12 Monkeys - Meltdown

  Definition of Meltdown

1. 1 :  the accidental melting of the core of a nuclear reactor
2. 2 :  a rapid or disastrous decline or collapse
3. 3 :  a breakdown of self-control (as from fatigue or over-stimulation)

So which definition applies to our episode dear readers?

There were many different examples of a "Meltdown" in this episode.  Some more ominous than others.  In fact, there was quite a few to choose from.

 
Such as,

• The Splinter Machine with it's Core being, "Over-stimulated."
• Cassie going through own personal China Syndrome.
• Sam melting away in front of Ramse's eyes.
• Ramse hurt to the core and hitting the road.
• David Eckland vaporized.
• Dr. Jones' critical "Solution."
• Sam reappearing in a forest with a certain gloved one.  (The audience melts down.)

That's quite a bit to choose from.

I have to say if I had a choice of meltdowns, I would choose either the one that happened to Cassie or the one that seems to be happening to Dr. Jones.  Both seem pretty ominous and the implications of both meltdowns might weigh heavily as the season progresses.



Cassie 

Cassie went beyond full "Nell" in this episode and straight on to "Regan" from the Exorcist.  

*** Just a quick thought before we get into this.  Last week I asked why Cassie was so important to The Witness.  It seems there is a pretty simple "solution."  Of our three main travelers, Cassie has been dosed the least with Dr. Jones' formula.  Ramse has certainly had more and was in the company of Olivia and her ilk for a long time.  Cole has been heavily dosed too.  You can even add that he had own personal paradox treatment. ***

Of the three, Cassie has been dosed the least and therefore the most susceptible.   A logical choice for The Witness.

Poor Cassie became an easy target.  Her "Immersion" put her under the thrall of The Witness and as Dr. Jones explained it, she was victimized by, "Mental time travel" that allowed a thread to connect The Witness from wherever he is, right to Cassie.

Oh, as another aside, I thought I was pretty close to explaining how the Witness gets around in my last blog post.  But there is also this picture.

If the Witness can exercise a mental thread through time then why appear hidden in the same room with Cassie in 2016?  (Room 607.)  Was 2044 too far to extend a thread?  I guess not if the thread came out of "nowhere".   Perhaps The Witness has an Earthbound time base close to or in 2016.  Would that make it easier to influence Cassie?

Cassie was pretty hard on herself by the end of the episode.  At first she thought she was seeing  things as The Witness seemed to flicker in and out of the Splinter Center.  Then she was convinced he was actually there and confessed as much to Cole as things began to spin out of control.  

Then this happened.

Initiate meltdown sequence!

Cassie becomes so far gone that she grabs Sam and leads him off to the Red Forest.

Not literally or course.  Cassie becomes the lone resident of the single family home located on prime Red Forest real estate.  I really like how they  illustrated this.  With the Witnesses thrall complete, Cassie is trapped in the house located neatly in her own mind.

We've seen The Witness communicate with Olivia and The Pallid Man using "The House"  ("Cabin in the Woods"?  Nope, taken.) Now we see Cassie confined to the house and she can't mentally break free of it while the Witness holds Sam hostage.  The Witness must have deliberately staged this confrontation knowing Cole and Ramse would break through and defeat his plan.  This would include Sam being zapped into a timeless era via the feedback from the Splinter Machine.

If true, then, well played Mr. The Witness.

Cassie's meltdown becomes complete when she emotionally crashes after being freed from the Witnesses thrall.  An ingenious plan by Cole being shot to snap Cassie out of it.  Unless, of course, The Witness saw that one coming too.

Cassie ticks off her list of sins,  Sam's disappearance.  The machine sabotage.  Cole being shot and last but not least, dear sweet romantic gesture dude, the aptly named David being vaporized.  (Please people, no Cassie backlash for this.)

With Mr. "Flowers and Rainbows" sacrificing himself this leads me to my next Meltdown candidate.


