Aw, snap — here we go again. Episode two of Telltale’s The Expanse is in the books, and if you’ve just found this review by accident and haven’t played the first episode yet, I’ll say this as kindly as possible. Leave. Now. I’m going to be spoiling the ever-living daylights out of the first episode, so turn back if you aren’t caught up. (And some of the second episode, too, but I promise those spoilers will be minimal.) Or, if you simply don’t care and want to read what’s basically going to be a one-man book club-esque assessment, then I’m pleased you could join me!
Episode two was almost as good as the first. I thought the first episode (the review of which you can read here for the sake of convenience) was well-paced, planted the seeds for potentially great character/plot development, and even introduced an underlying sense of mystery as you floated around in zero-gravity — trying to understand what happened among the wreckage of a destroyed ship and its crew, many of whom were just floating bodies with missing heads.
Before we arrived at episode two, I apparently was in the contrarian camp when it came time to decide what would become of the mutinous Garrison Cox — the Artemis’ ex-captain. After we found a data chip full of vital information, Cox immediately turned on our wonderful protagonist, the ever-captivating Camina Drummer. But, if not obvious for the fact that this is a prequel, Camina overcame the would-be murder plot and had to decide if Cox merely went into the brig in the cargo bay to rot, or if we’d one-two toodle-oo his caboose right into deep space via the airlock.
Being someone who, again, hasn’t watched the show or read the books, perhaps I lacked the clarity that an ardent fan would have regarding Garrison Cox and a potential about-face from his treacherous ways. Because the second I was given that choice, I couldn’t have hit the button to launch him into the expanse of space fast enough. I mean, come on. He was a greedy, duplicitous, self-centered jerk! Sure, it might’ve been more interesting to keep him around for the narrative, but pragmatically? I wasn’t going to risk this man — with his inflated ego and unchecked paranoia — complicating things for Camina! The crew was already on a razor’s edge what with the lack of supplies and pirates mucking about — Cox had to go!
And all that consideration was somehow condensed into a solitary choice in the first episode — an example of Telltale packing a full, layered story into about an hour and a half of gameplay. The second episode… lacks the oomph of the first. The mystery of “What the heck is going on?” has pretty much been solved by now with Toussaint, the leader of a cadre of ruthless pirates, taking out anyone who stands between them and their as-of-yet-revealed goals. I removed any source of internal conflict that Cox could’ve stirred within our ranks by, you know, facilitating his, uhh… unfortunate accident. This just left me with one word to describe episode two by its end (and you can cringe if you want): chill.
Don’t get me wrong: things happen in episode two. Without giving too much away, Toussaint certainly makes an impact. There’s more zero-gravity scavenging around the floating ruins of a mangled ship — the aftermath of another calculated rampage courtesy of those dastardly pirates. Players will even “enjoy” the honor of dodging and maneuvering past some obstacles that, regrettably, was the lowest point of the episode for me. Telltale has stepped up its presentation considerably — even making scavenging for simple objects a delight rather than a chore. But if you’ve ever played a Telltale game, you’ll know that the way characters move and interact with their surroundings isn’t quite conducive for tasks that require a bit more “directional finesse.” To put it inelegantly: if it requires a quick reaction time when my character moves like they’re covered in molasses (or in space — go figure), maybe it shouldn’t be present.
That being said, the positives of the growing interpersonal relationships between the Artemis’ crewmates more than make up for those aforementioned gripes. By the end of the episode, the “like” I felt for my ragtag group before turned into full-blown love. Virgil’s just a proficient medic with absolutely nothing resembling a mysterious past. Khan’s our lovable, expletive-shouting pilot that’s been through hell and back. The twins, Arlen and Rayen, won me over by being hilariously dense during tense situations. And Maya, the Martian who generally cares more than she would like to admit, has such a magnetic chemistry with Camina that during one of their scenes together, I legitimately forgot I was playing a video game and not watching a high-profile HBO show. Hell, even after snooping around Cox’s office, I felt a little sorry for him once I discovered “documents” detailing the depths of his delusional insecurities (but not sorry enough to regret what happened to him, to be clear).
Ultimately, where the first episode had a self-contained tale of curiosity, mistrust, and betrayal that bled into an overarching story, the second explicitly feels like it’s setting the table for the third episode. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, especially because I can almost feel the Looney Tunes-style mallet looming in the darkness, ready to bash me over the head in the next episode after giving me so much downtime with my crewmates. I suspect, with our meager supplies (you’re welcome, Rayen) and the encroaching pirates, that next time, lives will be at stake. Not Camina’s, of course, but I don’t find that safety net comforting being so attached to the rest of the Artemis squad.
It’s not bombastic to where I’ll be able to talk about any one choice as much as I can talk about letting Cox know who the top dog is in the first episode, but episode two is impactful where it counts. In the long run, I’ll take a brief respite from heavy plot advancements if it’ll mean more when things kick back into high gear and situations aren’t so quiet and introspective. Oh, and please take the time to explore and scavenge supplies. Every little thing you find matters, allowing you to form deeper connections with your team and get to know where they came from and what they value most. I can promise you won’t regret it.
This review is based on the PlayStation 5 version of the game. A copy was provided for review by Telltale Games.
