La Brea Season 2 Episode 8 Stampede Review & Recap – Red Flower Theories And Will A Major Character Twist Be Set Up?

In serialized network shows, formulas work. They give viewers a blueprint for what to expect week after week. It is a reliable script that allows the audience to sink into the story. It doesn’t always provide the most inventive or surprising story, but it does create confidence. La Brea doesn’t have the punch of Apple TV+’s Servant or the emotionality of Manifest, another formulaic network sci-fi show bought by Netflix when its streaming numbers couldn’t be denied. What it does have is a proven method. Throw in some wacky characters, a handful of heroes including a reformed bad boy, a loosely defined sci-fi disaster, and a whole lot of danger, and let them escape tragedy week after week, and you’ve got yourself a network hit. The other thing as reliable as the sun is an episode reveal with overarching ramifications. Episode 8 of Season 2 of La Brea gave us exactly what we expected, while at the same time creating the opportunity for something more creative.

After having a vision of Eve’s death and jumping back into the sinkhole with Josh, Riley, Sam and Caroline, the group is back in 10,000 BC. At the end of the winter finale, the group decided to go back one more time to upload Caroline’s virus into the tower computer and shut down the Lazarus program for good. The virus ensures that there are no more sinkholes, earthquakes or tidal waves and saves lives. Unfortunately, it also means that none of them can ever go home again.

With time running out and Josh missing, the group splits up and moves on. Izzy and Gavin head to the tower because that won’t raise any red flags for James. Gavin accesses the system from the portal room and Caroline goes to a substation with the rest of the group and uploads the virus via a flash drive. It’s a straightforward plan that works most of the time, except for Sam’s moment of doubt, crushed by his sense of right and wrong, and a moment of weakness from Gavin, which Eve couldn’t lose.

Gavin got into the system, but Izzy, who remains an annoyance more than anything, tells him about the red flowers she found in James’ tower. James had told her that the beautiful tree only grows during this time, so she knows that Eve lived in 10,000 BC. Must die. She reasons with her father that if they can get out of this time, Eve will be saved. That’s potentially true, but this hardly seems like a reasonable trade-off since Gavin’s visions aren’t exactly clear road maps, and thousands of people could die for him to save one. So far, Zyra Gorecki’s Izzy reads as nothing more than an NPC distracting our group and leading us away from the endgame.

Back in the clearing, Ty is visiting and lending a hand, and Scott still hopes he can keep his secret safe. Ty knows that someone let Paara’s ex-husband go. He just doesn’t know who. It’s only a matter of time before everyone finds out it was Scott. Scott is making himself useful again this week with his ever-growing mountain of knowledge. His expertise in animal migration helps them stave off an ancient buffalo stampede with a wall of fire and later a Kansas City Chief’s Stadium with cars honking and screaming. Scott is both an asset and a liability, making him unpredictable and interesting to watch. Rohan Mirchandaney remains a bright spot in this series as the flawed and goofy Macgyver of the group.

Scott is at his best playing against Lucas (Josh McKenzie). The odd couple make each other better and are always fun to watch. Lucas needs the advice and support Scott offers to grow as a leader, and the clearing needs someone to unite them. This becomes increasingly important as Ty’s health continues to deteriorate. As important as the red flowers are to both Eve’s and Veronica’s and Lilly’s stories, I wonder if they could also play a part in healing Ty’s cancer. Ty is on borrowed time and his meltdown at the end of La Brea Season 2 Episode 8 proves it. There would be a nice symmetry in Ty’s healing where he would cause others the most pain.

There are some dark stories in La Brea Season 2 Episode 8 that require some suspension from reality. A virus that partially works when it’s 85% uploaded isn’t really a thing, and the signage of Veronica and Lilly’s kidnapper and a potential future Izzy acting as the Director of Operations in James’ project is crude at best . If this series has told us anything, you can’t avoid your past or future. How this plays out for Lucas, who is on his way to becoming the kind of selfless leader he wants to be, remains to be seen. He wants to be better for Veronica and honor his late mother. However, his hand and his temper can be problems he cannot ignore.

Granted, I’m intrigued by a glimpse of Veronica and Lilly’s kidnapper. As much as I’d like to reproach some lazy writing, La Brea is a guilty pleasure. There are a lot of questions I need answered. How did the kidnapper of Veronica and Lilly see the flowers in 10,000 B.C. Is their kidnapper someone we’ve already met from another time? Could it be James or Taamet? Are James or Caroline reliable? Does anyone care at all about the ocean coming through the aurora? How lucky was everyone that no whale or shark fell on top?

La Brea Season 2 Episode 8 is the story of three fathers. Sam and Gavin make choices for their loved ones that put others in danger. In the end, Sam makes the right decision and stops trying to destroy the power supply and upload, but Gavin doesn’t. This family consistently makes decisions that put their best interests ahead of others while asking everyone around them to make sacrifices. Eve has to come forward and stop the bleeding. Unfortunately, she seems to be the only one who gets sacrifice starts with yourself.

Hopefully, the writers will realize Natalie Zea (Eve) is a star and let her take the lead. Eoin Macken (Gavin) is undeniably talented, but La Brea will suffer until the writers give him a character stronger than he is nearsighted. I want to see the contrast between Sam and Gavin more pronounced. It will benefit the show and the individual characters. The third father in play here is James, who is clearly giving off evil villain vibes, but is probably acting on something similar to what makes Gavin betray his group. What happens when these two discover they have more in common than they think? What else is James hiding? Find all our La Brea coverage here.