Mr. Robot Review: eps2.0_unm4sk-pt1.tc; eps2.0_unm4sk-pt2.tc (Season 2 Episodes 1 and 2)

“eps2.0_unm4sk-pt1.tc” starts off a little slow, but “eps2.0_unm4sk-pt2.tc” ends with a bang.

Before we dive into these episodes of Mr. Robot, let me first apologize to all of you.

I have been so wrapped up in what has been happening in current events, that I completely missed USA breaking the world by ‘leaking’ “eps2.0_unm4sk-pt1.tc” during a Facebook live feed. I could have brought you the first part of this review a few days ago!

Hopefully you can forgive me.

Elliot’s monotonous routine at the beginning of part one really strikes me. What Elliot is doing looks so boring. I mean, who wants to have breakfast, lunch, and dinner with the same person every day?!

I’m judging him, until I realized my life isn’t much different from his. Most days, Monday through Friday, I go to work and come home. My own work day isn’t usually very different from one day to the next.

To get the viewer to look more closely at oneself, I think, is one of the main goals of Mr. Robot. Some of what happens on the show seems completely unrealistic, until you realize just how close it is to what’s happening in your life.

Elliot: The invisible code of chaos. Hiding behind the menacing face of order.

Mr. Robot is so beautifully written it kills me. This is the most accurate description of sports I ever heard that never occurred to me. Every sport has rules that are meant to keep things from getting out of hand, but it’s the liberties that can be taken within those rules that make a game so interesting to watch.

Krista tells Elliot it was hard for her to talk to him again after what he did. Yeah, no kidding! I would never have talked to him again after he so audaciously crossed the line.

But I do believe he did what he did to help her, to protect her. And here she is, bringing someone back into her life who has no respect for boundaries. Is Krista just incredibly weak and dumb or does she actually think she can help people?

Does she think she can make their lives better? Is this why people let people come back into their lives they know are bad for them?

One of the most genius things about Mr. Robot, and there are many, is that Elliott talks directly to the viewer. It’s incredible. It makes you feel like you’re part of the show, not just watching it. Or like you’re watching a documentary instead of a scripted television show.

If Mr. Robot was a documentary, it’d be the craziest documentary I ever saw. Did I just watch Elliot’s hallucination shoot him in the head, then watch him get up and write about it in a diary with blood dripping down his forehead?! Yeah, I did. Mr. Robot is absolutely insane.

I.N.S.A.N.E.

I have never seen anything like this show before, and that’s why it will always have my heart. I love that I have the honor of writing about it for all of you every week.

I also love the use of the word ‘intermission’ between episodes one and two. It makes me feel like I’m at the theater.  Mr. Robot is something to be experienced not just observed.

Moving on, Scott Knowles is the biggest wimp in the world. His volunteering to deliver the ransom doesn’t seem in line with his character. Also, since when can you fit 5.9 million dollars in two medium-sized duffle bags?!

Burning money is such a powerful image. It simultaneously evokes the ideas that money means nothing and that money means everything.

Evil Corp can afford to burn millions of dollars because it has millions more. The money means nothing to them. On the other hand, that money also could have fed the homeless, put clothing on people, saved a flailing charity, and the list goes on.

Switching to the imagery of masks in this episode, when Scott puts on the fsociety mask, for a moment, he stops being the oppressor and becomes a defiant member of the oppressed.

How does wearing the mask impact him? That’s my question.

Does it change his point of view? Horror covers his face as he watches the pile of money burn. Is he horrified because of what he did or because he enjoyed it?

Other Random Thoughts:

• Seinfeld really effs with me too. I mean, the show is literally about nothing. Why do people like it so much?!
• “I tell you, the human condition is a straight up tragedy, Cuz.” Truth.
• Loved seeing the clip of Vanderpump Rules on this episode! It is so cool that a show as complex as Mr. Robot gave a shout-out to a show as simple as Vanderpump Rules. I like to think Vanderpump Rules is Joanna Wellick’s guilty pleasure.
• He shot Gideon! Gideon was such a nice man! He always did the right thing. This may be callous, but at least Gideon can’t say anything else to the FBI. But has the damage already been done? Guess we’ll find out as the season continues!

“eps2.0_unm4sk-pt1.tc” and “eps2.0_unm4sk-pt1.tc” don’t completely knock my socks off, but they have some great moments.

I know one thing: it’s going to be an incredible season.

What did you think of these episodes of Mr. Robot? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Mr. Robot airs Wednesdays at 10/9c on USA.

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