending may have been filmed.

[ottoDbusdriver]

Ok so the Captain’s wife is now sick, there goes his whole family.

Considering that the symptoms appear after 3-5 days, and the virus has a high percentage kill rate , there will only be 1, maybe 2, people left in that cabin to even save. And I seriously doubt that the crew of the Nathan James can get the cure to a cabin in the woods somewhere in Virginia in 3-5 days in order to save anyone that is left.

 

As soon as they showed the the picture of the Engineering commander's daughter, I figured she was a goner as well.

 

As soon as they said, they’d missed something with Cara's bloodwork I knew she’d be pregnant.

 

Crazy wedding episode !!  They have to do something to fill a second season.

 

You need a bit of time for your immune system to respond,

 

For example, when you get the seasonal flu shot it takes at least 4 weeks to build up enough resistance to be viable against the flu.  So yeah, something doesn't add up.

Edited August 18, 2014 by ottoDbusdriver

[portfino]

In fairness to the show "repopulating" the Earth is a key part of the novel, so I knew the pregnancy thing would be coming. That said, when the patients got sick a second time, a part of my brain did think a few of them would die.

 

I have mixed emotions about them coming to the United States this quickly. I've just seen the post-apocalyptic warlord stuff too many times.

[mythoughtis]

On the early episode (the one with the Italian cruise ship), you had to actually get someone's blood or bodily fluid on you to catch the virus.  That is why the crew member shot himself because he fell on a newly dead body with blood on it and got it on his face.   Now, all of a sudden, you get it thru the air.  Chandler's wife wasn't  within 10 fee of the dead body.  I think her 'symptoms' are misleading.

[Dowel Jones]

I've just seen the post-apocalyptic warlord stuff too many times.

 

Such as the former US getting divided into several different, wholly illogical "republics" run by impossibly well-groomed despots?

 

I would think the proper thing to do is broadcast the particulars of the vaccine as widely as possible, including methods of manufacture, so that the value of exclusive  knowledge is thus reduced and the danger to the ship is removed.  But, of course, that would complicate the necessity for the captain and the senior officers  to go ashore when they reach America.

I did get a laugh out of Tex's line at the end, there, even if it was anvilized.

[thuganomics85]

 

I'm confused.  Didn't one of the female volunteers die?  I thought it was Kara, but then suddenly she's both alive and pregnant.

The person who died was another volunteer.  Apparently, we met her before, but she was the one who was telling Martin that she had a boyfriend back home, and he was all she had left, since her parents both died on 9-11, at the Twin Towers.  But, I can't remember her name, and how many episodes she was in.

 

I could actually buy that the Master Chief would volunteer as a test subject, but I did have problems over Chandler letting the chief engineer volunteer as well.  I guess they really wanted to save face, but that seems very risky.  Still, I guessed it work.  Had it been Chandler or Slattery, no way would they be going, but there is a higher chance they could suddenly kill the Master Chief off, so his presence did lead to some suspense.  Still, I'm not surprised all of the main characters lived.

 

So, after things going south and Scott doubting herself, not only did she figure out how to fix the vaccine, but figured out a cure as well?  Damn, Scott seems to be at her best when things really look dour!  But, since we've got another season ahead, I'm sure something is going to prevent them from just handing out the cure.  It's never that easy!

 

Kara's pregnant!  Green is going to be a daddy!  I just hope he doesn't become more overprotective because of this.

 

Catch up with Chandler's family.  Looks like the wife might be infected, I see.  Cool seeing Bill Smitrovich as his dad and Titus Welliver as this new potential baddie.

[SonofaBiscuit]

You would think that some of the vaccine volunteers would have been excluded based on the fact that they were too valuable, but I guess not.  No way the chief engineer lady would be allowed to volunteer, and Danny's girlfriend seemed like she had multiple useful skills as well.

 

I also thought that it was pretty dumb that the crew was wasting their ammunition by firing shots at the dead guy's funeral.  They might need that ammo when they get back on dry land.

