S01.E08: Point of No Return

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Ben forms an unlikely partnership with Vance in a high-stakes race to locate the missing passengers of Flight 828. Meanwhile, Michaela helps a suicidal passenger who believes he is the Angel of Death, and Cal goes back to school, navigating both his unwanted celebrity and his former friends, who are all now 16 years old.

Promo:

Original air date: 11/19/18

[828er]

This episode will be DAY 15 since Ben, Michaela, Cal, and Saanvi returned. I have created a timeline to show this. Some people in the forum don't think that is possible, but I have shown that it is. I divided each day into morning, afternoon, and evening. So far I have created the following timelines. They are cross-referenced with each other so you can navigate between the characters and stay on the same day.

Michaela's Timeline

Ben's Timeline

Olive's Timeline

Saanvi's Timeline

It will be interesting to have Cal going back to school. So far he hasn't (probably due to his cancer treatments, and of course having returned only 15 days ago), whereas Olive she has been going to school and soccer practice.

[shapeshifter]

On November 13, 2018 at 3:21 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Cal goes back to school, navigating both his unwanted celebrity and his former friends, who are all now 16 years old.

10-year-olds and 16-year-olds don't attend the same school unless they're going all Little-House-on-the-Prarie on us.

[peachmangosteen]

7 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

10-year-olds and 16-year-olds don't attend the same school unless they're going all Little-House-on-the-Prarie on us.

There are schools in my area that are all grades, some public and many private.

[Anela]

On 11/18/2018 at 2:11 AM, shapeshifter said:

10-year-olds and 16-year-olds don't attend the same school unless they're going all Little-House-on-the-Prarie on us.

That was what I was going to say. I suppose the schools could be next to each other.

On 11/18/2018 at 1:36 AM, 828er said:

This episode will be DAY 15 since Ben, Michaela, Cal, and Saanvi returned. I have created a timeline to show this. Some people in the forum don't think that is possible, but I have shown that it is. I divided each day into morning, afternoon, and evening. So far I have created the following timelines. They are cross-referenced with each other so you can navigate between the characters and stay on the same day.

Michaela's Timeline

Ben's Timeline

Olive's Timeline

Saanvi's Timeline

It will be interesting to have Cal going back to school. So far he hasn't (probably due to his cancer treatments, and of course having returned only 15 days ago), whereas Olive she has been going to school and soccer practice.

I may be disappointed in the show, but I admire your interest/passion in putting things together. 

[ottoDbusdriver]

On 11/19/2018 at 4:22 AM, Anela said:

That was what I was going to say. I suppose the schools could be next to each other.

I may be disappointed in the show, but I admire your interest/passion in putting things together. 

I just find it hard to believe it has only been 15 days since the plane returned, because so much has happened in such an unrealistic short timeframe. 

We need the mice from the movie 'Babe' to show up at some point and say "Three Weeks Later" or something.

Edited November 21, 2018 by ottoDbusdriver
Because spelling counts

[stealinghome]

I missed the first 10 minutes or so, so was a little lost for much of the episode. Mostly my thoughts boil down to the fact that I liked both the Singularity Project stuff and Michaela being concerned that telling others about the callings puts them in danger, but they felt like they should have been in different episodes. And where was Saanvi??

Olive and Cal were sweet but I'm soooo not interested in Cal's first day of school. Though I thought it was incredibly sweet of Olive's friends--who used to be Cal's friends too--to just welcome him back into the fold as they did.

I am really liking Vance as reluctant/low-key ally. I could see him as a frienemy going forward--he'll help them sometimes but be a foe at others.

Josh Dallas is trying hard to sell it but I am already tired of "I have to save my son!" Does you no good if you get yourself captured and killed, man.

Lourdes and Grace in the supermarket was super awkward. They certainly didn't feel like they've been quasi-family for years.

This ep definitely felt like set-up.

[LoveLeigh]

19 hours ago, Anela said:

I may be disappointed in the show, but I admire your interest/passion in putting things together. 

I agree. Anela did a wonderful job. Thank-you! 

I am disappointed in this show, and sort of fell away... but for the viewers who are still into it this is a marvelous reference guide. 

