Director	Peter Burger
Writers	David Brechin-Smith, Peter Cox	Tweet
Starring	Renato Bartolomei, Latham Gaines, Gareth Reeves, Kate Elliott, Danielle Cormack, Scott Wills, Sara Wiseman, Rachel Nash, Andrew Grainger, William Wallace, Lisa Chappell, Laura Interval
Genre	Thriller
Tagline	None Listed
Country

Review

With the Liberators in the clutches of the increasingly unbalanced Edward Michael has agreed to Daniel's attempt at a rescue. Increasingly the guards, principally Saul, are starting to question Edward, while Cynthia Ross is keen to speed up her final solution. Edward seems to have some weird notion about saving the world, a stance Daniel may or may not agree with.

Meanwhile it's not only the Liberators taking an interest in Two Gardens. The Police are on their way after a tip off by Michael, and the Observers are ready to launch an assault on the compound, though the Europeans also have a number of Liberators on their list as well. Can the forces of order hold sway or will chaos reign supreme as immovable forces march to a final confrontation? Or is this indeed the final confrontation, Daniel may have other ideas.

So finally we come to the end of season one, seems to have been something of a journey, and for those wondering yes there's a lot left unanswered indicating there should be future seasons, or at least future seasons were planned. We still don't know what the hell commencement was meant to be, though a Jonestown style situation seems the most likely scenario. Daniel has his own view of what is going to happen, remembering those visions of the future he seemed to be having in a few flashbacks during episode eleven. And what to make of the ending, did Michael hallucinate or are there additional properties to that ambiguous yellow flower. We also have to wonder at the future for Hannah, as she is still in Cynthia Ross's tender care, and what's the likely fallout from a number of murders etc. What is Edward's likely fate at the hands of the Observers? - who clearly had their own unstated religious agenda. So yes at least one more season is called on to explain a number of plot points left up in the air as the closing credits came up on the final episode.

The final episode did not answer the questions poised during the season, no doubt to universal disappointment

Guess I should mention a few things I may have eluded to but not fully covered yet in the episode guide. There's been overall an excellent effort from the minor cast members and the extras. Some great acting has been going down throughout season one from those on the sideline of the main game. I would especially like to mention the cast who played Edward North's followers, you could readily believe their devotion to the commune and Edward, equally during the final episode they pretty much all brought across the feeling of betrayal by Edward and of things ending. Throughout the season minor characters have been used to reinforce plot points, or to provide insight into the dynamic around Two Gardens and the local township. Great casting without a single character blowing the overall look and feel of the production values.

Rhian Sheehan's score throughout the thirteen episodes has been spot on and has really helped with the mood and tension that permuted the season. At times jarring, always foreboding, and infinitely tension filled, the score has helped to underline the visuals, being well used in each episode. The signature pieces simply rocked the house down, keeping the Audience on the edge of their seats, and enhancing the overall enjoyment of the show. Excellent work, one of the unsung, till now, strengths of The Cult.

To the episode at hand. Any thought of an underlying theme is toss out the window as the Writers and Director attempt to wrap things up in style. Of primary concern is whether or not Daniel is who he claims to be, or is simply trying for another manipulation in order to achieve Edward North's as yet unknown end game. In a nice bet each way Daniel proves to have his own agenda that might yet be more sinister than anything the clearly demented Edward can dream up. For those who are still getting their Cult on, not all of the Liberators are going to make it to the final credits. While to a certain degree a fire-fight might have closed out the season in style, I still dug the more low key approach taken, adding to the enigmatic nature of the first season. If there is only going to be one season, and as yet I haven't seen any indication of a second season, then the Audience will have been ripped off as Commencement, following the first season's trend, raises more questions than it answers. The quickest way to lose friends in this business is to leave something high and dry with a fanbase simply sweating on answers. Ladies and Gentlemen, I am officially fanging on more seasons, and I believe Commencement leaves scope for another season to go in any number of directions.

Peter Burger, getting the final word from the Director's chair, does away with any thoughts of building a visual tapestry here, Burger is more interested in focusing on the action and getting things moving throughout the episode. For the first time in the season the Directing is noticeably on a level one would expect from television, albeit from excellent television, with Burger foregoing his normal trademark money shots in order to keep the Audience focused on the plot. Yes there's a lot going down, and no doubt a lot we should be taking into future seasons, but I preferred Burger's more cinematic style in previous episodes. Which isn't to say that Commencement didn't rock, Burger hangs ten on the tension while dropping the atmosphere a tad, you are getting full value for money with the episode. Yes I thoroughly enjoyed the final episode and overall am pleased with the conclusion to festivities at Two Gardens.

So season one of The Cult was well above average, I wasn't too sure what I was getting going in, but was simply blown away by the production values, ever enigmatic plot, and a concept that kept me guessing. New Zealand television production has had the bar lifted, it's going to take a hell of a good production to match the achievements and share level of excellence The Cult has delivered. Highly recommended, time to start campaigning for season two!

ScaryMinds Rates this episode as ...