Moment Of Silence
Episode 2 of The Premise begins with a man named Chase Milbrandt applying for a PR job. Given his history, the interviewer buckles and hires him. Chase quickly makes a new friend in the form of a guy called Aaron, who shows him around the office. They play games together, shoot at the gun range in the basement and even drink at the bar together. However, Chase has a dark history. It turns out his daughter was killed thanks to gun violence. At work, Chase makes an impassioned plea both for and against gun laws, going off on a tirade and impressing his boss. Away from work though, Chase continues to hang with Aaron, who encourages him to go on a hot air balloon ride with him. Chase struggles to open up, painfully smiling through a family reunion back home. As Aaron embraces his niece, Chase is reminded of what he’s lost. As Chase begins to unravel, he encourages Aaron to leave work and go hiking. He does no such thing though, watching from afar as Chase prepares for a live broadcast. Quick as a flash though, he suddenly stands up, reaching for something in his coat. The security are on him in a flash, shooting several times and killing the man in cold blood. As Aaron steps over, he notices the item is a picture of his daughter.
The Episode Review
Jon Bernthal is an absolute beast when it comes to portraying mentally damaged characters. Here, he plays a grieving father mourning the loss of his daughter. The entire episode is set-up as a switch and bait, believing Chase is going to gun down the whole office, only to find out he’s just an ordinary guy and struggling with grief. The shocking climax is something that’s designed to make a statement, and a larger message about gun violence across the US. As a Brit, I can’t begin to talk about this, given I haven’t grown up with these laws, but from a personal perspective the “right to bear arms” has been completely misconstrued by some people. Still, this episode works a lot more effectively than the first, with very little comedy and a clever inclusion of violent videogames into the discourse. This helps to make for a really topical and important chapter. While “If Anything Happens I Love You” is still a lot stronger and poignant, this is a much better episode compared to the tepid first chapter.