 

Didn't the doctor use the primordial sample to make the vaccine successful?  I already deleted this off of the DVR, so I can't go back and check.  If that's what she did, how is she going to be able to create enough vaccine to treat the entire ship?  I guess that someone is going to be taking a trip to the arctic to get some more.  

 

 

[ottoDbusdriver]

No way the chief engineer lady would be allowed to volunteer, and Danny's girlfriend seemed like she had multiple useful skills as well.

 

Didn't the Chief Engineer also just get over a serious health problem as well, just like Dengue Danny ?  That should have eliminated her from the trials too.

[bluebonnet]

I find it incredibly unlikely that they wouldn't test for pregnancy before running the trial.  What was the point of even doing the bloodwork if they weren't going to look?

 

I enjoyed the scenes of the mainland.  It actually makes this plague thing seem real.  I know we saw a bit of it in the jungle, but somehow that didn't feel real to me.  I suppose it's because it just seemed too much like drug cartels doing their thing in the jungles.  But seeing a city made it real somehow.  *shrug* 

 

The one thing that keeps driving me crazy is the absolute lack of quarantine and safety measures.  This is stuff that the average joe would know about and has means to utilize, even if it's rudimentary.  You get near people or where people have been, you damn well better quarantine yourself.  You should also take some steps to protect yourself as best possible, even if it's just a makeshift medical mask and some gloves.  Good job, Wife of Chandler.  Of course, her husband is the lead of the show and they need that uplifting moment at the end of a tension and drama filled episode, so I'm predicting survival.  

[ZoqFotPik]

 

On the early episode (the one with the Italian cruise ship), you had to actually get someone's blood or bodily fluid on you to catch the virus.  That is why the crew member shot himself because he fell on a newly dead body with blood on it and got it on his face.   Now, all of a sudden, you get it thru the air.  Chandler's wife wasn't  within 10 fee of the dead body.  I think her 'symptoms' are misleading.

I'm fairly certain the virus has always been airborne. If it wasn't, Scott's lab and what's his name on the Russian ship wouldn't need to be kept isolated. Also, If it was only blood borne, I doubt it could spread as quickly as it has. Having what's his name on the Russian ship breathe on Russian Naval officer was a plot point just last week. I think the whole point of not getting a fluid on you comes from not knowing how long the virus can live outside of the body.

[CarBe]

Really enjoyed this episode and cannot wait for the finale. It's interesting that Titus Welliver was originally cast as Slattery since he makes such a great baddie. I want the Doctor to end up with the Captain at the end of this all so go ahead, writers, and kill the wife off. The hug at the end of the episode was a great touch - the Dr. and the Captain have literally had the weight of the world on their shoulders. I cannot wait to see how they move the story to land and deal with what is going on there. This is a really fun show.

[Broviet]

A bit of a slow episode but not too bad. Some bad science and medicine though. Dr. Scott using an Eppendorf pipette improperly or at least no reason to use that particular pipette. Correct me if I am wrong, but vaccinations don't take effect immediately. You need a bit of time for your immune system to respond, first creating IgM then IgG antibodies. Takes a bit of time (hours to a couple of days). Though I understand it's in the interest of time to have it immediately effective. Again, I could be wrong, forgotten stuff. Also, injecting Bertrice's plasma into the others would also expose them to other anti-bodies that could potentially kill them. On top of that, blood type matters. You better hope she's blood type AB, because otherwise, her plasma will contain antibodies that would destroy the other person's blood cells.

 

Also, the autoimmune attack - these people will have organ and tissue damage. It doesn't just reserve itself. They all will have some lingering and permanent effects.

 

If I'm not mistaken, isn't it also a poor idea to directly inject the virus rather than expose them in a traditional manner? From what I understand (with Ebola as an example) rates of infection/symptom onset/death can be completely different when a virus is directly injected rather than transmitted traditionally through fluid/aerosolization/etc

Edited August 18, 2014 by Broviet

[Lonesome Rhodes]

Easily my favorite ep so far.  It is much easier for me to suspend disbelief over the time required for things to manifest in a human body than the common sense missteps several of us have previously identified.  Ft. Detrick in Maryland seems a perfect place in which to begin processing gazillions of doses.

