The second season of Silo, Apple TV’s acclaimed sci-fi series, wrapped up last week after ten episodes. Much like season one, it ended on a pretty wild cliffhanger (or in this case, cliffhangers, plural). While these final moments were incredibly engaging, I was left wishing that more of the season had been able to offer the same level of excitement.
I’ll start by addressing the obvious (and in my opinion) most pressing concern with the season, which is the lack of focus on Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson). With a few exceptions, season one is all about Jules – she’s clearly the main character, and is what made the show so successful in the first place. Audiences, myself included, formed an emotional connection to her story and were hoping to delve even deeper throughout season two. Unfortunately, it felt like the show wanted to go in the complete opposite direction. Deciding to take a split-storyline approach, the season divided its attention between Jules’ exploration of an abandoned silo and the various conflicts facing the silo from season one. Now before I get any further, I’ll make it clear that I haven’t read the books that Silo is based on– I’m aware that the series isn’t all about Jules, and that the show likely had to work a little harder to weave elements from various books together. That being said, it felt in many ways like watching a different show altogether. So much of what I loved about Silo was its steadfast commitment to developing such a wonderfully complex character, with Ferguson delivering amazing performances throughout. The performance quality was still fantastic in season two, but we just got so much less time to enjoy it. There were multiple episodes where Jules didn’t appear at all, or if she did it was only to walk around in the dark for a scene or two, making minimal progress on a dilemma she’d been facing for several episodes already.
The one thing that season two did give us in regards to Juliette, though, was her relationship with Solo (Steve Zahn), the man she meets in the abandoned silo. Zahn gives such an endearing performance in this role, and the moments between Jules and Solo quickly became some of my favourite of the season. The journey of these two stubborn and scared individuals gradually coming to trust each other was the beating heart of the season for me, and I can only hope that we’ll get to explore more of their bond in the future.
As for the various “original silo” storylines, I often felt that the show was being pulled in too many directions. There were so many plans, conspiracies, and betrayals that I had a hard time keeping track of it all from week to week. And while the concept of the rebellion was interesting, it never felt developed or impassioned enough to make me excited about turning away from what was happening with Jules.
In the end, I’m hopeful that seasons three and four will bring some excitement back into the story, especially considering the addition of a completely new timeline. I just hope that in doing so the show doesn’t forget what–or who–made it great to begin with.
Photo credits : Apple TV+
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