[djinn]

Vance's Minion #2 is a bad guy, and the badder guy is someone who he referred to as "Major". Minion # 1 may have been as clueless as Vance (and missing in this episode). It was good to see Vance and Ben partnering up; Michaela already has a partner in Jared. And I kinda like Fiona, who is getting involved in the mystery too. But one or more of the side kicks will die soon, I suppose. Missed Saanvi this episode.

[Camera One]

1 hour ago, stealinghome said:

Lourdes and Grace in the supermarket was super awkward.

Lourdes walks onscreen and you just know it's going to be awkward.  

[Camera One]

I was really scared for Vance and Fiona.  I like that more people are helping Ben now, though I feel we needed another episode with Fiona before she took such a big risk on herself.  

Ben is getting a bit too reckless.  I'm actually surprised he hasn't been found out yet.  I'll feel badly for his boss when he inevitably gets in trouble, or worse.  Ben has a no-trace phone now, but he's calling the professor, who has a phone which is probably bugged.  Did he think about that?   So Ben took one of his boss's security passes home with him? 

With all these flashbacks to the plane, we'll eventually be privy to every washroom break that every character takes.  

I liked Cal a little more in this episode, since he got to be vulnerable.  That must have been the smallest school ever for every grade to be offered and everyone to fit into that lunch area.  It's nice of his former friends to include him, but it must feel like they're babysitting or something.  

I was surprised Ben actually completed dinner with Grace without being interrupted.  

It's sad a few passengers have already died.  I don't like the whole killing-people-who-know-about-the-callings concept, unless it really is coincidence?  Unlikely after the freak accident at the dumpster.

I'm not sure Grace should have told Michaela about Lourdes' fertility kit.  "It sounds like Jared is moving on."  The "he-stayed-married-to-Lourdes" part didn't clue you in?  

1 hour ago, stealinghome said:

Mostly my thoughts boil down to the fact that I liked both the Singularity Project stuff and Michaela being concerned that telling others about the callings puts them in danger, but they felt like they should have been in different episodes.

This ep definitely felt like set-up.

I felt that too.  The two strands didn't pull together into a cohesive story.  The only link was when Ben and Michaela talk.  I do like that they communicate and update each other on their respective leads.

Edited November 20, 2018 by Camera One

[fauntleroy]

As the plot plods along a young lad's thoughts turn to...weird product placement. Fig Newtons, which are now, alas, mere 'Newtons' of which fig is just one possible filling. Nabisco retreating from their own product similar to Dunkin Donuts removing Donuts from their name. The fig associated with elderly people and their concern for 'regularity' it seems. By getting Fig out of the name they can introduce more trendy fillings like strawberry, that the youngsters are sure to enjoy. So Nabisco would not have paid for this outdated mention.

Did I see the Stop and Shop logo on Ben's ice cream? And that girl made a Doritos sandwich. Doritos brand, accept no substitutes!

Plotwise, sigh, Michaela misinterprets a voice AGAIN, and beats herself up about it. Reacting irrationally, which is disappointing and not the sort of hard-nosed thinking you want in a detective. While Ben gets to do math, she chooses the astrology department. Again, what is the point of ambiguous messages?

Grace no thank you, still. I am not usually one to mention chemistry as it's subjective, but between her and Ben there seems none, imo. They are both so obviously acting. Ben has more chemistry with his boss.

Edited November 20, 2018 by fauntleroy
Changing all Joshes to Bens.

[Camera One]

18 minutes ago, fauntleroy said:

Josh has more chemistry with his boss.

That would be interesting.  And the boss likes to look at secretly taken pictures of Ben on that "Flight 828 Fan Site" for fun.

I get that it would have been distracting for Ben to grab a bowl and to scoop a spoon of ice cream, but watching him eat straight from the container was even more distracting.

[shapeshifter]

I was was surprised that the contrived "campus" middle school+high school lunchroom scene had a payoff that made it worth watching, especially since they were child actors. Good job! to the child actors and the the head of casting, and perhaps makeup: Cal and Olive looked like siblings. The friends totally sold me. I'm guessing the actor who plays Cal must be really likeable.