 

Now we are getting into the real problem: Tribal- and vigilante-ism.   On ship, who is to be given the remaining doses, or additional does which can be created before docking?

 

I think my favorite question going forward is how they can maintain any semblance of crew.  There are gonna be a ton of folks who have natural immunity and it will be a heck of an ask for any sailor to not try to go home, or to not try to go find a place to rebuild their lives.  It will also be awesome to watch as the crew defend the Hale from masses who will attempt to board her.  Killing fellow Americans is not exactly something any of them dreamed they would be doing. 

 

I loved that Chandler only allowed himself to fall apart in the presence of the civvy doc.  That is the type of thing which the show has refused to honor in the previous eps.  Nice to see that moment here.

 

I actually chuckled when Tex replied to Doc he never thought he'd hear such an offer from Doc (Get to bed.)

 

I will bet anything that the "reason" the Chief was saved was not to be a guinea pig.

Edited August 18, 2014 by Lonesome Rhodes

[Brian Cronin]

I think it is a bold move to have them find a cure by the end of Season 1, but I am worried about Season 2, if only because the idea of them rebuilding the world (which is a great idea) seems a bit too drama-heavy and not so much action-heavy, and Season 1 of the show was extremely action-heavy. I guess there will be vigilantes that they will have to deal with...

[Beden]

So I'm guessing that the Russian ship was actually destroyed last week, not just really, really badly damaged since we didn't see or hear hide nor hair of it this week.

 

Right?

[BungalowSummer]

 

I would think the proper thing to do is broadcast the particulars of the vaccine as widely as possible, including methods of manufacture, so that the value of exclusive  knowledge is thus reduced and the danger to the ship is removed.

 

Didn't the doctor use the primordial sample to make the vaccine successful?  I already deleted this off of the DVR, so I can't go back and check.  If that's what she did, how is she going to be able to create enough vaccine to treat the entire ship?

 

Here's the twist that keeps the story going. The vaccine doesn't work without the primordial sample because [insert medical technobabble here], so simply broadcasting the method and particulars is useless. In fact, until they can manufacture enough vaccine to start immunizing and curing large numbers, any hint that they have the magic bullet makes them a target of the sick and well alike. I would think Dr. Scott will have to figure out how to synthesize a second-generation vaccine from the volunteers who recovered. I don't think repeated trips to the Arctic for primordial samples are practical.

 

Anyway, I loved this episode. Even though there was much that was predictable, I like these characters, I like the way they interact and I enjoy a show that celebrates nobility of character, for a change. We have plenty of shows with despicable villains we love to hate or hate to love. I may be old-fashioned, but it helps to remember that honor and courage do exist and that hope makes life bearable.

Edited August 18, 2014 by BungalowSummer

[MrWhyt]

 

did anyone test for Lupus ?

It's never Lupus.

 

I enjoyed this episode, didn't expect any of the volunteers to die so was pleasantly surprised when one did. As has been mentioned before this is really Sea Trek so i don't expect much in the way of scientific accuracy or original story telling, just fun entertainment.

[HalcyonDays]

So I'm guessing that the Russian ship was actually destroyed last week, not just really, really badly damaged since we didn't see or hear hide nor hair of it this week.

 

Right?

 

No, I think the ship was just damaged in areas from the small bombs that were set off. They didn't destroy the engine, for example, just the drive shaft, which can be repaired. That's why we saw Crazy Patient Zero roaming the halls essentially infecting everyone on the ship. Captain Ruskov may be a bit more polite to Chandler now, once they cross paths again.

 

I agree about holding together the crew - all will be vaccinated and many of those will want to go home with some vaccine/cure and save their families. Then you will have the baddies trying to get the cure for their own aims. You know even Chandler is going to hear the wife's transmission and want to go home.

