"Orphan Black" Ipsa Scientia Potestas Est (TV Episode 2014) Poster

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9/10
Sestra!
theoriginalantiblonde14 February 2021
Warning: Spoilers
"You make me cry, sestra." Yeah, me too!

The brilliance in Helena's character is the utter pathos with which she is both written and portrayed. Yes, she can be a "monster", but it is so clear as to why. The choices Tatiana Maslany made in bringing her to life are why the character has such an impact. She's one of those narrow lines that would be so easy to step off of in the wrong way, making her a caricature instead of the complex creature that she is; a creature that mixes laughter, fear and just plain pathos in such a way that you can't help but want to gather her in and cry for/with her, while laughing at her bluntness, yet hoping the hell you don't piss her off and make yourself her next target.

Well played, sestra!
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9/10
Rachel Duncan acts rude and Helena is out for revenge
DVD_Connoisseur13 December 2018
This is a busy episode with multiple plots coming on in leaps and bounds.

Tatiana Maslany is simply marvellous. Rachel Duncan is the latest clone to be shown and she's a real piece of work, treating Paul like a piece of meat. Meanwhile, Helena has Rachel in her sights - quite literally.

9 out of 10.
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8/10
Orphan Black continues the run of strong episodes with another episode intense and full of intrigue.
It seems like Dr. Leekie may not be such a bad guy after all. Rachel goes kind of crazy after the ending of last episode, so she suspends all research into the genetics of the clones until Sarah is found. But, Leekie goes behind her back to help Cosima and Delphine, and works with Sarah to find their origin.

Back to Rachel, she appoints Paul as her monitor. We learn more about the strange nature of her power. Paul seems to be in quite a pickle, caught between Rachel and Leekie.

Art interrogates Helena, but she escapes. This leads to Helena once again being the centerpiece of the intense final scene.
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With Helena taking a more prominent role comes access to some of the information she has gathered over the years.
Amari-Sali18 May 2014
Warning: Spoilers
I'm not sure about the rest of you, but pretty much my favorite clone is Helena. She is the most drastically different of the clones, and I must admit I find her manner of talking, and what she says, to be a bit odd and comical. But, with her personality also comes a lot of intrigue since she is the least predictable and probably has more secrets locked up in her kooky head than we may ever know. Still, what matters most is that she is with Sara, and be it Helena is getting used or Sara does see her seester in the way she conveys to Helena, only time will tell.

Topic 1: Double-Crossed – Rachel & Cosima

With Daniel dead, someone new has to take his place as Rachel's monitor, and she nominates Paul. Someone who, she notes, has had a thing for Sara, but seemingly either that is in the past, or he is deeply embedding himself in the Dyad to maybe one day come out #TeamCloneClub. It is hard to say, but what is known is that being self-aware has allowed Rachel quite a few privileges, including outranking Dr. Leekie, who she notes has acted as a guardian to her after her parents' death.

But, Leekie isn't to be fully trusted though. But, to explain why, there is a need to bring up everyone's favorite guy: Felix. You see, as one of Paul's first assignments being directly under Rachel, she wants him to coerce Sara to step in line. To do so, naturally, Paul goes to her weakest link – Brother Felix. At the worst time possible mind you. For, just as Felix is about to get some vitamin D, the Dyad's men bust in and Paul forces Felix to touch the gun which killed the officer who was at Cal's place. Thus making him a murder suspect.

Then a message is relayed to Sara about this, and this is when Leekie not being trust-able comes into play. Now, we already know he is a bit two face when it comes to his dealings with Cosima, but with her being sick, and him finding a possible stem cell cure, deals are made. For the stem cells Cosima sets up a meet with Sara, in which it is negotiated that for Felix, Sara will deliver the Swan Man, and for this, Leekie says he will help free Felix. All the while Paul watches and makes you wonder if Leekie will be a man of his word, or is just a lackey playing his position and saying what is needed to get the results he wants.

Topic 2: Swan Man – Helena & Sara

But, back to the Swan Man, with Helena free, though under the watchful eye of Sara and her allies, she begins revealing little stuff about herself, as well as directing Sara toward information she may require. And while this happens, we see little Gracie locked in isolation for what she tried to do to Helena, and while originally she vows not to speak, and has stitching over her mouth to prevent her from eating, she eventually confesses. Then she is told, if the Prolethians can't get Helena back, that baby they have made will be put in Gracie. An idea I'm sure she isn't fond of.

