As the second season begins, tensions are rising as the current Cleons’ iron rule on Trantor begins to unravel, with war imminent between Empire and the Foundation. That war is the Second Crisis, along with an enemy seeking to destroy Empire from within. The Foundation, meanwhile, has adopted the propaganda tactics of religion to recruit new acolytes to the cause. And we’ll also meet a colony of “Mentalics” with psionic abilities, only hinted at in the first season.
Let’s take a closer look at where our primary players find themselves at the start of the second season.
Credit:
Apple TV
Jared Harris reprises his role as Hari Seldon—or rather, a “digital ghost” and a second digital copy of the original Hari’s consciousness.
Credit:
Apple TV
Hari Seldon
Seldon, who set all these events in motion with his controversial predictions, was murdered in S1. At least, his human body was killed. A digital version of him emerged on Terminus in the S1 finale. Goyer describes his current incarnation as a “digital ghost” (referred to as Dr. Seldon). There is also a digital copy of Hari’s consciousness uploaded into the hilt of a knife that traveled with Gaal in her escape pod, and the two incarnations are distinct personalities.
The latter copy of Hari was conscious the entire time Gaal was in cryosleep, “which basically would drive anyone permanently insane,” said Harris. “It’s not deliberate on Gaal’s part, but her interventions have knocked Hari’s plan seriously off course.” That could have implications for the Second Crisis. Those intervening years have inevitably altered Hari’s relationship with Gaal, although Harris insists the two are more alike than either might care to admit. “Both have brilliant minds and both think they’re the smartest people in the room, so there’s an arrogance about them,” he said.
The Cleon dynasty—Brother Dawn (Cassian Bilton), Brother Day, and Brother Dusk (Terrence Mann)—is in decline.
The Cleon dynasty—Brother Dawn (Cassian Bilton), Brother Day, and Brother Dusk (Terrence Mann)—is in decline.
The Cleons
The Cleons might still rule Trantor, but a lot has changed since we learned in S1 that these so-called “pure” clones of the original Cleon actually aren’t that pure: a rebel faction managed to introduce mutations or variables in their genetic code, which rather weakens the mythology of the Genetic Dynasty—and hence the legitimacy of their rule. Pace’s Brother Day—the 18th in the cycle—is most definitely not a mere carbon copy of Cleon the First. “In the first season, we tried to establish this imperishable permanence, that they believe they’re a continuation of the same man,” Pace told Ars. “The Cleon I play in S2 is determined to assert his individuality. He knows in his heart that he’s an individual, and he’s going to write his own path, determine his own destiny. It takes courage to break free of this system that is extremely rigid and dangerous. But his emperor’s ego makes him think he can do anything.”
