Episode 2 – “Sinatra”
Twelve years prior, we open on a vast space where Samantha (Julianne Nicholson) meets with a group of people telling them that they are people of preeminent minds and they are about to be trusted with something very important that few know about. They all exit the hanger and board a private plane.
On the plane, Samantha sits with a scientist who is having trouble with the flight. This scientist is the founder of a firm that develops self-sustaining communities. Samantha then asks if he had unlimited resources to design an underground city that looks like anywhere USA that would be able to hold twenty-five thousand people, could he do it.
The scientist said he would laugh that it was not possible, but Samantha says of course that’s what she’s been told. They land in Colorado where the group is driven off to the mountains to a very large construction project inside the mountains. The scientist sees for the first time that the construction project is underway, and Samantha wants him to build her a city.
Back at home Xavier Collins (Sterling K. Brown) looks at the cigarette from President Bradford’s (James Marsden) pack and writes down the numbers that he sees. Sunrise is happening and the community is waking up with stores getting ready for the day, and the shops starting to open.
Samantha is writing Cal’s eulogy when she stops and reflects on her past. She remembers the time she met her husband at a bar in San Francisco. She tells him about selling her startup that could make her a billionaire, and he tells her that he’s celebrating his softball team winning the championship.
Collins is at home dreaming about talking to his wife, just as the world is about to end, he wakes to hear Agent Pace (Jon Beavers) in the kitchen entertaining his kids, James and Presley (Percy Daggs IV and Aliyah Mastin), while Agent Robinson (Krys Marshall) is not finding anything Pace does to be funny. Collins comes down and Robinson asks him to come with her.
In the car Robinson tells Collins that no one knows what happened, and when Collins tries to ask questions, Robinson tells him they have nothing. Collins wants to know why the person heading the investigation was also sleeping with the victim. Robinson talks about how she liked Bradford, and she wonders why the guy who secretly hated him waited a full thirty minutes before reporting the crime. The tablet is missing, and Robinson tells Collins to get his game face on.
In the interrogation room, Collins takes a seat for questioning. In a separate conference room, important rich people who fund, and run the community are worried. The president was murdered, should they be concerned about their safety. Samantha enters to tell them that he wasn’t murdered but died of natural causes. The room of scared worried people erupts.
Before sitting down to a busy table of worried billionaires, Samantha reflects on her time with her husband and shopping for groceries. She goes to the ice cream aisle with her son, and they choose a treat then go outside. Her financial issues are resolved, her company’s merger is approved, but her son faints on the electric horse. Back in the meeting room, she tells the group to calm down, the vice president will be sworn in, and the town will be told of the death of Bradford was a result of natural causes.
Collins is hooked up to a lie detector test, and the questions begin. He recounts when he last saw the president and when he discovered the body. Asked why there was a delay and why he called Pace, Collins states that he felt Pace was the only one he could trust, since his boss, Robinson, was sleeping with the President. Asked if he killed Bradford, Collins says no. (Nice insult on Robinson.)
Robinson is relieved of her job and is replaced by Gabriela as the interrogator. Gabriela was the President’s therapist and Collins’. Gabriela asks if a part of Collins is happy that Bradford is dead. She shows her hand to Collins that says, ‘Say Yes’, and he answers yes.
Leaving the room, Gabriela goes back to Samantha, and states that she thinks Collins is telling the truth. Back in the past, Samantha is in the hospital room with her son Dylan, and the doctor speaks to her and her husband. The doctor tells him that despite the unbelievable care, it’s time to have some hard conversations about Dylan. He then invites Dr. Gabriela Terabi to join them, she is a specialist in grief counselling. (Ah that’s why she is there in the future. Oh no, this means Dylan is going to die.) Samantha refuses to accept the possibility and leaves.
In the present, Samantha hopes that Gabriela is right about Collins and then gives her a small compliment that Gabriela says is the nicest thing she has ever said to her. Samantha then invites Collins to follow her, and they talk. Collins says that everyone takes directions from her, and when she asks if Collins knows why her security detail calls her Sinatra, he says he assumed it was because of the hats she wore. (In reality, it’s because she is the Chairman of the Board.)
They enter an elevator, and Collins listens as Samantha tells him the community will be told that Bradford died of natural causes because that is what is best for the people. She asks about why Collins’ wife hyphenated her name, and he explains. Samantha wants to know if Collins has the tablet. He does not. Their talk is over when Samantha tells him that he be on leave for two weeks then be reassigned.
