The Lazarus Project Season 1 Episode 6 Review: Episode Six

Between the lying, the murder, and the treason, George is keeping busy on another frustrating entry of The Lazarus Project Season 1 Episode 6, “Episode Six.”

We pick up where we leave on “Episode Five,” with George preparing to transport Big Boy to the detonation location. While George thinks he’s got things in control, he’s far from it as it becomes clear quickly that he’s not dealing with the people they claim to be. From there, events only get wilder and wilder as George manages to get through an ambush with a single stray bullet to the shoulder and activate the detonator.

Meanwhile, Archie still trying to find the underlying cause of things from The Lazarus Project headquarters without much success. There are moments where it’s as if she’s viewing this from a skeptical perspective, but then others where it seems like she buys into George’s story.

Between her questioning on the phone and her work with Wes on the debrief, it’s hard to believe that the women aren’t viewing this information with some suspicion considering how long they’ve been working at the Project and Wes runs the operation. Then again, I wonder if they know and have already worked out some way to get George to admit what he’s done.

That hypothesis flies out the door when Wes brings George along while she briefs the Russian ambassador, Belov, on the situation and gauges how close the world is to a full-on nuclear war.

The positioning of these events begins to feel like a giant plot contrivance that needs to be put in place to get to the final act, which also adds to my frustration with this show and its handling of the premise.

The final act is no less frustrating but much more horrific as we see George switch sides, setting up the final play so that Wes has no choice but to reset the clock. But as he finally gets Sarah back, he realizes what’s left in play: Shiv knows what George did and who he’s working with.

I don’t understand it, but it’s fascinating how the show could simultaneously feel so slow and fast-paced. The body count is piling up, and it’s beginning to feel like the story is languishing. With only two episodes left, it’s still unclear what the writers are trying to set up.

While intriguing, it feels like no actual characters to root for aside from Shiv. We have entered the morally gray, line-crossing kind of story. With only two episodes left, I am sitting here wondering what George has to gain if Sarah’s back but at the cost of knowing that you’ve killed many people, committed treason, betrayed everyone’s trust, and put yourself in the path of a potential life sentence.

Random Thoughts

• The fact that George sees those people, those children, in the car and still decides to push the button feels very much like a point of no return for George. Paired with his looking back at his handy work through a private plane’s passenger seat window feels inexplicably horrifying. It’s not a horror that feels fictional but a man-made kind that feels feasible. I’m still unsure whether I am reading more into these scenes than the writer intended.
• The more we see the aftermath, the more I’m confused about Rebrov’s endgame with providing George the detonator. Is it that he just wants to see the Lazarus project burn, or does he have something else in mind? Is he dead set on getting revenge and framing Shiv for everything because of what he did all those years ago?

What did you think of this episode of The Lazarus Project? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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The Lazarus Project airs Sundays at 9/8c on TNT.

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