Minority Report: Memento Mori Review

This Minority Report review contains spoilers.

Minority Report Season 1 Episode 9

The two-part finale has raised the stakes for Dash continuing his mission to use his powers to help people, and although it’s debatable whether Minority Report could have sustained this type of tension throughout its ten-episode run, viewers would surely have preferred this type of serial storyline earlier in the season. Nevertheless, now that the series has shown what it can do, the themes display more depth, the characters become more interesting, and the potential for nail-biting action increases exponentially.

Earlier in the season, Lieutenant Blake was an annoyance to be navigated by the protagonists. His ego and self-promotion didn’t seem as threatening as his occasional skepticism of how Vega was solving her cases, especially once Dash came on as a consultant. Now his character is definitely more complex as he is forced to decide if he should assist the DIA, help Vega hide Dash’s involvement, or even blackmail politicians on Arthur’s behalf. Apparently, Blake has a strong moral code despite his self interest, and this makes him a much more interesting character.

Also noteworthy is Vega siding with Arthur and Agatha, urging Dash to exercise caution and perhaps move on from their partnership. Her uncertainty was unexpected but refreshing considering how blithely she used Dash’s abilities earlier in the season. She even admits to having done so! Dash’s perhaps naive blindness to the danger he is visiting upon his fellow precogs is more striking given the context of Vega’s change of heart.

Of particular interest is the revelation that elements of Dash’s vision can change without preventing the crime he sees. The TAV 8 on the killer’s jacket becomes 8 VAT when it’s discovered that Dash saw the letters in a mirror, but the Memento Mori scientist is able to change the circumstances that bring him to the senator’s press conference by posing as a patient. However, this detail also brought Dash and Vega back together for “one last case,” after which Dash says he’s done.

Not that the audience believes it for a minute. Memento Mori warns against what happens when humanity plays God with its scientific knowledge, and that’s kind of what Vega and Dash are doing with their psychic advantage. In the case of genetics, the scientist warns of extinction of the human species, but in the precog’s situation, it could lead to further enslavement by the DIA. These parallel cautionary tales are a strength of Minority Report that hopefully will carry the series forward if it gets another season.

In the meantime, there’s the season finale to look forward to. Between the revelation of the existence of a new milk bath and the connection between Blomfield’s new benefactor and the embezzler who visited Agatha earlier in the season (one of the best moments for the eldest precog), the danger has become more real than ever before. It’s only a matter of time before the vision of Vega standing over the baths come true. It should be an interesting final episode!