La Brea Midseason Premiere Review – Stampede and Murder (209/210)

Reviews

La Brea returned from its two-month-long hiatus with two back-to-back episodes—and the wait was definitely worth it.

Both La Brea Season 2 Episode 9 and Episode 10 delivered action-packed episodes that picked up as if no time had passed—though that’s technically not true since the core group did return to 10K B.C. from 1988— and tapped into the momentum of “we have to shut this whole thing down.” The mission at hand centered on uploading the virus to shut down the portal and prevent any future catastrophes, including the sinkhole gearing up to open at the Santa Monica pier. 

What I found most promising is that for possibly the first time, I’m no longer doubting the series. The writers clearly have a plan, there’s direction, and there are plenty more stories left to tell. When La Brea first premiered, many questioned how a series about sinkholes dropping people in the prehistoric ages could/would sustain itself, but this episode has proven that there’s a roadmap built out to keep us all very entertained and knee-deep in the suspense. 

Much of the first episode, “Stampede,” focused on the 1988 group attempting to go through with their plan at all costs only for it to fall apart in the final moments.

You had one job, Gavin. Everyone put their faith in him, and yet, he somehow allowed his father to talk him into aborting the virus upload by tapping into his weakness—Eve.

I agree with Eve’s theory that James is using Gavin’s biggest fear—the possibility of losing his wife—to manipulate him into getting what he wants, but the good thing is that Gavin also seems aware. He’s not naive about the man his father is, so he’s making the decisions that are best for his family.

And it’s that glimmer of hope that maybe they can have their cake and eat it, too, that convinced him to push the button. Gavin wielded a lot of power at that moment, and it was not an easy call to make, but in his mind, if there was even the slightest chance that they can recalibrate the machine and find a way back home (while saving Eve in the process), he owes it to himself and everyone else stranded in the prehistoric ages to give it a try. Neither decision came with a guarantee, so he just trusted his gut. 

It would’ve been better if James hadn’t known about Gavin’s vision of Eve dying as I would’ve loved to see what he would’ve said to convince his son. Without that intel, James wouldn’t have had an upper hand in the situation, and we may have been able to judge him a bit more fairly. Instead, he came off as self-serving in his pleas, no matter how many times he promised to save Gavin’s wife. 

Then again, in this situation, where uploading the virus made things so final and permanent, I don’t think anyone actually needed much convincing. The moment they heard that there might be another way, everyone was eager to learn more and hope that James was telling the truth. 

No one actually wants to be stuck in 10K B.C. for the rest of their lives—they were all simply willing to make the sacrifice for the greater good. If they remained selfish, more sinkholes would open up, which would kill more innocent people, destroy timelines, and rip apart countless other families. They had no choice.

And it’s an incredibly difficult reality to accept, which is why I found myself having so much empathy for Sam. He knew what he was doing was wrong as he even admitted later on that he cracked and went down a dark path, but he couldn’t fathom the idea of never seeing his wife and son again. It’s uncharted territory for everyone and no matter how wrong it is, you can’t blame someone for having a human reaction. 

LA BREA — “Stampede” Episode 208 — Pictured: (l-r) Josh MeKenzie as Lucas, Rohan Mirchandaney as Scott, Chiké Okonkwo as Ty — (Photo by: Sarah Enticknap/NBC)

Eve and Gavin are lucky in that their whole family—grandparents and great-grandparents (they didn’t know existed)—all exist in the same timeline now, but that’s not the case for everyone else. They may not have the luxuries of the modern world, but they have each other, so sealing their fate in this era was a much easier decision for them.

It would be incredibly upsetting if James was lying to Gavin, but I also don’t understand why he would be. Everyone benefits if they work out the life-threatening kinks. 

I also don’t really understand how the Santa Monica pier sinkhole stopped opening up since they never finished uploading the virus. Maybe enough uploaded to interfere? All we know is that Caroline was definitely not lying about the dangers of the machine if the salt water rain and fish falling from the sky are any indications. 

It’s hard to trust James with his whole Bond-villain vibe. He has all of these luxuries at his disposal, and yet, he’s allowing all these “sky people” to just live out in the Clearing and fend for themselves. It feels like some twisted version of Hunger Games. While all these innocent people are foraging for mushrooms and rejoicing about a fishy doomsday moment, the dude is eating a prime steak and sipping wine. How could we trust him?

