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Editor's note: The below recap contains spoilers for Silo Season 2 Episode 9.
Silo Season 2 hasn't finished its run yet, but Episode 9 all but guarantees this show has defeated the "sophomore slump" — that dreaded effect when the follow-up to a stellar debut season ranges from disappointing to an all-out fumble. Since this is Season 2's penultimate episode, I could be putting the cart before the horse here. But having faith in an Apple TV+ sci-fi series is a pretty safe bet, and this week's installment raises the bar even where the consistently superb Silo is concerned. "The Safeguard," written by Jessica Blaire and directed by Amber Templemore, provides answers to enough key questions to satiate our theorizing minds while still holding back enough for next week's finale.
'Silo' Season 2 Episode 9 Kicks Off With a Serious Twist
Episode 9 opens with a flashback recontextualizing Juliette's half of the season. First, we see two of the three characters who attacked Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) last week, as well as a baby and an older boy (Reggie Absolom), enjoying some routine domesticity. A warning signal sends the adults hurrying to rendezvous with their third compatriot, who's spotted an intruder entering the Silo. From several levels above, the trio — whose names are Audrey (Georgina Sadler), Rick (Orlando Norman), and Eater (Sara Hazemi) — watch a newly entered and rapidly asphyxiating Juliette tear off her helmet in Episode 1. As the following scenes progress, we learn they've been keeping tabs on Juliette this entire time, with Audrey, the "kill first, ask questions never" archer, immediately trying to land a stealth kill by slicing Juliette's rope while the older woman is dangling hundreds of feet above deep water. Yes, this moment was sabotage, not Juliette's natural bad luck. Rick demonstrates more empathetic leanings by sneaking down to the flooded levels and tossing Juliette a makeshift flotation device.
When they spot Solo (Steve Zahn) emerging from the Vault and begging Juliette to stay, Audrey wonders if he's "the Killer" and asserts they must pay him the same courtesy. A brief fight between Rick and Solo during Juliette's Episode 8 dive ends with Solo alive but unconscious; Rick argues that they keep Solo alive long enough for him to get them inside the Vault. Audrey relents somewhat on that score, but has no interest in keeping Juliette alive and treats Eater with disdain, the latter prompting Eater to go rogue and attack Juliette during last week's final moments. Caught up to the present, Juliette assures her armed foes that she plans to leave as soon as she retrieves something she needs from Solo. Rick pivots the situation to their mutual advantage, agreeing that Juliette can see Solo, but only if she breaks into the Vault. Audrey stamps an addendum onto that ultimatum — Juliette only has up until the next time Audrey's baby cries out for a feeding. If she hasn't succeeded by then, Solo dies.
Juliette Discovers the Truth About Solo in 'Silo' Season 2 Episode 9
After this exchange, Eater semi-latches onto Juliette, asking if she can go outside with her and offering to help Juliette crack the Vault code. Their dynamic echoes the one Juliette and Solo initially shared, with the curious, lonely Eater asking the older woman questions as well as sharing some crucial backstory. Those corpses lying outside the Vault entrance belong to Chase, Audrey's father, and Tess, Rick's mother. Eater's mom has been deceased even longer, having asked Chase and Tess to look after her daughter before passing. Even though the group would have eventually run out of food one way or another, the other children blame Eater for Chase and Tess' decision to try breaking into the Vault and their subsequent deaths at Solo's hands — hence her derogatory "name," Eater, the equivalent of just another mouth to feed.
Juliette, while not unsympathetic, quizzes Eater for any information she might have that will help them open the Vault. After hearing that Chase and Tess had written down all the failed keypad combinations they tried, Juliette realizes where: the schoolroom chalkboard from Episode 3. Extrapolating off those records, Juliette calculates other options and enters in her own two failed tries. With just one try left before she's locked out for 24 hours, Juliette starts piecing together Solo's inconsistent statements. Asking Eater how long ago the rebellion happened and learning that Eater's mom was a baby back then, Juliette deduces that Solo was far more important than IT head Russell Conroy's (Nick Haverson) official shadow — Solo was Russell's son.
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Juliette and Eater's joint efforts convince Rick to let Juliette visit Solo. Audrey arrives, bow and arrow in hand, but Rick holds her off, wanting to hear Solo's explanation about why he killed their parents. Gently, Juliette confronts Solo with his real name — Jimmy — and helps the man unpack his trauma. A 12-year-old boy (Cameron Bell) when the rebellion broke out, Jimmy obeyed his father and stayed inside the Vault, refusing to let anyone inside, even when the Silo's sheriff (Ross McCall) fatally shot Russell right outside the Vault entrance. Russell was just a father protecting his child, not a holier-than-thou Silo servant protecting ancient secrets. That revelation softens Audrey; vice versa, hearing that a baby and its parents need food breaks through the agonized haze of Jimmy's PTSD. He opens the Vault, the layout of which almost identically matches the Legacy from Episode 7. Jimmy returns Juliette's suit to her and, when prompted by Juliette, acknowledges that he put her through hell making a suit from scratch when there was an old, unused one stuffed inside a locker the entire time. Once Jimmy realizes Juliette stayed to save his life, both of them barely avoid crying.
