A Message from Ground Control
Episode 12 of Debris begins back at Langley as big changes grip the facility. Pieces of debris stat moving, boxes scrape across the ground and the lights all go out as a dead worker bleeds on the floor. George Jones meanwhile, makes it to the antenna. Using bolt cutters, he heads inside the restricted area and begins looking around. As we soon find out, these antennas were originally used to transmit news to the Allied Forces during World War II. Now it’s unused but could prove to be integral in finding the debris pieces they need. Finola and Bryan show up to help , with the former worried about her father driving across town on his own. Well, he’s far more interested in this signal and intends to use her laptop and satellites to hone in on this piece of debris he’s after. The Laghari files are integral to that. However, Finola is worried There’s still no word over exactly why Maddox wants George dead but he believes it comes down to control. George is a wildcard and unable to be controlled, ergo he think the Langley boss will have him killed. Finola and Bryan though are called away before they can continue though, heading back to Langley to investigate this debris incident. Maddox is there too and he deduces that the pieces could have been controlled remotely. However, that theory is thrown out when Bryan, Finola and the others head inside and see what’s happening with their own eyes. In the darkness of the warehouse, they find a worker called Zimmer alongside several others who are all being controlled in some way. The debris boxes continue to move, seemingly being thrown through a pocket in time/space and spat out the other side. The staff are taken to the medical bay but for some reason they all go into shock. Entranced, they get back up again and silently march back inside the warehouse again. This time Bryan follows, intent on trying to work out exactly what they’re doing. When Lester, one of the workers, touches one of the debris suitcases lined up infront of this energy pocket, he goes flying back across the ground. He also becomes entranced and stands in a line just like the other workers. With the pockets starting to get more erratic, and with the entranced workers actually dying, Finola speaks to George with a new idea. They intend to try and reverse the polarity and essentially set up a makeshift forcefield to prevent the debris pieces moving. It seems to work too, although something stirs in the basement. Finola experiences a large energy shift down there and heads off with Bryan to investigate. The group head downstairs and notice some sort of explosion. A large piece of debris is wedged in the ceiling and on the wall is a schematic showing weaponized debris pieces. In effect, Langley wants to try and use the debris as a weapon. It’s perhaps unsurprising but it looks like they could be trying to create a bomb. Even worse, George Jones’ work is being used as the catalyst in all this. Meanwhile, Anson takes advantage of the carnage to be let out his cell. He claims he’s ill and wants to see the doctor. In doing so, he seizes his opportunity and manages to break free of his cuffs with the doctor’s help. Using a defibrillator he manages to teleport just like before. With Anson on the loose, Bryan experiences another vision and believes they should let the debris do its work. Finola is confused, believing her partner is resting too much on blind faith. Well, that faith sees him find the missing piece to complete the debris wedged in the ceiling. Just like that, it dissolves and conjures forth a strange white ball of energy. It floats up and stops in front of Finola’s face. Eventually this piece flies up into the air and disappears. Meanwhile, George rings and confirms he’s got a reading on the piece they’re after. It’s in Virginia. However, Anson also catches wind of this too, meeting his contact and racing there as the episode comes to a close.
The Episode Review
Debris bows out its penultimate episode with a tantalizing glimpse at what’s to come in the future. The second half of this show has definitely been stronger than the first, managing to capture that haunting slice of sci-fi and mystery perfectly across these later episodes. Network TV gets a lot of stick (and rightfully so) for its mediocre and outright terrible writing at times but Debris is a wonderful exception to the rule. There are, of course, other shows that buck this trend so I’m not tarnishing everything with the same brush. However, there’s no denying that Debris’ writing is really solid. That’s perhaps unsurprising given the creator was heavily involved in Fringe and Almost Human. This episode is another strong reminder of how good these shows can be in the hands of the right people. Everything is geared up for a dramatic finale to come next week and the ending certainly hints that we’ve got more drama on the way. Whether this one will end on a cliffhanger or not though remains to be seen.
