S02.E09: Things Which Have Never Yet Been Done

[Catch 22]

Count me among those who laughed out loud when Helena put Henrik through the insemination procedure, especially the humilating process of spreading and strapping his legs to the bed. Then, too, picking up the specimen containers and pretending to read them to him before deciding. Cow, horse. Guess it ended with him literally burning in a hell of Helena's making. Can't wait until they find that corpse, crispy but burned into position.

 

I involuntarily uttered Holy Shit! as soon as I saw Rachel put that hoodie over head, as it signaled to me that she was "trying on" Sarah. The payoff was terrific. Also, did anyone notice the long shot of Rachel from behind after her dress rehersal? I wasn't sure if it showed her with long dark hair then or if that was just the back of the hoodie. How creepy as hell was it when Rachel was laughing while drinking that martini and watching herself as child with her parents?

 

LovinLife I kind of assumed when Rachel called that Dr. Nealon (?) for help, it was to have him fake whatshisname's (Benjamin?) picture and information on the PC and send it for Delphine to find. Could most definitely be mistaken, though.

[OriginalCyn]

And again I laughed inappropriately during Orphan Black, when Helena "inseminated" Father. I am so going to hell.

 

My sick mind wanted to know exactly where she inserted that insemination device; if it was strictly to kill, I could see it being used to either stab in the chest or, to humiliate him, insert in rectally.  Regardless, I've no doubt she made sure to jab his innards in several directions to maximize the damage and pain as well as to ensure it was fatal.

 

Rachel is two gummy fruit candies short of a fruit cake. So she really has caught a case of baby rabies, figures. But man she's good, she got Delphine to distract the real Sarah while she slipped right in and took Kira out from under their noses.

 

Helena gave that slime-ball cult leader exactly what he deserved, and she set the place on fire. Not sure how I feel about the whole evil red headed stepchild, who may have had a change of heart, getting away with her boyfriend, pregnant with Helena's baby to boot.

 

And Rachel has lost her damn mind. 

 

W-w..what the hell just happened?!

 

I have to admit, I yelled, Oh come on! when it was revealed that Rachel was posing as Sarah.

 

Are we certain it was Rachel impersonating Sarah when Kira was abducted?  Given Kira's PSYKIK abilities, it seems she would have picked up on Rachel's icy demeanor, no matter how she tried to mask it.

 

For all we know, there's yet another DYAD-raised clone more up to snuff on this type of undercover shit.  Either that, or Tony (gulp), wasn't clueless and naive about the whole Clone thing and is in fact working for them.  He did, after all, seem fairly nonchalant about the whole reveal whereas most others had freak-outs of some degree.  Many here have attributed that to his being a transgender male and therefore secure in his identity, but for all we know, that whole scene at the beginning of last week's episode was a deliberate set-up of sorts originally for Tony/Sammy get closer to Beth (before she train-jumped) and the rest of the Clone Club, followed by DYAD trying to eliminate him and Sammy out of fear for blowing the whole thing wide open.  I could see new orders coming from up the chain of command sending Tony on a mission passing himself off as Sarah and Kira being receptive to him -- it'd be far easier for him to achieve that than Rachel as she's Rachel's so tightly wound up that a broken nail would send her into a tailspin.

 

Time to remove the tinfoil hat, lol.

[beeble]

Good God that was awesome!

The start was hilarious, with Donnie and Alison putting the ice cream back in the fridge with Leekie (well you wouldn't want it to melt, would you?) and continued with Donnie manning up.  He can bury Angie any day, but keep Vic and his face-planting antics. 

 

But thank God for crazy Ukrainians and their creepy-subplot-ending ways. I did NOT want to see this story come to fruition. (Ewww - "fruition" - I just grossed myself out)  Just ram a needle in its ass and burn it to the ground.

 

Oh yeah, and once again, Kira is gone. But this time it's real so it's scary. Except that once Helena finds out I wouldn't want to be Rachel.

[Souris]

This show makes me want to run around the living room waving my hands in the air and screaming incoherently. In a good way.

 

Rachel is batshit crazy. Oh, dear, Kira. Oh, dear.

 

Creepy Prolethian Dadseminator got what he deserved. "Horse? COW?" I wonder if Helena's embryos will be the solution they need in order for Kira to be freed. (I did not mean to rhyme.) More particularly, the one(s) Gracie is carrying, since she doesn't want to be carrying them. I'm calling that now! And there's also the ones in the container Helena took.

 

So ... Mark was military. Paul was military. Tony's monitor was military. Coincidence? I'm thinking not!

 

I didn't realize it was Rachel impersonating Sarah until she spoke with Rachel's accent. For a second, I thought Tatiana had accent-shift, then I went "OH!!! CRAP!!!"

 

Oh, Delphine, OF COURSE Rachel planted that for you to see. Way too obvious. Rachel is not stupid like that.

 

Donnie and Alison burying Leekie in the garage and getting turned on by it was all kinds of wrong. And all kinds of right. Funny to see Donnie get in touch with his inner badass.

 

Mrs. S in pigtails was just weird. She does not strike me as a pigtail kind of person.

 

I did enjoy the CloneClub Skype session.

 

::Pets Cosima. Pets Scott.::

 

Jordan Gevaris did a fun live-tweet session for this ep.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Souris

[bluebonnet]

 

Are we certain it was Rachel impersonating Sarah when Kira was abducted?  Given Kira's PSYKIK abilities, it seems she would have picked up on Rachel's icy demeanor, no matter how she tried to mask it.

 

It seemed like it was Rachel's accent that broke through.  But wasn't Kira asleep?  Sarah gave her meds before she went to meet Delphine.  I figured they were painkillers that would likely keep her asleep, but she was also still recovering from the anesthesia, which keeps people zonked for a while after and the doctor also noted she'd sleep a lot.  

