S03.E05: Triple Point

[formerlyfreedom]

The search for Prax's daughter comes to a head; Admiral Souther's men plan for mutiny aboard the Thomas Prince.

 

[johntfs]

I'm just looking forward to seeing Bobbie and Amos interacting in a combat situation.

[johntfs]

No spoilers, but tonight...

[nekilarose]

The last 15 min were a roller coaster! I had my hopes up that Admiral Souther would pull through. Southers crew was bad-ass in the end, though. Nice try, kids.  A+ for effort. I did like the commander of the MCRN fleet, she did everything to de-escalate the situation. Smart to let them go at each other, and correct to not give them a target to unite against.

Nguyen, you little bitch.

Jules-Pierre, I was starting to think you had a heart, then you go and just disabuse me of that notion. Thanks, I'll be sure to never trust you again. 

Loved Amos teaching Prax how to shoot, and trying to reassure him that they were gonna do what they could to save Mei.

Naomi told Jim about her son. I did like how it wasn't an automatic pass to having everything be okay again, though. 

That shot of Bobbie bracing herself was boss.

I repeat. Nguyen, you little bitch.

[marinw]

Souther!!! Noooo. He was an adult in the room. That was a shot to the chest, so he is dead. 

I like the Martian Captain of the Hammurabi, and she is alive for now.

So who is in command of the Agatha King now? Someone should get Cotyar  out of sickbay

Prax learns how to shoot. I don’t know if this makes me happy or sad.

Edited May 10, 2018 by marinw

[johntfs]

I liked the Martian kid's description of Chrisjen.  "She was kinda mean... but I liked her."

[marinw]

I'm glad Holden found a way to make coffee. A french press makes sence in low gravity.

[HunterHunted]

What does Nguyen think he's going to do when most of the ops crew is in the brig, a bunch of his men are dead, the ships are firing on each other, and he's gut shot? There's no way that he can actually do anything with the ship. It's a mess. The situation is not salvageable.

I was really hoping Souther would make it out alive.

[UNOSEZ]

Oh snap.... Is nguyen worse than errinwright??...  I knew souther  wasn't long for the world.. He was too good  and pure. But seriously don't nguyen and errinwright get how unstable and dangerous the protomolecule is.. ? 

[tennisgurl]

I was literally on the edge of my seat the whole last segment! Oh my God that was so intense! Now I wonder if somehow this will end with a coalition of Martian and Earth ships teaming up to defeat the conspiracy, maybe with the Belters helping out and finally getting a real seat at the table. That would be freaking awesome. But no, not Souther! He tried so hard to stop this madness, and it was nice seeing how many of the crew members were listening to him, but no! Damn it, so close! At least he got the message out before he was shot. Poor, poor Souther. 

"She was mean at first... but I liked her". Yep, thats Chrisjen in a nutshell, just add in a fabulous wardrobe and a few choice swear words. Glad the Martian kids not only made it, but did what they said they were going to do.

I liked the Martian Captain, who was clearly listening to the message Chrisjen sent out. She made a good point about letting the UN ships fight each other, but she definitely thinks that Souther was onto something. Really, there are plenty of decent, reasonable people on all sides of this conflict, who are trying to do the right thing, but there are also so many assholes, and these conspirators who are hurting their efforts. 

Prax works on shooting, which is both cool, and sad that he has to do that. I continue to like his weird friendship with Amos, and how much Amos supports his quest for his daughter. And the conversions with Naomi and Holden, and Alex and his son were both heartbreaking, whole also sweet. I like how things are going with Naomi and the crew. They're still upset she went behind their backs, and arent thrilled with what she did, but they do understand it, and cant hate Naomi no matter what. The only person she really needs to still clear the air with is Amos, which will certainly be tricky. Amos doesn't do great with complex emotions on a good day, let alone with all of this going on, and his history with Naomi. He built her up as his True North, and when she did something wrong, his whole system was shocked. He feels like he needs someone to tell him that he is on the side of the Good Guys, and with Naomi doing something everyone considers wrong, he feels like he has to rethink everything. No wonder he has latched onto Prax. 

The ending is definitely a Shit Gets Real moment, but, on the plus side, Holden got more coffee! 

