In the previous episode, Sato’s mission failed, and Mal’akh captured Langdon and put him in a room. In this episode, Sato takes a hit in her career. She’s no longer part of the CIA team. However, she’s determined to help Katherine and Nuñez find Peter. She cracks a deal with the Leviathan group in exchange for the information she needs. Peter and Langdon escape from Mal’akh cell, only to uncover the hidden complications of their world. Their emotional shifts between characters drive the story forward while redundant information gives away the surprise.
An example is the emotional reaction between Peter and Mal’akh. When Mal’akh blocks Langdon and Peter from escaping his compound, he says something that catches Peter’s attention: a specific phase in his speech. Peter recognizes the phase and tries to remember where he heard it. The flashback scene shows the time when he said that to Zachary. He ponders as another flashback scene brings him back to the time when he was held hostage. Mal’akh told him that he hoped Langdon wouldn’t be like his son.
Once he realizes who Mal’ahk is, Peter starts to back off. He couldn’t believe that Mal’akh turned out to be his son. Also, the confusion of what became of Zachary along with his guilt of not bailing him out of jail carries the weight on his shoulder. He tells Sato not to shoot when Mal’akh starts running away.
Mal’akh, on the other and, is as cold as stone when he looks at his father. It’s as if the father-son relationship is dead, as confirmed in episode 2 when Katherine visited him in jail. His conversation with her showed resentment and distrust. Later, he told Katherine that he wasn’t Peter’s son anymore.
The emotional reaction between Sato and Mal’akh goes the same way. Sato feels guilty for leaving Zachary in prison. Even though the idea of discrediting him wasn’t her idea, she feels responsible for him. She tells the cops who are chasing him to the edge of the cliff not to shoot. Mal’akh looks at her with no emotion as if their working relationship doesn’t mean anything anymore. He then jumps off the cliff.
The idea that Mal’akh is Zachary doesn’t feel like a surprise but a confirmation. Mal’akh’s dialogues in previous episodes offer hints of who he is since he often talks about Zachary relationship with Peter. Peter found his son’s tattoo in episode 2 is a foreshadow that he might be Zachary, or he’s the one who killed Peter’s son. Then again, the toy car that belongs to Zachary raises a question of Mal’akh’s true identity.
Episode 6 is watchable. It focuses on emotional conflicts between characters once everything is laid out on the table. Another focus is the team effort to rescue Peter, catch Mal’akh, and solve another piece of the mystery.
Rating: 4.5/10