[possibilities]

I took it that Helena torched the "breeding facility" (with stirrup daddy inside). It seemed like the women and children were in a different house. So they will survive, though it's a question what they will do now that they are freed from their demented leader. It's a psychologically interesting question, but not the focus of this show, so I'm okay if we never find out.

 

Helena left with her refrigerated eggs, didn't she? It was a thermos full and looke dlike the kind of canisters that sperm are transported in. I wonder if she will be bargaining with Dyad-- her eggs for Kira's (and Sarah's) freedom?

 

I'm a little worried none of the other sestra will welcome Helena, if Sarah's not around, having surrendered to Dyad. On the other hand, maybe Helena will prove her fearless worth to them quickly, because she's loyal and creative and they may appreciate a take no prisoners attitude under the circumstances. She also made allies in Grace and Mark, and with Donnie also on board, it looks like Clone Club is developing quite a little army. Mark apparently  has a military background, also.

 

I thought Allison was going to chop Leekie up in little pieces, I really did. Down the garbage disposal!

 

Who thinks Angie is going to give up? I don't, particularly. Vic, either. But Donnie's moment was awesome just the same.

[CPP83]

Are we certain it was Rachel impersonating Sarah when Kira was abducted?  Given Kira's PSYKIK abilities, it seems she would have picked up on Rachel's icy demeanor, no matter how she tried to mask it.

 

 

Kira was unconscious in bed, and Felix was sleeping on the window sill when Rachel, as Sarah, came in. When Felix's phone rang he saw it was Sarah calling him, but before he could react Rachel stick that needle into his neck and drugged him, then she scooped up the sleeping Kira and carted her off. Kira never realized anything had happened, she woke up for the first time in the little girl's room Rachel had brought her to.

[bluebonnet]

 

 

Helena left with her refrigerated eggs, didn't she? It was a thermos full and looke dlike the kind of canisters that sperm are transported in. I wonder if she will be bargaining with Dyad-- her eggs for Kira's (and Sarah's) freedom?

Oh, I didn't even realize it was the cannister the eggs were in!  Good catch.  I was wondering if the clones would go public now that they have an army behind them (with cops, military, scientists, murderers, Mrs. S clan, etc) so going public isn't as dangerous as it was when they didn't know who had taken Kira.  But the eggs as a bargaining tool would be an interesting story.  

[Riful]

In a way I think that's why Cosima/Delphine are among my favorites.

Science smart but spy dumb.

 

I find it hilarious just how bad Cosima and Delphine are at the whole spying and covert thing. First time I watched S1 it annoyed me, but on rewatch it became sort of hmm... endearing how utterly terrible they were at it. On a more serious note I don't think Delphine could really ignore the email either on the off chance the guy was compromised. I just wish we saw some indication of her being aware of the possibility besides saying he "may" be compromised to Sarah before she ran off. Then again that wouldn't fit in with the whole shitty spy thing.

 

Oh my God at Helena and what she did. It was such a different image to see a man in those stirrups, and Helena's laugh at the end? Yeah you don't fuck with Helena.  I guess she is off to find CloneClub and will play an important role in the whole mission Save Kira (and perhaps Cosima ?)

 

Donnie and Alison were just fantastic but gotta pick Donnie as my favorite for this episode. The actor is doing a great job with him, and I love the nuances and dept that has been added to him. That scene in the van was the very best, with Vic throwing up the peace sign when Donnie snaps the picture followed by Donnie wishing them a very shitty day. Just simultaneously awesome and hilarious. I love this show ability to make one constantly re-evaluate how you feel about all the various characters. They keep evolving and showing different sides, so you might hate one for half a season and then later on come to greatly enjoy their character. Donnie before weren't very interesting to watch for me, always the scene was pretty much all Alison. But now I am enjoying having Donnie on my screen and seeing what he gets up to.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Riful

[jaybear1701]

I took it that Helena torched the "breeding facility" (with stirrup daddy inside). It seemed like the women and children were in a different house.

 

According to the Huffington Post, they apparently filmed a scene with the kids escaping but had to cut it during the editing process. I'm assuming there are multiple prolethian complexes scattered about. I guess they'll go to one of those?

[Cranberry]

In the hospitat room, just for a second, "Sarah's" accent turns into Rachel's. I thought Tatiana had made a mistake because she's playing so many parts, but then it was revealed that it WAS Rachel. I mean, wow, Tatiania is a genius. Why she doesn't already have an emmy sitting on her mantle is a complete mystery to me.

 

I thought the exact same thing -- that she'd slipped a little with the accent and was sounding too much like Rachel -- and then I realized what was going on. She really is amazing. She deserves every bit of praise and hype she gets.

 

 How creepy as hell was it when Rachel was laughing while drinking that martini and watching herself as child with her parents?

 

She looked creepiest when she was laughing. Watching her actually made me uncomfortable! She's more unhinged than Helena is, I think; she just hides it better.

 

Are we certain it was Rachel impersonating Sarah when Kira was abducted?  Given Kira's PSYKIK abilities, it seems she would have picked up on Rachel's icy demeanor, no matter how she tried to mask it.

 

Definitely Rachel. She was preparing beforehand (looking at photos, changing into a hoodie) and it was her accent slipping through when she was dressed up as Sarah. Kira was asleep the whole time.

[Amethyst]

Helena is just fantastic.  Inseminating the leader, torching the place...she is the absolute best.  Loved the moment between her and the little girl, and even better when she threatened the girl's mother.  Helena is crazy, but she takes care of her own.

 

Did not give one shred of a shit about Alison/Donnie; knew it was going to end up in a frenzied sex session anyway.  And Donnie's little power moment doesn't mean anything, because Angie is just going to come back even stronger now that she knows Donnie is involved.  Ugh at that whole mess.  It's wrong, but I'm actually rooting for Angie a little.  Allison just bugs the shit out of me.