While commiserating about his children, we flash back to the past where Samantha sits in Gabriela’s office. It’s apparent they have had regular appointments, Samantha describes how she is not great, and that time has not helped since the death of her son six months ago. Time is making it worse because it is taking Samantha further away from when her son was alive.
Telling Samantha that healing is a slow process Gabriela listens as Samantha describes the anguish of her not being functional enough for her daughter or her business which employs thousands of people. Samantha wants to be functional enough to think about something else other than killing herself. Samantha begs Gabriela for help.
Samantha describes to Collins how she lost a child, and it is something she never got over, and advises Collins to leave the investigation alone. (Did she just threaten Collins’ kids.)
At school Presley sees Bradford’s son Jeremy (Charles Evans), (Oh I see where this is going to go.) and they all receive the magic band text that a town hall meeting has been called. Everyone leaves for the meeting but Presley. She follows the first son to the library. In the library she follows him to the media rotunda, where Presley passes a map of the community inside the mountain. (That would be a cool artefact to own.)
The two kids talk, and when Jeremy wonders why Presley isn’t at the town hall meeting, she asks the same thing, and he goes back to ignoring her. On the fringe of the gathering, Collins meets with the First Lady (Cassidy Freeman), and when asked how she is doing, she has no idea what to say. It has been a pretend job for so long, she doesn’t know what to feel. She tells Collins about the love Bradford had for him, and while this sends them down memory lane, Collins disputes some of what the First Lady has to say. The First Lady described how Bradford admired and respected Collins. While the First Lady describes how she couldn’t see his body, she tells Collins that Bradford loved him because Collins was everything that Bradford wasn’t or would never be.
Before the speeches begin, Samnatha is remembering back to when her daughter begs her to stay and not leave. (Things are not great at home for Samantha.) Promising she will always come back to take care of her, Samantha takes off for a conference. In an empty seminar about climate change and the possibility of a tsunami flooding the eastern United States, Samantha leaves, as the other lone attendee, Cal Bradford, watches her go. He follows her out, and they have a conversation.
Bradford is a Senator, and he wonders how Sam has been. It’s been a year since she lost her son, and while she tries to say she is ok, it’s obvious she is not. While Bradford talks about her son and what he used to do in the sandbox, Sam starts to cry, and apologizing, Sam tells Cal not to. No one has talked to her about Dylan is such a long time that it’s good to think about her son in such a positive way.
While the two are talking about their families, the presenter walks by, and Samantha stops him. She asks him what they should do, and the presenter says to dig the biggest hole they can, and get in. Cal is left behind as Samantha follows the presenter to talk more about the approaching doom.
Back in the present, the Vice President goes on stage to announce the death of Cal Bradford. At the same time, Presley asks Jeremy how he is, and he admits that his dad is dead. Jeremy feels terrible because he ignored his dad yesterday, and how terrible he feels for the last words he said to his dad. (Oh, the pain and regret in Jeremy is heartbreaking.)
Presley describes her dad’s love of planes, and how she criticized it, and now he never talks about it. Asking what Jeremy was listening to, he explains he’s listening to all his dad’s favorite 80’s and 90’s music. Jermey plays the music, and Presley hears the opening of ‘We Built this City’ (How apropos of the show.) and Collins watches the Vice President get sworn in as the new President.
Jeremy asks Presley if she wants to see something cool, and they leave the library. The new president walks by Collins without acknowledging him, and then Pace asks Collins if he is good. Collins asks Pace if he can think of any important 6 digit codes. Pace cannot. Collins goes on to explain that he has been watching and listening to Samantha ‘Sinatra’ and he believes there is something not right with her. He has a gut instinct that something is up. Pace reminds Collins that she is the most powerful person in the city, and Collins states he plans to take her down.
Back at home, Samantha talks to her daughter, and at the same time Jeremy takes Presley to a restricted part of the city. He shows her the security entrance to the cave and as they explore further, Samantha remembers when she told her son he was going to die. (Oh my god, this is simply heartbreaking, and whatever Samantha did because of this trauma, I understand.)
The further Jermey and Presley venture, they see the planes that brought the survivors to the cave, and Presley admits that she remembers arriving. Thinking back to when they arrived, we see Presley and her brother questioning Xavier about their mom.
