After the first 4 episodes Helix finally seems to have found some solid ground. The episodes have developed a certain rhythm of generating both small and large crises that led to cliffhangers and unexpected denouements. I use the word rhythm as the show hardly has any procedural aspects such as found in Almost Human or Person Of Interest. Instead the serialized nature of the plots keep reminding me of Lost. This weeks episode ‘Aniqatiga’ seems to conclude the trilogy of episodes that started with episode 4, as such it acts as conclusion to some established storylines while also acting as a transitional episode by introducing more of the base’s surroundings and hinting at the unknown special forces lead by Constance Sutton (Jeri Ryan). The episode is blemished by the continued hallucination scenes of Julia which keep it from moving forward with a good pace. Luckily this plot is resolved and Julia seems to turn into a more interesting character for the upcoming weeks after Hatake has cured the pathogen inside her.

Twins

Major Balleseros isn’t dead as what many fans believed was implied from the previous week when Aerov left him for dead outside the base. Instead we see a mysterious woman carry him off. Later on Balleseros wakes up in a Inuit village. The woman calls herself Anana (Luciano Carro) and appears to be the village police officer. She quickly turns hostile towards Balleseros after he tries to escape and remains evasive at what he was doing at the arctic research station. She accuses him of being in league with Hatake whom she claims has kidnapped over 30 children over the last 20 years. When Anana has left and Balleseros seems to be resting due to his wounds he manages to free himself but finds himself confronted by a man looking exactly like Aerov. Anana after recapturing him says the man is her brother and used to have a twin.

Meanwhile at the arctic station Allan confronts Aerov about accessing Level R. Aerov threatens to shoot Alan if does access that level R but seems otherwise occupied with finding Hatake. Julia has to deal with recurring nightmares and visions of infected people. After Hatake wakes up from his knife wound he injects her with what he calls a sedative. Instead it produces even more violent visions. Hatake meanwhile manages to escape level R through a secret access way just in time to be confronted by Alan who claims the pathogen is a method to deploy gene therapy. Hatake for once confirms Alan suspicions. Alan and Sarah set out to find an antidote to the pathogen but are confronted with a rapidly metabolizing black goo with tentacles. Alan manages to stop it with a CO2 fire extinguisher and realizes that cold slows the pathogen down.

Alan go to see the resident cryostasis expert and after promising him the first available ticket out of the base he receives cooperation. They prepare Peter to undertake a procedure that has so far only been tested on mice. After Peter stabilizes Hatake is seen looking from afar visibly disappointed. Aerov tells him he had to kill Balleseros to which Hatake replies by hitting him. Hatake tells that ‘they’ will now come and that they need to be ready. Aerov tries to show Hatake the body of Balleseros but they do not find it because of Anana. At that moment two helicopters arrive with the people who Hatake feared. As the helicopters settle down Julia wakes from her nightmare and has undergone the same alteration to her eye as Hatake and Aerov.

In the post credit scenes we see that the two helicopters brought troops from the financer of Artic Biosystems. They are led by a woman named Constance Sutton played by Jeri Ryan.

Conclusion

At times the show was criticized by viewers for plodding along too much. The characters either seemed ignorent or the drama was too forced. Aniqatiga suffers a little of this as well but at least the worse offender Julia has been cured of this particular illness along with being cured of the pathogen. The inclusion of the Inuit storyline along with new characters such as Anana and her brother give this show a welcome increase in scope. Unlike Lost Helix won’t rely on flashbacks to gives us more background so it will have to do with other means. As I mentioned this episode feels like a transitional episode. It ties up some storylines while also introducing new one for what I believe will be  a sort of mid-season showdown next week.

Allan Farragut (Billy Campbell) remains the biggest asset of this show. His concern for the other characters and his personal ethics keep this show firmly grounded in the realm of plausible reality. His concern fro his deceased colleague and friend Doreen who died some two episode back confirms this.

Score; 8.4. At times it is a bit slow but the ending set everything in motion for next week’s showdown between Jeri Ryan and Billy Campbell.

Below you can find the preview trailer for next week’s episode of Helix, Suvivor Zero which will introduce Jeri Ryan.