Raised by Wolves is a new series on HBO Max, HBO’s new streaming service. There was a lot of hype around the show since it’s executive produced by the legend, Ridley Scott. After watching the trailer, I decided to give the show a shot. So far, there are 5 episodes on the streaming service, with new episodes being released every Thursday. Since I’m already literally and figuratively invested in the show, I figured I’d share my thoughts with you readers!
Warning: my recap and review will NOT be spoiler-free.
Recap
In Nature’s Course, we learn how flawed nature can be. Not just nature itself, but human nature too.
Paul is struggling to stay balanced on the stick in a giant hole. He attempted to grab his bag with his pet mouse inside. That doesn’t work. The bag and the mouse fall down the pit and burn up. Things can only get better, right? Of course, they don’t. Paul is now dangling for the stick and screaming for help. Mother, who sometimes can track him and sometimes not, finally hears his screams. Hooray, Paul is saved from a fiery death! Mother tells Paul to sleep and like magic, the boy is sleeping. I wish I had that when my son was a baby. Mother returns home and lays Paul in his bed. Campion tells Mother that Father saved everyone and that Father is useful. Mother gives Campion a look that’s the equivalent of “that’s nice dear.”
Over in the deserts of Kepler, things are getting hot. I mean that literally and figuratively, the Mithraics are hot and starving as they walk across the white sand. Marcus/Caleb has to hold the chariot that Ambrose, his holiness sits on as a punishment. One of the Mithraics spots a large stone structure that is shaped like a pentagon. The stones are giving off heat. This is part of the prophecy of Sol. Ambrose decides they need to get inside of it and the best way to do that is with explosives. Lady Holiness says they shouldn’t because they don’t know what’s inside. Ambrose then decides that the tired, hot, and hungry survivors should slowly chip at it to make a door. His Holiness will sit under a tarp and watch. Marcus is steaming! Yes, that was a pun.
Father and Mother discuss what they should do with the creature they have trapped in the pantry. Father wants to kill it and feed it to the children. Mother offers to do it, so it will be quick. Father says he will do it because he is feeling useless and losing respect for himself. It’s a rare moment where we see Father be “human.” Mother has one request, to do it quickly so it doesn’t suffer because Campion will be heartbroken if he knows the creature suffered.
Back in the desert. Sue is inspecting Ambrose’s hand which was damaged. Sue asks his Eminence if they could please look for the children. Ambrose takes this time to be a creep and tells her a line about light and darkness while touching her face. Sue doesn’t recognize what he is saying and this makes Ambrose suspicious. Fake Sue and fake Marcus are in trouble.
We return to the settlement, where Campion is trying to release the creature from the pantry, he knows Father is going to kill it. Father catches him and tells Campion he needs to grow up. He hands Campion a spear and says he has to be the one to kill it. Campion says he doesn’t want to grow up, so he won’t be killing anything. Oh, baby. It doesn’t work that way. Father gathers the others and tells them that Campion is being a baby and won’t kill the creature, so one of them has to do it. As you can imagine, there are no volunteers. Father emphasizes that they need to eat to survive and this is apart of life. Holly takes the spear and stabs the creature but doesn’t kill it. The creature shrieks loudly and everyone runs off in fear.
It is now nighttime and that means it is cold! The Mithraics sleep against the pentagon hoping to stay warm. Marcus begins to hear a loud whistling sound. However, only he can hear it and it alarms the others. Ambrose orders for Marcus to be held down and calls him a “ticker.” I’m assuming that means crazy. Ambrose wants to shoot him and Sue is like wait a damn minute! Sue finds an earworm in Marcus’ ear. It’s weapon Mithraics created. Marcus uses this opportunity to accuse Ambrose of trying to kill him. One of the Mithraics notes that the stones are not radiating heat anymore. Ambrose blames Marcus for having Sol turn it’s back on them. Ambrose suggests they blow a hole in the structure but he doesn’t want to be the one to do it. Now Ambrose looks crazy and Marcus takes advantage. He gives an amazing speech on how his Holiness has lost his faith and defies Sol! Marcus then places Ambrose’s face on the stones, the stones heat up and Ambrose catches on fire! Everyone watches as Ambrose burns to death. However, they seem happier that they have heat again. Priorities. Sue asks Marcus how did he know to do that. To her surprise, he replies, “I heard a voice.”
In the orange igloo, Tempest finds the scalpel Mother made from their pendants. They make you believe she’s going to cut her baby out. She doesn’t. Instead, she uses it to kill the creature. She cuts the creature open and eats what looks like its bleeding heart. Next, we hear screams! Father comes out and finds Tempest holding something. Her face is in utter horror, what she is holding is the creature’s now-dead fetus. The creature was pregnant. Just like Tempest. Tempest drops to her knees and cries over the dead fetus. The scene is heartbreaking. As a mother myself, I was crying!
Review
Nature’s Course was an interesting episode. The show has illuded to a prophecy about a boy with no belief on a virgin planet. They want you to believe that is Campion. That he is this special empath. What if the boy is Marcus/Caleb? Caleb is an atheist, trapped on a not so virgin planet, but he could hear Sol. Speaking of virgin planet, Kepler 22b has life forms on it. So it can’t be a virgin. Why didn’t Mother or Father ever sense them? I find it hard to believe for 12 years they didn’t thoroughly check the entire planet! Also, why didn’t either them do any tests or study the creature? They would have discovered that it was pregnant. Perhaps that’s part of the flawed course of nature? But our the characters and the plot too flawed? Guess we will have to wait and see.
I give episode 4 a B-
What do you think about my theory of Marcus being the boy from the prophecy? Share your thoughts with us in the comments and on our Facebook, Twitter & Instagram.
I thought they alluded to the fact that the creatures came out once the Ark crashed on the planet, thus opening up another layer of the planet’s surface – then those beings emerged.