Netflix UK TV review: Sense8 Season 2, Episodes 7, 8 and 9
Review Overview
Emotional intensity
8Scope
9Science
7Chris Bryant | On 09, May 2017
Warning: This contains spoilers for Episodes 7, 8 and 9. Watch along with our binge-reviews of Sense8 Season 2 here.
Sense8’s exhilarating second season continues, as the Sensates push toward freedom, while uncovering the history of B.P.O., their species, and the clusters that came before them.
A cluster of ‘Sensate-Supremacists’ are the focus of Episode 8, following Wolfgang’s slow-burning story arc this season. One of the original members of B.P.O. connects with Riley and explains his role to her. This expansion of the Sensate world, a largely underground and fugitive community, is a strong addition to the show, which has become a parable to minorities everywhere.
Sense8 tackles a library of diversity issues, putting faith in a largely unknown cast, as well as ensuring that a range of non-binary lifestyles are taken into account. Coupled with the story of rebellion against the fear of the masses, Sense8 is a genuine accomplishment for the cast and crew, and a beacon for outsiders everywhere.
Pushing forward with the story, Sense8 naturally still takes time to show off not only the dedicated cast and experienced crew, but also the phenomenal locations in which each of the characters exist. A playful, well-choreographed fight between Sun and her pursuer is a prime example of the way each scene is crafted with a backdrop of wonderful architecture and vibrant colour. It gives the show a hard-earned worldly feel; the stark difference in all their lives only serves to show how similar each of the cluster are.
With an exploration of the pills, the biology and chemistry of the Sensates, and the evolving history of B.P.O, the show acts as a fantastic merging for the scientific logic and emotive connections of the group. Their connection cannot be defined or explained, but their genetics and abilities can be identified – Wachowski and Straczynski’s writing shape a thought-provoking equilibrium of the two which forms the basis for much of the second season.
Chasing down their heritage as a team, naturally, the individual members of the cluster have problems to deal with. Where the first season had time to tell their separate stories in full detail, the second ensures the empathy for the characters by keeping their stories distinct, impactful and relatable. Kala’s struggle with her husband’s pharmaceutical practices, Lito’s rejection from the film industry, and Wolfgang’s entwinement with seductive anarchists are all framed via the reactions of the other Sensates, in a compassion-fuelled eco-system in which questions of equality are provided to the audience, via the implied reactions of their fellow Sensates.
Marching forward with its vivid tale of evolution, empathy, and worldwide morality, these three episodes explore the history of their species, as well as taking moments to tell personal stories without losing any of their emotional intensity. Coupled with a stunning fight sequence, and an arresting sex sequence, Sense8 maintains its pace and style, while creating an even larger world of ethics, relationships, and insurgence.
All episodes of Sense8 Season 1 and 2 are available to watch exclusively on Netflix UK, as part of an £9.99 monthly subscription.