[johntfs]

When Mei was getting strapped down and Mao asked "What the hell was that?" as the Roci landed, my immediate response was "That's the sound of your ass falling out of the frying pan and into the fucking Sun."

Edited May 11, 2018 by johntfs

[tennisgurl]

Oh, and slimy wormy asshole Nguyen can now join Errinwright and Mao on my Shit List. Screw all of those guys. I cant believe how many of these idiots are just ignoring how obviously the protomolecule stuff is dangerous. Again, screw those guys. 

[Philbert]

1 hour ago, nekilarose said:

 

I repeat. Nguyen, you little bitch.

 

"The Expanse" has managed to top "Game of Thrones" in the sheer number of punchable faces on screen at any given time.

Again, I say...well done, show.

[nekilarose]

35 minutes ago, johntfs said:

When Mei was getting strapped down and Mao asked "What the hell was that?" as the Roci landed, my immediate response was "That's your ass falling out of the frying pan and into the fucking Sun."

LOL, I love this! My thoughts exactly.

[redpencil]

That whole last segment was nearly the end of me. I'm fairly certain I yelled at my tv more than once, imploring someone to do something. I was legitimately upset over Souther and all of his people getting killed, and completely horrified when Nguyen took out the Jimenez. Screw that guy! I need him to get his comeuppance so badly. Maybe more than Errinwright at this point?

[Clanstarling]

11 hours ago, marinw said:

So who is in command of the Agatha King now? Someone should get Cotyar  out of sickbay

Prax learns how to shoot. I don’t know if this makes me happy or sad.

 

By default, Nguyen unless he dies - but I want the crew to somehow come and get him and give him a worthy (as in horrible, ignoble) death.

10 hours ago, UNOSEZ said:

Oh snap.... Is nguyen worse than errinwright??...  I knew souther  wasn't long for the world.. He was too good  and pure. But seriously don't nguyen and errinwright get how unstable and dangerous the protomolecule is.. ? 

Not worse, I don't think, just different. Nguyen is a soldier who takes direct action, Errinwright is a politician who manipulates people to make them take the action he wants. As for not getting it - that's hubris. They think they can control it, don't even consider that that might not be able to - despite all the indications.

10 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

Oh, and slimy wormy asshole Nguyen can now join Errinwright and Mao on my Shit List. Screw all of those guys. I cant believe how many of these idiots are just ignoring how obviously the protomolecule stuff is dangerous. Again, screw those guys. 

Nguyen's been there from the moment I saw him. But now they're an unholy trinity of assholes. Though I think the first officer of the Hammurabi might be joining them, albeit at a lower level.

I loved the look on Amos' face when Prax said that if they couldn't save Mei, they could get revenge (quoting Amos). He looked seriously disturbed that he's influenced Prax in that fashion.

Edited May 10, 2018 by Clanstarling

[marinw]

42 minutes ago, Clanstarling said:

By default, Nguyen unless he dies - but I want the crew to somehow come and get him and give him a worthy (as in horrible, ignoble) death.

I nominate Coytar for this task.

[MissLucas]

Yeah, that was intense and dammit Alvis is dead again!

I loved the Martian Captain and her XO's (or whatever his rank was) reaction when ensign what's-his-face started to list all the folks he had met on the Rocinante/Tachi. A rare moment of humor. 

By now it should be clear that whenever you think we've identified the biggest assh*le on the show someone else will be all 'Hold my beer'.

I'm glad Holden and Naomi had their little talk and that he's still not okay with what she did although he understands. If you follow her logic then it's only a small step to get to Avasarala's position - everybody needs the protomolecule! And we finally got an answer who it was that Naomi wanted Fred Johnson to find for her.

Spoiler

Can't wait to see the Work!

[marinw]

I appreciate how the mutiny on the Agatha was portrayed. It was messy, confusing,  morally ambiguous and there was a high body count. Not all neat and tidy like a lot of Star Trek mutinies.

I like the actor who play(ed) Souther. He really portrayed a natural authority, I can see his how crew would trust him.

Edited May 16, 2018 by marinw

[johntfs]

4 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

Nguyen's been there from the moment I saw him. But now they're an unholy trinity of assholes. Though I think the first officer of the Hammurabi might be joining them, albeit at a lower level.