 

 

6 HOURS AGO, CAMERA ONE SAID:

Lourdes walks onscreen and you just know it's going to be awkward

Awkward Grace + Awkward Lourdes = Trip to Awkwardville (with a bonus basket of Awkward pregnancy tests)

 

 

5 hours ago, Camera One said:

I'll feel badly for his boss when he inevitably gets in trouble, or worse. 

Ben's boss has been heading towards a visit to the principal's office since long before Ben arrived—which is kind of too bad, since he's the opposite of the mean boss. But he's also likely responsible—through his lack of professionalism —for all kinds of bad stuff slipping under the radar—maybe even for the Singularity people being able to work sight unseen.

 

5 hours ago, fauntleroy said:

Plotwise, sigh, Michaela misinterprets a voice AGAIN

Yes. AGAIN. Indeed.

 

 

5 hours ago, fauntleroy said:

Josh has more chemistry with his boss [than with his wife]

Hee. You may be right.

Edited November 20, 2018 by shapeshifter

[HunterHunted]

On 11/18/2018 at 1:11 AM, shapeshifter said:

10-year-olds and 16-year-olds don't attend the same school unless they're going all Little-House-on-the-Prarie on us.

When I lived in a small town in Northeastern Ohio about 20 years ago, the elementary, middle, and high school were on a single campus with each building next to the other. There were about 800 students total and the town had about 7,000 total residents. However, this was in rural Ohio. The problem is that almost all of the people connected to Flight 828 live within the tri-state area and are reasonably close to the city. There are precious few places that small that are really close to the city. Roosevelt Island is one. Most of the other districts that are that small seem to be upstat

I had to laugh at Minion #2 bellowing about how they needed to get up and running because of how much this was costing them. It only cost a lot because they kept insisting on buying properties. They didn't have a ton of staff and the medical equipment didn't seem to be especially high-tech. Let's face it even if they spent lavishly, there's no way that it was more than $1 million in salaries and another million for equipment over the past month, which is frankly budget dust. The real problem is that they seem to have spent like $40 million acquiring properties. This is waaaaaaaay stupid because nearly every government agency has some random unused facility that costs them $250,000 - $1 million to mothball. I know they wanted to keep it off the radar, but there's nothing harder to traverse than the various government bureaucracies. So "borrowing" a facility on the down low would always be harder for the 828ers to uncover than buying property whose deeds have to be recorded.

[GaT]

Why are they spending all this time on stupid plots like the missing passengers instead of figuring out where they were for five years?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Okay, now that Ben is convinced he's going to be caught he just doesn't care anymore? He's waltzing into offices late at night, rifling through files, taking pictures of stuff, etc.

Even though I don't need to see a bunch of school scenes for the rest of the season, I thought it was nice to see how much Cal's friends tried to make him feel welcome when he came back to school. I was afraid he was going to tell them to stop being so nice to him and flounce off.

Ha, I love that Vance can't just have a meeting with Ben like a normal person. He has to do things like set off the fire alarm just because he can. He isn't quite as reckless as Ben (yet) but he's definitely throwing up red flags for people around him to see. The underling who was asked to triangulate the signals without a project to bill it to didn't argue with him, but she knows something is up.

[stealinghome]

I did fear for Vance after this episode—he seems like the perfect sacrificial lamb these days. I’ll be really annoyed if Ben’s stupidity results in Vance’s death somehow. My headcanon is that Vance is going along with Ben’s harebrained schemes because he knows Ben will do stupid crap with or without him, and he can help mitigate some of the stupider stuff if he’s there.

[Brian Cronin]

2 hours ago, GaT said:

Why are they spending all this time on stupid plots like the missing passengers instead of figuring out where they were for five years?

The missing passengers are being experimented on and said experiments almost killed Cal the first time around, so avoiding Cal's death is a bit more of a pressing issue. For a show with not a ton of clever bits, that's at least a legitimately clever way of delaying them from doing any further investigations into where they were for five years.

5 hours ago, Camera One said:

Lourdes walks onscreen and you just know it's going to be awkward.  

