Photo: Ben Mark Holzberg benmark.ca
Say what you want about Salvation on CBS, but, as it settles in, the show is doing better than last year’s summer thriller, American Gothic (AG). I kid you not. Episode 3 of AG had a demo of 0.5/2 and a viewship of 2.78 million. TVbytheNumbers has the 3rd episode of Salvation tied with NBC for the demo with a 0.6/3. For viewership, Salvation won the timeslot with 3.87 million. Of course some of the difference can be attributed to the NBC hospital drama, The Night Shift, now being on Thursdays.
However, even the night AG got switched to 9pm it was losing to reruns of Modern Family. Thus far, it looks like CBS made the right call about dropping AG for Salvation. As the show adds still more moving parts the story is becoming more intriguing.
There’s a reason that high-action, high-concept movies do well in the summer. People are looking for an escape. The same goes for summer TV. A thriller is fine, but it needs to be an over-the-top story, not something we can image really happening. So, a serial killer living among us is a bit too “Son of Sam” to be enjoyable. A story about a giant asteroid (Sampson) that’s due to hit the earth in six months unless the U.S. stops it, though, that feels a lot more in the realm of never-gonna-happen land.
Likewise, summer reading (yes, people do still read) is known for it crazy page-turners. From May to September, hot thrillers and summer romances – complete with love triangles, betrayals, and star-crossed lovers being kept apart by some nefarious conspicary you can’t begin to figure out – rule the best-seller lists . In the America mindset, intrigue, sex and summer just seem to go together. Salvation on CBS has that covered as well – especially with the show’s third episode – “Truth or Darius.”
Salvation on CBS Episode 3 Review: “Truth or Darius”
This episode threw more variables into the mix of character intrigues and it also raised the stakes. Now it’s not just that Sampson is hurling towards earth and in 174 days could destory it. Instead the new plan we heard about last week, (to send the Jupiter satillite to hit and break up Sampson) only has two windows that the orbits will work. The first is in seven days while the second is in sixity-three. As we also heard in the pilot, the idea has a downside. This episode makes it more specific. Doing this will destroy countries on the other side of the world and kill over a billion people.
Now, we have to be willing to believe this premise. It’s hard to image that the kind of trauma to the earth caused by chucks of rock that can take out over a billion people would have no impact on the planet in general. I suspect it would look closer to the Moon in film version of The Time Machine by HG Wells.
This image ultimately completely breaks apart. Whether it’s one big blow or several smaller hits that results in a domino-like chain reaction, neither of these scenarios seem like they would save the planet.
However, this is only episode three of Salvation, we don’t know where the show is going. Maybe the writers really will blow up the planet. I’ve been thinking that could be the case ever since billionaire tech genius Darius Tanz (Santiago Cabrera) first mentioned his “Noah’s Ark” mission to Mars back in the pilot. Now with what happens in this episode I really can’t rule it out. That trip to Mars keeps coming up!
The New Players on Salvation – and More Triangles
The Other Woman
The Pentagon spinmaster Grace Barrows (Jennifer Finnigan) and her boss, deputy of Defense Harris Edwards ( Ian Anthony Dale) were interrupted from an early morning tryst. They are summoned to a meeting dealing with Sampson. On their way to the conference room we get introduced to a new character: Advisor to the President, Claire Rayburn (Erica Luttrell). It’s awkward because Claire is Harris’s ex – the one who led to his divorce. Claire doesn’t know about Grace and Harris (although she appears to have some suspistions.) Chances are that Grace knows about her though.
Claire is there to get an update on the Sampson problem. That’s where Grace learns about the plan killing over a billion people. It’s partly where we get the title “Truth or Darius” from.
Harris believes the only solution to the Samson problem is crashing the IO probe currently orbiting Jupiter into the asteroid. This would break the giant rock into pieces and knock it off course. The problem is those pieces will kill a fifth of the world’s population – on the other side of the world. For Harris this is about hard cold truth – they have to save themselves.
The research says there are two windows of time they can do this. Grace wants them to wait for the second window to give Darius a chance to create the “EM Drive” that can get a rocket to Samson in time to launch a gravity tractor and pull the giant meteriote off of its path. Both Harris and the government’s lead scientist, Dr. Garrett Strauss (Derek Webster) think this is folly.
Claire decides to give Darius six days to come up with “proof of concept.” If he can prove that his idea about the EM drive rocket engine will work, they’ll wait. If not, the plan that will kill over a billion people goes into effect!
Grace and Harris are not happy with each other, but Harris still defends Grace to Claire – and turns down Claire’s proposititon that they start hooking up again.