 

That was Titus Welliver? Thought I recognized him! Awesome.

[CarBe]

Does anyone think the Olympia cure place is where they try to lure sick people to exterminate them?

[Irishmaple]

I really enjoyed that episode, although I noted the usual number of WTFs.  I'm going through a stressful job search right now so the more I can switch off my brain, the happier I am.  Stop those common sense slipups, Show, and I'll be happy to buy everything else you're selling.

 

A young female known to have been in a sexual relationship very recently should have been peeing on a stick/into a cup before going any further.  As far I know, pregnancy hormones shown up in basic blood tests.  All of the women should have tested.  I know they were stressing over volunteers but the crew stepped up and there was no reason to overlook such a simple test for the female volunteers.  I can't even get a flu shot without guaranteeing the nurse I am not pregnant.  That fetus is tough if it hung on through a 104-degree temperature spike, a febrile seizure that lasted almost four minutes and the medical stew introduced into Foster's body.  Baby Green and Bertrise are now the only two known to be immune to the virus so I guess they'll have to get accustomed to be mined for samples.  Is there any way to test for antibodies among the crew to see if there are any more people with natural immunity?

 

That said, I like Green and Foster, and I guess they're back on again!  I also like the bond forming between Rachel Scott and Chandler.  It's grown organically since the first episode and if Mrs. Chandler doesn't make it, well Rachel can move on from her fling with Tex, and stepmom any of those surviving children.  Mrs. Chandler and her plot-necessary stupidity is dead to me now.  Why on earth would someone caring for a senior and two children not glove and mask before going into an area festering with plague?  Everything I brought back would get at least a wipe with disinfectant before kids handled it.  I'm not ready to declare Titus Welliver a bad guy yet.  I'm sure he will be, but if I was responsible for a community of uninfected I'd be heartless about the virus-ridden too.  They threaten everyone relying on him.

Edited August 18, 2014 by Irishmaple

[Osaka38]

I enjoyed the episode.

 

I did find it odd that it was Commander Chandler who was injecting the medicine into the Master Chief's IV.  Was he projecting a previous life from Grey's Anatomy? 

[bentley]

 

You make me want to love again!!    Seriously? I snorted, I was laughing so hard.

If Tex remembers anything he said while he was out of it, he will be the first to snort right along with you. And then he'll find a hole to crawl in for a few days.

 

I wish this show would have had the guts to kill one of the test subjects we knew weren't going to die. Only one had no real screen time and might as well have been covered in a red hospital gown.  I guess, since she had nobody to mourn her, she was therefore unimportant, and expendable, huh, writers? But at least I'll get to see Green and Foster's twu wuv grow, even though that  relationship has endangered the lives of everybody on the ship at least twice now. /sarcasm

 

Is Titus Welliver trying to set a record for most shows in which he guest stars? I swear, there has hardly ever been a show I watched that didn't have TW show up at some point. And that is not a complaint, just an observation, because I love the guy.

[anstar]

That fetus is tough if it hung on through a 104-degree temperature spike, a febrile seizure that lasted almost four minutes and the medical stew introduced into Foster's body.

I thought it was the other one who had the febrile seizure.  The one that ultimately died.  I admit I got them mixed up though.  Would it have killed them to have the two actress look less alike?  Or give them name tags or something?

[Bishop]

I am surprised that they found the cure so fast - it's like the show didn't think it would get renewed, so technically they could wrap it up next week.

 

I'm not.  The Last Ship is really about how to do you rebuild a world after a plague that eliminates 80% of the world population.  I'm glad they found the cure by the end of the season because now it's about building a society and traveling to other countries to provide the cure as well.  This show can go on for a number of years.

On the early episode (the one with the Italian cruise ship), you had to actually get someone's blood or bodily fluid on you to catch the virus.  That is why the crew member shot himself because he fell on a newly dead body with blood on it and got it on his face.   Now, all of a sudden, you get it thru the air.  Chandler's wife wasn't  within 10 fee of the dead body.  I think her 'symptoms' are misleading.

