'See' Season 1 Episode 5 review: Maghra takes a decision that could change her family ties forever
Unease, discomfort and the compulsion to be aware at all times, these basic elements of ‘See’ pervade the fifth episode amongst other things like depravity and bloodlust.
The most positive aspect of ‘See’ is that it relates the sheer disquiet of a post-apocalyptic world to the viewer. Humans are without sight, barring the two foster children of Baba Voss (Jason Momoa), Kofun and Hanewa. One wrong move, could mean death. Their real father is the heretic Jelmarel (Joshua Henry), who is on the insidious Queen Kane’s hit list. Why? We are not sure.
In this episode, Haniwa (Nesta Cooper) and Kofun (Archie Madekwe) obtain their mother Maghra’s purse (Hera Hilmar), unaware of the contents. And in doing so, they’re accosted by Jelmarel’s other son. Hanewa insists that this ‘brother’ join them on their nomadic journey. Paris is less than pleased about this, and Baba Voss struggles hard to hide his doubts and questions about this decision. Meanwhile, Queen Kane (Sylvia Hoeks), who is trying to hunt down Jelmarel, is abducted by two mysterious women, who seem in awe of her “white skin” and fingers. At the end of the episode, Maghra makes a peculiar decision that affects her family. There is a gasp-worthy reveal at the end of the episode and familial ties have been turned on its head. Has Maghra finally got what she always wanted? That remains to be seen.
The action scenes are spread carefully through the episode and that heightens the tension. One rattling scene is when Queen Kane is about to be abducted, her captors carefully snap their fingers in her direction, making her twist and turn in fright. This is a brilliantly executed scene and emanates the sense of worry and itching tension.
Relationships are a strange entity on this show, one being between Maghra and Baba Voss. What seemed like a matter of convenience before, does seem to carry a little more weight for Maghra now, though how much and at what cost, is still not certain.
Baba Voss dotes on his wife with an enigmatic past, no questions asked. Ironically, despite all his ferocity and anger during battle, Baba Voss is more subdued when it comes to the women making decisions around him, and somewhat fears to question them. This does add a layer of intrigue to the character. However, to be fair, it’s Paris, Maghra and Queen Kane who carry the episode forward. Momoa as Baba Voss remains stoic in this episode, to the extent, rather flat, barring the few scenes when he has to attack someone on the prowl.
This episode was an improvement on the previous one, which had only a few memorable moments on its plate of offerings. On the whole, the show does have a tendency to be rather clunky in parts, with a few trite dialogues here and there. Yet, the story has immense potential that it hasn’t tapped into yet, but going by this episode, it looks like the storyline is picking up fast and could speed up a little.
‘See’ is an unusual dystopian fantasy show, with its share of flaws and loopholes. Yet, you still want to keep up with it. For now, at least.
