Each week Joe and Terry discuss the most recent episodes of Apple TV’s Silo, alternating between our respective sites.
Spoilers follow for Episode 6, “The Relic”.
Missed a review? 1.01-1.02 / 1.03 / 1.04 / 1.05
Episode 6 “The Relic”: During her investigation, Juliette uncovers disturbing secrets about someone she thought she knew
JOE
As we move into the back half of the season, “The Relic” is an interesting episode of Silo, Terry, because it’s offering audiences a lot of insight into our fairly reserved protagonist, Juliette Nichols (Rebecca Ferguson).
I didn’t expect the episode to be so interior focused, though I appreciate having a more thorough understanding of the relationship between Jules and George Wilkins (Ferdinand Kingsley). Throughout the episode, Jules is clearly distracted by the specter of her romance with the relic-collecting rebel. There are several times where she’s caught in a daze in the present, and at one point she nearly walks into a porter on the stairwell.
This is helpful if only because George was barely a character before his death early in the series. We’ve caught glimpses of the pair’s pillow talk in previous episodes, but “The Relic” spends a great deal more time exploring how deep their connection went.
Or did it?
One of the elements that I really enjoyed about 1.06 is how new character Regina Jackson (Sonita Henry) upends all of Jules’ hazy, romantic memories with the suggestion that George wasn’t who he pretended to be. From Gina’s perspective, George was a dick; he used her to get relics at great personal expense to her and her family, and then he abandoned her for Jules, disappearing into the Deep Down while Gina paid the price.
Obviously this is hugely confronting to Jules, who spends the episode mentally reminiscing and debating how much she can trust her feelings. It’s great stuff, particularly in contrast to how little emotion Jules normally shows. It would be polite to describe the character as closed off; hell, just consider how she lashes out at Billings (Chinaza Uche) when she feels slighted by his comments that she’s not being truthful (which: she’s not!).
I have been really enjoying Ferguson’s performance on the show thus far and “The Relic” is a great opportunity for the actress to show off Juliette’s layers. The new Sheriff keeps everything so close to her chest, refusing to be vulnerable or let anyone except a few close people in. Sometimes she can come off as a robot. This episode makes it *very* clear that Jules is terrified of being hurt, which builds off the backstory from “Truth” when we saw how quickly she had to grow up in the wake of her brother and mother’s deaths.
For me, Rebecca’s best scene is the flashback when she gives George back his watch. He marvels that it now works, and she indicates that not only did she spend hours of labour fixing it, but that she developed new tools to make the repairs! But it was worth it to “selfishly” feel happy about seeing George light up. It’s a very cute, couple-y moment that shows Jules can not only be romantic, but also vulnerable.
Naturally it makes sense that she would bristle at the suggestion that George was simply conning her that way he did Gina (she also lashes out at her, after peppering her with a million questions about Gina’s relationship with George in a highly unprofessional manner).
So yeah, great episode for Ferguson and some much appreciated insight into Jules as a character.
But Terry, there’s so much else to discuss! What did you think of the red closet of relics Sims (Common) has? Were you surprised at the reveal that Billings is infected with “the Syndrome”? And how wild is the reveal that George’s greatest relic is a travel guide to Chattanooga National Forest and that the whole silo is under video surveillance?
TERRY
One thing I love about Silo is the way in which it measuredly introduces slice-of-life moments that are attached to the silo’s deeper mythology. A few episodes ago, the idea of a “Forgiveness Holiday” was floated around, but no one explained what it was. Why would they? Everyone in the scene understood what the holiday was, even if we, the viewers, did not. It was a small mystery, sure. But it still lingered in my mind. And here, two episodes later, we get a bit more information delivered through context clues and discussion as it’s casually explained that people can give up relics without fear of recrimination.
In less assured hands, we’d have a proxy character to learn how the world worked as someone explained everything in detail. Here, the script assumes we are smart and will eventually pick up on things.
I like that.