Katarina Jones 

 
We've heard a lot of great music from 12 Monkeys of late.  I can imagine Dr. Jones sitting alone in the next episode, whiskey in hand and taking a drag on her cigarette while the strains of this song play mournfully in the background.

 

Ouch, not anymore. 

Sadly, I was spoiled to some of the details of the next episode.  Thanks a lot Facebook.  If Jones' plan is as true as the post declares, her meltdown is drastic indeed.  How do you comeback from that kind of final solution?  (Actually I have an idea and it involves two of the time tremors we've seen of late.  But no further spoilers from me!)

Poor Katarina, I don't think her "Marshal Plan" included one of her earliest subjects returning from Splinter Hell.  Gruesome.

And speaking of which.

A grand romantic gesture.  You gotta love it.  This really shook Katarina to the core.  Will her personal meltdown reverberate through time?  We'll find out next week.  

Barring more spoilers that is.

Ramse

A dejected Ramse hits the road.  No Red Sea before him just a Red Forest behind.

You know what is most damaging about this scenario?  Who is going to pull Cole's spontaneous ass out of the fire now?  Ramse has done it several times of late and we've grown accustomed to Ramses' frustrated growl as Cole once again does something rash.

Starsky and Hutch breaking up is not a good thing.

Where is he going?  Good question.  To live the life of the lone wolf?  Here's a prediction, things will become so dire without his wingman that Jennifer will have to seek Ramse out in order to save Cole.  Maybe she'll put Terry on the trail.  Although that might take a while.  He's the tortoise, remember?

What? You're saying in his travels, Ramse is going to find the old Titan plant?  Okay, I like that too.

Audience Meltdown

Sam falls victim to some Splinter Machine feedback and as the "Year Counter Card" tells us he is nowhere in time.   To make matters worse, an unseen figure with a gloved hand reaches out to him and Sam accepts this gesture.

Sam is The Witness! 

How many times did you see that on the internet the next day? (Yes, I'm talking to you Facebook.)

It seems valid.  Sam orchestrates his deliverance out of time to be raised by himself to be himself i.e., The Witness.

Yep, totally valid.

It's hard to believe a son like Sam would orchestrate an apocalypse.  Didn't his parents teach him anything about love? Of course they did.  Maybe it will be a Red Tea immersion for Sam.  Total brainwashing.  It's just hard to believe a son would want to destroy humanity.  For what?  To be with Dad again?

Then again, Sam did question his father about the cost to humanity in saving Sam and his father basically told him he would do anything for him.

Maybe that's Sam's plan too.  Just you and me in the bubble universe Dad! Together forever!

I hope not. 

Sure it would be a twist for Sam to be The Witness.  But he isn't a core character.  So we're not really emotionally invested in him.  Most of our tears go out to the victimized Ramse instead.  I think I'd rather The Witness turn out to be a core character or somebody we've never heard of.  Maybe even "The Remains."   

That's just me.

Odds and ends

"We are the Titans the mighty, mighty Titans!"

Well, there is that symbol again and the word "Titan" we've heard so much about.  

When was the last time we saw that symbol?

Was it here?

I nearly had my own personal meltdown as Olivia began to disrobe.  She is a striking woman both coming and going.

 So, now we know "Titan" and the symbol are related.

Cassie got this stark panorama as she looked out of her bleak house prison.  It was followed by the Titan closeup and the mysterious glyph.

I've speculated  before this panorama looks like a refinery pumping out toxic gases in order to make a noxious world unsafe for humanity.  (Old humanity that is.  I think The Witness is going to repopulate the world with his own beings.)  But why make the world toxic for humans when killing the Primary's changes time and essentially does the same thing?  Will the new humanity survive on CO2?

Damn you Witness.

Lots of questions, many meltdowns and a broken hearted Dr. Jones to deal with.  If she needs another David to console her, I volunteer.  

I like whiskey.