S02.E11: meMento

[Bort]

Reed worries as Lauren becomes intrigued by her ancestors and their violent powers. Lorna begins to reevaluate her trust in the Inner Circle after figuring out the past of Reeva's new trainees. Meanwhile, Benedict Ryan continues to encourage Jace to take action with the Purifiers. Marcos asks Clarice to go to the Morlocks in search of information on the Inner Circle and Thunderbird gets a call from Evangeline.

Airdate: Tuesday, January 8, 2019

[Lady Calypso]

I'm not even surprised that Caitlin couldn't even muster up concern over Lauren, and then in the very next scene, demanding that they all need to save their poor Andy. Woman, you got a daughter who is clearly NOT ok. Go fucking help the child that's right in front of you, you selfish awful mother. I didn't think she'd get worse, but she did. I officially vote her as the Worst Mother on TV at the moment, or at least in the top three. She's actually willing to use her own daughter to save her own son. I joked about it last episode but I didn't think Caitlin would turn out to be a complete villain here.

That being said, Lauren leveling up her powers is pretty cool.  I get Reed's concerns and I also get why Lauren thinks her practicing and getting more powerful is good. Caitlin's stance, however? Has ZERO to do with her daughter and EVERYTHING to do with using Lauren for Andy. So fuck her. 

Seriously, why is Jace around? I'm very annoyed by the not-so-subtle comparisons with Jace's buddy shooting that kid and real racial issues. At least they showed Jace as a completely shitty person by defending his buddy, proving that he's a stupid SOB. Also, eye-rolling his soon-to-be ex wife suddenly wanting him back just because he was said to be part of a heroic act to save kids by killing a mutant....of course Benedict Ryan conveniently left out the part where the mutant they killed was a kid, but Jace definitely is a shitty person.

They continue to set up Clarice joining the Morlocks, and it IS working better than I thought. 

I'm ok with the progress with Lorna and Marcos. At least SOMETHING is actually being progressed in this series. Everything else has been moving pretty slowly, and I'm cool with Lorna breaking free from the Inner Circle.

[Lantern7]

This week: more mediocre drama with zero subtlety or nuance! Sadly, it does look better than the world we live in.

Please please please PLEASE tell me Lauren will eat her grandparents' hair. I've been watching My Hero Academia, and inheriting powers through hair digestion was a plot point early in the series. Bonus: it mirrors canon continuity, and it's not nearly as squicky.

And Jace continues to sell his morals out one piece at a time. If the series doesn't go past this season, maybe they could end it by having Jace killed, and the Purifiers and mutants having a cotillion over his body . . . because he was that big of a chode to unite them.

The anti-mutant talking head is in bed with Reva. I wish that was more of a surprise. And seriously, does the actor (I know he's a "name," but I forgot what it was) just ad-lib those lines? My goodness, he drops so many freakin' anvils, it would be absurd to think someone wrote that dialogue.

Some kid died because the Head Purifier "stood his ground." Yeah, that fits. Of course, AMTH turns him into a terrorist hiding in a shelter. Meanwhile, the other kid brings up black grandparents hiding from supremacists . . . does the parallel need to be spelled out? We get it. Mutants = maligned minorities. If that wasn't the original intent of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, then subsequent writers decided to interpret their stories that way.

Both Strucker kids are lost causes. #Facts

Isn't it dangerous for Lorna and Carlos to get intimate? If they can make a light show from running to second and chugging to third, people would notice. On the plus side, at least they're both feeling the walls close in . . . especially Lorna having to deal with Actual Mutant Terrorists that Reva had zero problems signing up.

Arrowverse shows come back next week, right? The Gifted isn't the best substitute, but at least it fed us for a few weeks.

Edited January 9, 2019 by Lantern7

[SimoneS]

Well, I was surprised the Purifier guy is working Reva. I don't even get what they could be up to unless the guy is secretly a mutant. 