No, the virus was always airborne.  The crewman from the Nathan James fell down a flight of stairs cracking his mask, and he also touched the dead body and was physically exposed to the man's fluids.  It was a double-whammy of death.  Even if he had not gotten the blood on him, he was exposed the minute his mask was compromised.  

 

 

So, after things going south and Scott doubting herself, not only did she figure out how to fix the vaccine, but figured out a cure as well?  

As I understand it, the vaccine and the cure are one in the same.  The cure is in the blood stream of all the survivors as their bodies create antibodies that is fighting off the infection.  She injected the six with the vaccine, but it didn't work at first because she forgot that the virus had been weaponized using the human gene from Neal.  That's why the monkey was fine - no human weaponized gene.  With the human gene in their bodies, the virus began turning on the human cells.  So by using the primordial sample, which did not contain Neal's human genome, and injecting that into the five survivors, it masked Neal's human gene, and allowed the antibodies in the five remaining survivors to fight the virus and kill it.  Now they are all immune.  

 

Does Dr. Scott even need the vaccine?  Wouldn't anyone who is injected with the vaccine and the primordial strain be a carrier of the cure?  If so, then people (and other nations) can just take a survivor from the Nathan James and use their blood to create the vaccine, no?  My guess is that before the Nathan James lands in the US, everyone will have been vaccinated and built up an immunity,  making each member of the crew a walking vaccine.  That's the way I understood it anyway.

 

I loved that Chandler only allowed himself to fall apart in the presence of the civvy doc.  That is the type of thing which the show has refused to honor in the previous eps.  Nice to see that moment here.

I did too.  He is very much the Captain around his crew, but around Dr. Scott (and Tex), he's able to lower his defenses because they are not Navy.  

 I also like the bond forming between Rachel Scott and Chandler.  It's grown organically since the first episode and if Mrs. Chandler doesn't make it, well Rachel can move on from her fling with Tex, and stepmom any of those surviving children.  Mrs. Chandler and her plot-necessary stupidity is dead to me now.  Why on earth would someone caring for a senior and two children not glove and mask before going into an area festering with plague?  Everything I brought back would get at least a wipe with disinfectant before kids handled it.  I'm not ready to declare Titus Welliver a bad guy yet.  I'm sure he will be, but if I was responsible for a community of uninfected I'd be heartless about the virus-ridden too.  They threaten everyone relying on him.

I think that's also why the wife may be infected.  The show would be crazy not to tap into the chemistry between Chandler and Dr. Scott (and Eric Dane and Rhona Mitra).  My guess is that the wife will ultimately die, but his kids will survive.  I can cut the wife a little slack because she has to feed the kids, and the chances of them NOT getting sick is getting slimmer and slimmer.  She can wipe down as many things as she wants, but the chances of getting the disease when everyone has it, AND you have to hunt for supplies, makes your prospects of remaining untouched more difficult.  I don't think the wife was expecting armed men to storm the store, which made her be more careless, but who is to say that she didn't wipe everything down?  She was still out and about and could have gotten infected from any number of things.  Even the grandfather could have been infected just by being around that guys house.  A simple mask covering his face while he spray painted the house with a red "x" isn't really going to save him.

 

I have really enjoyed this show a lot this summer.

[bmoore4026]

I surprised that they got the cure so quickly.  Personally, I thought it was going to take until at least season 2.

 

But everything comes with a price.  I have a feeling the poor captain's family isn't going to make the last episode of the season.

[Lonesome Rhodes]

How can we have Chandler and Tex vying for the good doctor's heart if Chandler has a family?

[Raja]

You would think that with the first symptom after what the world has gone through mom would not be feeding and poring water but running and hiding and letting grandpa pass the bad news.

 

So it seems as if next season we will be sailing off to offer a vaccination and confront the local drug lord/warlord who enforced a quarantine and had a surviving population. We have already done the drug lord keeping sex slaves how many variations can we go through?