I don't think the first officer is really a bad person, he's just a much more conventional thinker.  His thing is "We're in a war so we fight the enemy."  He's not at the point of recognizing that the UN as a whole isn't the real enemy.

[Holmbo]

Oh my fucking god! That was crazy! I loved it so much.

[jhlipton]

I was not expecting Souther to be shot!

Spoiler

In the books, he comes into play somewhat later in The Battle Over Io.

 

17 hours ago, marinw said:

Prax learns how to shoot. I don’t know if this makes me happy or sad.

Just like Amos -- a bit of both.

[Philbert]

3 hours ago, marinw said:

I appreciate how the mutiny on the Agatha was portrayed. It was messy, confusing,  morally ambiguous and there was a high body count. Not all neat and tidy like a lot of Star Trek mutinies.

I like the actor who play(ed) Souther. He really portrayed a natural authority, I can see his crew would trust him.

ITA. The whole mutiny sequence was very well handled. I have to hand it to his kids....they nearly pulled off the counter-coup. That's loyalty.

[JZL]

One of the best eps of one of the best shows ever, and it's only mid-season.

Questions upon questions . . .

What happens with the war now that Earth's fleet has decimated itself?  Hybrids fired off like bottle-rockets-- to where?  On what, or whom, is the proto-molecule "working?"  And what the hell is it doing on (or to) Venus? 

The biomass is hitting the air-circulators.

[marinw]

48 minutes ago, JZL said:

The biomass is hitting the air-circulators.

I need that on a t-shirt! (The sentence, not the biomass)

[JZL]

17-minute clip of the mutiny + space battle . . .

[tennisgurl]

That mutiny was so freaking intense. It was messy and scary and so much was happening so quickly, and the dynamics changed like five different times. The acting was also excellent, even by the extras and super minor characters. Everyone really did look like they were in the middle of a full on Shit Gets Real scenario. It all being in a small, enclosed space made the tension even more intense. I went from gasping to cheering to boooing to cheering to yelling to just saying "oh God!" a bunch. 

[thuganomics85]

As far as I'm concerned, Mao and Strickland will always be the worst since they are weaponizing and killing children with barely a thought, but fucking Nguyen sured earned himself the honor of Admiral Asshole in this episode!  Not only clearly in league with Sadavir and his schemes, but even willing to sacrifice the life of his own men and women to do it.  Poor Souther trying to do the right thing, only to end with a bullet to his chest.  At least his loyalists went down swinging, and even put one in Nguyen, even though he seems to be getting by (for now.)  Oh, and then blew up on of their own ships for trying to get away, so now he's just started an entire clusterfuck between the U.N.  Great job, asshole.  Hope it's all worth it.  I hope he gets what is coming to him.  And his smug little lackey too.

On the flip side, it was interesting seeing more of the Mars military and how they operate.  Liking the Martian captain and how she was understandably wary over the story Sinopoli told her, she weighted the options and determine it was better to take a risk, and send the video to Souther.  And now she is also wisely staying out of the battle between the U.N., and even offering aid to those who need.  Impressive.  No wonder the Martians seem to have their shit locked down, when it comes to their military operations.

Hey, Holden's now in "I don't hate you for doing what you think was right" territory with Naomi, so progress on that front?!

Aww, Amos is teaching Prax how to shoot guns!

Alex's reaction to his son's video was great.  Cas Anvar has been killing it this season.

Sinopoli's description of Chrisjen is the most accurate one ever!

Oh, Bobbie!  Nine times out of ten, I would back you in a fight, but I'm not so sure if even you can handle a protomolecule creature with just your suit and guns.

So, of course after Katoa turns, Mao and Strickland find out that Mei is the next best subject, and are preparing to infect her now.  They better hope they stop now, because not only is Mei's dad knocking on the front door, he's brought the best crew possible to really fuck their shit up!

[marinw]

3 hours ago, thuganomics85 said:

it was interesting seeing more of the Mars military and how they operate

In the Earth/Mars war, I’m not sure what side to root for. I feel for the Martians, but I love Chrisjen and I want her to win! OTOH, The Chief UN Guy has got to go.

