HUMANS - S1E2 - Episode 1.2
Previously on HUMANS 1.1
Oops, Did You Do It Again?
Laura awakens and immediately checks on Sophie, who’s asleep in bed. She notices wet pajamas in Sophie’s hamper, and when the little one wakes up, Laura asks if she had an accident. Sophie is like, “Why you gotta bring up old shit?” No, she tells her mom, she did not wet herself in her sleep. Laura notes Sophie is wearing different pajamas than the ones she went to sleep in. Sophie insists she didn’t change her clothes. Before leaving the room, Laura notices it rained during the night.
Fred is a BFD
Poor Fred is butt-ass naked on the exam table, hooked up to machines. Hobbs calls for someone to cover up Fred’s twig and berries. The technician monitoring Fred asks why he’s so important. To Hobbs, Fred is the Mona Lisa, the atom bomb, sliced bread back when sliced bread wasn’t yet a thing. In other words, Fred’s a big fucking deal. The technician shows Hobbs images from some of Fred’s memories. He has her freeze the screen on Anita’s face as she swims under water.
Inadequate Laura is Inadequate
Back at the Hawkin’s, inadequate Laura is feeling super inadequate as Anita cleans the kitchen, and Joe and Toby horse around while getting ready for the day. The fucking swan Anita carved out of an apple - inside Sophie’s lunch bag - isn’t helping matters. Also not helping: Joe being giddy over the dinner Anita plans to make. After the boys have gone, Laura notices Anita’s shoes are drying by the window. Her suspicious thoughts are interrupted so she can co-sign Mattie’s claims she’s a bad mom. Poor Mattie’s face when she walks away is totally, “Gee. I just asked what you were staring at.”
Simon Says
Peter Drummond carries his wife to the bathroom. When he attempts to pick her up after she’s done, he slips and bumps his head. She laughs and then calls for her Synth, Simon. Peter says goodbye to his wife as she’s getting a deep tissue massage from Simon. Simon informs Pete he’s also prepared his lunch to take to work. Pete leaves without the lunch, and takes ribbing from his partner, Voss, when Simon runs after him with the forgotten sandwiches.
I’ve Got My Eye On You
For Laura, working from home looks a lot like staring at the hidden photo album while sitting at her vanity. Anita startles her and asks if it’s okay to put the laundry away. Laura doesn’t like that Anita is so stealthy. She starts to ask about Sophie’s pajamas, but thinks better of it and asks about Anita’s wet shoes instead. Anita says she cleaned them after they became soiled when she went outside earlier that morning.
“I’m watching you,” Laura warns.
“I’m watching you, too, Laura,” Anita says, followed by an uncomfortably long silence. So long I started to freak out. “You’re standing right in front of me,” Anita eventually adds.
Silas the Headcracker
Max and Leo awaken inside the car in the junkyard. Leo mumbles that they need to get their family back together. As they walk through the alleys of an estate, Max wonders aloud if maybe they weren’t meant to be together as a family. Max was made for a reason and he cannot change who he is. Leo counters that everything that has ever happened to him prior to this moment made him who he is, but when he looks at Max, he doesn’t see something made. He sees his brother. Max blushes and they continue on. When they reach the door of their destination, Leo warns Max that it’s important to hide what he is when they’re inside.
Leo meets Silas - the man whose name he got last episode - and shows him Anita’s picture, asking if he’s seen her. Unfortunately for Leo, the name he gave to vouch for himself is the name of a guy who owes Silas money. He thinks Max will do as payment. Silas head-butts Leo, but Leo eventually grabs Silas and threatens to stab him in the neck if he doesn’t tell him where Anita is. Silas admits to getting her from a junker. They tied her up to have sex with her, but she fought and screamed. Silas assumed it meant she was defective so he wiped all of her programming clean. Silas gets out of Leo’s hold and he and his henchman beat the shit out of Leo. Max can’t take it any longer and beats on Silas and his guy.
“What are you?” Silas asks Max.
“Run!”
Max takes Leo’s advice and runs. Leo does the same and has to jump down into the alley where Max is waiting. Max’s attempt to catch Leo breaks Leo’s fall, and the two hobble off as Silas watches from above. They return to the junkyard, but Hobbs and his men are already there searching the place. Leo insists Max gets them out of there, leaving their stuff (which Hobbs finds) in the car they slept in.
She’s Baaaack!
Millican receives another surprise visit from the health department. This time Odi hides in the shed. Millican thinks telling the inspector that Odi was recycled will get him off the hook, but no. Vera is now his Synth/caregiver. She starts to clean his place at once and it seems her programming to take care of him and his health overrides his instructions to the contrary. Millican fakes an attack to keep Vera from spotting Odi at the window.
After Vera serves him a wack-ass lunch, Millican calls to talk to someone about returning his new Synth. He realizes after a few minutes he’s speaking to a Synth and hangs up. Vera lurks.
Life Hack
Mattie and a boy attempt to hack a Synth janitor at her high school, but its antivirus protection ain’t no joke. It notifies the school board as Mattie and friend run for it. Laura is called into the school. There’s no proof Mattie did it, but the principal thinks she’s the only student capable of even attempting the hack. Laura sticks up for her daughter and says the school seems to be all threats, no proof. Later, Mattie sits with the boy who helped her grab the janitor. They bond over having shitty parents and she pulls him in for a kiss.