[ottoDbusdriver]

You would think that with the first symptom after what the world has gone through mom would not be feeding and poring water but running and hiding and letting grandpa pass the bad news.

 

It will probably be a fakeout like Green and Chandler's wife will simply have Dengue fever, that she picked up in the tropical fruit section of the grocery store she went to for all that food. </snark>

[Frost]

 

I enjoy a show that celebrates nobility of character, for a change

I think Chandler and Scott are building up some serious chemistry and I've been nervous about that, since he is clearly in love with his wife.  Chandler makes plenty of mistakes, but he's not an anti-hero.  So I'm actually kind of rooting for his poor wife to kick the bucket!  Twisted, I know. 

 

What are they going to do with the kids, though?  If the show remains sea based, are they going to allow any of the crew's children to live on board?  Will Papa Chandler start a day care center?  If the show switches to land, then the title no longer makes sense.  I know it's based on the book of the same name, but the average viewer would expect The Last Ship to revolve around, you know, a ship.

[HalcyonDays]

 

Irishmaple said: As far I know, pregnancy hormones shown up in basic blood tests.  All of the women should have tested.

 

Irishmaple, basic blood tests will include electrolyte panel (Sodium, Calcium, etc levels), and may include glucose, iron, magnesium, etc. All depends on what panels the doctor orders. HcG is the pregnancy hormone tested for and is a completely separate test and is a specifically ordered test - not part of a female's regular blood panel.

 

I agree, she probably should have been checked but maybe because no one (save Chandler) knew she was in a relationship, they figured she wouldn't be getting any nookie?!? Isn't fraternizing with coworkers in the military also frowned upon, therefore it wouldn't be the first thought, I guess?

[JackONeill]

Okay, here's the thing.

 

Pregnancy.  That means wedding.  We have a ship.  We can go to -- HAWAII. 

 

And we can hook up with the Love Boat and have one hell of a celebration.  But, WAIT.

 

For the honeymoon, all the characters (and the cast of Friends or, at least, that Chandler and Rachel) can go to Fantasy Island.

[CarBe]

 

What are they going to do with the kids, though?  Will Papa Chandler start a day care center?

If this were pay cable, they'd kill them off, no question. This show hasn't gone that dark yet, but one can hope. Is Chandler Senior going to make it, too? Are we going to have a crusty old army guy running around the ship? You would have thought, with his Pentagon contacts and all, he'd be a little more prepared on taking proper precautions - i.e., having a gas mask around - with apparent biological warfare decimating the population.

 

I am crossing my fingers that Tex gets it this next episode. His cornball comments take me out of the show nearly every time he opens his mouth. I also hate that the only reason he ever latched onto Rachel in the first place is that she had lady parts and was breathing. He didn't seem to be very particular when he first boarded the ship. He is no match for Dr. Scott, who, according to her fake file has two PhDs and an MD. It's much more believable she ends up with Slattery than Tex, though this last episode showed her receptive to Tex's "charm." Vomit.

 

I'd also like to know whether Quincey is ever going to get anything right on this show. His ideas all turn out to be wrong but then I wonder why Rachel would have partnered with him for ten years if that is so.

[Enero]

I'd also like to know whether Quincey is ever going to get anything right on this show. His ideas all turn out to be wrong but then I wonder why Rachel would have partnered with him for ten years if that is so.

This will never happen. Rachel has been deemed, the smartest, best doctor ever. There's no way the writers will let another doctor, especially Quincey no less, come up with an idea that could save the world or at the very least be helpful in their mission to find a cure/vaccine.

[Latverian Diplomat]

Crazy wedding episode !!  They have to do something to fill a second season.

 

I look forward to a musical episode, a puppet episode, and an animated episode. :-)

[Latverian Diplomat]

I am crossing my fingers that Tex gets it this next episode. His cornball comments take me out of the show nearly every time he opens his mouth. I also hate that the only reason he ever latched onto Rachel in the first place is that she had lady parts and was breathing. He didn't seem to be very particular when he first boarded the ship. He is no match for Dr. Scott, who, according to her fake file has two PhDs and an MD. It's much more believable she ends up with Slattery than Tex, though this last episode showed her receptive to Tex's "charm." Vomit.