I just want the war to end (exciting though it is) and for Mars and the Belt to be independent.

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, marinw said:

In the Earth/Mars war, I’m not sure what side to root for. I feel for the Martians, but I love Chrisjen and I want her to win! OTOH, The Chief UN Guy has got to go.

I just want the war to end (exciting though it is) and for Mars and the Belt to be independent.

I'm rooting for humanity - and the reasonable adults everywhere.

To quote a phrase "I just want everyone to get along" - except for those bastards who need to die slowly and painfully. Maybe by being dismantled by the protomolecule.

Edited May 11, 2018 by Clanstarling

[Holmbo]

On my first watch I didn't understand what Nguyen's plan was. I thought he was just going to Io to pick up the Hybrids and transport them away. But now upon rewatch I noticed that he said the battle would be fought at Io. He planned to lead the ships there and launch the hybrids on the Martian fleet.

I will add that, apart from the battle scenes, I really liked the scene between Naomi and Holden. It made me tear up. The show needs more scene's like that. It's been too stingy with it IMO, not letting the characters really learn about each other. Amos next please.

If I'm gonna guess about the conclusion of this, I don't think Mei will survive. Just cause I think Prax is too established not to stay with the crew now, and I if he got her he wouldn't stay on. I also think one of the hybrids will hit the Agatha and Nguyen will have to fight it, and loose. We only have so many characters we know on these ships and the show has built him up as someone that would put up a good fight.

[UNOSEZ]

Whatever happens... I need this show to survive..  I hope it gets picked up

[snowwhyte]

2 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

I'm rooting for humanity - and the reasonable adults everywhere.

To quote a phrase "I just want everyone to get along" - except for those bastards who need to die slowly and painfully. Maybe by being dismantled by the protomolecule.

I'd like to think that if humanity discovered that an extra terrestrial life form existed that was a probable threat to the survival of the species that they would put aside their differences and work together but I don't think the reactions in the Expanse are unrealistic. There might be reasonable people who could put aside their differences and work for the greater good but as we've seen they can be easily sabotaged by short-sighted people convinced they have all the answers and that they know best.

[Clanstarling]

16 minutes ago, snowwhyte said:

I'd like to think that if humanity discovered that an extra terrestrial life form existed that was a probable threat to the survival of the species that they would put aside their differences and work together but I don't think the reactions in the Expanse are unrealistic. There might be reasonable people who could put aside their differences and work for the greater good but as we've seen they can be easily sabotaged by short-sighted people convinced they have all the answers and that they know best.

Oh, I agree. The scariest part of this show is that it's totally realistic when it comes to depicting humanity.

Edited May 11, 2018 by Clanstarling

[jhlipton]

7 hours ago, marinw said:

In the Earth/Mars war, I’m not sure what side to root for. I feel for the Martians, but I love Chrisjen and I want her to win!

These are not mutually exclusive.  Chrisjen is "Earth First" but not at the expense of Mars or even the Belters.  She's pretty much the best hope we have right now.

[Tachi Rocinante]

The mention of the Thomas Prince had me confused.

[WatchrTina]

Okay that was an exciting episode and you guys have already commented on the things I loved the most.  But I have to confess to being confused.  

I thought that only Katoa had been infected.  Mei was being strapped down to be test subject #2 when all hell broke loose.  If that's the case, then how can there be "hybrids" in the containers that got fired at the end?  

I thought Nguyen was going to Io to pick up to get all the protomolecule research.  I thought he was going to carry it away -- isn't that what he told Mao?  But when they fired those canisters they didn't seem to all be heading for Nguyen's ship . . . . they seemed to be scattering in various directions.  They looked an awful lot like missiles.  Were those weapons loaded with the bodies of hybrids -- humans infected with the protomolecule?  If so -- who set THAT up . . . that seems to contradict what we were shown happening inside the base (with Katoa being the only "hybrid" in play.)

Avasarala said that Earth doesn't have a sample of the protomolecule.  But doesn't Nguyen work for earth?  And didn't Mao seem to be taking orders from him?  I have never been clear on who Mao is working for.  Have we ever seen a Martian talk to Mao?   Why does Avasarala think the Martians have the protomolecule? From what I can see it's only Earth that has it (though it appears to be a rogue element within the UNN Gov't that's running the op). 

