Can our friends in Chester’s Mill survive much longer, as the dome is literally closing in on them? Find out what happened on this week’s ‘Under The Dome.’
A time to be born, a time to die
Well, the dome is contracting. That’s not good news. The gang breaks up to notify the citizens of Chester’s Mill, and get them to regroup at the school, which is farthest away from the encroaching dome.
Lyle is back, and is quoting The Book of Ecclesiastes…or The Byrds…or Ren McCormack, however you want to look at it. Jim and Pauline seem to have gotten over their differences, but Jim is not keen to have Lyle and his devotion to Pauline back in their lives.
Rebecca and Julia return to their ages-old argument of science vs. faith, which seemed like it had already been settled (it’s like Jack Shepherd and John Locke all over again), but still it continues. Julia thinks the egg’s happiness and well-being are controlling everything that happens under the dome, while Rebecca thinks it’s the perils of having formed their own little ecosystem.
Uh oh — Joe and Norrie tell Barbie about Hunter’s double-agency, and Barbie is not pleased. While Hunter tries to explain himself and Barbie barks, “YOU DON’T GET TO TALK,” it’s like Hunter’s abs are speaking directly to us.
Barbie takes Hunter to the edge of the dome, and holding a gun to his head, demands to see his dad. He tells Daddy Barbara that they need the egg back now, or they’re all going to die, including Don’s two children, Barbie and Melanie. Don calls his bluff because Melanie’s been dead for years. But luckily, friendly neighborhood creeper Joe just so happens to have a visual aid on hand: a vlog featuring the undead Melanie at her finest.
A time to plant, a time to reap
Speaking of Melanie, she is not in great shape. She’s coughing up blood, her hair’s falling out, and she’s in and out of consciousness. Rebecca says the girl’s body is falling apart, and Julia attributes it to whatever is happening with the egg.
Junior begs his mother to paint a psychic picture of Melanie’s fate, but she can’t just psychically paint on command. Jim is confused, because he has no idea who Melanie is. This is hilarious, because how has he not heard about his “dead” wife’s dead teenage best friend coming back to life?
You know who else hasn’t heard? Rebecca. Because she is the worst. Sam explains it to her as they look for lima beans to help with a blood transfusion, because everyone has lost their minds in this giant ever-shrinking snow globe.
This revelation causes Rebecca to question everything science-y she’s ever believed in, but luckily she gets to mull it over while she’s donating blood to a formerly-dead, possibly-dying-again girl, who all of a sudden she is acting very motherly towards.
Daddy Barbara agrees to bring them the egg, the same way they got back into the dome, through the red door to the root cellar. With that promise, the dome stops contracting (and making that weird zipper sound…what is that all about?), and Melanie is much better, immediately. But was it the promise of the egg’s safe return, or the blood transfusion?
A time to kill, a time to heal
Jim and Pauline decide to work together to do the dome’s bidding, and Jim helps her get started on a new painting. They’re to painting what Ghost was for pottery. But with less Whoopi.
Daddy Barbara goes to the Zenith playground to pick up the egg, and when he does, it turns black. He turns to find himself at gunpoint, and one of the National Guardsmen says they’re acting on orders. From who? Meanwhile, Melanie goes unconscious again, and the dome resumes its zipper-y crawl.
This week in Julia’s Dramatic Monologue to the Dome: She asks the dome to help Melanie and everyone else survive this, saying that if someone has to die, it should be her. Of course, you martyr. And by the way, Julia’s getting around just fine after having her leg impaled last week. She’s even driving, no problem.
Pauline’s finished painting, and the canvas seems to be dripping blood. That’s…not great. But the painting shows eight hands helping Melanie in the middle of the crater. Pauline makes some very cryptic statements to Junior about loving him no matter what happens, and asks him to forgive his father.
A time to laugh, a time to weep
So the Four Hands of Today and Yesterday (sans the dearly departed Angie) head to the crater in the middle of the woods. They lay Melanie down and then they all lay their hands on her (awkward…), before Rebecca realizes Melanie counts as two hands, one from the past, and one from the present. So they have both her boyfriends, Sam and Junior, past and present, take each of her hands (MEGA AWKWARD…) and like magic, Melanie is up and at ‘em, good as new.
But before anyone can celebrate, the ground opens up and swallows her. There’s a giant hole in the ground, and no Melanie, and everyone is arguing. Everyone’s mad at Pauline and her unreliable psychic painting, and Jim follows her into the woods, where she’s leaning against a tree, cradling her head.
She professes her love to Jim, and they kiss, but when he pulls away, there’s blood on his face. It’s Pauline’s, and Lyle’s standing behind her with a bloody knife. She says the dome wanted her to sacrifice, and collapses to the ground. Jim tackles Lyle in a rage, and stabs him in the chest with his own knife. Lyle thanks him, because now he and Pauline can be together forever.
Under The Dome season 2, episode 13, “Go Now,” the season finale, airs next Monday, September 22 at 8 p.m. on CBS.