 

I'm hoping for a crossover episode with Falling Skies next year. Tex and Pope can meet in a Fringe-style dimensional portal and realize they are perfect for each other.

 

The plague can be a War of the Worlds style solution to the Espheni problem. 

 

Also, it's possible I am not getting enough sleep. :-)

[shapeshifter]

...Also, the autoimmune attack - these people will have organ and tissue damage. It doesn't just reserve itself. They all will have some lingering and permanent effects.

Wasn't happy about the pregnancy - too cliche. When they mentioned the pregnancy, I actually though that somehow in the second season, the amniotic fluid or something would somehow provide a actual cure or vaccine or something....

Would the autoimmune attack also cause damage to the fetus? Or would it be ignored by the attacking cells?

I thought it was pretty clever for them to have us guessing whether or not the 6 would survive and the vaccine would work but then turn it around to it being a cure. I didn't see that coming. I wonder if viewers with medical lab knowledge would have seen that coming, or if they would find it to be an impossibility.

I'm guessing Chandler and Rachel bond and then they get to his wife just in time for Rachel to save her life.

I'm hoping for a crossover episode with Falling Skies next year. Tex and Pope can meet in a Fringe-style dimensional portal and realize they are perfect for each other.

The plague can be a War of the Worlds style solution to the Espheni problem.

Also, it's possible I am not getting enough sleep. :-)

Heh, I'm just sleep typin' myself. Edited August 20, 2014 by shapeshifter

[HalcyonDays]

Would the autoimmune attack also cause damage to the fetus? Or would it be ignored by the attacking cells?

I'm guessing Chandler and Rachel bond and then they get to his wife just in time for Rachel to save her life.

 

Heh, I'm just sleep typin' myself.

 

If the antibody is IgG, then yes, it can cross the placenta and attack baby tissues, if the antibody recognizes the baby tissues as "foreign". In the show, they gave the patients IVIG, which is intravenous IgG, to boost their immune system. It's used as a treatment for autoimmune diseases.

It's hard to say. I'm not a doctor, but if the human strain part of the virus attached to the patients tissues, then it makes sense that the body would consider those tissues now an invader. The receptors on the tissues are not recognized by the immune system as naturally part of the body anymore. What I didn't get was why the primordial strain worked as a cure.

 

I got a friendly vibe from the hug between Chandler and Rachel. There was more flirtatious expressions from Rachel towards Tex. But yeah, if they decide to make it romantic, absolutely. The wife will appear at the right time to put a wrench between them, and Rachel will treat her.

[Bishop]

How can we have Chandler and Tex vying for the good doctor's heart if Chandler has a family?

I don't see Chandler as vying for Dr. Scott's heart.  He's clearly loyal to his wife and family, and he hasn't made a move in Rachel's direction (even Tex commented on that).  If anything, I would say that Dr. Scott has a thing for the Captain.  She worries about him, and when he was missing on the island (when getting the monkeys) and when he was lost at sea, her response was "Where's the Captain?" not "Where's Tex and the Captain?"  She tends to seek him out.  Just something I noticed.  I think Chandler certainly sees her as an attractive, competent, very intelligent woman, but he is all about his wife and family, and I like that, and I like that Rachel respects it.  There is no flirting going on between them, but I think she likes him.

 

I think Chandler and Scott are building up some serious chemistry and I've been nervous about that, since he is clearly in love with his wife.  Chandler makes plenty of mistakes, but he's not an anti-hero.  So I'm actually kind of rooting for his poor wife to kick the bucket!  Twisted, I know. 

 

What are they going to do with the kids, though?  If the show remains sea based, are they going to allow any of the crew's children to live on board?  

