“Raised by Wolves” 1×10 Review: The Beginning

With how ‘The Beginning’ ended, I’m glad Raised by Wolves has already been renewed for a second season over on HBO Max. The finale really gave us a lot to talk about.

In my review of the 3-episode premiere, I shared that Raised by Wolves, while having a very interesting premise, featured familiar themes. After watching the 10-episode long first season, I would like to say that I stand by my initial reaction.

Yes, this is a highly enjoyable sci-fi series. However, for those who consume a lot of sci-fi (involving androids and discussions about humanity) and know what Ridley Scott is about, Raised by Wolves doesn’t seem to be treading completely uncharted territory. Having said that, kudos to show creator Aaron Guzikowski and his team for delivering something quite engaging.

‘The Beginning’ was all about getting ready for Mother giving birth to her child. Of course, it was clear that whatever she was going to give birth to wasn’t going to be entirely human. But I do have to say I wasn’t expecting what came out of her! (more on that later).

The planet that everyone’s on is strange. There’s no denying that. Certain fan theories have appeared online regarding how time and space acted differently on Kepler-22b. It’s as if everything our cast’s gone through has already happened in the past (or at least a version of it has already occurred).

Along with the show addressing what being human is all about, Raised by Wolves has continued to be accompanied by strong religious symbolism. There’s talk about God and the devil. The Roman mythology involving Romulus and Remus was also brought up.

In my opinion, said mythology connected to the young boys named Campion and Paul. Both were raised by a she-wolf, in a sense. Campion was raised by Mother (a dangerous Necromancer android) while Paul was raised by Mary (a woman who took on the identity of Paul’s biological mother). Paul’s also quite the inventor. He knew how to fashion traps from natural resources and liked building Sol’s city (that he saw in his dreams) using stones. I wouldn’t be surprised if Campion and Paul played a role in building a new community for what’s left of humanity.

Mother and Father, on the other hand, seem to be following the story of Adam and Eve as well as Mary and Joseph. Both found themselves on a new planet with the mission to raise a better human society. But Mother was attracted to a voice in her head which led her to be impregnated by a virus while linking to the Mithraic Simulation program while Father felt inadequate for not being part of Mother’s pregnancy. In ‘The Beginning’, we saw Mother giving birth to a snake (an animal that has been used to symbolize the devil).

I have a feeling that the second season will bring forth some kind of Jesus-like figure into the story. In my opinion, as long as that being isn’t another white Jesus-like figure, I’ll be okay with it. As I said in my review of the premise, I will roll my eyes if the savior of the entire human race is another white guy. 

Anyway, if you’re interested in sci-fi, religious symbolism, and theology, you’re going to have a blast peeling away all of the layers in Raised by Wolves.

‘The Beginning’ also laid the groundwork for another confrontation between the Mithraic and Atheists. Marcus aka Caleb (now fully crazy and believing himself to be the King of humans) stumbled upon a group of Atheists. I wonder if he will get to meet some of his old comrades because he too was an Atheist before taking on the identity of a Mithraic soldier.

Some thoughts and questions:

• Will the strange voice in Paul’s head lead him to Marcus?
• I wonder what Mother will do to stop her snake baby. That dangerous thing can’t be allowed to live.
• With Campion and the others separated from Mother and Father, it will be interesting to see how they will fare without the androids around.
• After being forced to eat Mother’s Necromancer eyes, do you think Marcus will gain some of her abilities?
• I hope the second season gives us answers about the creepy planet everyone’s on.
• Seeing certain women (including a freaking android!) have their arcs revolve around whether or not they can give birth is a bit cringy. Here’s hoping the writing team gives these characters more to do in the second season.

You can go ahead and binge-watch the entire first season of Raised by Wolves on HBO Max.

Feel free to share your thoughts with us.

Author: Farid-ul-Haq

Farid has a Double Masters in Psychology and Biotechnology as well as an M.Phil in Molecular Genetics. He is the author of numerous books including Missing in Somerville, and The Game Master of Somerville. He gives us insight into comics, books, TV shows, anime/manga, video games, and movies.

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