This also ties into one of the questions you asked, Joe, about whether I was surprised that Billings was affected with “The Syndrome.” The idea of “The Syndrome” is another mystery that Silo peppered throughout the dialogue in the last few episodes. I’ve been wondering what exactly it is, but the narrative didn’t waste time giving us a dissertation on the disease. Instead, it just let it percolate in our heads and, again, I like that.
Here, the camera tips us before Jules is able to bring it up, as it focuses on Paul’s shaking hands as he walks with Sims. Later, more context is given when Paul’s wife Kathleen (Caitlyn Zoz) asks if he had taken the ginger root and he responds he was never alone in order to take it.
This entire episode digs into Jules’s relationship with the world as you rightly pointed out, but I love that that interiority also extends to her deputy. When Paul was initially introduced to Jules and us, it was immediately obvious that he’s a “by the books” type of guy, good for quoting The Pact and knowing the “right” answer to every procedural situation. That continues here, as even Sims mentions how important it is for Boy Scout Paul to go with Jules all day to keep her out of any regulation nightmares.
It’s such smart, subtle writing because not only does this narrative situation expose Paul’s disease, but it creates layers for his own personality and character. He is a “by the books” guy who also happens to be hiding something incredibly dangerous…something that brings his own decision-making ability about what’s “right” and “wrong” into question.
He’s not the perfect Boy Scout, even though he won a competition to memorize The Pact four times. He’s a fallible human, just like Jules. And just like Jules, he’s doing the best he can for the people he loves. Silo still keeps what exactly The Syndrome is close to the chest, but, through Paul and Kathleen, we get to understand a little bit more about the mysterious disease.
What I’m deeply loving about these middle episodes is the way in which the writers tie up some mysteries, however loosely, but then introduce further questions, like Sims’ very red room filled with all sorts of intriguing details and symbols. I was particularly drawn to the symbol on everything that looks like a warning of hazardous material surrounding the letter “R.” Who–or what–is R? They look too new to be part of the old world, so I don’t think they’re simply reused bags. The symbol and the letter scream important, Joe, and only deepens the mystery surrounding the elusive Sims, Judicial and the entire silo.
The best part of the episode, though, was the two conversations between Jules and Regina, particularly the second one where all pretenses were left at the door. Paranoia has floated around the first half of this season as characters look over their shoulders and whispers of Judicial lurking around put a stop to anyone talking about anything remotely illegal.
Even known criminal Patrick Kennedy (Rick Gomez) is hesitant to discuss relics and other illegal things out of fear that his whole life could come crashing down. So when we meet Regina and she has plastered trays on the walls and, later, puts a piece of metal on the fan to cause a loud ticking sound, she seems ridiculously paranoid. A shot of a cat (they have cats, Joe!) subtly suggests she’s a “crazy cat woman” that Paul quickly writes off.
But when she closes the gap with Jules, grabbing her arm and warning here that not only are they being watched, but that a man arrives in the shadows in front of her bed to threaten her…well…
This detective story is both heading in dark directions but also, in classic noir fashion, begins tying the mystery into bigger questions…the kind that George would often ask. I’m quite enjoying this slow-paced and measured detective story, Joe! Especially with the reveal you mentioned, where the paranoia becomes more justified as the camera slowly pulls back to reveal that someone is watching her look at the guide to Chattanooga National Forest. It gave me goosebumps!
But I want to hear your thoughts on the steady series of reveals in “The Relic”, Joe. Who are the people watching Jules on their various monitors? Can we assume that they are in the janitor’s room, or are there other, larger implications? Who do you think they need to wake up? More troubling…who’s the man who appeared in Regina’s room? And with Sims and Bernard (Tim Robbins) clearing the precinct to talk about the Pez dispenser…is Jules playing a dangerous game with the way she’s manipulating situations to get official responses?
JOE
I’ll answer the last question first because I’m absolutely convinced that it ties into the others. Jules is definitely in over her head, which only makes it slightly ironic that she was willing to hang it all up and head back to the Deep Down until Martha (Harriet Walter) talks her out of it by reminding her to be strong and fearless.
Those are qualities that Juliette has, even when her conviction falters. But it may not be enough to protect her when she’s up against such a vast conspiracy.