I'm confused.  I'm entertained.  But I'm confused.

Edited May 12, 2018 by WatchrTina
"Where" is not the same as "were"

[btp]

21 minutes ago, WatchrTina said:

I thought that only Katoa had been infected.  Mei was being strapped down to be test subject #2 when all hell broke loose.  If that's the case, then how can there be "hybrids" in the containers that got fired at the end?  

Strickland and his evil friends (TM) have, I believe, been working on protomolecule-human hybrids for a while. The thing that attacked Bobbie's team on Ganymede, as well as the hybrid that got on board the Rocinante, were "phase 1" hybrids, which were made using some unnamed subjects, maybe children, maybe not. These hybrids were hard to control, though, which is why they were all fitted with those "failsafe" devices (bombs) that would blow them up if they went too far off plan.

Katoa is the first phase 2 or second generation hybrid, developed after Strickland's discovery that children with the immunodeficiency disorder that Katoa and Mei have, can accept the protomolecule infusion more readily, and in some way that allows them (Strickland believes) to be more controllable. I don't understand exactly why he thinks this, but he's the gifted scientist, so I guess we have to take him at his word.

Anyway, my take is that the hybrids they are launching are all Phase 1 hybrids, deadly but rather mindless, and more likely to wreak general havoc than to achieve a specific objective. They're being deployed as very crude and indiscriminate weapons in order to keep the good guys at bay long enough for the rest of the research to be completed.

That's my understanding, anyway.

 

21 minutes ago, WatchrTina said:

I thought Nguyen was going to Io to pick up to get all the protomolecule research.  I thought he was going to carry it away -- isn't that what he told Mao?  But when they fired those canisters they didn't seem to all be heading for Nguyen's ship . . . . they seemed to be scattering in various directions.  They looked an awful lot like missiles.

New situation, new plan, I guess. When Nguyen realized he was losing control of the situation, he decided instead of picking things up that he would launch them, presumably at Martian ships and other targets, basically to either rip his enemies limb from limb or scare the shit out of them. I imagine he'd be happy with either result. It's not very forward thinking, though. I think this was a split-second decision born of desperation more than any sensible plan.

 

21 minutes ago, WatchrTina said:

Avasarala said that Earth doesn't have a sample of the protomolecule.  But doesn't Nguyen work for earth?  And didn't Mao seem to be taking orders from him?  I have never been clear on who Mao is working for.  Have we ever seen a Martian talk to Mao?   Why does Avasarala think the Martians have the protomolecule? From what I can see it's only Earth that has it (though it appears to be a rogue element within the UNN Gov't that's running the op). 

I'm confused.  I'm entertained.  But I'm confused.

You aren't the only one who's confused, and I think some of the people in the story are among the most confused.

Chrisjen knows that Mao was working with Mars because Errinwright told her so. She knows he was trying to get control back, but she doesn't know how successful he was, or if anyone from Mars was still in cahoots with Mao or not. Neither do we, for that matter.

As far as Nguyen and Errinwright, I think Avasarala does not regard them as playing for Team Earth anymore; she sees them as a rogue element that she hopes to put down. And once she does, Earth will lose its connection to Mao and thus to the protomolecule.

As to Mao taking orders from Nguyen, I don't think he was taking orders so much as arranging delivery of what he was contracted to deliver. But we know that Mao's loyalties basically reside with the highest bidder, so I don't think Chrisjen would think of Earth having the PM because Mao is from Earth.

Bottom line is, I don't think she knows for sure, so she assumes the worst and works from there.

[Holmbo]

2 hours ago, WatchrTina said:

I thought Nguyen was going to Io to pick up to get all the protomolecule research.  I thought he was going to carry it away -- isn't that what he told Mao?  But when they fired those canisters they didn't seem to all be heading for Nguyen's ship . . . . they seemed to be scattering in various directions.  They looked an awful lot like missiles.  Where those weapons loaded with the bodies of hybrids -- humans infected with the protomolecule?  If so -- who set THAT up . . . that seems to contradict what we were shown happening inside the base (with Katoa being the only "hybrid" in play.)