 

Rachel has really snapped, hasn't she?  Poor Kira.  Bad enough she was just operated on, now she's been kidnapped.  

 

Although I don't think Delphine was in on it, she's fucked up too much in this.  I wouldn't blame Sarah or Mrs. S if they put a bullet in her head, even if Cosima survives.  Please don't kill off Cosima!  

[Riful]

I Delphine is fully aware of how dangerous the DYAD is. 

I always got the impression she wasn't aware of how dangerous DYAD was initially. She striked me as someone who had drank the Neolution Kool-Aid completely, and her fascination with that philosophy and science was what brought her on board. She has tried to argue for DYAD not being 100% bad if I recall correctly, and it probably isn't given, it's size and we know they do good medical stuff/research as well. I think first towards the end of S1 and especially S2, have been an eye opening experience for her. Starting with her loosing trust in Leekie and then turning more and more against DYAD.

 

According to the Huffington Post, they apparently filmed a scene with the kids escaping but had to cut it during the editing process. I'm assuming there are multiple prolethian complexes scattered about. I guess they'll go to one of those?

 

Thank you for that link. I was also wondering if we were meant to take it as Helena torching the entire thing with everyone in it, or if (hopefully) the kids etc. made it out. It would make no sense character-wise for Helena to kill the kids but fire is something rather wild and not controllable so it would had been easy for it to result in disaster. I do think during Helena's first escape we saw what looked like slightly seperate buildings, and also during our introduction we could see some scattered about.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Riful

[CPP83]

In the hospital with Kira and Felix, Rachel also says to Fee, while she's jabbing the needle into his neck, that it was a "nice to meet him" for the first time.

 

I don't think the DYAD really cares all that much about Kira, I think it's all Rachel. She's obsessed with her, the idea of a baby had by a clone, a child that never should have been and yet she believes should have been hers if any clone was to be special enough to defy their genetic programming.

[Amethyst]

In the hospital with Kira and Felix, Rachel also says to Fee, while she's jabbing the needle into his neck, that it was a "nice to meet him" for the first time.

 

Kinda OT, but I felt so bad for Felix then.  He's an amazing brother; he stayed by Sarah and Kira's side the whole time, and still gets screwed over by Rachel.  And in the promo for next week

he looks absolutely gutted about losing Kira

.  I really hope he lives through the season.

[rlc]

Did anyone catch what Donnie said about the number of clones to Angie?

[CPP83]

Kinda OT, but I felt so bad for Felix then.  He's an amazing brother; he stayed by Sarah and Kira's side the whole time, and still gets screwed over by Rachel

 

 

The Clones have been working him over this season, and in the past two episodes he's been assaulted by two of them, Tony and now Rachel. Not to mention the whole Paul scaring the shit out of him and making him think he was seconds from having his brains painting the couch.

 

The poor kid is going to need a hug, where's Art? He's really been the only one of recent who's taken care of Felix.

[Souris]

Did anyone catch what Donnie said about the number of clones to Angie?

 

He said 11. But who knows if he knows how many there really are.

[CPP83]

Did anyone catch what Donnie said about the number of clones to Angie?

 

 

I caught what he said about her not being able to put it all together despite knowing there's so many Alison lookalikes, but I didn't hear him state a number. He did tell Vic that there are "11" when he was threatening him in the garage.

[Amethyst]

The poor kid is going to need a hug, where's Art? He's really been the only one of recent who's taken care of Felix.

 

I loved the Art/Felix "odd couple" dynamic.  Didn't see that friendship coming.  It's a pity that Art's been MIA for a few weeks.  This is another problem of having so many characters and plots all at once; the good ones slip through the cracks.

 

Felix needs a vacation.  Or at the very least, another romp with Colin.  And this time, no interruptions, Paul.

[ganesh]

I found Donnie's wallet. It's the one that says "bad mother fucker" on it.

 

Even though their plot was segregated, I think the show needed to deal with the dead body. Honestly, I hope they get away with it. And Donnie put the safety on because he learns from his mistakes. He said it like he knows that you're supposed to use oven mitts because things in the oven are really hot. Angie can be as pissed as she wants, but she's off the books on this one so I don't think she's in much of a position to threaten them. 

 

I was confused at what Rachel was doing until she got to the hospital as Sarah. When she told S to 'secure' the elevator. Well played show. 

 

I'm a little disappointed in Helena's plot. Not that it was all made up or all over the place, the plotting itself was fine. I just didn't find it that interesting. I'm assuming this is part of a larger season 3 picture, and that's fine. There just wasn't too much for her to do.

 

Crazy Rachel is a dangerous Rachel. This was a good call because now I have no idea what the hell she's going to do. Honestly, they're going to have to kill her. It seems logical that it should be Paul to do it, but no one knows where the hell he is.

[hardy har]

well, tonight's episode went in directions that few had anticipated....holy fuckballs!!

Yup. Holy fuckballs just about sums it up. I mean, I don't know how they do it, but I basically have everyone in the death pool now and it's freaking my shit out.

 

I involuntarily uttered Holy Shit! as soon as I saw Rachel put that hoodie over head, as it signaled to me that she was "trying on" Sarah. The payoff was terrific. Also, did anyone notice the long shot of Rachel from behind after her dress rehersal? I wasn't sure if it showed her with long dark hair then or if that was just the back of the hoodie. How creepy as hell was it when Rachel was laughing while drinking that martini and watching herself as child with her parents?

 

Whoever directed this episode did an amazing job and that scene was awesome. I felt like I was watching someone have a psychotic break.The whole bit where Rachel sort of pats her face and calls herself "stupid" for crying about her parents and then calmly gathers herself was super sad and insanely terrifying.

