The Expanse - S05 E05: Down and Out
AMAZONAs the fifth season marks its halfway point, The Expanse maintains its consistently strong narrative progression in a table-setting hour. While its previous episode, Gaugamela firmly incites high-stakes danger to the extremes with Marco Inaros’ (Keon Alexander) assault against the inners, Down and Out slightly hampers to a moderate boil and allots the time for our heroes to assess the situation and figure out their next move.
There’s no time devoted to Avasarala (Shohreh Aghdashloo), which is the hour’s only disappointment. It will be both intriguing and upsetting to see how she copes with the tragic catastrophe that shook her and every other Earther at their core. However, the material is most definitely reserved for the upcoming episodes, as the series always shines a light on people dealing with theoretically bad-case scenarios in both the macro lens and the microlens.
That isn’t to say the episode doesn’t have that ‘shining-a-light’ moment, because Amos’ escape from the underground prison examines the wake of the asteroid impact on the microlens. His storyline is a highlight as it delivers the most laughs and thrills. Whether it’s Amos calling a studded and body-modded inmate as Tiny (Boomer Philips), or he and others navigating through hallways and elevator shafts with everything ready to collapse, the segment bears many action-adventure tropes that are heavily reminiscent of John Carpenter’s Escape from New York. These provide enough levity and excitement to an otherwise distressing backdrop.
Meanwhile, Naomi (Dominique Tipper) isn’t having a great family reunion on Marco's ship. Nor is she welcomed by the Inaros’ faction as her allegiance to the Rocinante makes her a traitor in their eyes. During her stay, her former companions try to enlighten Naomi that Marcos’ actions were an answer to the maltreatment towards the Belt, and it is convincing to a degree. After a long history of hostility towards their people, an OPA leader assuming the role of a necessary evil to d is a long time coming, and it’s no surprise that the current political situation has grown so comfortable with its position that it fails to see a possible act of insurgency igniting in front of them. Naomi isn’t buying it, especially when millions of lives are wiped out regardless of where they belong.
Neither does Drummer (Cara Gee), who feels more frustrated with her past decision to spare Marco as the latter’s uprising causes major trouble. Now, with Marcos requesting all Belters to unite, she and the crew cannot remain uninvolved. Even if the uncompromising OPA leader doesn’t leave an intimidating suggestion for those who are unwilling to comply with his invitation, there’s immense doubt Drummer will stay inactive for long, given the circumstances.
Meanwhile, Alex (Cas Anvar) and Bobbie (Frankie Adams) proceed in following the Barkeith, and their arc bookends Down and Out in a fiery cliffhanger that is sure to leave the audiences on edge. What occurs is arguably the series’ space flight pursuit with the Screaming Firehawk roaring at high speeds as Alex accelerates to hard G’s in an attempt to evade the Free Navy’s torpedo. It’s relatively short but suspenseful, and we’re all eager to know more about the conspiracy in hand.
The Expanse is no stranger to multiple character arcs, and although this season extends beyond its usual number of storylines, it hasn’t shown any fault in the storytelling whatsoever. Writer, Matthew Rasmussen constructs the episode’s framework by juggling five points of view, rarely losing steam and never disregarding its cohesiveness as a whole. Even when everyone is thousands of miles apart, they always find a connective tissue at a certain point with Naomi anxiously warning Holden to refrain from starting up the Roci’s engine in a pulse-pounding sequence, and Alex and Bobbie discovering a weapons trade between Mars and Marco’s faction. It’s all because the cast and crew are on the same page in passionately adapting from the largely ambitious and strongly reliable blueprint from Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck.
