The Ark 2×01 Review: “Failed Experiment”

An already tenuous alliance between the crews of Ark-1 and Ark-15 falls apart quickly in The Ark season two premiere “Failed Experiment.”

After season one’s explosive finale, The Ark returns for its second season with high stakes premiere “Failed Experiment.” The crew of Ark-1, led by Sharon (Christie Burke), must figure out their next moves as they reel from an explosion that has damaged much of the ship. Despite the high stakes, Sharon has time to tell the crew how much they mean to her in a heartfelt moment before they jump into action.

Though Ark-15 leader Maddox (Jelena Stupljanin) promised to host the surviving members of Ark-1, Sharon is furious to learn that the offer extends only to her and the main crew members due to the limited resources available. While it’s always been clear that Maddox should not be trusted, it’s surprising that the dubious alliance falls apart before it even begins. Despite Maddox’s disregard for everyone else on Ark-1, Sharon manages to convince her to allow James (Richard Fleeshman) and Spencer (Reece Ritchie) to return to Ark-1 to rescue any survivors.

Back on Ark-1, Felix (Pavle Jerinic) brings Cat (Christina Wolfe) to the medical bay but finds Dr. Kabir (Shalini Peiris) unconscious. As Felix works to revive Dr. Kabir, Cat shares a moment with Trust (Paul Leonard Murray) before dying. Though Cat had some great moments in season one, she was ultimately the most expendable of the cast. Her exchange with Felix once again bringing up his gayness and how it prevented them from hooking up, a call back to one of the first season’s worst moments, is more uncomfortable than it is sentimental. Cat’s final conversation with Trust is far more moving, with a little bit of humor at Trust’s expense.

When Felix and Spencer bring Dr. Kabir and Angus (Ryan Adams) aboard, Maddox remains furious with Sharon. Ark-15’s Dr. Marsh (Jadran Malkovich) attempts to revive his newest patients, along with Maddox’s daughter and Angus’ attacker Kelly (Samantha Glassner) but gets into a fight with Maddox about using Ark-15’s resources on the three patients. Dr. Marsh is particularly surprised that Maddox is uninterested in saving her own daughter, but Maddox calls her a failed experiment. Despite Maddox’s previous actions and expert manipulations, it’s surprising that she isn’t even trying to be nice to anyone, even her own crew members.

By contrast, Sharon shines in her compassionate leadership in the episode as she tries to fight for her crew. In addition to her opening speech, she doesn’t hesitate to stand up to Maddox and is particularly supportive of Alicia (Stacey Read). Sharon is quick to comfort Alica after she sees Angus’ condition and expresses her confidence in Alicia’s abilities. The series shines in the strong development of personal dynamics between the main crew members, and this episode is no different.

Kelly, having heard her mother’s harsh words, begins a possible path to redemption. She apologizes to Angus and immediately wakes up Dr. Kabir to save him when it’s clear that he needs a blood transfusion. When Dr. Kabir realizes she doesn’t have access to the ship’s blood bank, Kelly offers her own blood. While it’s easy to understand why Alicia remains distrustful of Kelly, Kelly’s actions in this episode appear genuine. It will be interesting to see if Kelly will truly be redeemed or if there’s some kind of ulterior motive that will confirm Alicia’s suspicions. Dr. Kabir is surprised at how quickly Angus is recovering after the blood transfusion, but Kelly says that she doesn’t know if there is anything special about her blood. There is clearly more to Kelly than we, or she knows, causing intrigue for the rest of the season.

After another fight with Maddox about her refusal to help the injured patients, Dr. Marsh and Maddox’s head of security Kimi (Diana Bermudez), along with a few other members of Ark-15, ask Sharon and Alicia to let them return to Ark-1 with them. He promises that the doctors and engineers can help tend to the additional wounded members as well as fix the ship. Sharon is hesitant, but Alicia’s insistence that they need to save Angus helps to sway her decision.

Meanwhile, James reaches Eva (Tiana Upcheva) and helps her restart the engineering controls. Though James is concerned about Eva working too hard, Eva manages to get the comms back on and James teams up with Felix to rescue a couple of other crew members.

A sequence where Felix has to avoid sparking a fire in a puddle of gasoline on the floor to rescue a crew member is particularly thrilling. James and Eva ultimately share a kiss before James addresses the rest of the ship with a rousing speech that unites the remaining survivors.

Soon, Maddox realizes that Sharon has gathered her people from the medical bay, as well as numerous Ark-15 members and stolen a shuttle to return to Ark-1. Maddox tries to manipulate her own crew members aboard but gives up when Kelly threatens to kill her. Maddox activates a fail-safe and Dr. Marsh reveals that Kelly has a bomb inside of her.

While Dr. Marsh attempts to disable the bomb and Alicia insists that they eject Kelly out of the shuttle, Sharon tells Maddox that she owes her a favor, and Maddox relents. Though Maddox agrees to let them embark on the settlement with them, she warns Sharon that Kelly is dead to her.

“Failed Experiment” jumps back into the world of The Ark effectively, leaving enough intrigue for the rest of the season and the inevitable next impending crisis.

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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