The Ark 1×11 Review: “The Last Thing You Ever Do”

Sharon infiltrates Ark-15 for a rescue mission in the first season’s penultimate episode, “The Last Thing You Ever Do.”

Now that Sharon (Christie Burke) has discreetly slipped aboard Ark-15 at the conclusion of “Hoping for Forever,” she must execute Ark-1’s plan to rescue the hostages in “The Last Thing You Ever Do.” Though she initially makes her way around the ship by attempting to blend in with Ark-15’s crew, stealth is thrown out the window as she begins tasing people who get in her way. The season’s penultimate episode mixes exciting action and satisfying character moments as the stage is set for the recently renewed series’ season finale.

Seeing Sharon fight off the crew members is fun, particularly as she simultaneously works with the crew back on Ark-1. In her search of the ship’s brig, she discovers the lab where a scientist works on a cure for the widespread terminal illness. Bypassing the various breeds of spiders that don’t contain the venom for the proposed cure, Sharon is able to relay the other ingredients back to Ark-1 before she is captured.

Using Sharon’s Intel, Alicia (Stacey Read) and Dr. Kabir (Shalini Peiris) use the spider DNA for the correct species to develop a cure. Alicia’s enthusiasm for the growing spiders is amusing, while Dr. Kabir’s discomfort is relatable. Once they develop the cure, James (Richard Fleeshman) asks that they inject it in him without testing it after he collapses from his own terminal symptoms. Before the injection, James and Eva (Tiana Upcheva) confess their feelings for each other and share a kiss. Despite Eva’s previous betrayal of James, the moment is still sweet.

Unfortunately, James has a heart attack at the same time as the injection and falls into a coma. Even though Dr. Kabir and Alicia determine that the serum didn’t cause the heart attack, it appears that the supposed cure doesn’t have any impact on James’ illness. Though Dr. Kabir beats herself up afterward for using the injection without testing it first, the minimal resistance to James’ request still seems like an extraordinarily baffling decision for someone with high medical expertise.

Back on Ark-15, Kelly (Samantha Glassner) continues to be obsessed with Angus (Ryan Adams) as she holds him captive. The woman who was able to fool the Ark-1 crew of her intentions seems to be gone, as Kelly has seemed to become more unhinged after her return to Ark-15. Kelly invites Angus to dinner with her mother, Evelyn Maddox (Jelena Stupljanin), to convince her of his importance.

During the dinner, Maddox collapses, and her doctor reveals that the frequent heart attacks are the symptoms of the late-stage terminal illness. Angus proves his worth to Maddox by helping her during her heart attack and lies that he is no longer loyal to Ark-1 to win them over. He uses Kelly’s trust in him to convince her that he could persuade the other Ark-1 hostages to join their side. Though Kelly is rightfully skeptical of the idea, he successfully manipulates her into letting him see the other hostages.

After her capture, Sharon is taken to the brig where she reunites with Spencer (Reece Ritchie) and William Trust (Paul Murray). Sharon admits to them that she only intended to rescue Angus, as he is the only one that didn’t betray her. When Angus and Kelly arrive at the brig, Angus knocks out Kelly and the group makes their escape in the episode’s most thrilling sequence.

When Eva determines that Ark-15’s shuttle launch must be activated from the outside, Spencer agrees to stay behind to ensure their escape. Sharon and Spencer share a nice moment as Spencer’s character growth is acknowledged. As Maddox tries to fire upon them upon learning that they gave her a decoy spider DNA in their previous exchange, the weapon is unable to fire and explodes after Eva has hacked into it remotely.

Though “The Last Thing You Ever Do” has a satisfying conclusion, it’s clear that the finale will have yet another showdown between Ark-1 and Ark-15.

Author: Jessica Wolff

Jessica Wolff is a graduate of Drexel University with a BS in Film/Video. She has a passion for entertainment and representation in entertainment. She currently resides outside of Washington, DC.

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