I totally can't tell anymore if the actress playing Lourdes is doing a great job at being super awkward or a bad job at being a normal human being.

[Biggie B]

5 hours ago, fauntleroy said:

Did I see the Stop and Shop logo on Ben's ice cream?

Yes indeed! And the milk as well - it was their Nature's Promise organic brand, which I have in my fridge right now.

When Ben and Vance were looking at pictures of properties in Brooklyn, the one in Red Hook was identified as being in Queens County. Should've been Kings. 

[shapeshifter]

32 minutes ago, Brian Cronin said:

I totally can't tell anymore if the actress playing Lourdes is doing a great job at being super awkward or a bad job at being a normal human being.

I don't know her other work, so she might be type cast, but I'm pretty sure both Lourdes and Grace are supposed to be mere foils for the other females (Michaela and Saanvi) who are the destined other halves of their respective OTPs. 

I think the name "Lourdes" is beautiful, but, unfortunately, the only other fictional TV character I can recall with that name was the truly unlikeable Lourdes from Falling Skies, who, like this Lourdes, was always written as doing stuff that made the audience groan on behalf of other characters.

[Clanstarling]

8 hours ago, Camera One said:

I'm not sure Grace should have told Michaela about Lourdes' fertility kit.  "It sounds like Jared is moving on."  The "he-stayed-married-to-Lourdes" part didn't clue you in? 

I'm sure, in my mind, that she shouldn't have. She was all "I don't mean to stir the pot, but I'm gonna stir the pot." I haven't been a Grace hater, but that really ticked me off.

8 hours ago, fauntleroy said:

Plotwise, sigh, Michaela misinterprets a voice AGAIN, and beats herself up about it. Reacting irrationally, which is disappointing and not the sort of hard-nosed thinking you want in a detective. While Ben gets to do math, she chooses the astrology department. Again, what is the point of ambiguous messages?

For a woman whose profession is to operate on evidence and logic, Michaela seems to jump to conclusions with each and every calling - and is now making them all about herself and personal relationships, even though (as I recall) none of them have had anything to do with her personally. Then she decides the deaths are not only about telling people about the calling, but also punishment for failing the calling. I did a lot of eye rolling during this episode.

1 hour ago, icemiser69 said:

I was more concerned with him using the box of ice cream as his own personal food bowl.  I hope he is eating the rest of the box of ice cream.  There is nothing more gross than having someone eat out of the box and then putting it back in the freezer for someone else to dive into.   I don't think anyone wants to eat someone else's frozen drool.  I know I don't.

And what the hell is it with ice cream boxes shrinking?  I remember the good old days when there were true half gallon (64 oz) boxes.  From what I have seen the prices sure haven't dropped, even though there is less ice cream in the box now.

We're of two minds, icemiser. Although at my house, I have my daughter do that as an effective way to keep me from eating stuff I shouldn't. LOL. Yep, they've been gradually reducing the size of ice cream gradually. It took me awhile to realize a half gallon wasn't a half gallon. They were the same circumference (round ones) but shorter.

When Ben's phone was smashed, I thought, well what if someone needs to call him? And does Ben have all his family's phone  numbers memorized? It sounded like the only number Vance put on the phone he gave him was his own. The call between Michaela and Ben seemed more likely to have been her calling him, but I guess it isn't out of the question it could be the other way around.

[tennisgurl]

Vance is super Extra, I love it. He clearly cant just go talk to Ben while he is getting lunch or something, he has to set the fire alarm off or something, complete with cell phone cell phone smashing and such. 

The two plots had little to do with each other, so I felt like we didnt get much from either, but I enjoyed it none the less. I always like the episodes that focus more on the conspiracy and the flight passengers than the love triangles. I like that Ben is getting more allys, and they are being more proactive in solving the mystery. Ben still sucks at being a spy, but he is trying, so good on him for that! I know I say this a lot, but they really nailed the casting with Josh Dallas. He can really play "good guy just trying to do right damn it" in a way that is surprisingly difficult. Its easy to seem bland in that kind of role, but he plays it well. 

