Orphan Black: Echoes Season 1 Episode 10 Review: We Will Come Again

It may be the end of the season but it’s far from the end of the story on Orphan Black: Echoes Season 1 Episode 10, “We Will Come Again.” The mystery of Darros’ evil scheme is unraveled but there are still many loose ends.

The finale is packed full of storylines to sort through and some pay off better than others.

Marcus’s girlfriend trying to blackmail Kira to create a clone of her dad? Yeah, I’m not sure the show really needed to add that at the last hour.

She and Eleanor are busy trying to figure out why Darros is copying people. This is not the time to think about what’s going to happen to Kira if her illegal attempts at cloning are exposed! This is the time to think about Darros’ illegal attempts at cloning!

The reveal that he’s cloned a bunch of the world’s greatest minds to create the most psychotic gifted and talented program (humbly called “The Genius Project”) is actually a minor shock since he previously only seemed interested in saving himself. Kira’s suggestion, thanks to a hint from frenemy Xander, that he might be doing all this to bring his sister back who died at a young age levels the playing field.

Whether they’re as cold as Darros or as well-meaning as Kira, Orphan Black: Echoes proves that grief pushes everyone to their brink. As Darros hauntingly repeats in the episode, “Some people are only at their best when everything is at its worst,” but he couldn’t be more wrong.

Just look at Jack, who is a bit of an ass to Lucy even after Jules gives herself up in exchange to get Charlie back and Lucy has to say goodbye to them. I will not miss that man, but Lucy having to give them up gives her a slice of her own grief to cope with.

I’ve been transparent about my dislike for their relationship, but it was crucial to Lucy’s development as a character and without meeting Jack and Charlie she might not have been able to find room in her heart for Jules.

As Jack reminds her, it’s okay for Jules and the others to mean something to Lucy. They may be a strange definition of a family, but they are one now.

Which is why the biggest shock of the episode is in the final moments when Darros catches up with Lucy as she’s breaking Jules out of the compound. He shoots Jules in the head AND introduces a new, creepy blonde Jules 2.0 clone.

The hopefulness of Jules thinking she might be able to help these new clones only to face her untimely end is horrifying. The choice to play this out in the final minutes, with little time to process before the season abruptly ends, is especially excruciating.

Lucy gave up her family with Jack and Charlie to protect Jules, so you don’t expect things to fall apart so spectacularly. The bad guys are allowed to have some wins, but this doesn’t feel earned in the context of the story. Isn’t it enough that Darros got away with everything else so far?

The only person more heartbroken than Lucy at this cruel twist might be me. After spending the last few episode reviews praising Orphan Black: Echoes for getting the audience to invest in its characters, the death of Jules (admittedly my favorite character) feels like a slap in the face.

Will Orphan Black: Echoes go back to being the Lucy show like it was in its weakest early episodes or can it keep its family unit together even after Jules’ murder?

It’s a big swing for a show without a second season renewal lined up and a bitter note to end the season, and potentially series, on.

What did you think of this episode of Orphan Black: Echoes? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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Orphan Black: Echoes airs Sundays at 10/9c on AMC and BBC America.

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