Utopia (TV Series) Episode #2.6 (2014) User Reviews

Opening scene is iconic, classic

[A_Different_Drummer · 7/10 · 14 October 2014]

The opening sequence takes place in a bus station.

A man already known (to the viewer) to be "the" brainwashed agent who is going to unleash the virus begins a pleasant interaction with a female passenger also waiting for her bus.

She has young son.

The man continues his pleasant and harmless conversation with the two of them. He seems innocuous.

Then the mother explains that she is travelling by bus on a long holiday because she feels she has to do her bit for the planet.

This seems to trigger something in the man and, with a pleasant and friendly smile on his face, he asks (referring to the boy) "why did you have HIM then?" There follows a two minute set-piece (the mother caught off-guard by what the man is saying about the impact of having a child on the planet) that is as memorable as anything you are ever likely to see now or in the future.

It is right up there with the scene in FIVE EASY PIECES where Jack Nicholson tries to get a simple tomato sandwich.

In the beginning of the last episode of the second season, this scene, moreso than the actual ending of the episode, is the "payoff" for the whole series to date.

That single scene is brilliant.

And the use of color and lighting (just found out the series won an award for this) continues to be remarkable.

As an extra bonus, there is another scene where the viewer gets to see one of the most ingenious "locked room murders" ever.

As for the arc of this finale, much of it is spent (as might be expected) setting up the third season, so, to be fair, that takes away some of the punch.

But, with this show, it is not the destination. It is clearly the journey.

Not sure what to make of the finale of Season 2

[amoscow74 · 7/10 · 13 August 2014]

I've enjoyed Season 2 a great deal.

Which was a bit of a shock because when season 1 ended, I couldn't see how they would carry the story on.

I wanted more for sure but couldn't see how they'd fill another season.

Thankfully the team behind Utopia didn't disappoint and the first few episodes were stonking, in many ways eclipsing the original.

The season premiere in particular was a treat. The story behind the story was beautifully told with some of the best direction and acting of the whole 2 season run.

But then it started to run out of steam and by the time the credits rolled on episode 2.5 it was clear that this was the end.

It didn't matter how it ended. However it did, it was sure to be a bloody, violent climax of biblical proportions.

Except it wasn't. If anything it was a bit of a damp squib. Sure it had its fair share of exploding heads but in between the bloodletting there wasn't much going on.

OK. Nevermind. This is the end. It deserves to wind down a bit.

Only that's not what happened. In a final twist, that wasn't really a twist, Utopia will return for a third season.

It's possible that the writers and production team will once again surprise me and pull another series out of the bag.

I really hope so but my gut says not.

Utopia is in the hands of the money men now. I only hope they don't kill it.

The End ?

[Tweekums · 8/10 · 14 August 2014]

After Milner's instruction to release the Russian Flu virus the gang know they have a limited time to find out who is going to release it and they can't use any usual methods to find him as he will release it as soon as he thinks anybody is onto him. On the plus side Terrance, the man they are after, needs to retrieve the canisters and the trail of bodies he leaves in his wake make him easier to find. Stopping Terrence and saving humanity isn't their only worry; Becky is rapidly running out of the medication she needs and has made a drastic decision; and she wants Ian to be with her at the end.

As the second series comes to a close there will be two main questions on viewers' minds; will the gang stop the release of the Russian Flu and more importantly will there be another series… thankfully it looks like the answer will be yes to both those questions! For a while though it looked as if things could go either way and right up until the end it looked as if key characters might not make it to the end of the episode let alone into a possible third series.

As one would expect everything looked great with the usual vivid colours and there was a fair amount of bloody violence as numerous head-shots left blood all over the backdrops. The cast did a fine job and there were some good twists… mostly involving the set up for the third season. Overall this was a pretty good ending to the season; I look forward to the next and hope that there is enough story left to tell without it feeling too drawn out.

S2: Satisfyingly dark and engaging, with great visual design. Tries too hard to be edgy at times.

[bob the moo · 23 October 2016]

The first season of this show took me by surprise; I had known absolutely nothing about it and was drawn in very quickly. Despite this I didn't jump into the second (and final) season until very recently. Perhaps it was a worry that it would not be as good now I knew the style, or that there would be no more after this. The second season opens by jumping back to the start of the Network and the development of the virus. In some ways it is a bold move because it throws us away from the cliffhanger of the previous season, while building more around characters who had been higher level rather than people. It also gives good space to the justification of the idea, as well as showing the level of ruthlessness even in those early stages.

The remainder of the season gets the old gang back together again, although with changed motives and allegiances. It continues the journey towards release of the virus, and does so with the same style, cruelty, violence, and impact. At times some of the scenes are trying a bit too hard to shock, and are only there to do so, but otherwise it wears its dark tone very well. The visual design is striking – with its heavy use of primary colors in large blocks providing a clash with the darkness of the plot and action. It builds its conspiracy well, and it sells its ideas forcefully so that you don't really question it too much. The writing is mostly very good, and there are some very memorable scenes which produce a sense of dread in the ordinary, or that lead to sudden callousness.

I would have liked a third season to bring it to a close, but then on the other hand it would have risked being a rerun of this thread but with a different Mr. Rabbit. Instead I like to think that the show is driven by the core idea of a 'solution', and that the idea doesn't get wiped out even if other things do. Two very strong seasons here – perhaps it is better to have it perfectly contained in just these 2 seasons.

This was a mess

[yeejczt · 3/10 · 9 August 2021]

I thoroughly enjoyed the series up until this train wreck of an ending episode. Just a mishmash trying to close story lines while creating new ones for cliff-hangers and it just leaves you thinking "WTF?". Characters doing things, well, out of character and a whole lot of "Yeah but..." going on through the whole thing.