As the episode begins, Lenina Crowne (Jessica Brown Findlay) works on her latest project until her name is called on a speaker overhead. She ignores it but her name is called again. He decides to go. Along the way, she takes a pill from a dispenser and swallows it. She follows orders and visits the office of Bernard Marx (Harry Lloyd). He questions her about her relationship with Henry Foster (Sen Mitsuji). When Lenina denies having a sexual relationship with Henry, Bernard confronts her with video evidence. He offers her a yellow pill but she refuses. Bernard reminds Lenina that she is a beta and Henry is an alpha plus so they cannot be together. He offers her a soma. She asks for something else before receiving an orange pill.

When Lenina leaves, she spots Henry in the hallway with another woman. They look at each other but don’t say anything. Lenina takes the pill she was given and hopes to feel better. The Director (Ed Stoppard) visits Marx and tells him that there has been an incident. When Lenina returns to work, Frannie (Kylie Bunbury) jokes with her about Henry. Then, we learn a little more New London and indra which keeps everyone connected. Then, we’re introduced to the Savage Lands which is an 11 minute rocket ride from new London. In the Savage Lands, people can watch realistic shows performed by actual savages. Bernard rides along before being asked if he wants a soma fizz. Then, he meets up with the Gamma supervisor (Mark Arends) so he can find out about the incident.

The supervisor tells Marx that one of the Epsilons had an accident. Marx tells the Jacks to get away from the body and they do. One of the men doesn’t listen so Marx gives him a soma and that seems to set things right. The man walks away before Bernard flips the man over. He hands out somas to everyone so they can get over the man’s bloody face. Mark has the area cleared before heading upstairs because he believes the man jumped to his death. He drops a grapefruit down to the ground and watches as it falls apart. He returns and speaks with one of the Jacks who admits he knew the man. He says that the man fell to his death before trying to clean up. Bernard touches the man’s head and imagines falling to the ground. He tries to take a soma but he is completely out.

We see a commercial of sorts for pleasure Bomb as Bernard visits Wilhelmina ‘Helm’ Watson (Hannah John-Kamen). Bernard tells Helm about the man jumping to his death but she doesn’t understand it because nobody has ever done that. He says there is a kind of pain that soma doesn’t touch but Helm isn’t sure about that. Bernard claims he had a visit. Helm believes it was a bad afternoon and she doesn’t want to hear about the man jumping to his death. She arranges for Bernard to have her table at the Pleasure Garden that night. Lenina hangs out with Frannie who digitally tries on a few outfits. Lenina doesn’t like any of them that much though. Then, they head to the Pleasure Garden and run into Henry and his friend Damon. Frannie dances with Henry while Lenina spends time with Damon. Meanwhile, Bernard hangs out on a nearby couch.

He is approached by two people and one begins taking off his pants. Bernard stops them as Lenina watches and he quickly rushes off in the other direction. After that, we jump over to the Savage Lands and watch as John (Alden Ehrenreich) cleans a vehicle. He spots Madysun (Lara Peake) nearby and checks on her. She asks him to help her remove her fake pregnancy bump and he does. He wants to know why she didn’t show last night and she says there was a meeting with her group. He wanted to show her the view although he has done so already. Several others approach John and complain that he made them look like idiots. John apologizes to Kvle (Joe Anderson) but he doesn’t want to hear it. John is told to get it right because they could stop coming to see their shows. If that happens, they won’t be able to eat. John checks the guns before leaving the adventure park.

He goes to a music store and listens to some of the music. He finds out that the store has gotten rid of the good stuff. The man running the shop tells him that they’re not making music anymore. The man asks John’s mother and gives him something to take to her. John is given new music and is told that nobody knows who it is. John likes it. He leaves and returns home to his mother, Linda (Demi Moore), who has been sitting in front of the window all day. After an argument, they enjoy dinner together that night. Linda tells John that he looks like him. She wants to tell him more about the guy but John doesn’t want to listen. The lights turn on before John shuts them off. He carries her to bed a bit later. In the middle of the night, John is kidnapped by Sheila (Kate Fleetwood) and the gang. John yells for Madysun but she doesn’t respond. Sheila has John taken to a small hole dug into the ground. It looks like a grave but it isn’t.

Madysun emerges from the bunker. Sheila tells John that she watches him every day and that they need him. She says the New Worlders love nothing and believe in nothing. It makes her wonder if they’re even human. John is told that his destiny is in the hole. He is told that he is going to tear it all down. We see that the hole has a container that is full of bullets. Sheila wants John to help them take back what is theirs. She asks what he is and if he a free human being. Meanwhile, C Jack 60 (Joseph Morgan) wakes up and steps outside. He approaches the room for Jack 57 and goes inside. He looks around and finds that bed in disarray. Bernard returns home before Jack 60 finds a strange piece of paper on the bed. Bernard removes his contact lens while Jack 60 begins crying. Bernard sits on his toilet before grabbing the lens and putting it back in.

The director visits and asks Bernard why he was offline. He wants to know why Bernard is going offline often. The director says it is unacceptable and disgusting because privacy is a vice that the social body cannot afford. He reminds Bernard that he is an Alpha Plus. Then, the director asks about dropping the grapefruit earlier. Bernard says he wanted to understand but the director says anything else would be irrational. The director decides to send Bernard on vacation to The Savage Lands. Meanwhile, John gets upset with Madysun because she wants to see the view after everything he has gone through. She tells him that he should be grateful because they’re giving him a chance. She tells him that she would hate anything to happen to him or his mom before giving him a bullet.

After that, Lenina visits Bernard and tells him that the soma didn’t help her. She calls him a hypocrite too. Marx admits that he feels odd about sex because it isn’t real. He goes to say that none of it is real and he doesn’t know who he is supposed to be. They try to protect themselves by projecting themselves and having intercourse. She tells Bernard that Henry let her look inside of him. Bernard asks if she sees inside of him and what she sees. She says nothing before we jump back to John who drinks alone.

 

Brave New World Review

Although I felt the opener was a bit confusing, I still enjoyed Brave New World. It is much different than anything else on right now and that helps. I haven’t read the book or whatever so I can’t compare the two. However, I have to guess that the show has been modernized a lot. Still, I think it has the potential to get very good. I enjoyed it. The opening episode scores a 7 out of 10.