In the present Xavier burns the cigarette with the clue, and Samantha is back to the time she is in the hospital room talking to her son about heaven. She tells him that heaven is anything that you want it to be, and he says he would want it to be just like here, but with more horse rides. The scene cuts to the town, where horse rides are all over town, and Samantha said that is what it will be like. (Oh my god, did she cause the disaster and rebuilt things because of the death of her son?)
Episode 3 – “The Architect of Social Well Being”
Xavier Collins watches as the coded cigarette burns. He thinks of his dad and then goes for a run. Pace is trying hard to keep up with him but begs Collins to slow down. Collins insists on the run because if Pace is going to work with him on uncovering Bradford’s murder, their meeting up needs to look routine.
Pace wonders why Collins isn’t leading the investigation, and the two agents start to realize that their president is gone. Collins states that he didn’t hate Bradford, that their relationship was complicated. When Pace wonders why they don’t just tell the truth to everyone, Collins quickly ends that line of thinking. Collins implores Pace to be careful.
Gabriela is at home when Collins knocks on her door. The therapist is surprised by his visit, and Collins gets to the point, he wants to know why she told him to say yes about being glad that President Bradford is dead. Gabriela avoids answering but tells Collins she is heading out and if he wants to join her he can.
At the medical examiner’s lab, Agent Robinson and Samantha watch as the doctor conducts an examination of President Bradford’s body. The doctor sees signs of a struggle on Bradford’s fingers, and Samantha wants to know how long until DNA analysis results are returned. (She thinks they might have the killer.) According to the doctor it will be a day or two. Robinson vomits in the bathroom as she comes to terms with the death of the president and her lover. Samantha also comes out of the stall after vomiting, having been a part of the body analysis.
Gabriela and Collins stroll through the park. While the doctor is amazed that after three years of being in the city beneath the mountains, how people have adapted to the normal. (Lol, if only this show premiered during COVID.) Gabriela blathers on about the minute detail to create realism, including the playing of insect sounds in the park, but Collins wants to know why they are walking.
Collins wonders if Gabriela’s office is being monitored, and she says probably, to which Xavier says it’s probably Samantha and her goons. Gabriela wants to know how well he remembers their first meeting. Though Xavier has little detail, she proceeds to recollect the history for the secret service agent. Gabriela talks about seeing Bradford in her office on the day he died. She tells Collins how Bradford was stumbling around drunk in his bathrobe, that he seemed tired and strained by pressure. When Collins wants to know why she stepped into the interrogation room, the doctor asks why he stopped speaking with his father.
Back in the past, Collins meets his dad for lunch at the airport. Father and son play chess together and talk about what is happening in their lives. When his dad asks about Teri, Collins tells him that she is pregnant. Father and son share a special bond, and when we flash to the present, Collins tells Gabriela that there is nothing to tell. Knowing there is more to hear, she whispers that she will tell him what she knows about Cal Bradford, but she is taking a big chance, and she needs to know more about the man she is trusting than what is just in his file.
At the president’s house, Robinson is remembering back to her night with Bradford. The two clearly like each other, and while Robinson is remembering the good times, what happens to Bradford interrupts his recollection. Samantha interrupts her, and in Bradford’s bedroom, they discuss what happened and what they need to do. Samantha wants to find out who killed Bradford before he is buried in two days. Samantha also wants the presidential tablet back and wonders if Robinson is up to the job, or if she is too emotionally compromised to do the job. Before leaving, Robinson tells Redman to give her the space to do her job, and leaves.
Back on their walk, Gabriela and Collins talk about how the people seem to be moving on from the end of world trauma. She explains to Collins that she helped design the community. Gabriela has labelled herself as an architect of social well-being.
Agent Pace is pacing around the presidential house, when Robinson comes out and outlines what they have in the investigation. Jane (Nicole Bloom) wonders if they have any DNA to go on, and Robinson describes it would be a day before they get results, and then Pace asks why Collins is not part of the investigation. Robinson explains that Collins conduct was unacceptable on the day the president died. Before Robinson can respond, Samantha interrupts the conversation. Robinson continues and Garcia explains that he will try to find the digital fingerprint of who shut off the security system.
