If that face doesn’t give you the chills, I don’t know what will. Ethan comes face to face with his first Abbie in “Choices,” the first of Wayward Pines‘ final six episodes. Ethan finally learns everything about this isolated community and how it came to be. He’s also learned that the man claiming to be Dr. Jenkins is actually the mastermind behind the entire scheme, called David Pilcher.
New on the horizon — because Wayward Pines has a way of adding surprisingly new elements with every single outing — is the revelation that Kate and Howard have been working on some kind of secret plot to get the hell out of Dodge. This raises questions about Kate’s allegiances and about the survival of the human race.
Wayward Pines Recap: Are the Evils of Wayward Pines Finally Brought to Light? >>>
Dr. Pilcher’s Devastated World
As we open a long-haired David Pilcher walks the devestated streets of Wayward Pines. Bodies lie dead in the streets and garbage floats along the sidewalk. Was this what the world was like before Pilcher created his Utopia? Does Pilcher’s hippie hair predate the clean-cut 2015 Seattle visit with Ethan Burke’s colluding boss, or is this some other time that we’ve yet to be introduced to? “Choices” answers this question, though it takes its sweet time in doing so.
The Beating Heart of Wayward Pines
Pilcher (aka Dr. Jenkins) and his sister, a softer, pony-tailed Nurse Pam, take Ethan on a tour of the complex which houses everything that makes Wayward Pines run. Peopled by over 200 volunteers who support Pilcher’s cause, the behind-the-scenes machinations provide everything from technology and supplies to food stores.
Ben Quietly Freaks Out at Home
Home from the devastating orientation which revealed the Abbies and the 2000 year time gap, Ben contemplates how his every action could spell success or destruction of the survival of the human race.
Kate, Harold and Hansom Ted Are Planning Something Sneaky
Deliveryman Hansom Ted drops in on Kate at the store and we learn that the three have been working on building something together. There’s a snag in the plan and Ted insists that they meet. He says he’s unable to find “McCall’s package.” (Peter McCall was the realtor who threw himself into the electrified fence so everyone would think newly-minted Sheriff Burke killed him.) Apparently, either McCall was working with this small rebellious faction or they simply knew what he was up to and need his “package” to further their own cause. Since he killed himself, I’m thinking he wasn’t working with Kate’s gang or he would have hung on a little longer.
Kate gets Theresa out of the office (which used to be Peter’s) so Hansom Ted can sneak in and retrieve “McCall’s package.” Once Ted delivers the package to Harold, we see that the toymaker seems to be making a bomb of some sort.
What Is Plot 33?
Some older chick named Henrietta quits her job at Wayward Pines Realty where Theresa now works. Theresa talks with her about something called “Plot 33.” When she does, Henrietta warns Theresa that everything is futile in Wayward Pines and anything Theresa does will turn to crap. Since Theresa works in real estate now, she has access to surveyor maps of the town.
Ethan Meets His First Abbie Face to Face
Pam sews up Ethan’s arm then sets him free to roam the facility where he meets his first Abbie face to face. The Abbie is restrained in a containment cube and quickly sedated after scaring the poo out of Ethan. This is when David Pilcher explains about his research and the world’s failure to support his research. Pam and David, together, sought funding and were laughed at. The most difficult part to figure out was the cryopreservation of human bodies. “How many bodies?” Ethan asks. Then Pilcher shows him a cavernous warehouse filled with rows and rows of cryogenic capsules as far as the eye can see, and three vertical capsules deep. Not all of them volunteered. Pilcher took people whom he believed had a better future here in Wayward Pines.
Pilcher Gets His First Volunteers
Through a series of flashbacks we learn how hypnotist-school counselor Megan became part of the Wayward Pines project. Then we see how Pilcher recruited the man who later became Sheriff Pope. Pilcher used Pope to sedate and kidnap the very first cryogenic subject. It must have worked because he then tells Ethan how he and everyone else put themselves to sleep for 2,000 years and awoke to find the world depopulated. It took the newly awakened team two years to build and enclose Wayward Pines. Fortunately, the Abbies proved predictable so they were able to keep them out of the city. Humans, however, were not so predictable, and therefore had to be watched very closely.
Kate and Harold Discuss Their Plans
Kate returns from meeting with Theresa to find Harold reconsidering their plan. He’s concerned that innocent people could get hurt. He almost backs out, but then Kate convinces him that this is an all or none endeavor. During the course of the discussion, we find out that Kate and Harold have no idea what’s beyond those walls or what year it is. Holy crap. We still don’t know exactly what they are planning, but I have a feeling they are going to try to blast their way through the Wayward Pines perimeter. Who agrees with me?
Can We Trust ‘The Truth’ Wayward Pines is Dishing Out? >>>
Pilcher Chose Ethan Because His New World Fell Apart
Pilcher explains to Ethan that he brought him and his family, as well as Kate, to Wayward Pines for a special reason. He wants Ethan to keep the community safe during these dark days until enlightenment can be achieved. Ethan protests the harsh rules and the reckonings. He will not be a part of that. He recommends Pilcher tell the community the truth about being cryo-preserved, about the year in which they live, and about the horrendous mutations that resulted in the Abbies.
Through more flashbacks we learn that Pilcher first believed in transparency when he awakened the first group of Wayward Pines residents. However, people freaked out. Entire families, consumed with despair, committed suicide while mayhem was rampant in the streets. When he awakened the second group of residents he felt the need to spare them cruel reality in favor of safety. That’s why they have secrecy and the communist rules.
The Age of Enlightenment Cometh
Young minds are fearless and can accept the truth. That’s what Pilcher tells Ethan. Pilcher wants Ethan to keep the whole town safe until the enlightened youth can mature and populate the town on their own. He says there is a new threat in Wayward Pines. There’s a faction who has been removing their tracking devices and planning some kind of uprising. He suspects they plan to take down the electrified perimeter wall. Holy cats, he’s talking about Kate and her crew! It sounds like the group of insurgents led by Kate and Howard may be much bigger than just the four already named. What I want to know is … why hasn’t Kate told Ethan about all of this? Maybe that’s what we get when Wayward Pines returns with “Betrayal,” its next episode
Wayward Pines airs Thursdays at 9pm on FOX.
(Image courtesy of FOX)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