 

I didn't realize it was Rachel impersonating Sarah until she spoke with Rachel's accent. For a second, I thought Tatiana had accent-shift, then I went "OH!!! CRAP!!!"

 

Seriously! My brain was freaking out during that scene. Like, Sarah goes to check on Kira and then Felix's phone rings and it says Sarah is calling and I literally thought, "Who has Sarah's phone?!?" Then "Sarah" turned around and had Rachel's voice and I actually yelled "Holy Fuck! Ohmygod!" out loud in my living room. I wonder if Marian knows what Rachel is up to with Kira? They have this sort of weird "in on the same joke" vibe between them that I find really unsettling.

 

Rachel has to die right? Like, they're trying to get us to worry that Cos is gonna die when, in fact, Rachel bites it in some unholy fashion for all the awfulness she's brought upon our dear clones. I want Sarah, Felix, Helena Mrs S and Alison to kill Rachel as some sort of Clone Club Bonding Experience. Donnie can watch the perimeter. I'd add Cosima and Delphine to the kill club, but I think those nerds might be just as bad at killing as they are at spying.

 

Ok, I still maintain that if the show ever fully softens or domesticates Helena I'll be pissed, but goddamn she was great this episode. I can't remember if I posted it here or on TWoP, but after the initial lips sewn shut punishment episode, I wondered if Gracie and Helena would ever join up, so YAY for their bonding! I thought the moment where Helena told Gracie if she didn't want to keep her babies then she shouldn't. There was a lot of non-verbal acting awesomeness from TM and Zoe De Grand Maison in that scene. I do kind of hope Gracie tells Mark to fuck off though because that boy seems easily swayed. I was YAAAAASSSS-ing all over the place when the camera cut to the fire. Amazing. Then, I slightly panicked about the possibility of kids being there, but then I told myself to shut up. No way Helena would burn a bunch of kids. I need someone (anyone!) to let her know Rachel is fucking with her sister and her niece.

 

Damn, Delphine was pretty much fucked no matter what, huh? Rachel and Marian with their whole "Oh, our interim director is also intimately acquainted with her subject. How lovely for us?" convo was all manner of evil. And Duncan still makes me nervous. He seems so helpful and this show makes me crazy paranoid about that shit. That being said, it would be pretty awesome of he was just trying to help and I really want that to be the case because I don't want Cosima to die.

 

Alison and Donnie are so completely fucked up and I love it. I was in stitches when they were trying to figure out how to lay the body down and then eventually settled on going with the diagonal option and it just got more amazing as it went on. I have to echo all the love for Donnie's awesomeness with Angela. The. Best. How the Alison and Donnie Hendrix become my favorite married couple on TV?!?

Edited June 15, 2014 by hardy har

[shapeshifter]

I loved Allisons flower print garden gloves that enabled her to operate the jack hammer.

Jordan Gevaris did a fun live-tweet session for this ep.

He looked so sweet sleeping in the window seat, but I was thinking it must be uncomfortable. Did he say anything about it?

I did not laugh at Helena probably perforating Cult Daddy's intestines. That was a little too sadistic for me--fitting or not. But, oddly, I was okay with him burning in his own private hell.

Helena left with her refrigerated eggs, didn't she? It was a thermos full and looke dlike the kind of canisters that sperm are transported in. I wonder if she will be bargaining with Dyad-- her eggs for Kira's (and Sarah's) freedom

Whew! I was worried about that! I guess I missed it.

[beedub]

That was a very solid episode with many great moments. One thing is clear at this point, never turn your back on Helena!

Also clear, in a case of life imitating art, is that Alison seems to living out her own version of Blood Ties.

[BigDfromLA]

Wasn't Helena inseminated before Gracie was? Or was that a trick to make her think she was inseminated.

 

Donnie is such a doofus/putz, he is hard to watch.

 

Rachel seems a lot more screwed up (in the head) than even Helena.

Edited June 15, 2014 by BigDfromLA

[Indi]

And the show I know and love is back on track! I had some concerns after the Tony episode last week, but this one was perfect.

 

Alison and Donnie are my favorite couple now. I'm loving every minute of the Hendrix Show, Donnie's questionable ass included.

 

Rachel needs to die though. I hope they keep Helena for at least another season, but they should ditch Rachel for good.

 

Oh, Delphine! She and Cosima need to improve those spying skills stat!

[Babalu]

Does anyone know who plays Martin? (Rachel's assistant, I think. This week he was monitoring Scott and Duncan in the lab, but last week I think he was showing Delphine into Rachel's office.) He looks really familiar, but IMDB doesn't list him and it's driving me crazy.

[Catch 22]

I just can't say how much I enjoy this show and never get tired of watching the amazing Tatiana Maslany who singularly owns all of these characters and brings them to life with seeming effortlessness. In just this episode she transformed from Alison who measures a dead body to make sure it fits the hole she's capably dug after controlling a jackhammer her husband can't even tame, to cool, air kissing and conniving Rachel (who's slowly but subtly losing her shit), to Cosima, who's potentially going to die but still retains her sense of humor in spite of it, to Sarah, who's a loving but conflicted mother and yet, no matter what precautions she takes, is ultimately betrayed again, to Helena, who in spite of her history of inhumane torture and deprivation becomes both protector and justifiable executioner. And that's just for starters. In this role Maslany is just a master class in acting and her genius, in my opinion, is unparalleled by any other actress her age.

 

Loved Cosima's humor when skyping with Sarah and Alison and mentions the nasal cannula: Cannulalingus. Ha!.

 

Only Alison would have pink duct tape. (Although after seeing the wretched pink room Rachel has constructed for Kira, I wouldn't put it past her to have some, too.)

