DISCLAIMER: This recap of The Ark Season 1 Episode 10, “Hoping for Forever,” contains spoilers. Proceed at your peril.
Welcome back, space travelers! “Hoping for Forever” kicks the action up a notch as the team scrambles to save their own. We learn more about why Ark 15 attacked Ark One and Ark Three, along with the mastermind behind it all: William Trust’s adversary, Evelyn Maddox. You know, the one responsible for the FTL device. Additionally, our crew finally arrives at Proxima B, although the success is dimmed by the imminent threat posed by their attackers.
It’s a solid episode by The Ark’s standards. There are wooden performances, awkwardly-written dialogue and clunky action sequences. However, if you look past that, you’ll find an intriguing story gasping for air and desperate to shine. I have to remind myself that this isn’t The Expanse or prestige sci-fi; it’s a silly series that borders on the fantastical that endeavors to entertain above all else. And, of course, characterization takes precedence. However, there aren’t too many likable characters on that front.
Ready to delve into “Hoping for Forever”? Let’s get to it.
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We open with Kelly (Samantha Glassner) pointing a gun at William (Paul Leonard Murray) and Helena Trust (Mercedes De La Cruz). At the same time, Cat (Christina Wolfe) cowers in the corner, and Lane (Reece Ritchie) watches, aghast. Kelly wishes to take William back to Ark 15 to her boss, but Helena stands in front of her husband to shield him. Suddenly, Lane pounces on Kelly from behind, culminating in her punching him in the nose and a struggle for the gun with Helena. Unfortunately, the weapon fires mid-struggle, shooting Helena in the abdomen. She falls backward. Uh-oh.
Meanwhile, Lt. Garnet (Christie Burke), Lt. Brice (Richard Fleeshman), Eva (Tiana Upcheva) and Felix (Pavle Jerinic) observe while Ark 15 looms before them. What do they want, anyway? Garnet attempts to hail them but to no avail. Felix spots a shuttle approaching Ark One. Garnet orders a lockdown while Eva tries to weld shut the shuttle’s entry point into the ship. Brice observes Eva’s work, still unable to trust her after her betrayal. Jelena (Tamara Radovanović) tries to assist Felix as he does his part to protect the crew; however, he rebuffs her, citing her contribution to the mutiny. Understandable.
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Then, Garnet and the others hide while the Ark 15 members burst through the door, guns blazing. Garnet distracts them by talking while she opens the airlock with her comms device. Needless to say, their intruders fly out of the airlock. Huzzah! Garnet orders the ship to remain in lockdown until the threat is neutralized. Speaking of threats, Marko (Vahidin Prelić) slithers through the airlock and into Ark One undetected. He reunites with Kelly in the holding cell and orders Lane to lead him to the ship’s DNA vault. Meanwhile, Kelly binds Angus and William’s wrists and pushes them out, leaving Cat to tend to Helena. Helena knows she’s dying, but Cat’s determined to save her, so she calls for help.
Marko grabs the vial Ark 15 needs from the DNA vault. Kelly believes they should steal Ark One’s shuttle since Garnet and the team are disabling their getaway transport. However, Felix interrupts their escape. He launches into battle against Marko and rises victorious, shooting Marko dead. Take that! Kelly zaps Felix while our head of security asks her if she even knew Robert. Kelly reveals she didn’t. Liar, liar, pants on fire.
Later, Kelly orders Lane to pilot the shuttle to Ark 15 after Angus tells her the former lieutenant can fly. Oops. Cat and Helena have a heart-to-heart as the latter struggles to stay alive. Helena asks Cat to relay to William how much she loves him. Then, she lets slip that she knows about Cat’s feelings for William. But she believes Cat never acted on those feelings. Eh, it’s probably not a good idea to drop that kind of info on a dying woman. Cat sobs as she watches her best friend of 15 years fade away. Helena dies after making Cat promise to keep William safe.
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Then, Kelly, William, Lane and Angus board Ark 15. None other than Evelyn Maddox (Jelena Stupljanin), William’s archnemesis, greets them when they arrive. We learn that Kelly is her daughter. Lane makes himself useful to Evelyn by revealing he knows the ins and outs of the command on Ark One. Chances are Garnet will want to save Angus. However, Kelly failed to bring the “package” from the ship — the whole reason they attacked said vessel in the first place. It’s most likely with Marko.
Next, Garnet, Brice, Eva, Felix, Alicia (Stacey Read) and Dr. Kabir (Shalini Peiris) hold a council meeting to discuss their next steps. Ark 15 is heading to Proxima B, so they could give chase despite their attackers possessing more weaponry and means of defense. Alicia insists they must save Angus because she likes him. Oh, gotta love a good romantic confession. The crew would have to alter their course from Ross 128B, though. Garnet wants to question Cat to see what Kelly wanted.
