The mixing of the past and present times in episode 7 draws attention to the story until the end of the episode. Zachary’s experiences in prison and his family’s final responses to the incident reveal the emotional truth about each character. Also, it’ll likely cross paths with what the character will experience in the upcoming events.
An example is the focus of Mal’akh’s backstory. His point of view offers insight into seeing the world through his eyes, which reveals his deeper layers. The setting, experience, observation, and dialogue between him and Samyaza (Mark Gibbon) bring clarity to his new role. An example is when Samyaza heals Zachary’s foot, which triggers Zachary to rethink the ancient wisdom again. By committing himself to Samyaza’s ideal, he begins to learn his ways. Later, Samyaza helps him escape prison in exchange for helping him find pieces of evidence of the ancient wisdom.
In a bunker bed, Zachary has a dream. A younger version of himself enters into the same masonic room as the one in the flashback opening scene. He then stands at the center and behind the tabernacle table. Facing in front of him are Peter, who sits on the right side, and Samyaza, who sits on the left side. Together, a reverse triangular composition is formed, presenting the status among the three characters.
Zachary enters the room where the younger version of himself stands as a way to compare his childhood and adulthood experiences. As Zachary continues to walk, young Zachary walks behind him until they stand beside the tabernacle table. It then cuts to the full shot of a small hand bell placed in the middle of the table, suggesting that there’s a connection between the bell and the character.
Samyaza tells Zachary to erase his past if he’s going to commit, which explains why young Zachary and Peter are in his dream. He has to face his past before moving on to the next level. Zachary pauses for a moment, pondering which path to go: follow his father or Samyaza. He then picks up a small bell from the table and strikes young Zachary with full force. Young Zachary’s body suddenly dissolves into thin air, and Zachary takes his sit in the middle of the room.
As time passes, he transforms himself into a different person by using montage. It emphasizes a great deal of information in an engaging fashion and in a short amount of time. The montage shows the events that led to his new role as Mal’akh, from facial surgery, knowledge gained, physical exercise, drug injections, to tattoo placement.
The episode ends with limited action that doesn’t evoke the psychological point of view. There’s no physical conflict, struggle, or resistance between characters. It just shows dead bodies lying on the floor with blood on one guy’s neck. The only scene that shows a life-or-death moment is when Mal’akh is chocking Sato with a string.
Episode 7 is good. The background story gives detailed information about what really happened to get the whole picture. It also draws out the emotional truth or experiences of the characters, contrary to the action scenes at the end of the episode.
Rating: 6/10
