Entertainment

'The Tomorrow People': Things Fall Apart

by Kayleigh Roberts

Wednesday's episode of The Tomorrow People, "Things Fall Apart," lived up to its name. Everything was falling apart; the Tomorrow People's leadership, Stephen's double-agentry (FINALLY), even the truth behind some big reveals from last week (like the idea that Stephen's baby brother Luca was also a Tomorrow Person). Some of this falling apart was eye-roll inducing, but some of it was actually semi-interesting. Here are some of the best and worst moments from this week's episode.

Best: Stephen Quits Ultra

Now, if you've been following my coverage of The Tomorrow People at all, you know that one of my pet peeves is the show's protagonist, Stephen. It's not a great sign for a series when a weekly viewer lists its protagonist as a pet peeve, but I digress. One of the things that keeps Stephen on my shit list is his terrible, ill-conceived and even more poorly-executed role as a double agent. All season long, Stephen has been pretending to work as an Ultra agent while not-even-remotely-secretly maintaining a strong alliance with the Tomorrow People. Ultra thinks he's a double agent for them, the TP think he's a double agent for them. His real loyalty is to the Tomorrow People, but he does about as much harm as good for their organization, even with the best of intentions. It's a little sad, when you think about it. But this week, finally (FINE. AH. LEE.), Stephen ended the charade and quit Ultra. Since he was actually in the running for worst double agent in the history of ever, this is a very, very welcome turn of events.

Worst: Ultra Just Let Stephen Walk Away

The problem with Stephen quitting Ultra is that Stephen was the one in charge of it, and he rarely does anything that makes sense. Luckily, this lack of making the obviously best decision seems to be hereditary, since Jedikiah is similarly stupid this week. Stephen quits Ultra right in Jed's office, in Ultra HQ. Am I the only one who doesn't understand why he was allowed to just walk away instead of being, oh I don't know, detained and stripped of his powers since he's officially a rogue agent?

Best: Stephen Defends Astrid

When Stephen quits, the founder of Ultra gives him a final assignment: Find his TP daughter, Cassie, and bring her back to Ultra. In exchange, he's willing to guarantee Astrid's safety. Stephen finds said daughter, thinks he's suavely fake-wooing her and isolates her. When they're attacked, he teleports her back to TP HQ, which she thinks is an Ultra safe house. It turns out, she's been trying to expose herself in the hope that Ultra will strip her of her powers. Something awful has been happening to her at Ultra (she's one of the evil organizations many test dummies) and she'd rather be human. It's obvious that she's valuable, strange and worth keeping around, but Stephen is ready to give her up in a heartbeat to get Astrid her life back. It's nice to see Stephen have a likable flaw.

Worst: He Doesn't Listen to Helpful Uncle Jed

While Jedikiah should have at least detained Stephen after he announced that he quit, he did at least show some of his good guy side when he warned him not to trust Ultra's founder. Of course, Stephen is Stephen and Jed is right so Stephen didn't listen. He ends up captured and almost plugged in for a direct psychic exam courtesy of the founder.

Best: John Defies Cara

John decides to take things into his own hands when Stephen goes off the grid (you know, when he's captured and almost violated) and takes Cassie to Ultra, like Stephen wanted to. (Cara vetoed it.) It turns out to be the right move because she psychically senses Stephen's danger and is able to turn herself over in time to save him. When John gets back to the TP lair and Cara yells at him for his defiance, he tells her to suck it because he's going to do what he believes is best for the TP, no matter who is in charge.

Worst: Cara Kicks John Out of the Tomorrow People Club

This makes the worst list mainly as an excuse to point out why Cara sucks. She's a horrible leader who makes bad decisions. (If John hadn't defied her, Stephen would be completely lost to Ultra.) Kicking John out of the lair is probably going to backfire when the rest of the TP get tired of her tendency to eff things up. John, however, might be better off.

Best: Stephen was Wrong about Luca

I actually didn't mind the idea of Luca being a TP, but it's worth him not being one for the scene this week where Stephen tries to confront him about his powers… and ends up getting him to admit to owning a bong. WOMP WOMP.

Best/Worst: Stephen's Mom is a TP

I can't decide how I feel about this, but when Ultra agents try to take out Astrid even though Stephen was guaranteed her safety, Mama Jameson saves the day by revealing her powers and stopping a wall of bullets with her telekinesis. Looks like Stephen just pegged the wrong member of his family.

Image: The CW