 

1 hour ago, btp said:

New situation, new plan, I guess. When Nguyen realized he was losing control of the situation, he decided instead of picking things up that he would launch them, presumably at Martian ships and other targets, basically to either rip his enemies limb from limb or scare the shit out of them. I imagine he'd be happy with either result. It's not very forward thinking, though. I think this was a split-second decision born of desperation more than any sensible plan.

I think Nguyen always planned to release the Hybrids on the Mars fleet. As I wrote above he says earlier in the episode that the battle would be fought at Io. I don't know if this is just his own plan or if Errinwright was in on it too. I agree these Hybrids are different than the kids. I think Mao never cared about making the weapon's. He just wanted funding from someone to be able to learn about the protomolecule. I wonder if Errinwright and Nguyen even know about those protohumans 2.0. It didn't seem like Mao and Strickland expected their experiment on Mei to be cut of ones the UN ships got there. 

I agree that Avasarala doesn't consider Mao's lab to be in UN control and therefore Earth doesn't have a sample.

[WatchrTina]

Proto-Katoa said "You can't stop the Work."

Did anyone else get a flashback to the line in the movie Serenity (sequel to the TV show Firefly) where Mr. Universe says, "You can't stop the Signal"?  

Everything has happened before and will happen again.

Edited May 13, 2018 by WatchrTina

[WatchrTina]

I just watched the episode again and I'm double-posting to say that I THINK I just figured out what happened at the end.  Nguyen intended to pick up all the photo-molecule research including in the prior batch of hybrids in those stasis tubes.  He was grabbing the research for Earth -- step two of the action that Errinwright started when he poisoned the Martian ambassador and blew up the Martian ship that had been sent to get the goods from Mao (who WAS a traitor and was planning on selling/giving it to Mars -- though I'm still not clear on his motivation.)  Mao was going along with Nguyen's orders because of the pressure exerted on his family back on Earth/Luna.

But then the mutiny happened, and was put down, and re-erupted, and was put down a second time (complete with most of the bridge crew getting thrown in the brig) and then re-erupted a 3rd time while Earth ships were shooting at one another.  Then the transmission from the Martian captain clarified that the Martians were holding back and (even more insulting) offering aid and comfort to anyone who stood down from the battle.  Nguyen is gut-shot and left with only a couple of crew in CIC, so in his desperation (his stupid, thoughtless, win-at-any-cost desperation) he decides to use the hybrid capsules as if they are torpedos, aiming them at the Martian ships so that they will be infected.

God, I hate Nguyen.

But somebody help me out.  At the top of the episode I thought there were only two ships headed for Io -- Nguyen's ship and the Martian ship with the female captain who moved to intercept.  Where did all those other ships come from?  Did all those ships automatically follow the first two because they were part of the same battle group (i.e., what whatever the lead ship does the others follow?)  I've never been a soldier so I'm just speculating.

Edited May 12, 2018 by WatchrTina

[Haleth]

2 hours ago, WatchrTina said:

But somebody help me out.  At the top of the episode I thought there were only two ships headed for Io -- Nguyen's ship and the Martian ship with the female captain who moved to intercept.  Where did all those other ships come from?  Did all those ships automatically follow the first two because they were part of the same battle group (i.e., what whatever the lead ship does the others follow?)  I've never been a soldier so I'm just speculating.

When we get shots of the two ships approaching Io you can see two clusters of lights from the others ships waaaaay in the distance. I think they were having a stand off near Callisto?  They're there. 

[WatchrTina]

Okay, let's see if I've got this.  Jupiter has a bunch of moons but the four biggest (the ones that Galileo could see) are:

• Europa,
• Ganymede,
• Io, and
• Calisto.

Ganymede -- formerly the bread-basket of the Belt -- is trashed now.

Io is where Dr. Strickland went with Mei and the other children as well as (apparently) all the subjects of the earlier attempts at a hybrid (with them safely tucked away in stasis tubes).  Mao joined them there.

Calisto is where the Mars and Earth ships are massing for a fight . . . and I'm not sure why that is the place they chose to face off.  The shooting war started in the skies above Ganymede.  Why move to Calisto?