I am glad that Lorna and Marcos are back together. I don't get how the annoying triplets haven't read Lorna's mind already. How does that mutant guy know who Lorna's father is? I thought it was a secret. 

I am loving Lauren getting stronger although I am not sure that her Nazi grandaunt/uncle whoever are the best teachers. Yeah, her mother is horrible, but her father is trying.

[jay741982]

52 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

This week: more mediocre drama with zero subtlety or nuance! Sadly, it does look better than the world we live in.

Please please please PLEASE tell me Lauren will eat her grandparents' hair. I've been watching My Hero Academia, and inheriting powers through hair digestion was a plot point early in the series. Bonus: it mirrors canon continuity, and it's not nearly as squicky.

And Jace continues to sell his morals out one piece at a time. If the series doesn't go past this season, maybe they could end it by having Jace killed, and the Purifiers and mutants having a cotillion over his body . . . because he was that big of a chode to unite them.

The anti-mutant talking head is in bed with Reva. I wish that was more of a surprise. And seriously, does the actor (I know he's a "name," but I forgot what it was) just ad-lib those lines? My goodness, he drops so many freakin' anvils, it would be absurd to think someone wrote that dialogue.

Some kid died because the Head Purifier "stood his ground." Yeah, that fits. Of course, AMTH turns him into a terrorist hiding in a shelter. Meanwhile, the other kid brings up black grandparents hiding from supremacists . . . does the parallel need to be spelled out? We get it. Mutants = maligned minorities. If that wasn't the original intent of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, then subsequent writers decided to interpret their stories that way.

Both Strucker kids are lost causes. #Facts

Isn't it dangerous for Lorna and Carlos to get intimate? If they can make a light show from running to second and chugging to third, people would notice. On the plus side, at least they're both feeling the walls close in . . . especially Lorna having to deal with Actual Mutant Terrorists that Reva had zero problems signing up.

Arrowverse shows come back next week, right? The Gifted isn't the best substitute, but at least it fed us for a few weeks.

Flash comes back next week, Arrow and Supergirl the week after, LOT in APRIL 

[Mysteris]

So I'm mostly just resigned to this show by now, but at least Lauren was kind of badass, even if her mother is horrible.

 

So let me get this straight show. I'm supposed to feel bad for the kid-killing cop because he'll be a "cop in prison", and I'm supposed to feel bad because Jace lied to cover the asshole and felt guilty about it? Is that what we're going with here? Because if the cops do any investigation they'll find what Jace figured out about this being an execution, not self-defense. And quite frankly, I'd be more than happy if the kid-killer and Jace wound up in prison and something horrible happened to them. Also, the cop never thought that associating with a violent hate group might land his crooked cop ass in jail? Moron.

 

I don't get Lorna's desperation. This is the world she fought for. Why is she so upset that Reeva is recruiting more terrorists to her terrorist organization? And why haven't the triplets figured out that Lorna's wavering?

 

Erg obviously has a thing for Blink, but good for him not involving the Morlocks in her war. I did like that part where Marcos critiqued her code name and she shot back with his.

 

Paula...run lady. Keep running. Don't look back!

 

So Reeva and Ryan are working together? Dun dun...don't care. Except it kind of makes me think less of Reeva since I thought she was pure in her anti-human convictions.

Props to the other kid for really rubbing in Jace's face the fact that he's hanging with the same sort of bigots and assholes who hounded both of their ancestors.

[HunterHunted]

7 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

the actor (I know he's a "name," but I forgot what it was)

Peter Gallagher. He was Sandy Cohen from the OC and the douche in the coma that Sandra Bullock pretends to be engaged to in While You Were Sleeping.

Caitlin is still so fucking awful.

7 hours ago, Lady Calypso said:

I'm very annoyed by the not-so-subtle comparisons with Jace's buddy shooting that kid and real racial issues. At least they showed Jace as a completely shitty person by defending his buddy, proving that he's a stupid SOB. Also, eye-rolling his soon-to-be ex wife suddenly wanting him back just because he was said to be part of a heroic act to save kids by killing a mutant....

