Alison: I killed Aynsley!
Felix: No. No. Well, not really… Hardly.

Mysteries solved and new ones established: Orphan Black gives us the frequent factionalizing of extremist groups, the baddassery of Sarah’s foster mom, and the horrors of community musical theatre. This show apparently hates suburbia as much as it loves mind-frakking its audience.

Title: “Governed by Sound Reason and True Religion”

Cast and Crew
Director: John Fawcett
Writers: Graeme Manson, Karen Walton

Tatiana Maslany as Sarah Manning/ Alison Hendrix/ Cosima Niehaus / Helena / Rachel Duncan
Jordan Gavaris as Felix Dawkins
Kevin Hanchard as Detective Art Bell
Maria Doyle Kennedy as Siobhan Sadler
Evelyne Brochu as Delphine
Matt Frewer as Dr. Aldous Leekie
Ron Lea as Lt. Gavin Hardcastle
Skyler Wexler as Kira
Peter Outerbridge as Henrik Johanssen
Inga Cadranel as Detective Angela Deangelis
Melanie Nicolls-King as Amelia
Matthew Bennett as Daniel Rosen
Kristian Bruun as Donnie Hendrix
Daniel Kash as Tomas
Terra Hazelton as Sarah Stubbs
Nora McLellan as Brenda
Rob deLeeuw as Barry

Full cast and crew information may be found here.

Premise

Have you got any ideas, or do you want to keep drinking?

We learn the truth about Kira’s kidnapping, Siobhan’s disappearance, Helena’s survival, and… Get confused about several other issues.

High Point

The show tries as much as dramatically possible to reflect the chaotic nature of reality. We don’t have clear-cut heroes and villains. We have, at present, at least four different forces, none of which have its act together. The clones have conflicting goals, and a few have been pushed to the edge. The Prolethians have factions, and some members apparently consider murder as a reasonable way to settle internal disputes. The police have Art Bell, who is now freelancing for the clones. The Dyad Corporation has at least as much in the way of destructive internal politics as any real-world corporation– and they have people like Donnie on the payroll. Siobhan Sadler’s friends, the Birdwatchers, have even more secrets than she realizes.

All of this takes place in a show with clones and monozygotic twins, two unrelated characters named Sarah, and a title taken from Sir Francis Bacon.

Low Point

In a show with extraordinary acting, some pieces— I’m looking at the Cop Show sequences—play like mediocre television.

The Scores:

Originality: 5/6 I did’’t see all of the twists coming, but they all make perfect sense. Art Bell’s involvement, on the other hand, while an inevitable part of his arc, gives us the cliche of heroic cop working against the system for what’s right.

Effects: 6/6

Story: 5/6 This episode sets up the rest of the season, and suffers a bit as a story on its own merits.

Other shows would have someone survive being shot through the heart– but they wouldn’t have that outcome make sense in the real world.

Acting: 5/6 Do I need to keep praising Tatiana Maslany and Jordan Gavaris’s brilliance? They particularly shine this week in the Alison and Felix scenes. Maria Doyle Kennedy brings on the badass as Siobhan– consider her plot and, uh, the fact that she stabs someone’s hands to a table with kitchen utensils. Nora McLellan as Brenda seems just off enough to be suspicious, and the revelation she makes feels entirely believable.

The Low Point presents the case against a perfect 6/6.

Emotional Response: 5/6

Production: 6/6.

Overall: 5/6 We have another episode that careens between suspense and dark hilarity. Encourage your friends to watch this show—but strongly advise them against just jumping in and catching up.

In total, “Governed by Sound Reason and True Religion” receives 37/42

Entirely Ridiculous Note

Say, is Siobhan Sadler a distant relative of Alec, who both live over in Vancouver? There’s a Canadian crossover that couldn’t make any real sense, but would be fun to watch. Then again, maybe that’s why the Metrocops in this show diverge so much from the actual Metro Toronto Police; they’re being influenced by the same corporations as the ones in Continuum.