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Orphan Black, Ep. 2.07, “Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things” channels season one

Orphan Black, Ep. 2.07, “Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things” channels season one

Orphan Black S02E07 promo image

Orphan Black, Season 2, Episode 7, “Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things”
Written by Aubrey Nealon
Directed by Ken Girotti
Airs Saturdays at 9pm EST on BBCA

This week, on Orphan Black: Sarah is terrible at roleplay, Kira is proactive, and Vic is molested by elves

Well then. Looks like the writers shared this critic’s concerns about Leekie as a viable villain. This week’s Pulp Fiction-inspired conclusion may be a bit pat and predictable, but it resolves the show’s Leekie problem while moving Donnie in a new and promising direction (and making fabulous use of “Love Is All Around”). Alison’s relationship with her monitor husband has been a confusing blind spot for the show for most of its run—do they care for each other or has Donnie been playing Alison from the start? The show has tried to have it both ways and while the answer given this week is far more interesting than Paul-and-Beth-take-two, it requires some selective forgetfulness from the audience.

Donnie staying with Alison post-glue gun makes sense if he’s ordered to do so, as is heavily implied in season one. Him staying otherwise? Not so much. The same is true of his season one ominous locked drawer and Super Secret/Shady Fireside Phone Call. Donnie as unknowing pawn is great, and at least the show finally knows what it wants to do with him, but it’s a shame it took the writers this long to sort that out. While Stressed Out Alison is a joy (particularly her projected prison experience, “In the shower if they touch me, I will cut them.”), her highlight this week is definitely her confrontation and far overdue heart to heart with Donnie. Alison has lacked depth this season. She spent much of the first six episodes in shock, doing her best to not examine or react to the events of the season one finale. The notion of community theatre as coping mechanism is fun, but Alison’s interactions with Vic, Felix, and Donnie this week are all far more compelling and hopefully, as we move forward, Alison will get to be more than comic relief.

Alison’s children also make their overdue return for Family Day and it’s good to see her back in the role of caring mother, however briefly. The rest of the events at rehab are a mixed bag. Michael Mando is once again a blast as Vic, in what could easily be his last appearance for a while, but while Sarah-as-Alison-as-Donnie must have seemed like a great idea on paper, it’s strained here, and the painfully on the nose, “And I’m being Alison being Donnie?” doesn’t help. It’s wonderful to see Tatiana Maslany show off her layered accent work again (reminding everyone just how damn good she is at it) and the button, “I really have to tinkle” is absolutely delightful, but the scene is overly contrived and too low-stakes to really work, an unnecessary distraction in an episode filled with more memorable and significant moments.

Two of these standout scenes are Cosima’s next stage of treatment (and subsequent realization of her donor’s identity) and Rachel’s reunion with her father. Maslany gives Cosima her most powerful moment yet as she confronts Delphine, demanding control over her body. Her illness has felt rather nominal so far—Cosima’s too popular a clone to really feel at risk, particularly given the show’s unwillingness to keep Helena dead—but likable as the character is and as much of a blow as it would be to lose her, her death might be the kind of shakeup the series needs as it moves towards its season two finale (feel free to voice your outrage in the comments below—I probably deserve it). It’s hard to buy the threat of a deadly ticking clock inside each of the clones when the only victims we’ve met are Katja and Jennifer. Unless the series is going to abandon this storyline completely by the end of the season (a viable option, particularly given the resurfacing of Ethan Duncan), there need to be significant, permanent consequences for Cosima and the rest of the clones.

Speaking of Swan Man, Ethan’s reunion with Rachel is another of the episode’s most affecting scenes. Maslany and Andrew Gillies work well together, telling their story almost completely through their physicality as the camera wisely keeps its distance, letting composer Trevor Yuile’s beautifully restrained scoring do the bulk of the work. Rachel’s goodbye to Leekie serves as a nice capper to this, with Maslany giving a wry detachment to, “Nurture prevails” that makes the line self-aware, but not winking. It should be fun to see her work with genre maven Michelle Forbes, who is a very welcome presence as new potential baddie Marian Bowles.

The sole weak spot in the episode, character wise, is Sarah’s continued petulance towards Mrs. S, which still does not feel earned. It also highlights another of the season’s flaws—where are the interactions between Mrs. S and Felix? He’s her child as well, but they seem to have no relationship at all. She’s shown deep reservoirs of emotion for Kira and Sarah; it’d be nice for the character and the show to remember the bond she should share with her son. With Felix’s role reduced this week, Helena taking the episode off, and the all-too-briefly returned Cal (who has been a fantastic addition this season) theoretically out of the picture, at least temporarily, Sarah is left with Mrs. S to relate to and their scenes aren’t anywhere near as compelling as Alison’s with Donnie, Cosima’s with Delphine, or Rachel’s with her parents.

We’re nearing the endgame for the season and with only three episodes left, “Knowledge of Causes, and Secret Motion of Things” throws new wrenches in each of the main corners of the show. Season two continues to be an entertaining and memorable one for Orphan Black, which keeps happily churning through plot and characters as needed. With Leekie out of the way, Det. Deangelis potentially sidelined, and Alison presumably done with rehab, it’s anyone’s guess where we’re going next, and that’s incredibly exciting.

Kate Kulzick

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