 

 

And I LOVE that Helena knows she has a place with her sestra.  It's adorable. Even from a feral psychopath.

But Helena isn't a psychopath. She's been conditioned to be a killer of the clones but, in my opinion, she hasn't killed anyone else without reason and justification. She blamed Amelia for all of the torture, deprivation and cruelity she was subjected to. Now she's killed Henrik but I think for her, being brainwashed/conditioned with so much religious ideology forced upon her, she sees it as just an "eye for an eye" consequence. Most importantly, Helena has shown empathy for quite a few people and a psychopath has none.

 

 

Was it my imagination, or were all the children in the creepy religious cult nursery girls?

Sarah-phile, I didn't notice that anyone answered your question so I wanted to let you know that there were at least a couple of boys in the nursery.

 

Watched the episode repeat and noticed that the scene where you see the long shot of the back of Rachel standing in front of the screens after putting the hoodie on her head was edited out. Has anyone else noticed scenes being deleted when the episode is repeated?

Edited June 15, 2014 by Catch 22

[LovinLife]

I just can't say how much I enjoy this show and never get tired of watching the amazing Tatiana Maslany who singularly owns all of these characters and brings them to life with seeming effortlessness. In just this episode she transformed from Alison who measures a dead body to make sure it fits the hole she's capably dug after controlling a jackhammer her husband can't even tame, to cool, air kissing and conniving Rachel (who's slowly but subtly losing her shit), to Cosima, who's potentially going to die but still retains her sense of humor in spite of it, to Sarah, who's a loving but conflicted mother and yet, no matter what precautions she takes, is ultimately betrayed again, to Helena, who in spite of her history of inhumane torture and deprivation becomes both protector and justifiable executioner. And that's just for starters. In this role Maslany is just a master class in acting and her genius, in my opinion, is unparalleled by any other actress her age.

 

 

 

Well said.  I hope you are on the Emmy Ballot mailing list!  I realize she doesn't act for awards but she deserves them all or at least the nominations..  

[Petunia846]

Also, Mark's turn against Henrik seemed sudden.  They should have brought up his AWOL status in a previous episode because it felt very contrived.  This was a dude who obeyed orders without question up to this point.  Strange plot pacing.

I don't think it was sudden at all. I think his slight unhappiness with the situation at the ranch was portrayed very subtly, but it was there. I think the first time we saw it was when he went in to talk to Gracie when she had her mouth sewn shut. It seemed like he was sneaking in to see her to me. He went to bring her something to drink and try to talk to her, which didn't seem to be what her father and mother wanted at the time. He also didn't bring Helena in right away when he found her at the bar, but told Paul he wanted to let her have a little fun. Even in this episode, you could tell he was uncomfortable when he was having that conversation with Gracie's dad and he asked Mark if he was going to stand by Gracie as her husband. And of course the real turning point was what Helena said to him and then how Gracie turned her back on him. You could see on his face right there that he was realizing he'd gotten it all wrong. He always cared for Gracie, but he didn't realize she had had a change of heart. I thought it was done very well.

 

 

I don't think the DYAD really cares all that much about Kira, I think it's all Rachel. She's obsessed with her, the idea of a baby had by a clone, a child that never should have been and yet she believes should have been hers if any clone was to be special enough to defy their genetic programming.

I agree. I don't think anyone at DYAD knows yet what Rachel did. I think it was totally just Rachel going off the rails and kidnapping Kira because she's jealous of Sarah. I noticed how Marion was going on and on about how interesting Sarah was, and comparing her favorably to Rachel, and I think that was kind of the last straw.

 

 

Wasn't Helena inseminated before Gracie was? Or was that a trick to make her think she was inseminated.

I think the idea was that he was going to make lots and lots of Helena's babies, so he was going to pretty much inseminate all the women with them. In the nursery he said something like, "Soon this room will be full of your children," or something like that, implying that all their babies from now on were going to be from Helena. I think as a "scientist" he wanted to pursue a study of her genes and he would need many many subjects for that.

 

I loved Alison and Donnie, with Donnie's gradual arc of growing a spine and how he suddenly became so much more attractive to Alison. I also loved how Alison's plastic had pink polka dots on it and how she had pink duct tape too. And of course Donnie drew a little heart in the wet cement and that cracked me up. My only complaint with them was that they should have made a bigger hole. They made a grave-sized hole in the middle of one section of the cement, when they could have fairly easily torn up the whole section and redone it. It seems like having one whole section of cement be new would be less suspicious than just one body-sized hole. I think I also would have made the hole on the side of the room, like moved the freezer out, dug underneath it, and then put the freezer back over top of the new cement after it had set. But that's just me...it's possible that I watch too many spy/crime shows.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Petunia846

[sjohnson]

I assumed that Helena fatally punctured rectum/intestines and also killed everyone else with the fire. Like Donnie and Alison, Helena is pretty much meant for humor I think. "Do you think I'm trying to be funny?" was a dead giveaway since the answer is so obviously, "Yes!" All the black comedy was very droll. 

 

For some reason I was bored by the Sarah/Kira/Rachel story. I don't know if it was being too tired to negotiate the sudden tonal shifts between gallows farce and straight near future thriller? Or the way the emo over Kira's donation ("What kind of mother am I?") made me feel that Sarah's motivation to help her "sisters" has always been about a kind of extended selfishness where she sees the others as herself...which is why she also saw Kira's donation as being selfish, instead of a "good" mother? Or was it hearing the villain Michelle Forbes raving in a most unlikely fashion about Sarah, a shout out from the writers I couldn't believe? 

[Captanne]

I don't think the DYAD really cares all that much about Kira, I think it's all Rachel. She's obsessed with her, the idea of a baby had by a clone, a child that never should have been and yet she believes should have been hers if any clone was to be special enough to defy their genetic programming.

