Summary
“Where the Stars Are Scattered Thinly” feels like a smaller, less eventful episode from the series. Again, some subplots work better than others, and the odd romance feels mishandled, to say the least. Ella-Rae Smith shines as the devious Queen Sareth, though, while The Vault continues to intrigue.
We recap the Apple TV+ series Foundation Season 2 Episode 4, “Where the Stars Are Scattered Thinly,” which contains spoilers.
The epic adaptation of Foundation continues with “Where the Stars Are Scattered Thinly.” In the fourth installment, Hober Mallow (Dimitri Leonidas) is taken back to The Vault as requested by a violent and unruly Hari Seldon (Jared Harris). Queen Sareth (Ella-Rae Smith) starts to manipulate all three of the Brothers, and Bel Riose (Ben Daniels) heads to Siwenna.
Foundation Season 2 Episode 4 Recap
Who is Sef Sermak?
Starting with the clerics, Brother Constant and Poly wake on their descent to Terminus. Brother Constant then wakes their captive Hober Mallow. The trio land on the planet, where they are greeted by Brother Constant’s father, Director Sef Sermak (Oliver Chris), their leader.
The Vault has remained unchanged since the traumatic incident with the Warden. They are now pinning all their hope on Hober Mallow’s presence, providing some much-needed answers. Poor Hober is unaware that he is heading right into danger, though.
Hober spots the engraving on the exterior of The Vault. He is then shown the bewildering remains of Warden Jaegger. Hober panics and attempts to flee, but it is already too late. He is drawn towards The Vault and vanishes into the blinding light.
The clerics quickly follow Hober into The Vault, but Sef is too cowardly to enter. Inside, The Vault is a vast labyrinth of ever-expanding rooms and moving shapes.
The clerics find Hober, who is dying from starvation. He says that he has been inside The Vault for two whole days now.
Time seems to work differently inside The Vault. Then Sef enters, rounding out the team. They hear music playing and follow these sounds, aimlessly wandering the many layers of this magical place.
Eventually, the group finds Hari Seldon in a makeshift library.
Why did Hari Seldon summon Hober Mallow?
Hari has summoned Hober Mallow and the other guests to help him prevent a war from happening. He wants Brother Constant and Poly to head to Trantor on a diplomatic relations mission. Hari wants them to sell the idea of the Foundation to them, to win them over and delay the war.
Hober Mallow is given a different task, although we are not made aware of his mission just yet. All the guests inside The Vault are in awe of Hari and his magnificence, but Poly is wary of the bloodthirsty genius.
He asks why Hari killed Warden Jaegger in such a brutal fashion. Hari responds, stating that he needs to show off his powers to scare the people, calling the act his divine judgment.
Meanwhile, on Trantor, Queen Sareth starts to play her own mind games. She walks with Brother Dawn. Queen Sareth asks if Brother Day killed her family, and Dawn wants to know if the Queen was involved in the assassination attempt on Day. Neither side trusts the other at this point.
Planting a sinister seed, Queen Sareth flirts with Brother Dawn, suggesting that they would be a better fit for marriage instead of the Queen and Brother Day.
Elsewhere, the Queen’s assistant Enjoiner Rue, speaks with Brother Dusk. He wants her to influence the Queen’s decisions, to make her marry Brother Day sooner rather than later.
What is Queen Sareth after?
Queen Sareth and Rue then meet with one of Brother Day’s soldiers. They want to pay him to find out information on Day. They need to know if he was involved in Sareth’s family’s murder, and they ask him for footage from the assassination attempt. Queen Sareth is eager to learn how Day avoided death at the hands of the deadliest assassins in the Galaxy.
Foundation Season 2 Episode 4 Ending Explained
In the final subplot, Bel and his husband travel to Siwenna to meet with Brother Day’s informant. The locals attack at a trade deal, and the couple are forced to speed up their plans. The informant shows Bel footage of the clerics using futuristic technology and a jump ship. The Foundation, The Vault, and Hari Seldon are all also mentioned.
With all this intel, the couple escapes, although their informant asks to be killed as an angry mob approaches. Bel and his husband head back to their ship after killing their ally.
The episode ends with the clerics and Hober Mallow parting ways. Brother Constant is sad that Hober is leaving for his own mission. She states how she wanted to be with him, kissing Hober on the cheek. It’s an odd goodbye, but Hober leaves with their ship, heading towards his own mysterious solo adventure.
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