'Timeless' Retro Recap: 'Party at Castle Varlar'

Written by John Edward Betancourt

​I have to admit, the more time I’ve had to think about the ending of the last episode of Timeless, wherein we came to discover that Flynn had his hands on a plutonium core, the more I found myself concerned about what the heck he was going to do with it. Because having that kind of a device means nothing but trouble and it made me slightly nervous to settle in to watch the next chapter in this grand and sweeping tale because this is a show that doesn’t mess around, since it resolves plot threads aggressively and considering the fact that evil is everywhere at this point in the story, I expected this nuclear mess to come to a head in epic and harrowing fashion.
 
All of these feelings and concerns were further amplified by the fact that ‘Party at Castle Varlar’ opened up with a glimpse of the Third Reich celebrating the launch of a powerful rocket in 1944, shortly before jumping back to present day to reveal that Flynn and his lackeys escaped with the nuclear core in the Mothership to that same place and time, mere moments before Wyatt and his team could capture them all, leaving an ominous cloud over this tale since it seemed quite plausible that the Time Team was going to face insurmountable odds to keep atomic weapons from getting into the hands of some of the worst people that history has ever known.
 
But, instead of being a supremely dark tale where the stakes were higher than ever, this episode actually ended up being quite the entertaining ride, since the Time Trio had the opportunity to hang out with Ian Fleming, the creator of the James Bond saga and every single scene that the team shared with Fleming was downright gold. But really, what made this particular story so worthwhile, is the sheer fact that the series once again found a way to provide us with some fantastic character development in the midst of a crisis since this story really served as Lucy’s arrival as a hero.
 
Because she spent most of this episode struggling with her newfound role as a defender of time, and it was fascinating to see the weight of history wearing her down since it truly humanized her as a character. And let’s be honest, her talk with Wyatt was quite the beautiful moment, since it demonstrated just how this team is starting to come together, how well these two understand one another and also because, Wyatt actually managed to inspire her and now that she has a cause to rally behind, we’re seeing a newfound confidence from Lucy and that’s just awesome when all is said and done.
 
Oddly enough, the feel-good moments didn’t quite end there because I also experienced a supreme sense of relief over the fact that Flynn didn’t give the nuke to the Nazis. Instead, it was converted into a power cell for the Mothership. Granted, that makes it harder to track, but it does foreshadow Flynn’s eventual turn to the proverbial light side and really, I’m thinking further ahead because this particular episode really didn’t do much to advance the overall plot and that’s not a bad thing. Because the spirit of adventure is what drives this series, and there’s plenty of time for the bigger story to unfold, since, as I mentioned before, this show always delivers and I cannot forget, that the quicker I watch this show, the quicker I get to those all-important moments. So, on that note, it’s time to settle in for another jaunt through history. Until next time.

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