Summary
“Spaceman” escalates the story quickly after a calm continuation as a surprise character returns.
This recap of Apple TV+ series Servant season 2, episode 2, “Spaceman” contains significant spoilers.
“Spaceman” opens with Julian waking up in the Turner household, and he sees a hole in the wall. He heads to the bathroom and water is running in the bath, so he turns the tap off. Downstairs, Dorothy is watching a video of her baby and Julian reassures her that Jericho will be okay. He never gets an answer on the taps — did Dorothy run the bath? Servant has the habit of asking questions that are unanswered and teasing the audience. Still, it’s becoming apparent as this story continues that the characters’ experiences are way more important than the actual answer.
Julian ordered a spacesuit
The doorbell rings and a package has arrived; it’s a spacesuit costume for a baby. Julian tells her he ordered it weeks ago for the baptism. Julian comically dresses the baby doll in the spacesuit — that doll still gives the creeps. Its lifeless look is simple but effective.
The PI returns
Dorothy continues to investigate the cult, watching YouTube videos of a man whipping himself and May Markham, giving him instructions. Sean is downstairs cooking (as usual), and there’s a knock on the door. It’s the personal investigator Roscoe that we thought may have died in the last season. He doesn’t seem to have any concept of time, believing the baptism party was the night before. This escalates the story somewhat; it’s been very level so far.
Sean shows Julian that Roscoe has returned
Dorothy decides to return to work and fill in for a news anchor which alarms Julian. After she leaves, Sean shows Julian the personal investigator in the basement. They are understandably confused. And then Roscoe is confused, realizing it is Friday, and he doesn’t remember much apart from a lady in the street. They play audio that Roscoe recorded. He’s crying and asking them to “stop”. Leanne is reassuring him. Julian believes Roscoe is playing games and has been brainwashed. Sean thinks they should call Natalie to help bring back his memories by hypnosis.
Roscoe’s strange account
Natalie puts Roscoe under hypnosis, and they begin asking him questions. He talks about a room with the lights off and that his hands were tied. Roscoe then describes “something rotten”. Sean gets impatient and wants answers quickly. Roscoe starts saying that the baby is crying and that “he’s holding him // he takes out the eyes and he throws them away”. Julian suddenly cries and walks off; he’s clearly distressed but mostly because his belief system is challenged; earlier in the chapter, Dorothy calls him an atheist. For Julian, this is challenging everything he stands for.
Dorothy the news anchor and Julian needs help
On the news, Dorothy keeps handing out hints to Leanne while making her co-anchor uncomfortable. Meanwhile, Julian is frustrated, trying to convince himself that Roscoe is performing. Natalie expresses that she wants to help Julian and wants him to believe in something.
The ending
On live television, Sean watches Dorothy, who begins talking about missing teenagers; she asks for any information on Leanne Grayson. When she returns home, she starts cleaning, and Sean helps her out. Dorothy jokingly quips that work will not be inviting her back to the anchor desk anytime soon.
As “Spaceman” nears an end, Sean gets a call on his tablet. It’s Leanne; she asks him why Dorothy is looking for her. Meanwhile, Dorothy is in the shower, and suddenly the water pipes aggressively creak, and cracks appear in the basement. Leanne asks Sean why he hasn’t told Dorothy what she did. Sean looks at the front door, and the camera quickly zooms outside and faces the house. Is Leanne outside? Why can’t Roscoe remember anything? And what did he mean about the eyes? There’s almost a suggestion that the baby’s eyes were removed.
Servant season 2, episode 2 escalates the story quickly after a calm continuation as a surprise character returns. The second chapter demonstrates how the experiences of the characters are way more important than the answers.
