Take me to my babies.

This week highlights some unlikely alliances, as we drive towards Cold River and dark revelations.

Title: “To Hound Nature and her Wanderings”

Cast and Crew
Director: Brett Sullivan
Writer: Graeme Manson

Tatiana Maslany as Sarah Manning/ Cosima Niehaus / Helena / Alison Hendrix
Jordan Gavaris as Felix Dawkins
Kevin Hanchard as Detective Art Bell
Dylan Bruce as Paul Dierdan
Evelyne Brochu as Delphine
Kristian Bruun as Donnie Hendrix
Ari Milen as Mark
Zoé De Grand Maison as Grace Johanssen
Josh Vokey as Scott
Maria Doyle Kennedy as Siobhan Sadler
Michael Mando as Vic
Inga Cadranel as Detective Angela Deangelis
Patrick J. Adams as Jesse
Andrew Gillies as Ethan Duncan / Mr. Peckham

Note: Kathryn Alexandre appears regularly as Tatiana Maslany’s double, to simplify some of the effects scenes.

Full cast and crew information may be found here.

Premise

Sarah and Helena bond, at least somewhat, while road tripping to learn the secret behind the Cold River Institute and Ethan Duncan. They’re being stalked, however, by both Paul and Mark.

Scott joins forces with Cosima and Delphine.

Vic returns and wants to help Allison through rehab… But he has a secret.

Art and Felix try to make sense of evidence found in the storage locker.

High Points

This episode features one of the best road trips in television history, and the writers were smart enough not to bleed any one element too long. The sisters bond charmingly, Helena sings badly, and Paul stalks creepily. The stop in the small town features the expected hijinks in a local bar (Orphan Black style, of course)—and what road trip would be complete without discoveries in a sinister archive?

Low Point

Those guys you beat up aren’t pressing charges.

I’m growing accustomed to the show’s alternate version of Canada, but this just seems unnecessary. Unless we’re talking civil charges, the victims of crime don’t decide on the pressing or not pressing of charges here. The Crown does. The police might hear these guys out and, in the case of a small town bar fight, the system might just let everyone settle down and walk. Even if Helena was being charged, her family would almost certainly be able to take her home. But, if you’re going to do shout-outs to actual Ontario towns (Brockville!), why not reference the Canadian legal system?

The Scores:

Jesus, you’re the best date I’ve had in ages.
–Felix to Art

Originality: 4/6

Effects: 6/6

Story: 5/6 We have a great mystery here, slowly unravelling, growing complex but in ways that make sense. The plotting and twisting never seems arbitrary. The characters also research the mystery in intelligent ways, each group pursuing a likely avenue and cross-referencing their findings. The trackers, too, work together, once they realize they have common interests; their scenes felt credible—and gave me only one pause.

I know Mark and Paul are experienced trackers (and Paul has military expertise in this area), but their ability to follow two paranoid women across eastern Ontario, separately but undetected, seems a stretch.

Acting: 6/6 I’m going to keep this at 6/6, because Mando keeps pace with the cast and Cadranel doesn’t appear long enough to spoil the performance. I hope she steps up her game, since her character is destined to remain a part of the show– and actors and characters often grow over the course of series.

Tatiana Maslany continues to give stunning, individuated performances. The scenes between Helena and Sarah are crazily delightful.

Emotional Response: 5/6

Production: 6/6

Overall: 6/6 We know who initially wanted to clones and how Dyad took over the project. We know that the project started as a “Proof of Concept” and that they wanted “little girls.” We’re still not certain what more lurks behind Project Leda, but its roots in the Eugenics Movement suggest further clues.

In total, “To Hound Nature and her Wanderings” receives 38/42

Lingering Question

Who is the female relative from whom Scott finds a sample? Kira would seem the obvious answer, but this show does not always do the obvious.