‘Silo’ Recap: ‘The Engineer’

11/17/2024

Written by John Edward Betancourt

Rebecca Ferguson in "Silo," now streaming on Apple TV+.

Caution: This article contains spoilers for the Season Two Premiere of ‘Silo’. To revisit the Season One Finale, click here.

Truly, the hit Apple TV+ series, Silo, delivered one of the finest television cliffhangers in years in its season one finale. For we learned at long last, that the Silo was filled to the brim with secrets and that beyond its cuddly walls was death and devastation untold. Where echoes of the world we live in were present on a surface so alien. One filled with ash and grey over green and blue and of course, Juliette Nichols was immersed in that void and her future was left hanging. Which was a lot to process, and a lot to worry about and well… thankfully… the season two premiere of the show wasted little time in informing us what came after that shocking visual.

In that, Juliette made it over the ridge and deeper into this world, and what she discovered was just as shocking as the landscape. In that, she found another Silo in ‘The Engineer’, and this one… was surrounded by even more devastation. For at its doors were corpses upon corpses, all rotten and dry and piled high. As though everyone within the Silo was desperate to escape something horrific and unsettling, and that they were perhaps unaware of the dangers of the surface. Which brought forth a real unsettling vibe for Juliette, who had to navigate her way into that Silo, beyond death, for safety. For her suit had limited oxygen and time was indeed running out and well, she made it, and she was safe, and that led to a very different kind of episode.

One that saw Juliette work in the dark to find food, water, and uncover who or what was still lighting up the central office in this Silo. Which in turn, brought forth a stroke of genius storytelling wise, wherein Juliette put her skill set on display. Since she was able to learn through trial and error how to cross the chasm that existed between that office and the rest of the complex. Which allowed for her to figure out a safe and permanent path there, with good reason. Simply because buried in the vault of the complex, was a man. A rattled and broken one who threatened Juliette for attempting to open the door to his little shelter and who of course, brought up plenty of questions about how these two are going to get along, since there’s no going outside at the moment.

Kosha Engler and Ross McCall in "Silo," now streaming on Apple TV+.

Which truly gave rise to a fascinating episode, one that was told in mostly silence and one that informed us that there are more Silos out there and they have their own stories, which this show also explored. Since it spoke to how long ago, there was a rebellion in this Silo. One led by its sheriff and one that went to the nth degree. To the point where countermeasures were taken and where the gangway to the central office was blown to bits to prevent truth from getting out and to maintain control. Which failed, as did any requests for the truth about what happened topside and that led… to so much life lost. For the citizens of this Silo, were the ones strewn about above, who simply burst out into a devastated world to their hideous end. Which was sobering to learn and counterbalanced by more blasts from the past.

For this story not only showcased Juliette’s skills as an engineer, but how she came into them. All of which came about courtesy of her youth and her time in the lower levels of the Silo. Since she found unbridled freedom there. The kind that allowed for her to toy and tinker and learn how to fix things. Which made her invaluable quickly in this harsh world and it course, garnered her friends and respect and slowly led to her learning more about this strange future for mankind. Since she was shown what lie beneath the Silo, the very place that fascinated her in season one, and that was lovely to see play out. Since it further fleshed out the dynamic character that she is and helped us to understand that ingenuity and curiosity about how things should be in the world, are her calling and clearly, have taken her far in life.

But while it was indeed wonderful to learn more about her, and explore this shattered and devastated world further, there are still more questions that this particular tale inspired. After all, we now have confirmation of other Silos, and other groups of people living in this kind of isolation, and that leaves one to wonder… how many are there? Which in turn prompts more questions about why they are there, and why the planet is in this state. For we too are quite curious and eager to learn about this awful fate that mankind has endured and well, in the end, this was just an amazing season premiere. One that took the time to not only follow up on a critical cliffhanger but expand this world in a unique manner and compel us to continue the journey. Since this episode hints at the possibility that more will be revealed as season two continues along. Until next time.

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