TL;DR – All the pieces move into place, and we see where the imminent peril is arriving from.  

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service that viewed this episode.

Foundation Review –

In the early part of the season, Foundation very much held its cards close to its chest. Its use of multiple timelines and jumping characters was used to obscure the narrative, to mixed results. Well, this week, we get the opposite because as like opening the curtains on the house, we now see all.

So to set the scene, three coming disasters loom large. In space, the hijacked crew of the Beggar see the prize that Phara Keaen (Kubbra Sait) has sort. The fabled Invictus, who is not just a jump ship, but a world killer. On Maiden, Brother Day (Lee Pace) discovers that he might not be ready to play the game of politics with Zephyr Halima (T’nia Miller). Finally, On Trantor, the love between Brother Dawn (Cassian Bilton) and Azura (Amy Tyger) but it is a dangerous game. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

For a show that has held their cards so close to their chest for so long, it is both shocking and refreshing to see them lay it all out on the table for you. So much so that I think you will now be able to see the trajectory of the rest of the season, even if you have not read the books. For example, Brother Dawn is heading for conflict and betrayal. Of course, where that conflict is coming from could be Azura or Brother Dusk (Terrence Mann) lurking in the background.

On Maiden, we get to see what happens when the most powerful individual in the galaxy comes face to face with something he can’t control. I loved Lee Pace’s performance as you could see Brother Day fails in every gambit as Halima outmanoeuvres him because Halima is not someone looking to politics. She is a true believer. She is playing a different game with different rules, and Brother Day has yet to catch up. It would be interesting to see if this Spiral gambit will actually work, or even if he was manipulated into that as well.

The more the season goes on, the more I like Salvor Hardin (Leah Harvey). When everyone else around her has bluster, she has common sense. I like how she is slowly dividing Grand Huntress Phara Keaen and her top lieutenant Rowan (Pravessh Rana) without them realising what is happening. Also, props to the show for introducing me to Kubbra Sait and Pravessh Rana, two phenomenal actors. If there was one weak section in this episode, it was the interplay between Hari (Jared Harris) and Gaal (Lou Llobell). It feels like this section of the show is spinning its wheels, and I would like it to go somewhere soon.

In the end, do we recommend Foundation: Mysteries and Martyrs? Yes, yes, we would. At this point, it is still not living up to that first high in The Emperor’s Peace, but it is slowly building itself into something exciting.      

By Brian MacNamara: You can follow Brian on Twitter Here, when he’s not chatting about Movies and TV, he’ll be talking about International Relations, or the Solar System.

Have you seen Foundation yet ?, let us know what you thought in the comments below, feel free to share this review on any of the social medias and you can follow us Here. Check out all our past reviews and articles Here, and have a happy day.    

Credits – All images were created by the cast, crew, and production companies of Foundation
Directed by – Jennifer Phang
Written by – Caitlin Saunders
Created by – David S. Goyer & Josh Friedman
Based on – Foundation by Isaac Asimov
Production/Distribution Companies – Skydance TV & Apple+
Starring – Jared Harris, Lee Pace, Lou Llobell, Leah Harvey, Laura Birn, Terrence Mann & Cassian Bilton with Elliot Cowan, Daniel MacPherson, Sasha Behar, Kubba Sait, Amy Tyger, Pravessh Rana, Alfred Enoch, Nikol Kollars, Christian Contrearas, Vanessa Ifediora, Martin McDougall, T’nia Miller & Julia Farino