Vital Signs
3 Weeks To Go
We begin episode 8 of Away in the past as Lu’s Mother gives birth to a girl. Only, her husband is not happy and decides to call the child Lu. Our Lu, as it turns out, whose currently on the spaceship. The crew have 3 weeks until they land on Mars and apparently another shuttle called Pegasus will arrive before them and have some crucial water supplies for them. Back down on Earth, Lex and Matt discuss Isaac and Matt’s accident. Matt’s concerned and doesn’t want her to end up like him. However, the bus arrives and cuts them off mid-chat.
7 Minutes Of Terror
Back in Mission Control the group present a public feed and brandish this launch as “7 minutes of terror.” Back down on Earth that much is true as Freddie runs her mouth and discusses all the possible problems that could arise. Thankfully, Matt keeps her quiet as they watch anxiously to make sure the rocket lands. Unfortunately Mission Control lose contact with Pegasus, leading them all to scramble and work out exactly what to do next. Darlene meanwhile, decides to hold a secret meeting. Back on the spaceship the true extent of the Pegasus problem is felt. If this shuttle has truly blown up then a replacement will take months to reach then. Best case scenario? They have 10 weeks worth of water. Instead Mission Control decide to use Atlas as a slingshot around Mars and propel into the second Pegasus and dock in space. Without knowing for sure whether Pegasus has landed or not, they decide to abandon stepping foot on Mars in favour of keeping the astronauts alive. Back on the ship tensions are high as the crew continue to bicker over Emma’s decision to abandon the mission. She berates Lu, telling her it was only once she mentioned wanting to go home. (Actually twice, she also mentioned it on the Moon too but let’s nip that in the bud).
Mutiny
Lu and Misha discuss Emma’s plan. Out of all the people rallying to Emma’s side, Misha sticks up for her and mentions how Matt may not be the person making this decision about the mission. Just before they prepare to leave, Misha suddenly bursts in to see the rest of the crew. Lu has come up with a plan. They’ll use the rover on Mars to hear the shock-waves and work out whether Pegasus actually has landed or not. In order to do so, they’ll need a commander code. That code is given to the captain (Emma) and the second in command (Ram). With Emma in her cabin, they contemplate whether to undermine her authority. Just as they’re about to use InSight (the old probe) Emma suddenly shows up and spots them about to conduct their mission. Thankfully Lu manages to talk Emma around to seeing her way of thinking and turning the seismometer on. As they do, they hear the thud of something hitting the atmosphere. This faint glimmer of hope is enough for the crew to change their mind and land on Mars after all. As they prepare to press forward with their plan, Away leaves things wide open.
The Episode Review
At the very start of the first episode, it was confirmed that the mission to Mars may bring casualties. Not everyone will make it. All these astronauts were all well aware of the risks when they first went into space. Now, because of personal issues and familial drama back home, Emma wants to abandon all this because they don’t know if the probe actually landed or not. Thankfully, Lu stepped up and managed to talk some sense into her. This episode really solidifies the fact that Lu should have been the one in charge of the mission. She’s much more level-headed than Emma and really grabs the bull by the horns here. With 2 episodes to go, all eyes now turn to see what will happen next.
