The Event episode 6 review: Loyalty

6. Loyalty

First off, let me say that, up until this week, I was the first person to come to The Event‘s defence. Although the formula for the show has been slightly overdone, I still found myself enjoying the first couple of episodes. Episode 5 is where I first started to get worried. 

The only part of the show that had been entertaining to me was Jason Ritter’s attempt to find his girlfriend, played by Sara Roemer. For those who have kept up with the season, he did just that in the last episode. So, my first thought was okay, where do they go from here? Maybe episode six will take the plot somewhere amazing, and I’m sorry to report, that it did just the opposite.

Most of the plot focussed on parts of the story that I really had no connection to whatsoever. This episode focuses on the release of Sophia, the leader of the ET’s. (I keep expecting her to start walking with a limp like in ER.) Now they are asking us to believe that these people can transport a plane of 200 people across the country, and create a vortex that demolishes a building, but they cannot get an isotope out of her body or hide where she is. That’s a pretty big leap, if you ask me.

We also get some background on Simon, the agent who is an alien, working undercover for the government. They attempt to give us some attachment to the character, only to have him at the bottom of a collapsed building towards the end of the episode. Now, even this I can ignore, just for the hope of better episodes in the future, but the disappointment and ridiculousness didn’t stop there. 

In the episode there is a hint that Leila’s dad wasn’t as innocent as he seemed (of course), so they venture off to her house only to be held at gunpoint in a scene that held some of the most over the top acting I have ever seen. I can entertain the idea of more conspiracy, but they’re going to have to do it right.

Enter Madeline Jackson. The only good part of this scene was Jason Ritter’s reaction to this woman. She introduces what we have known all along. That there is a bigger, badder group that makes the government “look like scared little children” and they are the ones we can assume tried to kill the president.

At this point, it seems that The Event is grasping at straws to try and throw twists and turns to keep me interested, and it is not working by a long shot. This scene was really the killer of the episode for me. The reporter says that Leila ‘s dad accidentally flew over Mount Inostranka, on route to Anchorage, when he had to make a detour. Okay, so a commercial flight ‘accidentally’ flies over a secret government facility. Am I the only one who finds this stupid?. Then, when she tells them they are aliens, it was just so over the top I cannot even believe that this show is doing so well in the ratings.       

Furthermore, some things that have been bothering me since day one include learning what happened to her little sister? Where did that plotline go? And after the last episode, we didn’t even see Vicky and how she is going to have to handle the repercussions of helping Ritter.

I honestly cannot remember the last time I was less entertained by an episode of any TV show. I can only hope that, during the two week break, they sit down and kick themselves for executing an interesting idea so poorly.

The previews for the episode in two weeks seem to address some of my unanswered questions, so maybe there is a slight glimmer of hope. Because, in all honesty, they are losing the loyalty of this viewer.  

Read our review of episode 5, Casualties Of War, here.