IX – Episode 2 begins with Angela Adams/Parwana (Alia Shawkat) being taken to Faraz Hamzad’s (Navid Negahban) compound. Once there she will briefly speak with Khadija (Jacqueline Antaramian) who tries to tell her the truth about her origins, including her real name and father. Angela is unbelieving and will eventually ask to speak with Faraz. This is when Khadija simply walks out and leaves her to stew with her own thoughts. As the day turns to night, Angela will begin the slow process of fashioning one of the metal bed slats into a shiv. Some of Faraz’s men eventually bring in and set up an old projector of what appears to be old footage of her and Faraz. Judging from her expression, this is enough to make her a believer.

The following day, Angela will get her meeting with Faraz at what is shortly revealed to be a memorial ground for the Hazmad Family and the soldiers who fought for their land. After a brief history lesson, Angela will admit that she came to learn the truth. Despite her claim, Angela is almost once again unbelieving to hear that her mother was cold and manipulative. Before Faraz walks away, Angela pleads with him to tell her something good about her mother.

Later that day at the gates of his compound, Faraz reluctantly meets with Omar (Artur Zai Barrera) who introduces himself as the former Chief of the Directorate Branch. He will treat Faraz with the utmost respect and claim that they met before, although Faraz callously dismisses him as a spy. Faraz will appear uninterested to speak with him further until he claims he can offer a solution to his current problems.

This will lead to a more private discussion where Omar will reveal his intimate knowledge of Faraz’s Lithium Mine, his daughter, and his tentative agreements with the US. Faraz will attempt to appear unfazed by Omar’s knowledge but after learning that his bride to the Ministry is yet to arrive, he’s clearly disturbed. Faraz will respond by revealing that he knows a bit about Omar himself. Before the meeting ends Omar will mention hearing rumors of two US agents who have arrived in the area to rescue the hostage that Faraz claims to not have. Omar will claim that he will do whatever he can to shield Faraz, out of respect.

With Omar gone, Faraz and Khadija will briefly discuss the late payment, which neither can confirm at the moment. Despite that, they both admit that they are in a precarious position that is only made worse by Angela’s kidnapping. After pointing out that they will have to explain Angela’s kidnapping once they release her, Khadija tells him it’s time to make a decision. This ultimately leads to him visiting Angela’s room and pulling a gun on her, claiming that she is just like her mother and shouldn’t have come. She points out that it was him who kidnapped her. She will also refer to him as a coward because he is afraid to ask the questions that he knows she has the answers to.

Although the two of them will get into a physical fight, it appears that neither wants to do any real harm to the other. It ends with Faraz choking Angela and bursting into tears. Khadija will eventually come into the room and take Angela to stay with relatives. The following morning, Angela will briefly speak with Khadija to learn more about why her mother fled the compound. Khadija practically tells her that she will provide answers when she asks the right questions.

Angela spends time in the small village, learning about her relatives and their struggles. She will develop an affinity for a young boy named Farouk (Michael Sifain) while also learning the unique role Faraz plays within the community. Omar meets with the Military Minister (Amir M. Korangy) to voice his concerns about Faraz misleading them. The Ministry Man will practically tell Omar that he is right and they are currently reevaluating their relationship with him but need to do so very carefully. At nearly the same time, Khadija will speak with someone on a satellite phone about Taliban soldiers taking over the Lithium mine.

Faraz randomly shows up one day in the village in a bit of a panic to usher Angela to a cave in the mountains. At nearly the same time, Omar is shown forcing his way inside the village. Khadija will lead him and his men to the center of the village where they suddenly find themselves surrounded by armed guards. She tells him that they would have paid his bribes but now he’s the situation much worse than it needed to be. He claims it is her who has made the situation worse.

Before the episode ends, Faraz tells Angela that you can either love someone or trust them, but there will always come a time when you have to choose one or the other. Angela refuses to believe this, but they don’t get long to debate it thanks to a noise up ahead. Faraz will go to investigate and a gunshot will ring out. The episode ends will Angela baffled by whatever it is she sees.

 

The Old Man Review

There were aspects of the episode that I enjoyed. There were also parts that I enjoyed but the lion’s share of it felt useless. The parts that were essential to the story could have easily been summed up in half the time. The episode did provide the perfect opportunity for both Angela and Faraz to shine in the roles, but I feel they failed. Neither actor was strong enough to carry or convey the emotions really needed for the scenes.

They weren’t terrible but I would call them great either. In addition, it would have been nice to at least get a few scenes of some of the other main characters. All in all, I’d have to give the episode a 4.7 out of 10.

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