Note: Do not read on if you have not seen Season 1, Episode 6 of CBS' "Under the Dome," titled "The Endless Thirst."
Last episode we saw that even a missile couldn't make a dent in the dome. This week, we reconvene right after the failed launch, and the townspeople are even more terrified than they were before. Sure, sudden death is frightening, but knowing you're trapped under a mysterious bubble that even a missile can't penetrate -- that's even scarier.
If things were bad before, they finally hit a breaking point this episode.
When we last saw Norrie and Joe, they were kissing as the missile illuminated the sky. This week, Norrie's mother is suffering from a diabetic attack because she is out of insulin. The crazed reverend burned the last of the supply and Alice is having trouble making complete sentences. In a fit of delirium, Alice stumbles into the street as a semi truck comes barreling towards her. She dodges it in time, but the appliance-delivery man swerves and hits a water tower instead. A water main breaks and precious water comes pouring out. The town's limited supply is ruined, but I'm more concerned with the fact that someone ordered a refrigerator at a time like this. Apparently, appliance deliveries stop for no dome.
Big Jim and the rest of the crew are understandably upset by the looming lack of water. Without water, the town really can't survive. Rennie decides to bribe Wally, a Mill resident who owns a well, with propane. The whole propane scheme has kind of dropped off, but at least the supplies are coming in handy now.
On the other side of town, riots break out. I'm actually surprised Chester's Mill lasted this long without a full-blown loot. To their credit, the residents tried to wait in line at the grocery store, offering the owner good old-fashioned money. But what does the owner need with money when there's nowhere to use it? With no options left, they decide to riot and they storm the store, stealing everything from toilet paper to energy drinks to Pop Tarts. To make matters worse, the only police officer is Linda (Junior is missing in action, AKA hiding in Angie's childhood bedroom). Linda decides to recruit Barbie to help out. Even after they toss tear gas at the crowd, the people don't back down.
Meanwhile, Julia stakes out the radio hosts again. No one in town is able to get a radio signal because of a horrible screeching noise. Dodee presents Julia with a nerdy-looking radio contraption. Using the gadget, the women embark on a journey to locate the high-pitched noise. Hey, not everyone in town can constantly be saving lives.
Which brings me to Barbie. Oh, Barbie. Mike Vogel's pretty face is quickly becoming the best reason to tune in. Anyway: amidst the grocery store looting, Barbie finds Rose, the diner owner, and Angie, knocked out on the floor of the restaurant. Earlier in the episode, Angie revealed Junior's evilness to Rose, but alas, by the end of the show she is lying in a pool of her own blood, and the secret dies with her. Since Angie is still alive, Barbie rescues her and hands her off to Big Jim because the clinic is too far away and the police car's tires are slashed. No matter what this girl does, she always ends up in the arms of a Rennie man.
After the town has basically destroyed itself, it starts to rain. Guns, gas bombs, and broken windows -- nothing can stop the fighting except rain. As it pours, people celebrate and stop the chaos. Just a minute ago they were bashing each other's heads into racks of potato chips but now that it's raining, everyone is a neighbor again.
Julia, Dodee, Joe and Norrie head to the edge of the dome, hoping that maybe the rain signals an end to the trapping. Nope. Instead they realize that the dome is now self-sufficient, and can produce its own evaporating system. Dodee also proclaims that because of this, the water is purified and even safe to drink.
By the end of the episode, everyone is relieved, bloodied and even more confused. Dodee and Julia find out that the noise is coming from Joe and Norrie, who confess that they seem to have some sort of connection to the dome. Norrie saved her mom's life (for now) by stealing insulin from a child. Morals go out the window when the dome comes down. Barbie and Julia finally embrace and share a kiss in the rain a la The Notebook. And lastly, Big Jim makes a "deal" with Angie that if she keeps quiet about his crackpot son, he'll make sure she and her brother are taken care of. She agrees because apparently she hasn't learned not to trust that family yet.
Extra Tidbits
- Chester's Mill is heavily diabetic, and the only supplies that are left are already claimed.
"Under the Dome" airs Mondays, 10 p.m. ET on CBS.