Michaela should move on, but so should Jarred. he is giving some seriously mixed signals, acting like he wants to hang out with Michaela, but also planning a family with Lourdes. He and Grace should start a "Mixed Signals R Us" club!

I guess Olive and Cal go to a small school, or one that linked its schools? Kind of weird, but that lunch scene was super adorable. Cal and Olive have good sibling chemistry, and her friends all including him and making Cal feel welcome, despite the weird circumstances, was adorable. They all seem like sweet kids, that was a nice scene. 

[fauntleroy]

Hey I just figured out multi-quote! Derrr.

14 hours ago, stealinghome said:

Josh Dallas is trying hard to sell it but I am already tired of "I have to save my son!" Does you no good if you get yourself captured and killed, man.

Yes, because "family" is the go-to excuse for characters to behave carelessly. We are expected to respond But that's crazy! Oh is it for family? Ah well then you are exempt from normal precautions - no option is too hare-brained, to protect FAMILEE! The standard for most sanctimonious family show is Blue Bloods in case anybody cannot get enough of this particular kind of treacle.

7 hours ago, Brian Cronin said:

The missing passengers are being experimented on and said experiments almost killed Cal the first time around, so avoiding Cal's death is a bit more of a pressing issue. For a show with not a ton of clever bits, that's at least a legitimately clever way of delaying them from doing any further investigations into where they were for five years.

Presumably further investigation into the weirdest physical event to ever happen in known history is being done by additional top minds beyond Ben, and it would be nice to check in on them.

6 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

I think the name "Lourdes" is beautiful.

I do too. I want another daughter just so I can call her Little Lourdes Fauntleroy. There is a reporter on NPR named Lourdes Garcia-Navarro which is about the most beautiful name I ever heard. And she calls herself Lulu! Come on!

5 hours ago, icemiser69 said:

And what the hell is it with ice cream boxes shrinking?  I remember the good old days when there were true half gallon (64 oz) boxes.  From what I have seen the prices sure haven't dropped, even though there is less ice cream in the box now.

This too is an abomination. Also unless you are careful you can grab a box of "ice cream food" or "frozen dessert" instead of proper ice cream. Again producers afraid to commit to their own product. Bastards! It's all connected!

Edited November 20, 2018 by fauntleroy

[paul4295]

Regarding the school, Olive said they were "on the same campus," when she mentioned walking to school with Cal.  When they got there, the sign said "Hollis Hills Charter School" (Hollis Hills is a neighborhood in Queens, NYC), so as a charter school (or schools, if the middle school and high school are considered separate entities) it might be relatively small.

However, it would be unlikely that the middle schoolers and high schoolers would be eating lunch together.  When my kids were in a school housing 5th - 8th graders, the 5th graders were always kept separate, as they were still considered to be in elementary school, and the others were considered to be in middle school.  However, it did make for a nice scene between the kids, so I'm willing to forgive the inconsistency.  (When you're watching a show about an airplane that magically reappeared after being missing for 5 years, this seems like a minor quibble.)

[shapeshifter]

8 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

16 hours ago, Camera One said:

I'm not sure Grace should have told Michaela about Lourdes' fertility kit.  "It sounds like Jared is moving on."  The "he-stayed-married-to-Lourdes" part didn't clue you in?

I'm sure, in my mind, that she shouldn't have. She was all "I don't mean to stir the pot, but I'm gonna stir the pot." I haven't been a Grace hater, but that really ticked me off.

I hated that whole contrivance of a plot point--even more so because I don't really know what the audience was supposed to think.
I mean, it certainly makes a lot of viewers hate Grace, but although Grace says:
    Um I'm not trying to stir the pot.
But then she follows it with:
   But after what I said this morning about Jared . . .
which is referring to the (clueless?) matchmake-y remark Grace made in the morning:
   [Michaela] It's just I'm trying to get Jared out of my head, and the captain insists we ride patrol together.
   [Grace] Maybe it's Jared who's insisting.
Argh.
"Argh" because, ya know, Grace was not wrong about Jared wanting to have his "breath taken away" by Michaela.
But Michaela is becoming such a crazy, over reactive nut case, that you'd think Jared should be thinking he's glad he dodged that bullet. But I guess he likes that bullet.