Yeah, I think the producers/writers have to see the chemistry between the two characters and the actors.  So I don't think the Captain's wife is long for this world, and frankly, the show doesn't need her.  I also don't know how the show is going to weave in one or both of Chandler's kids into the story, but then again, Topher's daughter is on the ship as well.  So maybe the Last Ship will become a safe harbor of sorts for families since it looks like the general population is going to be a violent place to live.  Maybe Chandler's father will survive and look after the brood and be there as counsel for Chandler (similar to Jericho).  I'm guessing the show is still trying to figure it all out.  

I'm hoping for a crossover episode with Falling Skies next year. Tex and Pope can meet in a Fringe-style dimensional portal and realize they are perfect for each other.

 

LOL, I did notice those similarities with Pope and Tex, but Tex is more lovable.  I like that both shows follow each other.  One is an apocalyptic show with the chaos happening now, and the other is a post-apocalyptic show.  I love them both.

I got a friendly vibe from the hug between Chandler and Rachel. There was more flirtatious expressions from Rachel towards Tex. But yeah, if they decide to make it romantic, absolutely. The wife will appear at the right time to put a wrench between them, and Rachel will treat her.

I got a friendly vibe from the hug as well.  Like I said, both are respecting the boundaries, but I don't blame them for the hug.  They have both been through the ringer for the last few months.  People have died, been captured, been shot, etc., and they've finally found a cure that literally save the world.  It was an emotional moment.  I liked it.  I can tell you what I don't want to see, however, and that's two women being jealous over the Captain or fighting.  We don't need a triangle.  I say kill off the wife because we have not bonded with her as a character, and let the story progress with Chandler and Dr. Scott.  I think Chandler needs to lose someone, since everyone else has lost someone.  It's similar to the Tom Mason situation on Falling Skies.  His whole family is still intact, and on The Last Ship, the same is true of Captain Chandler.  So it's necessary sometimes to shake up the main characters and raise the stakes.  

 

I can't believe we are already at the season finales of these shows.  The summer went fast!

Edited August 20, 2014 by Bishop

[JackONeill]

Well, honestly, seriously -- the only thing I kept thinking when everyone got sick is that Dr. Scott would cut Tex's hair, maybe thinking it would make him better.  It would make me better.

[Hanahope]

I couldn't believe the chief engineer was allowed to be a volunteer after the ship had such problems when she was injured the last time.  Same with allowing the other 2 women to volunteer, when they will likely be needed to help breed a new population (and of course the one woman would be pregnant - and the baby survive that). Given that they don't know how much, if any, other women survivors there are, the women on the ship might be in the very few minority and desperately needed, you're going to let half your volunteers be women? And yeah, Dr. Scott should have figured out the problem/solution later, since she's supposed to be a scientist/doctor in that field. 

 

Also, can't believe Chandler's wife is sick.  She wasn't near the dead body, and said dead body wasn't breathing, so really shouldn't be any close 'airborne' particles for her to breath, any more than Papa Chandler near the house or Titus Welliver near the infected woman (or for that matter, as close as some navy guys got to the infected people when they hunted monkeys, before they donned their masks).  But if she is, then someone in that family will get the cure before they all die, because Drama!

Edited August 20, 2014 by Hanahope

[Bishop]

Also, can't believe Chandler's wife is sick.  She wasn't near the dead body, and said dead body wasn't breathing, so really shouldn't be any close 'airborne' particles for her to breath, any more than Papa Chandler near the house or Titus Welliver near the infected woman (or for that matter, as close as some navy guys got to the infected people when they hunted monkeys, before they donned their masks).  But if she is, then someone in that family will get the cure before they all die, because Drama!

I think that guy was shooting and killing anyone that had the illness, which is why he shot that woman.  I beleive that the dead guy in the machine shop was only dead a short while since the gunmen were still outside.  So if he had the illness, it would still be airborne.  I mean when the Nathan James crew went aboard the Italian ocean liner, there were a lot of dead people, and they still had to wear their masks.  Also, did the wife (what's her name?) see the dead body?  I got the impression that she didn't realize it was there, but only that the audience saw him.