Collins as Gabriela if Samantha can be trusted, but she wants to know more about his father. This takes us to another flashback years after the first one, where Collins tells his father about his promotion at the Secret Service. During their friendly conversation, he notices his dad’s hand trembling, and he reveals that he has Parkinsons. His dad has not told the company, and Xavier is shocked by his dad’s choice. Collins wants him to stop flying and retire, but his dad will not listen. Telling Xavier he is a pilot; his dad gets up and leaves.
Back in the grocery store, Collins tells Gabriela very little, and when she demands to know about his father’s last flight, he is unwilling to elaborate. Gabriela suggests they get some cheese fries, and they leave the store.
Jane and Pace are talking in hushed tones, wondering about what happens if Garcia finds out. (I think we know who turned off the security cameras.) Pace tells Jane not to worry, and then they kiss.
In his office, the new President is frantically pacing around. Samantha tells the President to relax because he can be protected from a heart attack. After Samantha gives the president a pep talk, he calms down and leaves.
At the restaurant Gabriela and Collins sit down for cheese fries. They feast on the potato delicacy and Collins talks about missing soft shell crab. They both list the many things they miss from their life before. Collins decides to tell her about his dad’s last flight.
It’s another visit back at the airport, and Xavier meets with his dad where he tells him that he is now on the President's detail. He takes his dad to see Air Force One, and while his father is proud of him, Xavier tells his dad that it’s time to retire. Xavier shows his dad that he filed his retirement papers.
In the present, Collins tells Gabriela that the disease progressed rapidly for his dad after retirement, and he soon passed away. Gabriela is impressed by Collins’ moral compass and tells the secret service agent that it is time for her to show him her cards.
Robinson meets with Samantha and tells her she has a little bit of a show to put on. Pace and Jane are then brought into the room, and Robinson begins to ask many rhetorical questions about why they did it. Robinson asks why they shut down the cameras the night of the murder. They found Pace’s digital footprint.
Pace and Jane admit to shutting down the system, so they could play video games, and use some of the president’s cool stuff. They figured they were protecting a president in a secure bunker nothing would happen. Then Samantha says that something did happen, and kicks everyone out of the room.
Walking home, Collins admits he had fun with Gabriela and then asks if she knows what the code means that he found on Bradford’s cigarette. Collins explains that he knows he should be thankful to be saved and a part of the community, but he doesn’t appreciate it. Gabriela then tells him that he is there because she chose him.
A flashback to the Oval Office where Samantha is telling Cal that he needs to choose a new lead agent, especially when the world ends, and they retreat to the bunker. She then introduces Gabriela with some ideas on who should be the lead agent. Bradford agrees with Gabriela’s first choice and Collins is brought in.
She then explains to Collins that her main job was to choose the people who would survive. She tells Collins that he is her wildcard, someone who would do the right thing if everything went wrong. Gabriela kisses Collins, and they proceed inside the house to have sex. During their romantic dalliance in the shower, Gabriela tells Collins that she has a message from the president.
He told her that if something was to happen to him, she needed to tell Collins that Billy Pace was dangerous, and not someone to trust. This moves to seeing Pace sitting in a car outside of Collins’ house with a gun in his front seat.
Review:
We know who built the city in the cave, and who designed and chose the people for the city. Part of my appeal for Paradise is the setting, the lead actors, and the phenomenal narrative that drives this story. All three aspects need to work in conjunction to make the show compelling, and with episode 2 and 3, the audience is further down the rabbit hole, wondering what is going on, and who to trust.
That’s a key theme of this show. Who do you trust? Do you trust the billionaire with some serious trauma who is just trying to protect people? Do you trust the therapist who spends most of the episode talking about how great she is and how she had a hand in choosing the people to live in the saved city under a mountain? Of course not.
However, the story unfolds like a slow burning match, easing its way down to the barrel of dynamite that is set to explode. We get to meet two very important people that are the foundation of the cave and the people being in there.
Is Samantha an evil billionaire who shouldn’t be trusted? Probably! Did she kill Cal Bradford? I don’t think so.
Gabriela spent most of episode 3 trying to write her own narrative of what has happened and who he should trust. The revelation at the end that the president told her to tell him that if anything happened Collins should be wary of Billy Pace, seems a little too convenient. Also, why would she want Collins to admit to being happy that the president is dead. It seems like Gabriela is manipulating Collins. Is her manipulation for good or bad?
That’s the beauty of a well written show. I can’t wait to tune in to next week's episode.