Argh some more.

[basiltherat]

I hate the fact that they are making a child suffer (even if the character is annoying) for the drah-ma.  Also not too thrilled with electricity being zapped into people without their consent -- it screams old school lobotomies which were proven ineffective fifty years ago.  It sounds like something the Dharma Initiative would have done!

Perhaps little Cal was given special dispensation to sit with his sister at lunch.  And to trade Doritos for string cheese (bad trade, kiddo).

[ottoDbusdriver]

Did Ben meet Vance in the middle of the night --- in Vance's office ?
 

That seems awful risky for both Ben and Vance.  I guess the NSA doesn't have security guards or 24x7 video surveillance at their own facilities.

Especially after all the effort Vance went to to meet Ben by pulling the fire alarm at Ben's office to keep their meeting secret.

Edited November 21, 2018 by ottoDbusdriver

[Camera One]

11 minutes ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Did Ben meet Vance in the middle of the night --- in Vance's office ?

 

I was thinking the same thing.  Vance was getting careless as well.  Surely, he suspects a mole at NSA.  At the beginning, that shady Singularity guy was saying that Vance had a day off and was off-grid.  So you'd think they have people keeping a close eye on him.

Edited November 21, 2018 by Camera One

[txhorns79]

I'm not wrong to think the guy killed himself because death was a better option than having to deal with Michaela, right?

Edited November 21, 2018 by txhorns79

[Maverick]

Ben's boss is totally going to die.  Shady Dude was informed of someone performing a search on their front company and Ben did that under his boss's ID. 

Michaela needs to chill. The evidence to date seems to say it's ok to tell trusted confidants about the calling, just not drunk randos in a bar. 

[Camera One]

I hate the favoritism of the Callings.  Last week, it goes out of its way to make Michaela feel better about her best friend's accident helping out a boy with a heart condition.  And then this week, it pushes a guy to commit suicide.  Why doesn't the Calling just cause the evil Singularity guy to drop dead or something?  I can't even fathom how all this is going to add up (or if it ever will).

Edited November 21, 2018 by Camera One

[828er]

the school is a private school, some type of academy as was mentioned above, so it makes sense that the grade levels are all in one location. But it looks cheap. They have buses, and they bring out tables into the gym for lunch!

Did anyone notice the GOOF!  In Harvey's apartment when Jared shows Michaela the obituaries of the two people who died... The obituary of the woman says she died in 1996! And the man, he died from lung cancer, not a heart attack like Jared later claimed. Go figure! Either the props team was lazy, or maybe their is some wierd time travel going on that we don't know about? Not!

Edited November 21, 2018 by 828er

[828er]

I think Powell is a mole at NSA for the Singularity Project. Notice he did not appear at all in this episode. We have some woman named Tabitha.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

On a positive note, we finally got to see that Ben's boss actually does work, so I guess he isn't a schmoozy douchebro 24/7.

[shapeshifter]

43 minutes ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

On a positive note, we finally got to see that Ben's boss actually does work, so I guess he isn't a schmoozy douchebro 24/7.

 I see this as a hint of his impending demise. I'm sure there's a trope named for when a character is redeemed right before they're killed off so that either the audience or another character feels sad about it. Like @Maverick predicts:

7 HOURS AGO, MAVERICK SAID:

Ben's boss is totally going to die. Shady Dude was informed of someone performing a search on their front company and Ben did that under his boss's ID

Maybe Ben will even get bumped up to the boss's position.

Edited November 21, 2018 by shapeshifter

[Clanstarling]

11 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

That seems awful risky for both Ben and Vance.  I guess the NSA doesn't have security guards or 24x7 video surveillance at their own facilities.

 

I couldn't believe it was at his office - I told myself it had to be at his home (which still could be surveilled if they're suspicious of him). I couldn't believe he'd be that stupid - because of course there'd be video surveillance at the NSA offices. This show, I want to like it. I just want it to give a  nod to the common sense stuff. There's no reason they needed to be in an office for that meeting.

Besides, if you get the common, everyday type of details right, it grounds the stories enough to make the weird stuff more interesting and possible.