But he’s not wrong when he underscores that he and his team of scientists had years to work on the machine since Caroline left for 1988. That being said, I don’t fully trust Caroline either. She gives off the impression that she’s on the right side of things, but she’s been gone for so long, so how could she know what the present-day situation looks like? 

After James convinced Gavin to abort the virus, he informed him that they needed Dr. Howard Moore’s research to fix the machine, and since Caroline was good friends with him, he tasked Gavin with convincing her to find it. At this point, everyone is just manipulating each other as Gavin played the “you weren’t there for me as a kid, but you can be there for me now” card to get Caroline to agree.

And while she seemed eager to make amends, she wasn’t exactly forthcoming with the research once she and Riley found it in Moore’s cave bunker (the poor guy was a skeleton when they finally located him). What’s worse is that Caroline asked Riley to lie to Gavin and Josh about their findings, and while I actually think Caroline is being smart about withholding the research until she can verify that James’ intentions are genuine, I don’t like that she dragged Riley into it. Her loyalty is already being pulled in so many directions as earlier in the episode, she had to fight her father and beg him not to be reckless at the expense of the greater good. Riley is tired—leave her out of this. 

The reality is that there’s what James said, what Caroline said, and then the truth, and until everyone starts being completely transparent, we’re never going to have a full picture of the situation. And honestly, what about Silas? Why don’t they track him down? He was involved with Project Lazarus from the get-go, so I’d love to hear his input. Surely, he knows a thing or two about what’s been going on. 

The people in the Clearing were upset with the 1988 group for lying to them and not being upfront about the decision to seal their fate, which is completely understandable. They don’t have any control over what happens to them while Gavin and his family are practically 10K B.C. royalty. Heck, they even gave them flack for “relaxing in 1988” as if they weren’t all going above and beyond to find ways to save humanity.

Truthfully, it wouldn’t make sense to get everyone involved when time was of the essence. The 1988 group chose to ask for forgiveness rather than permission since it was the only option that made sense in the grand scheme of things, especially since things at the Clearing are so heated already. You can’t expect people who are that desperate to do the right thing when the stakes are so high—once again, Sam was a prime example. 

The residents of the Clearing had a lot to deal with, namely a stampede of buffalo who knew something was not right in the natural order of things followed by a murder! As if they didn’t have enough to deal with already, now one of their own is turning on them! 

One of the highlights of the episode was getting to see Lucas step up to the plate as a leader as he’s been wanting to change his life around and become the kind of guy that his mother, and Veronica, would be proud of. With Gavin, Sam, Levi, and Eve gone, this was Lucas’ chance to shine. And it was cool to see Scott put his education and knowledge to good use when figuring out a solution to save the home that they built in the Clearing from the stampede. Those two make a great team—they work well together, inspire each other, and have so much to bring to the table.

I wish Sam didn’t dismiss Lucas’ theory that Virgil was Wyatt’s killer so quickly. Lucas may not have had all the answers, but he checked off enough boxes to take Virgil in for questioning, which could’ve easily provided a motive once they broke him. Of course, once Scott confided in Sam about what happened with Tamet, Sam figured that the killer targeting members of the Clearing was surely someone from the Exiles. Lucas cut Virgil loose and apologized to him, but it was premature. Both things could be true—Virgil likely was the murderer, and he was doing it for Tamet/the Exiles. We saw him throw a handkerchief into the fire that featured the same symbol they found carved on the murder weapon and in the dirt next to Wyatt’s body. I hope Lucas still keeps tabs on Virgil despite “clearing” his name. What do we really know about Virgil aside from what he told them when they found him as a prisoner of the Exiles? He could easily be working for them. There could be a much bigger plan at play here and the truth is, they cannot just blindly trust anyone anymore. 

La Brea is such a far-fetched show, you have to go into it with an open mind and suspend disbelief, but even I couldn’t shake a few things about this episode, including how the buffalo just diverted from the Clearing’s path at such a sharp turn the moment they heard all the noise. It looked silly. Also, how did the bear not attack and kill Eve? And we’re just going to believe he casually moved the ginormous rock that entrapped her. How convenient! This whole scene was rather ridiculous, but I’ll get to that in a moment. 