7 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Some kid died because the Head Purifier "stood his ground." Yeah, that fits. Of course, AMTH turns him into a terrorist hiding in a shelter. Meanwhile, the other kid brings up black grandparents hiding from supremacists . . . does the parallel need to be spelled out? We get it. Mutants = maligned minorities. If that wasn't the original intent of Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, then subsequent writers decided to interpret their stories that way.

 

An actual child had to point out the parallels to Jace. The Purifiers had no legal right to be in there. They aren't empowered by any laws to do what they are doing. They had no right to be in the that youth shelter. We don't know if this was a government shelter or one operated by a charity. This armed militia just wanders in there with not empowered by any law or legal mandate, brandishing guns, threatening residents, killing residents, and somehow using stand your ground justifications when they had no legal right to be there in the first place. These assholes have already destroyed mutant clinics, shelters, and foster homes. I don't know if Jace needs to see the Purifiers bomb a church or burn crosses in mutants' yards, so that he finally gets that he joined the Klan.

[Delphi]

Marcos: Your little race war isn't turning out how you expected?

 

Thank you!

[tennisgurl]

So the moral of this episode seemed to be "dont lie down with dogs and be surprised when you get fleas". Or, maybe more properly, dont join a violent hate group than be all shocked that they do violent hate group stuff. 

I freaking hate Jace, I just cant with him. He has this moments of conscious or feeling guilty about the terrible things that he has done, but then he just keeps on doing increasingly shitty thing. Thank you, kid at the youth hostel! Drag him! Draaaaaaaag him! How can Jace not see that he a part of the very same kinds of group that would be chasing after HIM if mutants weren't the easier target right now? His buddy murdered a kid, and while he and Jace were upset at the time, but they still covered it up, and seem alright with acting like this poor kid was actually at fault, and not the armed lunatics chasing children around at a damn YOUTH HOSTEL with guns and murdering people. And now his wife might actually come back to him because of these lies! You know Jace, once your traumatizing and murdering innocent kids, you might, just maybe, be the bad guys. Maybe that kid had a family somewhere, or parents that would have wanted to see him again? Yeah, sure does suck when your child is killed in a tragic act of violence, huh Jace? I am sure your daughter would be so proud that you went and took another innocent kid from their loved ones.

"Your little race war didnt turn out the way you expected?" Glad that Lorna has found a line that she wont cross, and is finally realizing that The Inner Circle are probably not going to be the kinds of people you want to be around. I always liked Lorna and Marcos as a couple, so I am glad that it looks like they might get back together, or at least get on better terms. 

I think that Lauren working on her powers is a good thing, especially with the Mutant Underground finally actually getting off their asses and doing something, but Caitlin really needs to take her daughters feelings and well being into consideration. It just seems like its always "Andy, Andy, Andy, we gotta save Andy" every five freaking minutes, seemingly not caring about what her daughter, the kid actually THERE, is going through. At least Reed actually still cares about her, and seems more realistic about Andy and what getting him to come home would actually entail. I dont think they should totally give up on Andy (he is a kid still, after all), but he is clearly doing all of this of his own free will, so maybe they should focus on helping Lauren for now, and actually doing things they can accomplish! 

I enjoy Clarice and Marcos banter, they bring out the snark in each other a lot. Seeing more of the Morlocks is cool, but I dont really want Clarice to join them, I want her close to the action!

[blackwing]

My DVR didn't record the whole episode... could someone please kindly summarise the ending of the episode?  I got cut off just after Marcos and Lorna kissed and made the aurora borealis.

Jace sucks in every which way possible.  I had been wondering about the state of traditional race relations in this show's world and had just handwaved and assumed that because Jace and several other racial minorities were seen in the Purifiers meeting, that this world only distinguished between mutants and humans and didn't care about the color of the humans' skin.  Well, that teen boy said what I've been screaming at Jace at from the beginning:  You're black!  It wasn't that long ago that black people were being chased by the KKK and skinhead groups, how a black person could join a hate group like the Purifiers was beyond me.  Unfortunately, the irony of all that didn't seem to get through to Jace.