Europa hasn't been mentioned (possibly because it played such a big roll in 2001: A Space Oddessy).

So when Nguyen gets mad about ships leaving the AO (area of operations?) he is actually watching the action around Calisto and stirring the pot from a distance with his broadcast to the Mars fleet (following Admiral Souther's "illegal war" message to both sides.)  Did I get that right?  If so, I'm surprised that a shot fired from a ship in orbit around Io could take out a ship that is in the process of bugging out from around Calisto but hey, it's science fiction.

Edited May 12, 2018 by WatchrTina

[johntfs]

5 hours ago, WatchrTina said:

So when Nguyen gets mad about ships leaving the AO (area of operations?) he is actually watching the action around Calisto and stirring the pot from a distance with his broadcast to the Mars fleet (following Admiral Souther's "illegal war" message to both sides.)  Did I get that right?  If so, I'm surprised that a shot fired from a ship in orbit around Io could take out a ship that is in the process of bugging out from around Calisto but hey, it's science fiction.

Not quite.  When the Thomas Prince set course for Io, the Hammurabi moved to intercept it, at which point the rest of the Martian fleet moved to join it, at which further point the rest of the UN/Earth fleet moved to join the Thomas Prince.  Basically, the action and fleets have moved from Callisto to Io.

[btp]

On 5/12/2018 at 10:31 PM, johntfs said:

Not quite.  When the Thomas Prince set course for Io, the Hammurabi moved to intercept it, at which point the rest of the Martian fleet moved to join it, at which further point the rest of the UN/Earth fleet moved to join the Thomas Prince.  Basically, the action and fleets have moved from Callisto to Io.

Speaking of "not quite," :) ... I think you meant the Agatha King.  Thomas Prince is the ship aboard which some similar (but not identical) events occur in the books. But in the show, it's the Agatha King, operating under the command of Admiral Nguyen (after he relieved Adm. Souther of command), that diverts its course to Io, which the Hammurabi notices and follows, etc.

Either that, or I've lapsed on my meds again.

[johntfs]

7 hours ago, btp said:

Speaking of "not quite," :) ... I think you meant the Agatha King.  Thomas Prince is the ship aboard which some similar (but not identical) events occur in the books. But in the show, it's the Agatha King, operating under the command of Admiral Nguyen (after he relieved Adm. Souther of command), that diverts its course to Io, which the Hammurabi notices and follows, etc.

Either that, or I've lapsed on my meds again.

See, the really weird part is that I've never read even the first book, so I have no idea from where the ship name, "Thomas Prince" came.

[btp]

10 hours ago, johntfs said:

See, the really weird part is that I've never read even the first book, so I have no idea from where the ship name, "Thomas Prince" came.

Ah, I can help you with that one. Sort of. Somewhere out there (I don't know exactly where, but I've seen screen caps of it) there's a synopsis of the episode that refers to the ship as the Thomas Prince. So somebody somewhere must've screwed up.

[jcin617]

On 5/12/2018 at 4:48 PM, WatchrTina said:

Calisto is where the Mars and Earth ships are massing for a fight . . . and I'm not sure why that is the place they chose to face off.  The shooting war started in the skies above Ganymede.  Why move to Calisto?

 

A major (or they might have said primary) MCRN shipyard is at Callisto; that’s why the UNN was headed there and the MCRN was intercepting.

Edited May 15, 2018 by jcin617

[CigarDoug]

On 5/15/2018 at 12:11 PM, btp said:

Ah, I can help you with that one. Sort of. Somewhere out there (I don't know exactly where, but I've seen screen caps of it) there's a synopsis of the episode that refers to the ship as the Thomas Prince. So somebody somewhere must've screwed up.

In the TV show, the Agatha King is a Truman class ship that Souther commanded and had all the Crimson Tide action going on. The Thomas Prince is a different Truman class ship that is in Episode 7, carrying Anna and other earthers (I won't elaborate further). Someone at SyFy messed up and put Thomas Prince in the synopsis, when they should have said Agatha King.

I think that some events that happen in the BOOK happen on the Thomas Prince, but in the SHOW they happen on the Agatha King. That's my guess as to the mixup.