You mentioned how paranoid everyone is, and now we have confirmation that they’re right to be so worried. I opted for the most obvious answers for your other questions: it would make sense that Bernard and Sims are involved (IT provides the tech; Judicial mans the footage) and the R in the red closet stands for Relics. You’re right that the symbol is striking: a cross between a police evidence bag (which tracks) and a hazardous waste bag (again…considering the threat that relics purportedly pose in uprisings, they’re the equivalent of incendiary devices).
What’s most threatening about these reveals is that Jules thinks she’s being sly by using the rules to open her investigation into the Pez relic. The reality is that she doesn’t fully understand the rules of the very dangerous game she’s playing. Or if the rules even apply!
Clearly The Pact applies to the vast majority of the silo’s 10K citizens, but it seems to me that they *don’t* apply to men like Bernard and Sims, who are actively propping up the system using The Pact and (mostly) law-abiding citizens like Billings. Now that we know that there’s a whole other system in place for monitoring/tracking/eavesdropping on citizens (clearly without their knowledge or consent) then who can say what other measures are in place? We already know people will murder to keep these secrets quiet!
I’ll confess it does slightly dilute the ending a little. While the pull back to reveal that Jules (and seemingly every other member) of the silo is being watched is unequivocally great, I’m a little annoyed that Jules would be so careless after the great lengths that Regina went to to hide this relic.
It’s a minor quibble, but I wanted Jules to be smarter (yes, about something she doesn’t know exists! Lol).
But Terry, back to you: do you agree with me that Bernard and Sims are behind this surveillance state? Were you moved by Martha’s speech? Any new insights into Judge Meadows (Tanya Moodie), who really wants Turnball’s case closed, or Lukas, the cafeteria conspiracy theorist? And how funny is it seeing characters react to innocuous items from “the Before Times”?
TERRY
Oh I’m glad you brought up Judge Meadows, Joe, because her one scene in this episode was…peculiar. It starts with her looking annoyed and bothered by something. We soon find out she’s not feeling very well and while the conversation continues, there’s this moment that focuses on her glass and her face. By the end of the scene, she definitely did not look well and my immediate thought was, “was she poisoned?”
It’s been the killer’s MO to use a poison, because they did it with Mayor Jahns. Part of me wonders if Sims is in the midst of a coup. He seems ambitious enough and has no qualms in the killing department. So far, Judge Meadows comes across as a figurehead and it’s Sims who seems to be pressing forward with all of the plans.
As for other mysterious characters, Lukas is an intriguing one. He has a silly pickup line and tries his hand at basic flirting with Jules that gets her smiling. I’m still unsure what his motives are but, right now, I’m guessing he’s going to be the catalyst for realizing the outside world they’re seeing is being faked or something.
I did enjoy Martha’s speech about time and how, once you get older, you have a real understanding of the concept of it. “You can talk to me about time,” she says, “when you can’t step outside the door. When seconds become years.” It makes me sad because Martha has basically made a tomb for herself. It sounds agonizing when you take that fact and mix it with her comment that seconds become years.
We also get a very brief glimpse of Martha and some other woman in a picture…Silo doesn’t give us the best glimpse and it’s, of course, a younger couple…but I couldn’t help but wonder if that other woman was Judge Meadows. I’m not sure if the series has told us what happened to Martha’s ex…is it possible she was ambitious and chose a life in Judicial over her love? Or is it just a random person?
Finally, it does crack me up about the amount of weight that the characters give to “Before Times” relics, like the Pez dispenser. I have more regard for the travel book, though, because it shows a life that could be. If anything, that is the most dangerous relic someone could have because it shows forests and rivers and a world teeming with beauty and life. Something sorely lacking from the chrome and steel home they all know. That kind of thing could easily cause a rebellion.
And here we have Jules just casually looking at it, not realizing the amount of trouble she could very well be in.
It’s getting very exciting, Joe, and I can’t wait to see where Silo takes us next week when we’re back at Gayly Dreadful for “The Flamekeepers.”
Silo airs Fridays on Apple TV