 

 

I loved the episode.  Particularly Helena's empowerment regarding her rape.  She doesn't need some Prince Charming fighting her battles -- she takes her own revenge to the source.  

 

I have sort of lost traction on why DYAD wants any of the clones other than simply because they do.  Sort of an ipse dixit "I'm the Big Bad Because I Wanna Be."

 

Between Rachel, Leekie and DYAD -- what is the ultimate goal here?  Their goals seem to have gotten all smushed into a mix in my mind.  Originally it was to get Ethan's original coding?  (That seemed to be Leekie's goal -- so that he could be true to the Neolutionist dogma and create a super race.)  

 

But, Rachel's goals are less clear.  Is this really just a case of baby rabies?  Because that will break my heart.  This show is way too good and has too much heart and soul invested in it to just devolve into a case of "Those crazee wimmins.  Alls they really want is to have sexy times and babies."

 

Blergh.

 

ETA:  I got burned on the most recent "Torchwood" because the Big Enemy literally (I mean that:  Literally) turned out to be a gigantic, bleeding, life-giving Vagina.  OMFG.  I'm so not kidding.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Captanne

[Ceeg]

 

But, Rachel's goals are less clear.  Is this really just a case of baby rabies?  Because that will break my heart.  This show is way too good and has too much heart and soul invested in it to just devolve into a case of "Those crazee wimmins.  Alls they really want is to have sexy times and babies."

I think that, originally, Rachel's curiosity about Sarah was because of Kira, and why Sarah can have a baby when Rachel can't. But last week, when Duncan told her that the clones were purposely made barren, that sent her into a spiral, because all of her life, Rachel has thought she was special. Not like the other clones. She was self-aware, and important, and better. But with Duncan telling her that she's just like the others, there is no escaping the fact that she's a clone, and that Sarah is really the special one, Rachel just kind of lost her grip on everything. Even Marian told her this episode that Sarah intrigues her. I think it's literally driving her crazy that she's not as special as she was made to believe. And now that she's been driven over the edge, she's fixating on Kira and on Sarah.

[Captanne]

Damn, so a powerful woman in a senior leadership position really is being driven insane by her own vanity and baby rabies.

 

How -- wow, that is so disappointingly cliche it leaves me kind of speechless.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Captanne

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I was really hoping that once Helena saw the gaggle of kids in the "nursery," she would get the hell out of there. That cult is so creepy. Daddy gets to be the fun time guy telling the kiddos stories and the midwife gets to be the one threatening the kids with the strap. Loved Helena telling that bitch she would gut her if she touched that little girl again. Since she said there was a nun at the convent like that, I guess Helena has been emotionally abused from the beginning, even before she had the misfortune to have Tomas screwing with her head.

 

I'm not sure if I'm more or less grossed out that Grace was artificially inseminated with Helena's babies instead of her dad letting her having sex with Mark (who I think is too old for Grace). I hate watching men control women's sexuality. Let's not give Grace any say in this!

 

Helena doesn't strike me as the type who really cares about fashion, but it amused me to see her in the fundie uniform of a sweater and long skirt. It didn't seem to bother her but it definitely didn't seem like something she would voluntarily wear.

 

I know I'm not supposed to root for Helena to abuse someone, but that creepy old man abused her, his daughter, and lord knows how many others that I laughed my ass off when he woke up strapped to the bed.

 

When it was revealed that Mark was AWOL from the military, I thought oh crap, is he part of the Paul/Sonny conspiracy? I'm glad that his feelings for Grace made him finally realize that things were not right. It was nice to see that even though Grace and Helena still weren't getting along, they were willing to help each other escape. Loved that as soon as Mark unlocked her door, Grace went to help Helena. And I also loved that Helena told her to run.

 

That shot of Helena climbing up the hill in the dark and turning to see the Big Love Farm on fire was beautiful. I'm glad she took her eggs. I mean, they're hers anyway so she might as well have them. If she had left them, I would have been afraid that they would somehow survive the fire only for other creepy Prolethians to use them. I'm glad the kids didn't burn in the fire, but sadly they will never be free as long as they're with the creepy Prolethian adults like that bitchy midwife. Are there other Big Love Farms for them to go to?

 

I found it interesting that Mrs. S insisted on asking Kira's permission to use her bone marrow. It reminded me of My Sister's Keeper. I don't know how I feel about asking a child if she wants to volunteer her bone marrow. That's a lot to put on a little kid, and although I think it's important that Kira consent to something like that, I still don't know how feel about letting Kira make the entire decision herself. It's an interesting contrast from Grace being forcibly impregnated with the spawn of her father and Helena.

 

Ha, I loved Donnie and Alison trying to dispose of Leekie's body. Alison can seem like a priss but when it come down to it, she has a stomach of steel. No squeamishness about the blood or the congealed brains (heh, just annoyance that Donnie was getting dirt on the garage floor instead of in the hole and complete confidence that she could handle the jackhammer better than he could). I loved that Donnie got strong over the course of this episode when he decided he had to protect Alison and his family. It could have come off as really cliche but it was well done.

 

When Vic showed up, I was afraid he was using so I'm glad it was just an attempt to guilt trip Alison into talking. Vic is still a dick, but he cracks me up now that he isn't being a violent asshole to Sarah and Felix. I liked that he told Alison that Angela was out in the van and once he did that, he was much more relaxed. When he said he was confused about all the lookalikes and Angela shushed him, I laughed. And I cracked up when Donnie said, "Smile!" and Vic threw up the peace sign for the picture.

 

Damn it, I knew Rachel was going to impersonate Sarah as soon as those pictures of Sarah and Kira showed up in the holodeck, and then she pulled that hood over her head and I was like oh, it's on. Is she keeping Kira because she wants a child that's genetically related to her? Or is she holding her hostage to get something from Sarah?

