For those folks who watch Foundation solely to watch Lee Pace chew the scenery whilst in various stages of undress, I’m happy to report that you’re going to enjoy a lot of what season three of this complex sci-fi drama has to offer. Because no matter how confusing the mythology gets – or how many new characters the show throws at us without much (if any) explanation as to who they are and why we should care about them – we can all count on Brother Day to spend a good chunk of time without his shirt on. But if you were hoping, like I was, that this time around the series’ writers would opt to really dive into character driven storytelling, well, I’m sorry to tell you that season three of Foundation is more of the same – although with even more characters and motivations to try to keep track of.
One of the highlights of season two was that the series made sure to section off the storytelling into three clear arc: Trantor (home to Empire and Demerzel), Gaal and Salvor’s journey to Ignis and the creation of the Second Foundation with the human Hari, and the Second Crisis on Terminus – which saw its destruction and the rise of New Terminus with the Vault landing to begin a new cycle. Season three opts for a more freewheeling type of storytelling with one central threat (that would be the Mule) being unleashed against everyone – Empire, New Terminus, Gaal and the Second Foundation – and each group splintering in various ways as they learn of it. It’s an interesting dramatic gamble to take, as it asks the audience to care about each and every facet of the storyline without really telling us just who the Mule actually is.
If you watched season two (and if you haven’t, there’s no way you could ever follow the goings on in season three, so you should probably get on that), you will recall that the final moments of that season introduced the Mule in a flashforward dream sequence of Gaal. Snarling, large, able to get into your head, and fully aware of just who Gaal is. Now, time has passed and the Mule is starting his reign of terror (Pilou Asbæk has taken over the role from Mikael Persbrandt). He’s unhinged, mentally controlling those around him, coercing them into doing whatever he wants – killing each other, killing themselves, turning on friends and family. But where the series could have opted to make him a truly cold blooded villain, the writers have opted to try to thread some humanity into the character. Casting Asbæk in the role (who most folks will remember as the truly unhinged Euron Greyjoy on Game of Thrones, but who played a much more complex and interesting character on the great Danish series Borgen) seems to hint at a desire for the Mule to become something more than just a villain yearning for power and to see the universe burn. After all, Asbæk has a great deal of range and can absolutely tug at your heartstrings when given the chance (seriously, folks, watch Borgen). Which is why I was so disappointed with the character. We learn next to nothing about his motivations, who he is, why he’s doing this, and what he hopes to gain. And, unfortunately, he’s not the only new character with this issue.
Synnøve Karlsen and Cody Fern join the series as Bayta and Toran Mallow (yes, descendants of Hober Mallow from season two), a spoiled rich couple – think the Kardashians – who get mixed up in the battle to save New Terminus from the impending threat of the Mule. Bayta is a particularly intriguing character, smart and clever, who plays people’s perceptions of her to her benefit when she can. And Karlsen does a lot with very little, drawing you in to want to know more about this character and the role she might play in the battles to come. As for Toran, well, he’s your typical dumb guy with a heart of gold. And if you’re someone watching the series for Pace’s shirtless scenes, Fern spends a great deal of his screen time wearing very little – so perhaps another reason for that section of the fanbase to tune in. But, like the Mule, we don’t get enough time with either of the characters to really get a sense of who they are and why they matter. Similarly, Alexander Siddig’s Dr. Ebling Mis (Siddig played the judge who banished Hari back in season one and we’re told this character is a descendant of that one) seems like someone who is going to be important to the story, but we get very little time to understand just what role he might play and why we should care about him.
And that’s the problem with introducing a slate of new characters and then keeping them away from most of our legacy characters for much of the season. While Empire is off on their adventures – Dawn, Day, and Dusk (once again played by Cassian Bilton, Pace, and Terrence Mann, respectively) each branch off into individual story arcs this season, further stretching the narrative tissue of the series as it tries to give them enough screen time – and Demerzel is trying to reconcile what she’s learning from the Prime Radiant while also staying true to her programming*, and Gaal is trying to get Ignis trained up and ready for the Mule**, there isn’t much time to throw in new characters, new subplots, and try to tie it all together.
*The one subplot that intrigued me the most – although it, like every other subplot in the season, felt sadly under baked – centered around Demerzel and a cult on Trantor that prays for the return of robots. The Mule might be the central threat we’re supposed to care about, but Laura Birn and Demerzel continue to be the show’s most interesting performance and character. I would rather watch a series centered on the push and pull between her programming to protect Empire and the potential of this cult to want to set her free than most of what we get this season.
**A reminder that Gaal and her crew on Ignis are Mentalics, so they have similar powers to the Mule. It’s assumed that in order to stop him, Gaal must create an army who can go toe-to-toe with his powers without falling under his influence. But, like many things on the series, that might not be the path she and her people end up taking.
After three seasons of the same complaints, however, I’m ready to admit that this series might just have a different set of priorities in its storytelling than what I value. It still looks gorgeous. There are still some strong performances (Birn and Pace continue to be great, while Mann and Lou Llobell as Gaal really get the chance to shine this time around). And if you ignore the mythology at the center of things – Hari’s predictions, just what they might or might not mean, the role of Empire as an institution, etc. – you can enjoy a lot of the series as a cool looking sci-fi story. I just wish, as I have said before and will likely say again before the fourth season, that the writing let the characters drive the storytelling and not the other way around. At this stage of things, our legacy characters and actors understand what they are doing better than before – they’ve all grown into their roles really well and I wish the characters got the chance to grow with them. But that’s not the story Foundation is telling. If you’ve been on the ride thus far, there’s no reason to jump off now. But if you’re contemplating getting on for the first time, there are better options in the sci-fi universe.
Foundation’s third season premieres on July 11. Nine of the ten episodes were provided for review.
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