Ron Does Stuff

At the end of the last episode, Aleksander was gearing up to join resistance forces in Istanbul, while Deryn is off on a mission that will enable the Behemoth to attack the Clankers’ Tesla coil-equipped warship. Which one of them will succeed?

Deryn and her group are off at the crack of dawn, escaping the heavily guarded Leviathan thanks to Huxleys that were used as a distraction while they escape through the same hole in the fence that Aleksander had made how many days or weeks ago. However, they immediately run into trouble as one of their group gets caught and shot, before they even get anywhere near the anti-Kraken net they’re supposed to disable.

Elsewhere in Istanbul, Aleksander is headed off to the Blue Mosque, under the supervision of Lilit, one of the members of the resistance forces and a girl his age. Klopp is against this, saying that they should be leaving and hiding instead, and even brings up that just like the Serbians, the resistance forces are planning to kill their “master”, which is the antiquated thinking that Aleksander is trying to shrug off.

Over at the Blue Mosque, Deryn is trying to catch a glimpse of Aleksander, and while she does find him, she finds him together with Lilit, which of course has her feeling a certain way. Baby, Aleksander thinks you’re a man right now. You’re just ~a friend~. Deryn follows them around but is eventually spotted by Lilit, who attacks her and in the process manages to feel her up. Secret’s out!

Lilit, however, is a girl’s girl and doesn’t make it obvious that she knows. She does take Deryn back to the resistance fighters base with them, where Deryn is questioned and mistrusted because, as Zaven correctly points out, she’s still one of the colonizers. Deryn refuses to cooperate, saying she’s a soldier, but the unsaid thing here is she’s a little miffed that Aleksander is with another girl.

Aleksander springs Deryn out of the resistance forces’ prison later that night, and on the rooftop they have a discussion about what they’re going to do now. Deryn gets back the loris and asks if Aleksander is fighting with the resistance because of Lilit, who as it happens is listening in on this conversation as well. But really, there was no need because Deryn decides to join Aleksander and the resistance forces anyway.

It’s not a smooth transition, of course, as Zaven is deeply distrustful of the British and doesn’t even want Deryn to go off on the mission to disable the anti-Kraken net after Nene reveals that the two other soldiers that went to disarm it also ended up dead. But it’s Lilit who steps up and advocates for them and even volunteers to go with Aleksander and Deryn to disarm the net. And of course, with two women doing the job, it goes well.

Back at the base of the resistance forces, there’s a little awkwardness when Aleksander and Lilit try to make Deryn join them in a little song. Deryn thinks it’s because she’s getting in the way of the two of them, but Aleksander thinks it’s Deryn that Lilit wants. Aleksander then says that he admires Deryn and Lilit for being brave and intelligent and pure of heart, and now Deryn doesn’t know how to act.

Now that we’re past the midway point of the show, I think it’s fair to take stock of everything we’ve seen so far and assess. So far, one of the weak points of the show — which isn’t really a weak point if you think about it — is that it’s clearly intended for a younger audience. The central idea is strong and is the reason why I’m still enjoying watching it, but at this point in my eldritch existence I’m looking for a more aged-up version of the show. BUT, I also recognize that young people need media aimed solely for them and not catering to adults as well, so I’m going to let it go and enjoy the show.