Edited November 21, 2018 by Clanstarling

[peachmangosteen]

On 11/20/2018 at 1:07 AM, fauntleroy said:

Did I see the Stop and Shop logo on Ben's ice cream?

 

All of the food they show, and they weirdly show a lot lol, is the Giant store brand, yes. There must be a Giant/Martin's/Stop and Shop/etc. right near where they film or something.

On 11/20/2018 at 3:54 AM, GaT said:

Why are they spending all this time on stupid plots like the missing passengers instead of figuring out where they were for five years?

The writers have already talked about when those big things will be revealed. Now, this isn't really a spoiler imo, but apparently it is considered one on this forum, so I'll tag it. 

 

The writers have said that the big mystery won't even be solved until the end of the show, so if you're watching for that you can probably just quit now and just watch the series finale lol.

Edited November 21, 2018 by peachmangosteen

[green]

21 hours ago, fauntleroy said:

Yes, because "family" is the go-to excuse for characters to behave carelessly. We are expected to respond But that's crazy! Oh is it for family? Ah well then you are exempt from normal precautions - no option is too hare-brained, to protect FAMILEE!

Yeah it is okay to fight for FAMILEE but screw the poor Bulgarian guy if it wasn't that The Golden Child was involved.  I hate the Ben character so much.  Only his Golden Child matters, not the child of a no doubt long dead Bulgarian mother and father.  Because it is only about "my" family, "my" country, "my" religion and screw the rest of the human beings on earth.  Only when we see the children of all mothers and fathers as our own will we ever have peace on earth.

 

13 hours ago, ottoDbusdriver said:

Did Ben meet Vance in the middle of the night --- in Vance's office ?
That seems awful risky for both Ben and Vance.  I guess the NSA doesn't have security guards or 24x7 video surveillance at their own facilities.
Especially after all the effort Vance went to to meet Ben by pulling the fire alarm at Ben's office to keep their meeting secret.

What was also funny was that after Vance pulled the fire alarm and they started talking they cut immediately to them sitting at what looked like an outdoor cafe in town somewhere right in the middle of Ben's work day/fire alarm period.  Long fire drill there.

 

12 hours ago, Maverick said:

Ben's boss is totally going to die.  Shady Dude was informed of someone performing a search on their front company and Ben did that under his boss's ID.

Yeah.  Ben's boss should be wearing a Star Trek original series red shirt to work at this point.  I really wish the boss guy was one of the leads.  We need someone flaky and funny and probably cowardly besides trying to solve all these mysteries rather than the dour "it is all and ONLY about my SON and screw the rest of the world" Ben character. (Did I mention I really REALLY hate Ben yet, hah).

 

5 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

 I see this as a hint of his impending demise. I'm sure there's a trope named for when a character is redeemed right before they're killed off so that either the audience or another character feels sad about it. Like @Maverick predicts:

Maybe Ben will even get bumped up to the boss's position.

Yeah and why wouldn't Ben.  He got a job in 5 seconds flat there for no reason whatsoever.  Red Shirt Boss isn't his beloved SON so he won't feel the least guilty he gets his boss killed.  If this show makes it into next year I'm sure Ben will have wormed his way into secretly infiltrating/heading up a big dept inside the evil corp itself.  And how?  It is all magic because ... SON!!!!!  (No wonder Olive likes Danny better).

[shapeshifter]

14 minutes ago, green said:

What was also funny was that after Vance pulled the fire alarm and they started talking they cut immediately to them sitting at what looked like an outdoor cafe in town somewhere right in the middle of Ben's work

 

14 minutes ago, green said:

Yeah.  Ben's boss should be wearing a Star Trek original series red shirt to work at this point

With minimal tweaking, this show could be a great dramedy instead of a mediocre drama.

Edited November 21, 2018 by shapeshifter
Correcting autocorrect

[green]

5 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

With minimal tweaking, this show could be a great dramedy instead of a mediocre drama.

You are so right.  This could have been a great satire send-up of all the other shows people have been mentioning on this board from the beginning episode.  Hey, maybe it is and I was just missing it.