Garnet and Felix find Cat sobbing uncontrollably in the holding cell. She laments the loss of her best friend and lover (not the same person). Damn, Christina Wolfe is an excellent crier. Garnet tries to calm Cat down and reassures her they can discuss her feelings later. Cat discloses that Kelly and Marko needed access to the DNA vault. For her part, Garnet upgrades Cat’s house arrest to her quarters. Garnet, Alicia and Felix find a vial missing from the DNA vault, but Marko made sure to remove the label. After they find the “package” on his person, Alicia runs a quick test and reveals it’s the DNA of a rather poisonous spider.
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Meanwhile, Evelyn leads William and Lane to the bridge. Lane comments on the opulent art adorning the walls and lining the corridors. Evelyn had to secure it all before the world burned. For historical purposes, naturally. We learn that she and her crew stole Ark 15, as did many folks trying to leave Earth. Many of the Arks were hijacked. Once the trio reaches the bridge, Evelyn introduces the guys to a spectacular view of Proxima B. Evelyn killed the commanding officers on Ark One and decimated Ark Three in search of something valuable — the spider DNA. She also wanted to kill William and Helena.
We learn that Proxima B is an “eyeball planet.” In The Ark world, that means it doesn’t spin on its axis. Thus, one side of the planet is super hot from sun exposure, while the other is bitingly cold. Therefore, it cannot sustain human life. However, not all is lost. William invented a series of devices to restart planetary rotation. Ark 15 already deployed the devices on Proxima B. All Evelyn needs is the programming from William. Evelyn promises that if William complies, he can live in the lap of luxury on Prox B. William tells her to piss off (well, the equivalent), so she sends him and Lane to a holding cell.
Lane wonders why William didn’t take Evelyn’s deal. William knows she’ll kill him if he divulges the programming info, so this keeps him alive. Meanwhile, Alicia and Kabir excitedly tell Brice and the others why Ark 15 wanted the spider DNA. It’s a component that helps cure Klampkins disease, aka the same terminal illness that Brice has. Garnet believes someone important must have it on Ark 15.
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Kelly brings Angus food while he sulks in his new quarters. She hopes they can one day share a room. Girl, he’s not into you. Stop your murdering self while you’re ahead. Angus asks Kelly what she was doing on Ark Three. We learn she was part of a boarding party to search for the package. A few Ark Three crew members were waiting for them, and they took out some of Kelly’s comrades.
Thus, Kelly laid waste to everyone on the ship. Her mom assumed she was dead and left her there to die. Angus strikes a nerve by claiming Evelyn Maddox doesn’t love her. Kelly, irritated, departs Angus’s room.
After evading Ark 15’s missiles by putting up their shield, our crew makes a beeline for Proxima B. When they arrive, Garnet hails Evelyn and reveals she has the spider DNA. They can conduct an exchange: the DNA for the prisoners. Initially, Evelyn claims she doesn’t know what Garnet’s referring to, but she eventually agrees to the swap. Brice and Eva argue about who will accompany the former to pick up Lane and Angus (Evelyn wants to keep William). They inadvertently let slip that they’re sleeping together, much to the surprise of everyone on the bridge.
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Garnet decides to ride the shuttle while Stella Cogner (Jelena Moore) pilots it. Garnet has a plan up her sleeve. While en route to Ark 15, Stella eagerly tells Garnet that she also slept with Brice. Hey, he’s a good-looking Scottish fella. When they dock, Stella meets with Evelyn to oversee the exchange. She hands the spider DNA over to Evelyn’s scientist, who must test it to ensure it’s the real deal.
Stella protests, claiming that’s not part of the plan. She reveals that her colleague, Garnet, has a bomb in their shuttle that she won’t hesitate to detonate. Evelyn insists she’ll send Lane and Angus over to Ark One after the tests are successful.
When Stella returns, Brice and Eva ask her if Evelyn fell for their ruse. Meanwhile, Garnet sneakily enters Ark 15 in a moment that mirrors Marko’s stealth entry. She wanders through the decorated hallways to find Lane and Angus herself. The episode ends with a wide shot of both ships in orbit above Proxima B.
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Christina Wolfe steals “Hoping for Forever,” proving Cat’s more than the “dumb blonde” stereotype she initially represents. The Ark loves their character archetypes. Wolfe imbues Cat with searing vulnerability and heartbreak. We feel for Cat and the immense loss burdening her.
So far, I’m not sure what to think of Evelyn Maddox. She reads like any run-of-the-mill billionaire villain. Perhaps she’ll wow me in the coming episodes. We only have two left in the season, after all.
Do you think Garnet will save Angus and Lane in time? Will the team find enough spider DNA and the missing components to cure Brice of Klampkins? Will William hand over the programming necessary to put his devices on Proxima B into action? Only time (and two more episodes) will tell.
The Ark drops new episodes every Wednesday at 10/9c on Syfy.
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