Going back to this Swan Man thing though, after Helena is given clothes by Felix, she becomes Art's captive. During this time, Art tries to investigate her, and doesn't learn much besides how the nuns abused her at 7, and her involvement with Maggie Chen. This name brings quite a bit of intrigue to Art, especially upon mentioning a locker of some kind. But, with his back turned for a minute, we see Helena without her handcuffs and Art in some type of hold. Making it so when Sara leaves Felix's to go to Art for help, he is handcuffed to a support beam.

Luckily for him though, it seems Helena just wanted to slow them down, not do any serious damage. So, she leaves them a puzzle, leading them to Maggie Chen's locker, and with their arrival comes a discovery of Helena's hideout. Perhaps showing, despite all that has happened, Helena is increasingly trusting them, even if with some hesitation. And during their time investigating the locker, they find a picture of the Swan Man aka Ethan Duncan, Rachel's dad.

Now, this is big because, per Leekie, the original genome used to make the clones is gone, seemingly dead with its creators. But if Ethan is alive, and somewhere around 70, there is a chance to discover the genome and this could not only do wonders for Cosima's sickness, but the Dyad Institute. Thing is though, another thing discovered in Helena's hideout is a sniper rifle case, missing the actual rifle. Leading on another chase in which they find Helena ready to pop Rachel and interrupt her sexy time as she did Felix's. As for who is her partner? Well, it seems her monitor doesn't just report information to Leekie, but also is obliged to have sex with her. And, from what we see, Rachel is a bit of a dominate one when it comes to sex. Perhaps explaining why Daniel always looked so drained and tired, that woman probably ran him ragged.

Sexy time aside, what matters most in those moments is that Sara convinces Helena not to kill Rachel, and either through manipulation, or speaking from the heart, gets Helena emotional enough to seemingly feel like Sara maybe her sister, and not just another person trying to use her. In fact, Sara even gives Helena a nickname, meat head, which she hates, but perhaps this is showing that the two truly maybe sisters in the traditional sense, and not just for the sake of survival/ investigations.
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8/10
Forced to choose a side
SJulien1225 July 2021
Warning: Spoilers
One of the strengths of the show is that, in my opinion, all the clones are relevant. The creators didn't settle for just a few to make it easier for Maslany, but they didn't go overboard by creating too many of them either. So even though Rachel is loathsome I find her a great addition. The more we learn about the Proletheans, the more they disturb us, while the bond between Sarah and Helena surprises everyone. Paul is still stuck between Neolution and Sarah and he has no choice but to choose a side. Leekie proves he's more human than Rachel; the lesser evil, which gives my favorite clone a chance. We start to learn about the fire and a road trip is announced for the next episode.
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9/10
[8.6] IMDb, let us type Cyrillic!
cjonesas27 July 2021
At last, in my liking, a very good episode permeated with credible sub-plots combined with smooth intriguing vibe and flow.

The second that I rate a 9, mainly because of Helena who is my favorite clone and all scenes with her carry that crazy magic. Very emotional scene between the two "sistri". Hats off Maslany!
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7/10
Sniper!?
ZegMaarJus28 July 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This episode begins with Rachel, she arrived at the hotel. Rachel sees Daniel his Dead body. Felix brought Helena to Art's appartment. Paul puts Felix his finger prints on Daniel's murder weapon. Helena points a gun on Art's head. Helena escaped out of Art's appartment. Helena is planning to kill Rachel. Rachel has sex with Rachel. Art and Sarah arrived at Helena's sniper post. Helena listened to Sarah, she puts down her sniper. Leekie injected Cosima with a liquid. Felix got arrested by the police, he is in jail. Solid Episode of Orphan Black Season 2, this season isn't directed in the good way. Storyline is not good at all!
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5/10
Nothing is happening
gridoon202430 May 2021
Warning: Spoilers
I mean that figuratively, not literally, of course. And frankly, this applies to the entire season 2 so far. People get captured and get free, people ask questions and get no answers, side characters get killed off....but the story is not advancing like, at all, and neither of the two villainous groups / organizations (Dyad / Proletheans) are particularly interesting (or original). I miss the thrill of the terrific first few episodes of season 1 when we were discovering new things with each new episode. Tatiana Maslany is (are?) still phenomenal, of course, but that's not enough anymore. I think I'll give it until the end of S2 to pick up but if it doesn't I'm dropping it altogether. ** out of 4.
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