We’re just a couple episodes away from the end of Miracle Day, and the clues seem like they are finally coming together.
The twists in the plot have been interesting, and I think the flow of answers has been sufficient, but the show still suffers from the issues of previous seasons.
For example, the character’s interactions are melodramatic at nearly every turn. Alliances, friendships, romance changes quickly in this story, and every decision is fraught with secrets and concerns of betrayal.
The oddest flopping in the story, however, is Gwen’s geography. It seems like every episode she finds herself flying across the Atlantic again. Now she’s been deported, maybe this time she’ll stay in Wales. Seems unlikely though; she’s probably got one more plane ride in her future, at least.
The death of Vera at the series turning point was a real surprise, however, and more than anything else impressed me with the show writers’ ability to let go of characters and allow drastic change to befall the story-world. It’s also interesting the way the villainy has shifted several time throughout the season. We still haven’t figured out who is really behind everything and why, but I have confidence that this will be revealed in the final two episodes.
Of course, the current info generates a lot of theories, but the revelation of the families was well-handled.
The tale of Jack and Angelo was perhaps not as well rendered. Nearly two episodes were spent developing the connection and relationship for a relatively small pay off, especially since, by the time Angelo’s granddaughter revealed that he was the one who wanted Jack brought in, it was not a surprise.
Still, they treated the “surprise” like one, making it the show ending, revelatory cliff-hanger for Episode 7, but since we had just spent two hours building that backstory, it couldn’t have been a true surprise to anyone in the audience. I mean, why else would Angelo have been so well built up?
I’m also not sure how I feel about Oswald’s story, because the writers simply can’t seem to decide if they are telling a tale of redemption or not.
One episode Oswald seems to be pulling away from his nature, and learning to be a human being, then the next he returns to the violent psychopath in his core. It’s not that I want to root for him, I don’t, but I want to know how he ties into the larger story, since so far it feels like he’s been very disconnected.
The true strength here is the story mythology. I mean: there are a lot of plot holes in the universe, and we know the Miracle is not a permanent (or even a lengthy) change, since it would have appeared in other stories in the same universe if it was (since Doctor Who takes place in the same story-world), but cutting through the conspiracy is a compelling reason to watch, and knowing the whole story will be tied up in just two more episodes also helps.
Obviously, there is little danger that the series will leave us at a cliff-hanger which never gets resolved.