 

They've never even tried to explain why some clones got sick and others haven't yet. Jennifer was sick for a long time (I think 9-12 months?). Did they ever say how long Katja was sick? How much time has passed since Cosima started getting sick at the end of last season? Even if you take Sarah and Helena (the twins who can reproduce and are therefore different from the other clones) out of the equation, Alison, Rachel, and Tony don't appear to be sick. At the very least, they aren't coughing up blood like Jennifer, Katja, and Cosima. All of the clones were born around the same time so why would the illness manifest itself at different times for different clones? I'm guessing there is some sort of environmental factor and most likely some sort of stress could trigger it but I'm trying to figure out if it's inevitable that Alison and Rachel will get sick eventually.

 

When Rachel started laughing hysterically and then crying and then patting herself on the head, I thought she was going to go all Crazy Eyes and start hitting herself on the head more violently. She was really losing it.

 

One thing I love about Tony is that he had no identity crisis about being a clone because he'd already gone through all of that "who am I?" stuff. He knows that he is Tony and no one else is Tony but him. Rachel seems to have the opposite problem. She thought she was special and now she's struggling with who she is and not being special anymore. She is totally jealous that Sarah was able to have Kira but I think she's also jealous that everyone else is so interested in Sarah.

Edited June 15, 2014 by ElectricBoogaloo

[tveyeonyou]

And again I laughed inappropriately during Orphan Black, when Helena "inseminated" Father. I am so going to hell.

I'll be right there with you. I found myself singing that old Elton John song "Burn Down The Mission" and literally applauding Helena's every move. Holy shit, I'd trade both my brothers IRL for a seestra like Helena, hence my place in hell.

[hardy har]

So, does Felix have an animal related pet name? Kira is monkey and Mrs S has rather adorably called Sarah chicken twice now.

[Artsda]

Helena was just awesome. I loved her reverse torture and burning the cult down. Also loved Donnie & Allison dealing with the body, and Donnie getting his attack on marching into the van. 

Edited June 15, 2014 by Artsda

[Loandbehold]

Wow. So much happened in this episode and I can't wait for the season finale. A lot of points have been brought up here, but this one caused me to re-think what I had watched:

 

 

I assumed that Helena fatally punctured rectum/intestines and also killed everyone else with the fire. Like Donnie and Alison, Helena is pretty much meant for humor I think. "Do you think I'm trying to be funny?" was a dead giveaway since the answer is so obviously, "Yes!" All the black comedy was very droll.

Given Helena's affinity for kids, well, at least with Kira and now the little tongue-sticking-out girl, I was pretty sure she would have gotten the kids out before the fire started or got near their bunks/school. When I saw the previews with Helena and the pipe, I also thought it was going to be Helena making what, in her mind, was a joke. But, now I think there was a different motive behind it. She was inseminated by the Big Love Ranch Prolethean Scientist Father. He smoked a pipe. So, when she was going to inseminate him, she put his pipe in her mouth. The roles were reversed. She was now the father. 

 

I didn't like Mrs. S in pigtails. It looked all sorts of wrong. 

 

I loved the Alison-Donnie show. And, it's funny how Alison used the knowledge she got from the play to dispose of Leekie's  body. 

 

I was wondering whether we were going to see a clone-impersonating-a-clone scene. But, I was surprised when Rachel took over for Sarah. She really is bat-shit crazy. And, it seems that she has absolutely no intention to give up Kira. She told her that she might even come to love living in her new surroundings. 

 

Finally, because it pretty much has to be said in every post, TM is just phenomenal and really deserves every acting award that exists. Which includes the Oscar and Tony in addition to the Emmy for her job on this show.

[crabbypants]

Dear Alison,

Please teach your husband how to handle a firearm.  If he doesn't want anymore accidental discharges, maybe he could try KEEPING HIS FINGER OFF THE TRIGGER.  Works much better than leaving the safety on.

Love,

crabbypants

Edited June 15, 2014 by crabbypants

[shapeshifter]

Is she keeping Kira because she wants a child that's genetically related to her? Or is she holding her hostage to get something from Sarah?

Since in this episode there was a brief exchange between Rachel and Michelle Forbes' character about some over-arching power in control of Dyad above and beyond Rachel, and since both Rachel's sense of self worth and perhaps actual value to Dyad was threatened when Sarah's Kira became "the prize," I'm guessing Rachel decided that if she couldn't create a prize too, she could at least deliver one by capturing Kira, and thereby somewhat regain her queen bee status.

Maybe some biologists on this thread can confirm, but I think Helena's fertilized eggs are now valuable both as potential "prizes" (second generation clones) and for their stem cell value in treating the sick first generation clones--or, maybe that therapeutic value is what made Ethan Duncan refer to Kira as "the prize" in the first place. *shudder*

But I thought recent studies have demonstrated that stem cells can be derived from mature cells--that they are even being used therapeutically to regrow cartilage etc.

Maybe these scripts were written without this knowledge?

Knowing that Helena's babies are all fathered by Henrik the Evil, maybe having them all either aborted, used for medicinal purposes, or otherwise lost would generate ethical discussion, but likely not any real sense of sadness.

If Henrik didn't have such a huge ego, he would've kidnapped Cal to be the baby daddy, given the previous success there.

How old is Gracie?

[Captanne]

The one single frisson of "OMG" I got from last night's episode was in the conversation between Mark, Gracie and Helena.  Each one of them was having personal revelations of horror while the three together (as a gestalt) were realizing that the Farmhouse really had to be destroyed.  Whether or not Mark's belief in the Prolethian cause is extinguished remains to be seen.  

 

The personal revelations were particularly horrible for Mark and Helena.  Gracie already fully understood her own role in the "plan".  She was the one clued in.  Mark only just realized that Gracie's father had robotically raped her with his own sperm.  And Helena was only just realizing her role.