So "Ted" is apparently an actual cop, in a hate group?  Jace lied for him and said that "Officer Wilson stood his ground".  Did he get off just because he's a cop?  He was off-duty and in a hate group.  Horrible.  I especially wanted to see what the powers of the dead kid were, some kind of smoke based power?

I'm glad we got to see the Dazzler stand-in again (I believe her name is Glow).  Wanted to see more of her powers again.

[Chris24601]

Hint for the show: Jace is a villain. Embrace it! Stop tryint to pretend being conflicted over covering up for the execution of scared kids makes him somehow redeemable.

The time to make Jace a nuanced antivillain would have been to tell the truth about what his cop buddy did. Show him as someone who is trying to do what’s right and that he’s only coming after the mutants he thinks are dangerous. He’s still a threat to the protagonists because of the danger they pose, but you can at least see where he’s coming from.

Instead he’s covering up for the execution of kids for the “crime” of having been born different. He’s done as a character. No viewer is going to sympathize with any hardship he suffers from here out. The only thing they’re going to cheer about now is his death; preferably in as horrific a way for him (and as cathartic a way for the audience) as possible.

I’m talking Cable shows up having teleported his daughter out of harm’s way and brings her to the present with full knowledge of all the horrors he’s done in her name so she can spit on him as he dies level catharsis. He’s that bad a character.

Given that a Lauren vs. Andy rematch was pretty much a given, I’m okay with her getting a power-up via the clearly psychotropic effects of the music box, but her pulling back from going full psycho/abandoning the family legacy is going to be needed at some point... preferably before she does something she can’t come back from (I think Andy’s too far gone... the bank heist mass murder and then killing his nascent love interest broke him).

I almost feel like the appropriate/poetic ending to all this would be Andy ending up killing his own mother (who keeps making choices that hurt and even kill others in name of saving him) and then Jace and Andy killing each other. That would be cathartic for me.

[JonasArm]

5 hours ago, blackwing said:

I had been wondering about the state of traditional race relations in this show's world and had just handwaved and assumed that because Jace and several other racial minorities were seen in the Purifiers meeting, that this world only distinguished between mutants and humans and didn't care about the color of the humans' skin.

Reeva also mentionned to Polaris that she was hated for her poverty, then the color of her skin and finally for her powers.

[AAEBoiler]

I laughed when I realized the noise that accompanies Lauren's "slicing" power is the same one that Top Chef has used for ages going to commercial with the sound of two knives being clashed together.

[AKA...CJ86]

I'm not sure who infuriates me more, Caitlin or Jace.

Reeva and the news guy... who will stab who in the back in that one. Up until now, I was kinda rooting for the Inner Circle, minus Andy's friend, but that reveal tarnishes Reeva's message a bit.

Nice to see that Lorna redemption.

I'm just waiting for the Andy VS Lauren showdown we know we are getting. I'm kinda hoping for a dramatic, dual sacrifice of both siblings to stop the various conflicts, but in a way, that feels almost too expected and predictable.

Edited January 10, 2019 by CyberJawa1986

[retrograde]

I have been aware that Marcos and Lorna have zero chemistry since the first episode, but it was really brought home in this one when you see how much more he has with that other light-up mutant lady. 

[Beatriceblake]

I was really annoyed by the Evil Lauren thing at the end. Lauren is the only Strucker who doesn't annoy the hell out of me and I think she's a more interesting character when she wants to be ready to fight but not full on evil. The scene with the landlord was over the top and seemed a bit of a sudden and intense character shift. It's not exactly satisfying that it was brought about by a frigging music box.

Also it doesn't help that her parents are so badly written and annoying that in her place I would be kind of hoping for the police to take them away ;-)

Edited January 28, 2019 by Beatriceblake