Despite promising Liz that he'll take things easy with his new heart, Max sets out to find Cameron after learning that she's gone missing. Michael grows concerned about Maria after a surprising discovery about her family history leaves her vulnerable. Ready to move on, Alex goes on a date with Forrest. Rosa makes a decision about her future.
In 2019, the television industry aired 532 scripted shows across numerous outlets. The way people consume content now is different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, it's less necessary to provide ample coverage of each episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site provides shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of The CW's Roswell, New Mexico.
"Say It Ain't So" was written by Eva McKenna & Christopher Hollier and directed by Rachel Raimist
Jesse Manes represented the military threat to the aliens in the first season. It wasn't always a clear and persistent threat. It was more so an idea of what would happen if Max, Isobel and Michael were outed as aliens. They understood that they would be taken by the government to be experimented on. They can't allow that to happen. This season Jesse has occupied a different space. It hasn't entirely been necessary either. He exists as a character in order to better convey the internalized homophobia within Alex. But that's a much more engaging character note than anything Jesse offers by himself. It's compelling to listen to Alex as he talks with Forrest about his fears of kissing in public. He wants to embrace that connection with him. However, he can't shake his father's voice condemning everything that he does. That has long been who Jesse Manes is. And now, he is suddenly the retired master sergeant no longer in command of anything in his life - including his own body. He is striving for a new outlook. He provides information that could be useful to several people. But he still isn't an active component of the show. However, the show is introducing a new military threat in the private contractor, Deep Sky. Now, this plot thread mixes in with the mysterious abductions that have been happening this season. That has only taken two characters so far: Mimi and Cameron. It presented as the tradition alien abduction. People were isolated and suddenly taken by a flash of bright lights. This episode suggests that this threat may not be coming from something otherworldly. It may simply be a new version of the military that has utilized this framing device in order to achieve its own goals. Sure, it's absolutely vague and way too cryptic at the moment to be effective. The storytelling is simply connecting the two because Cameron was taken previously and is now shown in Deep Sky's custody. Max and Charlie have to work together in order to rescue her. Now, Jamie Clayton's casting as Cameron's sister, Charlie, is wonderful and spot on. She embodies the spirit of who this woman has been built up as. She has regrets about the choices she made. She can no longer live an ordinary life. That means people expect her to disappear just as quickly as she returns to their lives. She is grateful to see Cameron safe again. She gets that resolution. Cameron doesn't. She was seeking answers about her sister. She wanted to know that she was safe too. She doesn't receive that. Her partner gets that. In the end, that may damn Max and Charlie. They happen to be in the same spot when the mysterious lights strike once more. Charlie was expecting to go with Deep Sky. She was warning Max away. He may not have gotten away in time. He is caught up in all of this. That may just ensure that Liz has to endure even more tragedy. Max promised her that he would never leave her again. He won't die on her. She is so worried about him because his heart is still regrowing and needs time to heal fully. He exerts himself. He feels he can handle it all. He may not be able to. He may send Liz on this concerning journey of never being able to save the people she loves. She and Isobel want to give Rosa a new opportunity at life. In the end, Rosa overdoses and has to go away to rehab. That's unfortunate. Life is falling apart for Liz in that way. She needs to cry and feel all of these emotions. Meanwhile, Michael realizes the man he works for happens to be the young boy who knew his mother decades ago. That is a major reveal that may prove that answers are much closer than any of these characters realized. They just had to go searching for them and the show had to be willing to provide them upfront. That's what happens when these characters actually get together and talk about what is going on in their lives. The personal dynamics are complicated. Michael wants to protect Maria. He doesn't want her mind to deteriorate even though she sees a potential to gain more power and control over her life. She wants to channel that potential knowing it may cause harm for her future. Isobel wants that insight as well. These characters need that comfort and clarity. They won't always get it though. Sometimes the search for the truth only ends in further despair because life is inherently tragic. That is a brutal outlook the show is currently embracing. But it creates a fair amount of drama too.
