"...Its Hour Come Round At Last" - Episode # 122 (spoilers below!) (Click here for synopsis)

 The plot of this outing was full of continuity with past episodes, from the newest planets to sign up, to the references to Dylan's former work in Commonwealth special operations. We see the enigmatic energy being seen directing a Magog invasion in "Harper 2.0", who strangely enough the crew never mentioned after that.

The characters were handled very well with Dylan and Beka especially good and having more chemistry as a team than previously. However, Brent Strait playing Rev Bem was a bit disappointing, mostly just fighting and moaning, with little depth given to any "struggle" about reverting to more brutal Magog ways. In some other episodes his character was handled more consistently and had more depth as a being of faith with a dark past.

In the early part of the episode I again wondered about the AI having three "personalities" (Rommie, hologram and computer image). Also it seemed a bit strange that the internal defenses, including guns and sealed doors, could be so easily dealt with by Tyr and the others. However, the basic idea featuring the restoration of the AI backup was fairly original and made a convincing premise to get the crew to the Magog "homeworlds".

The fights against the Magog and the attempts to restore the AI's memory were riveting to watch. Given the previous semi-invulnerability of our heroes (as in most shows), seeing them violently attacked and defeated was hard to watch, but realistic. Harper and Tyr were an unexpectedly good team and though they survived longer than is likely realistic, their struggles were well done.

The ending was exciting, even if unsettling in ways. It contained just a couple of disappointments, including the very poor special effects for the twenty world "structure" which looked like a poorly made toy model. Also, I expected to get at least some information on who the energy being was and what the Magog really were (10 generations and now an awakening coming?). Given that this is a season end "cliffhanger" I can understand why this is missing, but it still left the "story" that made up this episode with no conclusion.

This was the most action packed and gripping episode the show has yet aired and left many unanswered questions. I just hope that the resolution next fall is believable and deals with the plot threads left hanging without weak "deus ex machina" plot devices often seen in other series.

By the way, there was an early scene where the Magog reminded me of the "bogey men" in an old film, "The March of the Wooden Soldiers". Totally inappropriate for this episode, but I laughed imagining hearing Beka tell Dylan in the armory, "What about the Wooden Soldiers?". Old time film fans will know what I mean!

The ratings for the episode are given below. For information on how my rating system works, click on this link.

Review 05/22/01 by Larry Kramer       Updated 10/12/01

(c) 2001 Larry Kramer (See Copyright Disclaimer)