The Peripheral Season 1 Episode 5 Review: What About Bob?
For an episode primarily set in the present, The Peripheral Season 1 Episode 5, “What About Bob?,” is decently entertaining. There are some moments of real suspense, and you don’t find yourself wishing that Flynne was in the future instead of Clanton. It’s an accomplishment.
During prior episodes, the future storylines have been more captivating with the momentum dying down when we return to the present. It’s a relief to see that the show is able to spend time in the present and not have it feel like a waste of time.
The Peripheral Season 1 Episode 5 opens with a flashback of Grace and Aelita reconnecting, allowing us to see just how much Grace shared about her top-secret work at the Research Institute (RI).
The fact that the RI is responsible for the haptics in Burton and his military buddies is curious and could potentially explain why Aelita sought Burton out initially for her mission.
This is further proof there’s a bigger connection between Flynne and Burton and the future than we’re currently being led to believe. The Peripheral is doing a good job at slowly dropping hints about Flynne and Burton’s ties to the future.
Each hint keeps us engaged, and it hasn’t gotten to the point yet where we are tired of waiting and just need to know already. I wish that could be said about all mysteries this show has been teasing, but sadly that’s not the case. We’ll dive into that more in a bit.
Another thing that this opening makes clear is that Aelita isn’t a horrible person.
We have mainly seen the darker sides of her, and through her conversation with Grace and her reactions to what the RI is doing, we learn that she has a moral compass that’s working a hell of a lot better than Grace’s.
We’re able to relate to Aelita a bit more, and we want her to succeed in whatever scheme she’s got up her sleeve that hopefully will spell the end of the RI’s meddling with stubs.
Her methods of achieving her goal are definitely intense and skew a bit villainous, as evidenced by that absolutely awful eye surgery scene, but at least we know she’s trying to stop something worse from happening (or continuing to happen).
The mystery of what was stolen the night Flynne and Aelita broke into the Research Institute needs to be answered. This mystery hanging over our heads is no longer intriguing. It’s annoying.
Learning what was taken would clue us in on so many things, including shedding more light on Aelita and her motivations. The series is only harming itself by hanging on to this secret. We can’t progress any further in this storyline until we either find Aelita and/or learn what was taken that night.
Cherise keeping it close to her chest makes sense because she doesn’t want everyone to know what the RI was working on, and how badly they’ve been compromised since this theft. It’s understandable that she wouldn’t give specifics to Lev during The Peripheral Season 1 Episode 4, “Jackpot.”
However, a one-on-one conversation between her and Flynne in the RI with no one else around them is the perfect place to disclose it.
Cherise comments that Flynne might be lying, and a perfect way for her to deduce whether or not Flynne is would’ve been to reveal what was taken and see how Flynne reacts. Cherise could’ve had her answers right then and there, but instead, she decides to be cryptic.
All that aside, the showdown between Flynne and Cherise did need to happen, so it is a relief that Flynne strolls into the RI during The Peripheral Season 1 Episode 5. It would’ve been nice if, in addition to the fight scene, we got some answers.
Stray Thoughts
- Well, I love Billy Ann a whole lot more now.
- More and more people are finding out about what Burton and Flynne are involved in, and it’s good that the two of them are aware and concerned about that.
- The fact that I felt bad for Bob when he is speaking to his daughter is surprising and shows how well-written his arc is.
- Is Wilf surprised that Flynne knows about the side effects of linking up or was he unaware of it?
What did you think of this episode of The Peripheral? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
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New episodes of The Peripheral premiere Fridays on Prime Video.
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Allison Nichols
Allison is in a love affair with television that doesn't seem to be letting up anytime soon. Slightly damaged fictional characters are her weakness. She loves to spend her free time curled up with a cat and a show to binge-watch. Allison is a Tomatometer-approved critic (Rotten Tomatoes).