But mostly, I couldn’t get over how Project Lazarus was able to get everything to build, furnish, and run the glass building in a time where there are no power grids or electricity. And how do they still have all this food and wine if they’ve been here for years? Wouldn’t getting all these materials here alone cause too many sinkholes to keep track of? I know this isn’t the point of the show, but I had to get that off my chest. 

La Brea Season 2 Midseason Premiere Recap Episode 9 and 10 Stampede Murder in the Clearing

LA BREA — “Murder in the Clearing” Episode 209 — Pictured: (l-r) Chiké Okonkwo as Ty, Zyra Gorecki as Izzy Harris — (Photo by: Sarah Enticknap/NBC)

Anyway, back to Eve, who chose to remain ignorant and pretend like nothing was wrong, which led to her near-brush with death in the cave. It was evident that this wasn’t the “moment” from Gavin’s vision as she was wearing a completely different outfit, but it was enough to scare her into confronting the real issues at hand. I was actually quite shocked that no one went looking for her despite knowing that she went missing, but it did make sense since there were more pressing matters. And as mentioned previously, it was frustrating that she was able to get out of a pretty bad jam so easily and without any assistance. Eve should be counting her blessings because she was almost a bear snack. Also, are we to believe Virgil pushed her into the cave? And why? I just have so many questions about this scene. I know it was supposed to be a wake-up call for her, but I wish they found another way to get her character to this point because this was bizarre. 

The red flowers that are part of Gavin’s vision are intriguing. Izzy noticed them at Lazarus, Eve saw them when she was trapped in the cave, and Lily/Ella and Veronica noticed them while exploring caves looking for an amethyst. Lily recalled drawing them at the request of their kidnapper, Aaron, which seemed to indicate that their arrival in 10K B.C. wasn’t random. She also recalled Aaron said that the flowers grew in his home, but James confirmed that the plant does not exist or grow outside of this timeline. Does this mean Aaron was here before? How does any of this factor in with Lily and Veronica? 

Is everyone from the Clearing here for a reason? Maybe Virgil isn’t even a random “sky person” but someone sent to infiltrate the group from day one. No one would have been the wiser. Maybe Aaron was also?

I’ve enjoyed watching Lily and Veronica evolve as characters, but this is definitely a twist I didn’t see coming. As for the flowers and how they relate to Eve’s death, I somehow think they are an omen warning them of James. I think he’s going to be responsible for her death. And if he is connected to Virgil and Aaron in any way, well, I think that tells us everything we need to know. 

And lastly, Ty’s cancer progression was heartbreaking. The terminal brain tumor caused more complications, including a scary collapse. I truly thought this was the end for Ty, but I’m glad that wasn’t the case. He tried to push himself as best he could to help his friends because he’s a genuinely good guy, but in the end, he realized that he was growing far too weak. Instead of returning to Paara’s village, he trekked over to Lazarus to see James and strike a deal with him—he wanted access to his hospital facilities in exchange for being James’ therapist.

Izzy warned him not to trust anyone in that building because they are “dangerous,” but it was a pretty naive and privileged comment considering she was talking to a man with a terminal illness. He would do anything to get better. And while working for the “bad” guy doesn’t exactly strike me as Ty’s MO, who could say no to the man who has the cure for cancer? James literally holds Ty’s life in his hands. And while I know there’s such a thing as patient/doctor confidentiality, does it really hold up in 10K B.C.? What if Ty finds out something that can help his friends?

As for the cure, I hope James isn’t lying because it would be a huge shame to lose Ty—he’s become one of the best and most loved characters in the series. I’m holding out for a Ty and Paara wedding once Lily makes the amethyst wedding ring. 

Do you think Ty is doing the right thing? Who do you think killed Wyatt? Was it Virgil? Or was his shady glance at the end purposefully misleading?

Did Gavin make the right choice by trusting his father and aborting the virus upload? Will they have another shot at getting back home? What does the key lead to that they found on Moore’s skeleton? 

Share your thoughts in the comments below! 

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