At the mall with Mattie, Laura admits she suspects Mattie was the one who tried to hack the school’s Synth - Mattie confesses she did so just to see if she could - and implores her not to do anything to Anita. Then she asks what Mattie thinks of Anita, which seems to be the real reason for her mother/daughter mall trip. Mattie thinks Laura’s a bit of a mess for never wanting a Synth, yet not being upset with Joe for buying Anita without permission.
Pete and Voss are lamenting how many times they’re called out to deal with stolen Synth cases. Pete reasons the Synths stole people’s job, so they stole the Synths. They get a call about Silas and rush over to his building. Silas won’t admit the Synths in his possession are stolen, but admits to seeing pretty freaky Synths recently. When Silas makes a smart remark, Peter slams him against the police car. Voss pulls Simon away and tells him if he wants off the team, this isn’t the way to do it. Pete seems to think everything that’s wrong with the world is because of Synths. Voss points out anything bad that’s ever happened to her has been at the hands of real people. Plus, Pete shit-talking Synths is rich considering one is making his lunch every day. Pete insists it’s not like that. His insurance provided Simon after his wife’s accident. Pete is very much anti-Synth.
Vera the Creep
Vera makes Millican take his meds. He calls her a jailer, not a caregiver and says her creator would be appalled to see what her type of Synth has become. He wants to change her name to “Tugboat,” but she states as her primary owner, only his doctor can do that. She also threatens to snitch on him if he doesn’t do as he’s told. Millican notes he helped design her original model and there are just traces of that present in Vera. When Odi starts flicking the lights in the shed off and on, Millican pretends to be ready for bed to get rid of Vera.
While Vera charges, Millican sneaks out to the shed. He’s speaking with Odi when Vera busts him. After instructing Odi to go into hibernation mode, he is manhandled by Vera to return to the house. He notes it’s very much against her programming to touch him without permission.
Toby the Creep
Toby’s checking out Anita as she cleans. He quickly snatches up his dirty underwear before she can.
When Laura spots Anita standing still with something clasped in her hands, she demands to see what it is. It’s a spider, and Laura freaks out. She accuses Anita of doing it on purpose, knowing Laura hates spiders. Joe thinks Laura is being ridiculous (she kinda is), and even more so when Laura spies Anita watching her, grinning. To Joe, Laura looks extremely paranoid and irrational.
Before bed, Laura asks Joe if he think parents love their kids because they choose or because they’re wired that way. He think it’s a choice since not all parents love their kids. He then tells her she’s projecting her issues on Anita and says she doesn’t “creep him out” the way she does Laura. Anita interrupts their convo to give Laura her cell phone, which she’d left downstairs. Laura rudely slams the door in Anita’s face.
While Anita charges, Toby tries to hold her hand. She opens her eyes and asks if he needs anything. He says no, and tells her to close her eyes and pretend he’s not there. When he goes in to touch her boobs, she warns she has to tell Joe about any inappropriate contact. Toby nearly shits himself. Because he didn’t actually touch her, she agrees not to tell. He takes his pervy ass back to bed.
Niska’s Escape
At the brothel, Niska is disinfected and returns to her room where she learns she’ll have a new John in six minutes. She lets out a silent scream before going back to her passive, robotic face.
Niska’s client wants her to pretend to be frightened and young. Niska refuses and snaps his neck. She then marches to the front desk where the madame tries to stop her from leaving at knifepoint. Niska easily takes the knife and puts it to the woman’s throat. She points out that everything human men want to do to her, they want to do to human women. Using the knife, Niska removes the tracker from the back of her neck and walks out.
Unable to gather any other memories from Fred, Hobbs thinks it’s time they speak with him.
Max takes an unconscious Leo to a public bathroom. While locked inside, he uses the wiring from a light fixture to “charge” Leo, who it turns out is a Synth.
Laura Has Had Enough
After Mattie witnesses Anita interacting with another Synth, she tells her mother she was right about something being off with her. Synths share information wirelessly when they meet and Anita didn’t do that with the Synth outside. Laura asks Anita why, but she claims to not understand the question. Laura finally asks if Anita took Sophie out the other night and Anita says no. Laura doesn’t believe her when she says she’s not lying. She could be broken and lying. When Anita says she will always protect Sophie, Laura rushes to call customer support.
Meanwhile, Anita heads upstairs to comfort a frightened Sophie, and hugs her when the child begs her to do so. Of course, that’s how Laura finds them and she screams at Anita to get into the car. Sophie has a fit, but Anita sides with Laura saying she must be broken if Laura says so.
When Laura tells Anita she’s taking her back, Anita smiles.
Overall Thoughts:
- How the hell did Hobbs know Max and Leo were at the junkyard?
- What are those underwater car memories of Anita’s and do they have anything to do with Fred’s memory of swimming with her?
- Sweet God, I HATE Laura. Hate her.
- I’m guessing Leo and Max were made by the same person, the man who developed Synth technology. This is why he sees him as a brother. Leo, with his red blood, non-bright green eyes, and mannerisms seems to be a more advanced model.
