What I’m Watching: Defiance

Defiance: Season 1, Episode 5 “The Serpent’s Egg” (C)

What’s the point of having both the lawkeeper and the mayor accompany a prisoner during transport if they’re going to allow her to pick the lock to her handcuffs not once but twice during the trip? They also did a terrible job vetting their passengers, since only the two clueless husbands turned out to be on the side of the good guys. Olfin waited a while to play her hand, and when the prisoner switches sides, you know you’ve come across someone truly irritating. It appears that Olfin won’t suffer any legal consequences for her illegal act, of course, and now she’s gunning for Amanda, who is now going to have to deal with external pressure in addition to the internal stress she already has. Irisa was awfully quick to abduct and begin torturing the Castithan she remembered from her childhood, and chaining Tommy to the radiator seemed like an ill-conceived plan with not much long-term thinking involved. Letting him go because it would deprive him of the chance to have some sort of purpose was an intriguing solution, and it was jarring to see Nolan show up in savior mode in the flashback, exemplified kindheartedness and warmth that we haven’t seen much from him recently. It’s about time Irisa and Tommy got together, and I suspect their romance, while sure to be complicated, will help Irisa become more okay with the idea of being in Defiance. Unsurprisingly, this show will be back for a second season, which is good news, but disheartening considering that this fare gets deemed more worthwhile than the far superior “Alphas.”