[828er]

Michaela receives a verbal calling that’s as vague as her previous callings, but this one will not clarify itself by the end of the episode. In fact, the way it is introduced, underscores it complexity. Initially, we are led to believe it is Jared (i.e. revolving around her reluctance of riding with him cf. 108.5). But then immediately after she receives the calling, Captain Riojas informs her about a jumper (108.6). This is how Michaela understands the call. When he jumps she blames herself for having failed. Then later she develops an hypothesis that takes the calling to a whole new level (cf. 108.18). But by the end of the episode, we still don’t know. Another possibility of who “Don’t lose him” may refer to is Cal. After all, the episode begins with him saying, “I don’t want to die” (108.1), and ends on an ominous note (108.26).

[828er]

On 11/21/2018 at 4:07 PM, icemiser69 said:

They couldn't deploy the air bag because the roof below the jumper was pitched from left to right.  Yet when the jumper jumps he clears that roof and hits the walkway in front of the building.  I guess they should have deployed the airbag after all. 

I noticed this too. In the point of view scenes of him looking down, the roof isn't even visible. When he jump, he didn't have the forward momentum to clear the pitched roof, either. But this is nothing compared to the two people's obituaries who died. Did you take a close look at when they died? The woman died in 1996, and the man in April of 2018 before Flight 828 returned. This is either a terrible oversight on the prop's department, are did these two people "go missing" (i.e. died) and came back as "angels". Maybe all the 828ers died, and have come back? So I am not going to just right this off as I may have initially, and blame the writers or prop team. Maybe the left us a clue. What do other people think?

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, 828er said:

Maybe all the 828ers died, and have come back?

Kind of like on Lost?

[kili]

What is strange about the jumper is that he had no family or connections. Why wasn't he scooped up with the others who are being experimented on?

Perhaps his new friends are being killed by the Singularity Project. Either they now want to bring him in or they don't like him talking about the calling because it is their secret tech. So far, Jared and Grace are safe because they think Michaela and Ben are crazy.  They aren't telling anybody so the Singularity Project doesn't know to target them. Meanwhile, the gang at the bar are fine with spreading the rumours.  Once those rumours get out, the 828 website is going to publicize it further. 

All of those people died in accidents that could have been set-up. The first woman was so drunk, they were surprised she could be walking. She should have been in a coma. Just fill her with booze and throw her in front of a bus. Second guy had a heart attack which is totally easy to fake with potassium. Third woman dies from electrocution when she touches an electrified garbage bin? Could have been a setup if she has a habit of going out to smoke her cigarette each night while leaning against the garbage bin. Fate isn't killing these people.

It is weird that the guy decided he was the Angel of Death after two people at his local watering hole died. You would think it would take more than two to notice the pattern.

[Clanstarling]

2 hours ago, kili said:

What is strange about the jumper is that he had no family or connections. Why wasn't he scooped up with the others who are being experimented on?

That was my first thought.

[shapeshifter]

5 hours ago, kili said:

It is weird that the guy decided he was the Angel of Death after two people at his local watering hole died. You would think it would take more than two to notice the pattern.

Heh, my mind would go there after only 2, but I wouldn't then conclude that suicide was the best option. I'd want to investigate. Maybe he was drugged?

[biakbiak]

I FUCKING HATE GRACE. She did not need to tell Michaela about Lourdes trying to get pregnant. 

[shapeshifter]

8 hours ago, biakbiak said:

I FUCKING HATE GRACE. She did not need to tell Michaela about Lourdes trying to get pregnant. 

LOL! And so begins page 2 of this thread. 

I can see why she felt the need to say *something* after suggesting to Michaela that very morning that Jared wanted to be with her,
but a better way would be to apologize for saying anything in the first place,
and *maybe* adding that she was wrong to disrespect their marriage.

[jhlipton]

This episode was so aptly named:  It was the point of no return for me.  None of the "stars" are appealing, the writing is horrid (Ben getting hired in one day -- no drug test or background check -- and getting access to anything, much less the IT guy's computer [those guys eat, sleep and dream security] is absurd) and no I find out the only interesting thing about it isn't even going to be developed for at least a season or two.  No thanks; I'm out.