Harris and Dillion
In the pilot we got to meet Grace’s daughter Zoe (Rachel Drance). Those two have a good relationship. Harris and his son Dylan (André Dae Kim) do not. Dylan and his friends were protesting at what looks like the facility where Grace got the urainum. They get arrested and Harris goes to bail him out. Dylan refuses to go without his friends and the two argue over the ways Harris has been a bad father. It gives us the back story of Harris’s time in the military and being reassigned – away from his son. Later Grace and Harris will bond over this – but it doesn’t help with their other problems.
Gillian, Liam…and Daris
MIT grad student Charlie Rowe (Liam Cole) got a double-dose of surpises. The first is that Darius has invited Liam’s girlfriend, the first-time sci-fi writer, Gillian Hayes (Jacqueline Byers) to work at Tanzi industries. What Darius dug up on her – and we learn about – is that her grandfather was a famous science-fiction writer. Gillian basically hates him, and has polar opposite ideas to her own.
That part Liam doesn’t know about. He’s just mad that Darius did this without telling him – because he doesn’t want to be distracted by her. Darius says it’s the opposite. He brought her in because she’s important to him.
I need your head in the game. That means I need everything you care about under one roof – mine.
Maybe that’s true, but I do think her grandfather may have something to do with it. Not that he’s interested in her grandfather. It has something to do with her opposition to him – despite the relationship. Why else offer her a job in a special think tank?
Gillian, Liam, Amanda…and Darius
The other surprise is when the reporter Amanda Neel (Shazi Raja) shows up at Liam’s workplace. They only meet once before at that party in the pilot. Amanda tells Liam she wants him to get her an interview with Darius. However, it’s not all business with Amanda. Someone’s got a little crush…
Later on, Amanda was none to happy to observe Charlie greeting Jillian. By the end of the episode she’ll have more important things to be concerned about though.
Amanda gets the interview with Darius. First he charms her, then he convinces her that the photos of Grace delivering him all that enriched uranium is about a secret joint venture between his company and the government. The project: the first mission to Mars. (Mars again!) Unfortunetely she also asked Darius about “Project Atlas.” That gets her hit by a car!
Harris, Grace, and Darius
Darius is furious about the news of the six day window. He shares the story of the first drone prototype he ever built literally blowing up. He knows that he needs more time.
In six days I can give you smashed metal, but in sixty days I can save the planet!
Grace isn’t happy when Darius tasks her to get them more time – she’d already gotten him uranium!
Nevertheless, Grace sets out to try to change minds. First she tries Harris – which causes a huge fight. She says his choice about the about the IO probe is “playing God” and really about saving himself. Harris takes offense.
You just stand there in judgement – never having had to make life or death decisions.
The other part bugging Harris is Grace’s faith in Darius. Grace furiously tells him it’s, “because the alternative is unacceptable!”
After that fight, Grace goes over Harris’s head to pitch her case for the second window to Claire. When Harris finds out it’s his turn to be furious. That’s also when he confronts Grace about the earring.
What Goes Down on Salvation on CBS Episode
With only six days to solve the EM drive issue Darius and Dr. Malcolm Croft (Dennis Boutsikaris) – clash on how to get it done. Liam, when trying to think like Darius, comes up with a way to cut down the time they need. It works – at least in the simulation. Unfortunetely, the actual test model blows up – and with everyone from the government watching!
After witnessing this Claire ultimately decides they are going to go with using the IO probe. It’s a decision that apparently gives Harris a change of heart about his son. Right before it’s time to go condemn a billion people he goes to bail out Dylan – and his friends. When he gets there he finds only Dylan. His friends all let themselves be bailed out as soon as they had the chance. (Which is pretty sensible. I’m not quite sure about the whole code-of-honor of sticking together in jail after a protest.)
Dylan: People can be so disappointing.
Harris, thinking of Grace, agrees. He then tells Dylan he wants to be a better father – before it’s too late. Then he leaves to go set in motion the deaths of a billion people.
The Cliffhanger
Photo: Sven Frenzel/CBS
Grace, Claire and Dr. Strauss are all present when Darius gets the call from the President to process with using the probe. As that is set in motion we are cut to a scene of Darius watching the astoroid on a giant screen. He appears to write a text and then strides out of the room.
Back at NASU Grace gets a text from Darius.
I’m sorry, it’s not over. I’ve got one more move left.
Right as she gets this there’s a problem with the IO probe! Someone has hacked into NASU and taken control of the probe! It’s now going too fast and is off course! As all hell breaks loose, Grace tries to call Darius – but he’s taking off in a helicopter. Meanwhile, Amanda gets hit by that car – on purpose! The driver makes a call to someone and says he thinks she got the message.
The Wrap Up
What the heck! Did Darius hack NASU? Will Amanda survive being hit by that car? Who knew enough of what she was doing to order the hit? Will Grace and Harris’s relationship survive? Oh, and what about the fate of the world? Turn in next week to Salvation on CBS to find out!
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