The first four episodes of The Peripheral have been very topsy-turvy. The production design, world-building, VFX, CGI, etc., have been impressive. But it has faltered in other places like character development, dialogues, and especially the character work of the protagonist, Flynne Fisher (Chloe Grace Moretz). She looks flat at times.
If you have watched Black Mirror, you should be well acquainted with the undertone of The Peripheral. It shows a horror-filled dystopian world where technology has become our nemesis.
Episode 4 plays with a clever irony. Jackpot is the name given to the biggest calamity of the show that wiped out the entire civilization. We still don’t know what caused it or how it happened. But we do know that the consequences are severe.
Episode 5 Synopsis/Speculations
The series has reached a very critical point now. We know about the apocalypse, and the mysteries have started to deepen even more.
Let’s start with Flynne first. Daniel’s sonic blast in episode 3 has already started showing visible signs of brain damage in Flynne.
A visit by Tommy Constantine in episode 4 forces the Fisher siblings to come up with a bunch of lies. This causes an altercation between Flynne and Burton as she wants Tommy to know the truth.
Flynne’s bodily functions shut down, and she blacks out in a fit of rage. She is taken to a doctor who advises her to avoid VR for the time being.
In episode 1, Flynne was using Burton’s avatar. She was fine even when she was gravely injured in the peripheral. But her own avatar jammed her brain somehow. The results of the scan will confirm our suspicions.
Do different peripherals have different properties? Flynne’s new peripheral seems stronger than Burton’s. Is that a good bargain? Can destroying her peripheral kill her in real life?
These questions have stayed unanswered for two whole weeks now. We need to know more about the science behind the peripherals in the next episode. Flynne will decide whether she will continue exploring London, 2100, or will give Burton or Connor a chance.
The Corbell Pickett storyline fizzled out in this week’s episode. After much hype in the beginning, the showrunners should bring him back.
Maybe he is in the background, plotting to kill the Fishers all this while. I wanted to see more of him and Jasper and their past. Also, what about the ten-million-dollar prize?
Is the money legit? Who offered it to him? Episode 5 will undoubtedly focus on Mr. Pickett’s story.
Lev’s explanation to Wilf about creating ‘stubs’ (alternate timelines) is really confusing. When I finally understood what they had done, it gave me goosebumps. This woman created spare timelines to do her experiments. Each one has an alternate version of Lev Zubov. That is why Lev could kill his family and be cool about it. It wasn’t his actual family but a version of it.
Talk about confusing the viewer!
I can see Wilf starting to mistrust Lev after their last conversation. Wilf and Flynne will surely merge into one team and look for Aelita. Will Lev join Corbell and Cherise?
That seems very much plausible now!
Even though this series is not at the pinnacle of its genre, exciting things have started to unfold of late. Episode 5 might have a lot of answers for us!
1. Episode 5 Release Date
Chapter 5 of the The Peripheral series, titled “what about Bob?”, has been released on Friday, Nov 11, 2022 at 12:00 am PDT.
I. Is the series on a break?
No, the series is not on a break and will continue according to schedule.
2. The Peripheral Season 1 Schedule
| No. | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original release date |
| 1 | “Pilot” | Vincenzo Natali | Scott B. Smith | October 21, 2022 |
| 2 | “Empathy Bonus” | Vincenzo Natali | Scott B. Smith | October 21, 2022 |
| 3 | “Haptic Drift” | Alrick Riley | Scott B. Smith | October 28, 2022 |
| 4 | “Jackpot” | TBA | Story by : Bronwyn Garrity Teleplay by : Scott B. Smith | November 4, 2022 |
| 5 | “What About Bob?” | TBA | Jamie Chan | November 11, 2022 |
| 6 | “F… You and Eat S…” | TBA | Greg Plageman & Scott B. Smith | November 18, 2022 |
| 7 | “The Doodad” | TBA | Jamie Chan & Scott B. Smith | November 25, 2022 |
| 8 | “The Creation of a Thousand Forests” | TBA | Story by: Scott B. Smith Teleplay by : Scott B. Smith & Greg Plageman | December 2, 2022 |
3. Where to watch The Peripheral?
4. Episode 4 Recap
For those of you who missed the last episode because you were exploring your own simulation world, here Is a quick refresher:
Wilf and Aelita are captured while scavenging the wastelands of London in 2075.
Meanwhile, Flynne continues feeling the effects of the sonic gun and suffers from a complete blackout. Her bodily systems shut down, and she has to be taken to the doctor.
While Flynne is distracted, Connor takes over her peripheral. Ash gets to know about this and throws him out of the peripheral.
Wilf admits that Aelita is his sister. Flynne looks at Lev’s past and discovers that his family died in a horrific accident. But this is not the real truth.
Wilf talks to Lev and discovers that Lev and Aelita made several ‘spare’ timelines where they experimented with random things. That is where Lev killed his family.
Ash takes Flynne to a cemetery and tells her the entire story of the Jackpot. The world suffered from several calamities, and a terrorist attack finally destroyed the entire civilization. Flynne travels back to her world after this terrifying discovery.
5. About The Peripheral
The Peripheral is an American science fiction streaming television series executive produced and created by Scott Smith.
Produced by Amazon, it is based on the 2014 book of the same name written by William Gibson. Westworld creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy serve as executive producers, along with Athena Wickham, Steve Hoban, and Vincenzo Natali.
Set in the future when technology has subtly altered society, a woman discovers a secret connection to an alternate reality as well as a dark future of her own.
The series had its world premiere on October 11, 2022, at the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, before its debut on October 21, 2022, on Amazon Prime Video.
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