The Billings and Sims Families Pick a Side in 'Silo' Season 2 Episode 9
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Back in the old Silo, Paul (Chinaza Uche) and Kathleen Billings (Caitlin Zoz) discuss the ramifications of that illegal tourist ad for the Blue Ridge Mountains. Both agree they deserve to know what happened to their planet, Pact rules or no Pact rules. Paul, refusing to fall in line with what the Up Top expects from him, offers his unconditional support to Knox (Shane McRae) and Shirley (Remmie Milner). Unfortunately, the latter wisely points out that a sheriff who publicly made Bernard Holland (Tim Robbins) his enemy can't provide much real help. Camille Sims (Alexandria Riley), however, might be a valuable ally; as long as they offer her something tempting enough to risk her sticking her neck out again, like she did when she helped Knox and Shirley escape, she could be an ally worth cautiously pursuing.
Knowing that tempting Robert Sims (Common) with the promise of a relic would be easier than getting Camille to meet at the barricade for a face-to-face meeting, Paul slips Robert the picture of the mountains. In their quarters, the Sims decide if there's any chance a healthy world exists outside the Silo, then they owe it to their son to throw in their lot with the rebels. Plus, Mechanical stands a good chance of overthrowing Holland if the Sims hold up their end of the bargain, and if Bernard's out of the picture, then leadership has a power vacuum ready for the Sims to step into.
An unfortunate side effect of Mechanical gaining Paul's support, however, is how it prompts Knox to drop by Martha's (Harriet Walter) workshop. He shares Billings' change of heart with Martha and promises that, with the sheriff's help, they plan to rescue Carla (Clare Perkins) as soon as they've gained an advantage over Holland. Courtesy of Martha's re-activated room camera, a smirking Holland hears everything. During a later scene, Billings' ability to sneak a note past the barricade prompts Knox to realize the identity of Mechanical's mole — or so he claims. Cue him paying Martha another visit and crediting Teddy's (Olatunji Ayofe) mother as the traitor, but they can't blame her when she's just trying to protect her loved one, right? Oh, and since Shirley's too busy to brainstorm right then, here's how the rebellion plans to use the rest of the gunpowder they took from Supply. Place our bets now whether this is earnest innocence or Knox laying a trap for Bernard.
Lukas Makes a Jaw-Dropping Discovery in 'Silo' Season 2 Episode 9
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Speaking of the IT department — Lukas Kyle (Avi Nash) still hasn't solved Salvador Quinn's code. After further digging seems to produce a positive result, Kyle hides Quinn's copy of the Pact with his mother before talking his way through the barricade. He earns Shirley's attention by dropping Juliette's name and her relationship with George Wilkins (Ferdinand Kingsley), and he'll explain the why and where of Juliette's potential survival in exchange for Shirley escorting him down to the Silo's lowest safe level. Doubtful about his sincerity, Shirley nevertheless agrees. After Kyle shares the information he's recently gleaned from Holland about the camera inside Juliette's helmet (but failing to mention she arrived at another Silo before they lost the camera's signal), Shirley and Kyle briefly reminiscence about Juliette. Then, Kyle shares his suspicion that the water levels at the Silo's very bottom aren't high enough to drown in; that's a lie intended to discourage curious people from poking around and finding a top-secret tunnel.
Shirley leaves Kyle to his spelunking, and his hunch proves correct. When he's several feet down the tunnel and inches away from a giant door, a disembodied, electronic voice demands to know why he's snooping around. Kyle replies he's following instructions from Salvador Quinn. After a pause, the voice states, "Before you, only three people have reached this door: Salvador Quinn, Mary Meadows, and George Wilkins. I did not speak with Wilkins. Quinn and Meadows were both given the same directive you will now receive. If you speak to anyone about this conversation or what you have seen down here, we will have no choice but to initiate the Safeguard.” Prompted to answer whether he knows what the Safeguard is, Kyle answers in the affirmative.
New episodes of Silo Season 2 premiere weekly on Fridays and are available to stream on Apple TV+.
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This week's episode raises the bar even where the consistently superb Silo is concerned.
Pros
- This week's revelations about season-long mysteries are riveting to watch unfold whether viewers picked up on the foreshadowing or not, elevating Season 2's consistent, cohesive writing to another level.
- Steve Zahn's sensitive performance makes Solo/Jimmy's scenes this week incredibly moving, especially since Solo's nuances could easily be overplayed.
- Audrey, Rick, and Eater are welcome additions to the cast who make a complex impression with minimal shared screentime.
In a dystopian future, men and women reside in a vast underground silo governed by strict regulations, believed to shield them from the hazardous world above. The series delves into the complex social order within the silo and the mysteries surrounding their subterranean existence.
Release Date May 5, 2023
Creator
Studio
Story By Hugh Howey
Showrunner Graham Yost
Seasons 2
English (US) ·