 

Right?

 

ETA:  Otherwise, as much as I enjoyed the Donnie/Ashley interaction, I was disappointed with the main plot dissolving into "powerful woman is motivated by vanity and babies."  Blergh.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Captanne

[Bort]

How old is Gracie?

I was wondering that myself. I looked it up, the actress is 19 but she looks pretty young so if the intention is that Grace should be 14 or 15, I would buy it. And it ups the ick factor, that's for sure.

[DioxinBlues]

Captanne:

 

Damn, so a powerful woman in a senior leadership position really is being driven insane by her own vanity and baby rabies.

How -- wow, that is so disappointingly cliche it leaves me kind of speechless.

 

 

I didn't get this impression at all. My take away from the Rachel madness was her realization of just how not special she is despite being raised to believe she was the most special clone of all. It shattered her lifelong sense of self and that's why as soon as Duncan told her that she was barren by design, just like the rest of the clones in the experiment, she started to lose it. Then to have Marian talk about Rachel being "bred" (if I recall correctly) while Sarah was allowed to grow up free and thus genuinely special was kind of the tipping point. Rachel is no different than Beth or Alison or Cosima, who's dying because of the choices made by others. 

 

Kira is the prize but not the motivation. By Rachel taking Kira away from Sarah in some way she's taking from Sarah the thing that makes her unique - her motherhood - and that, in her reeeally twisted mind (such a fantastic scene, btw, with Rachel breaking down as she watches the videos), will put her back on top and in total control, which is all she wants. Her motivation is control and regaining her sense of superiority. At least that's how I see it.

[Captanne]

Hmm, Dioxinblues.  Well put.  I'll have to let that sink in.

[Enigma X]

 

Damn, so a powerful woman in a senior leadership position really is being driven insane by baby rabies.

I think Rachel was already insane and wanting a kid has nothing to do with it. She just happens to be insane and wants a kid. I also think it is perfectly okay for women to actually want babies. No shame or negativity in that game if that is what a woman wants and it does not make a woman weak or strong either way.

[Black Knight]

So ... Mark was military. Paul was military. Tony's monitor was military. Coincidence? I'm thinking not!

 

I think not only were they all military, they're all AWOL. I'm pretty sure that's what the Paul-is-a-ghost thing from the previous episode is about - "ghost" means he went AWOL, and that's what's being held over his head by DYAD.

 

I don't know why, but Helena's "Not really" when Grace frustratedly asked her if she's listened to anything creepster Henrik has been saying cracked me up. Maybe because Henrik does seem like one of those guys whose sermons would be really boring to listen to.

 

I know Delphine is kicking herself, and I'm worried Cosima and the other clones will blame her, but I don't really see what else she should have done. Her "may have been compromised" indicated that she was considering that Rachel just wanted her to think that. But nor could she be sure, and Sarah definitely needed to be told of the possibility. Honestly, I don't really think it was anyone's fault. Mrs. S and Benjamin had all of five seconds with Rachel-as-Sarah and so did Felix. I didn't care for how in the preview

Sarah was blaming Felix. The boy was sleeping! And even though he was jolted awake, he caught on almost immediately! I'm glad Sarah gets her having left Kira for 8 years with others thrown back in her face. STFU, Sarah.

 

Also in the preview:

Delphine saying something to Rachel about letting Cosima die without Delphine there concerns me. So the bone marrow doesn't help either, it seems, and Cosima's even closer to death.

Duncan's comment about allowing DYAD to perpetuate the experiment - "no offense, Cosima" - unnerved me. So he's willing to let all the clones die, then. At least, that's what it meant to me.

Edited June 15, 2014 by Black Knight

[NoNeinNyet]

Helena left with her refrigerated eggs, didn't she? It was a thermos full and looked like the kind of canisters that sperm are transported in. I wonder if she will be bargaining with Dyad-- her eggs for Kira's (and Sarah's) freedom?

 

I think the embryos could definitely be used as a bargaining chip but not without some difficulty. Helena probably took them because they are her babies so she's not going to want to give them up easily. Of course, Sarah is clearly her favorite sestra and she's protective over Kira even more than she is over children in general so she may be convinced to give up the embryos for their safety, especially since she should already get her own babies from herself and Grace.

Edited June 15, 2014 by NoNeinNyet

[DropTheSoap]

Helena's "Not really" cracked me up, also. The guy hasn't learned lesson one with Helena...don't think she's dead just because you think you killed her. I knew when he was talking to Gracie that it wasn't going to go well for him...although I didn't realize quite how unwell it'd go, what with the embryo injection and fire and all.

 

Rachel is batshit, but I don't think it's a new thing. I think she's always been batshit, and the baby-rabies, plus finding out that it's all by design that she can't have children have racheted up what's already under the surface.

 

I'm still not sure about trusting Delphine, honestly. This show has that affect.

 

I wonder if Donnie knows about Tony. I'm thinking 11 might be a low guess.

 

While most of the Alison/Donnie burial was played for laughs, I am wondering if there's again an implication of extraordinary strength in the clones given Rachel's handling of the jackhammer. I still liked seeing Donnie get his shit together for the busting Angie/Vic.

 

I'm trying to think good Cosima thoughts. Would be very sad if we lost NerdClone.

 

Ethan's plan of only giving bits at a time to DYAD turns out to be smart planning, and will probably extend his life.

[Bort]

Duncan's comment about allowing DYAD to perpetuate the experiment - "no offense, Cosima" - unnerved me. So he's willing to let all the clones die, then. At least, that's what it meant to me.

I took it that Duncan is willing to let DYAD have enough of his files to help Cosima but is not giving them the whole thing lest they try and make another batch of clones.