THE CHASM (reviewed by Paul Jennings)

Strangely, at first I thought this episode would have looked great in the third season. I soon changed my point of view. It is a character driven dramatic episode that is light on parallel worlds, in a similar way to "Post Traumatic Slide Syndrome" and "Asylum".

Straight away this episode has much to recommend it. No join the rebels plot, no Chandler Hotel, no city set (the suburban town is used instead), no Los Angeles or San Francisco and a totally non-annoying child character. All this plus more development of the Wade plot, from both Rembrandt and Maggie's perspective.

We learn for sure now that somehow, in the Kromagg prison back on Earth Prime, Rembrandt abandoned Wade for some reason, something that has been suggested all season. Whether it was deliberate or not, we know that Wade forgave him, since Christina told the team back in "Mother and Child". We now know that Rembrandt deeply regrets what he did and is terrified he will do something similar again, mainly because of the Kromagg implant within him that only Kaldeen/Jules was able to control. Again Rembrandt is afraid of almost killing Quinn in the Slidecage months earlier, and these factors are what leads Rembrandt to kill himself in the Chasm. It's good to see that the team was horrified at the loss, to the same level as Arturo last season, and possibly Quinn and Colin next season depending on what happens.

Maggie's character also expands a great deal this episode. In her extreme Chasm-induced state she thinks how no one in the team really wants or wanted her there, even Wade back in the old days. She sees Quinn and Rembrandt as on a mission and Colin too busy with his new life as a slider. She shows how much she misses Steven as the only man she really cared for and the only man who felt the same. We also learn that Maggie may not just be simply attracted to Quinn, but deeply in love with him, more so than Wade ever was (Wade/Quinn shippers I agree with you, but the feelings are not reciprocated from Quinn). We also see how badly Maggie would feel if she ever lost Quinn, whether or not the feelings were returned.

As with several episodes this season, Quinn and Colin take a back seat to Rembrandt and Maggie, as well as the expanded guest cast. This shows the viewers that certain characters can hold the show on their own, at least with the guest cast. However we do get a short insight into Quinn's anxieties about sliding and finding his and Colin's parents.

The direction in this episode was some of the best this season, with the states Amy, Rembrandt and Maggie find themselves in after contact with the Chasm. It shows that big budgets aren't needed to make a special episode. The only problem I have in the entire episode is that the plot was pretty much nothing at all special, but somehow the characters grew a great deal! Also, the slide was only three hours, and this season they have certainly grown shorter, which makes whatever happens far more unrealistic.

I know many people will disagree with my views on this episode and "My Brother's Keeper", but frankly, I don't care!



« My Brother's Keeper Roads Taken »