Well, in episode 7, the story finally moved forward a bit. Not that I am complaining about the same locations or commenting on social issues, religion and spirituality, but why limit myself? After all, this is a sci-fi series that takes place outside of Earth, so we have enormous freedom and almost unlimited possibilities. You don't need to spend so much time on the colony or on the wandering followers of God Sol. On the other hand, comments on the social role of women and men, the essence and meaning of spirituality or religious worship can be shown on more sophisticated examples. For you to understand me correctly, I am not complaining about this series and I am not saying that the writers are walking the least resistance. I'm just pointing out that this series could be run even better.
But to the point. After a few long-talked episodes, we got some action, i.e. an attack on the colony and an unsuccessful attempt to get rid of the Necromorph by Mithraic soldiers. It turned out nice, it was nice to watch despite the fact that it looked incomparably less effective than the 1st and 2nd episode. No wonder, this is the case with most series - the majority of the budget goes to the beginning and the end (to interest viewers and build hype for the next season). The middle episodes of RbW didn't look cheap, they have a pretty good script, so I have no major complaints. Apart from one issue - Ragnar vel. Marcus said it would be easy to attack the android because when it enters the simulation, it won't feel any movement. Your Excellency said it with a lot of confidence, rather aware of the possibilities and weaknesses of the Necromorph, so if they could have blown him up easily, why didn't they? It was enough just to put the bombs under the bed and that was it. Their action with this mirror reflecting the sound waves, the main weapon of the Necromorph, was totally unnecessary and risky. If they wanted to make it clear that God was stopping them from killing the android, the writer might have done it differently. For example, by burning the cables, or in any other way, after all, their ship broke into parts and they did not have access to high-quality parts, so the replacements could be damaged or badly connected. This creature could also appear and throw a stone at the Necromorph (or it could force someone from the crew to do it). As above and in previous posts, I praised the writers, so I write this thread down to them.
Speaking of divine intervention, I have developed a thread with Sol, and quite literal. Using the example of Marcus, we hear that God's words are not the invention of a priest convicted of rape (I assume he was not lying) or of the followers of this religion. I don't know about the other faiths, but from what I have learned about Catholicism, there have been occasions when God communicated directly with some of the faithful. I ran out of time and knowledge to verify the apparitions in a different form, e.g. a poor man, a needy old man, a mother with a hungry child for an ordinary person. As a child, I read various biblical parables or heard sermons from a priest in the church, but I do not know if they were stories that were supposed to convey some values (such as the story of Cain and Abel) or a record of real events. While in Greek or Norse myths the Gods sometimes descended into the world of mortals and revealed themselves to the common man, I do not know how it was in the case of the Catholic religion. In "Raised by Wolves" it is probably Sol who appears to Campion, the Mother and several other characters. I'm talking about the voices they hear and the characters of that girl who fell into the hole in the opening episodes. At first I thought the skill of one of the creatures that inhabited Kepler22b is similar to the Aguars of The Witcher, but I think he has too much knowledge about the colony inhabitants or the Earthlings. However, I can also be wrong, because she could, for example, observe people on this planet very well.
https://witcher.fandom.com/wiki/Aguara
Perhaps this is an over-interpretation on my part, but in the thread with Marcus, I had involuntary associations with King David and St. Paul. Your Excellency also has various sins on your conscience as above, but you have been chosen by God for some reason. She shows him the way, forbids killing his mother and prompts him to make various decisions, and punishes him in case of insubordination. I wonder if his statement at the end of the 7th episode is a dream resulting from his wounds or an incorrect interpretation of Sol's words. The previous scenes indicate that it is possible, although its role may be limited to safely bringing the person from the prophecy to a certain point in history. If so, then in this case I'm betting on Paul or Campion, they both fit the role. I will return to this thread for another discussion of the latest episodes, which I will watch over the weekend.
I liked the story of Campion's baptism. Just as I am an opponent of forced religion, years later I realized why such situations are necessary. I am an ardent supporter of free choice and maximum liberalization in almost every area of life, but there is not always an opportunity for this. I am also an opponent of coercion, whether on the left or on the right, I believe that social ostracism or leaving a person with his problem (as long as it does not pose a threat to others) is enough. Unfortunately, the world is as it is and sometimes there is no other choice but to adapt to the current conditions. We now live in a time and place that enables us to relatively contest authority and religion. Contrary to the ignorance of some people, as well as mine until recently, this privilege applies mainly to us and we have had it only recently. In worse times, when people could not afford to express their views or simply did not have time to do so, because meeting basic needs was more important (hunger, real poverty, real insecurity), they did not have such a privilege.
On the one hand, Campion is rightly outraged by the hypocrisy of the faithful, especially in the context of the sacrilege they committed on the tombstones of his relatives. On the other hand, he is still young, which means that he does not notice his duplicity (which I do not blame him for, he is still a child who has the right to make such mistakes), as well as the imperfections of our world. Each of us is a hypocrite, each of us has acted or uttered at least once in the last 365 days in a way that we have contradicted ourselves. If not out loud, then in your mind. Sure, we are guilty of it ourselves, as Campion rightly pointed out, but that is how God made us. Relatively, this is how we are shaped by nature and evolution (in the version for atheists). Sometimes we lie involuntarily, sometimes cynically, because it is easier or the truth is too painful, or it would be too painful to bear the costs. Likewise, we all simplify a fragment of reality, because it is too complicated for all of us. A similar mechanism works here as in the case of a lie - we do it consciously and subconsciously, sometimes out of ignorance, sometimes cynically (examples - parents do it when they cannot calm down or explain something to their children, while politicians try to capitalize on naive voters). Life is simply too large for a single person to grasp it and always misses something.
I may be wrong and it probably is, but I try to find answers to such spiritual questions myself and then compare them with the interpretation of the Church or the faithful. You may not agree, it is hard for me to get through my mouth, because it is not in line with my views, but objectively speaking - there is no better, universal "tool" for salvation from the Christian religion. Don't get me wrong - sure, being just a good person is enough, but you also need to instill the right values for that. Or rather, repeatedly talking, watching over and observing, because people often don't want to, forget or are driven by our desires and emotions. Asians or South American tribes had a different approach to brutality and ways of resolving disputes. We were like them, were it not for the influence of European culture, the legacy of the Greeks, Romans, the Catholic religion and a few other factors. Whatever I would say about Catholicism, it largely made us positive (with an equally significant contribution from Greek philosophers, the experiences of capitalism, monarchy, etc.). Looking at the death toll and the histories of religion-based or non-religion-based systems, our religion-based systems were generally better. I am talking about their stability, people's freedoms, their sense of security, etc. I am curious about the further consequences of the events of episode 7. I am also intrigued by why Father's software could not be changed and what kept him from retaining the remnants of his personality.
That's it for me, next week I'll write my impressions of the last 3 episodes.
Ps. the conversation between Ragnar and Mother was brilliant. One of the best talents of women is to "scan" males from head to toe and summarize us. Often as accurate as hitting the center of a target and painful, like a needle in the eye.