Other Doctor Lives: The Leftovers: Season 2, Episode 1 – “Axis Mundi” (2015)

The season 2 premiere of The Leftovers takes some big swings. We’ve left Mapleton and are in a new locale with mostly-new characters. I can’t tell what’s going to happen yet, whether the show is going in a dramatically new direction or if this is more of a detour (like the Others- or Tailaway-focused episodes of Lost) that will merge back into the main narrative from last season.

Set the scene for Miracle, Texas, a small town that claims to have had zero departures. We’re introduced to the Murphy family: dad John, mom Erika, son Michael, and daughter Evie, along with establishing the world of the town. It’s now home to a thriving pilgrim scene that draws wayward people seeking answers from the local psychic or shopping the tourist booths for purported talismans. Sure, someone might slaughter a goat in the diner during lunch time, but what’s a little ritual sacrifice compared to standing in the town that God spared? As the Murphys go about their lives, they meet their new neighbors, who aren’t new to us.

The interesting details of the world are probably still one of my favorite parts of The Leftovers, and Miracle is a great idea to add to the mix. When you’re dealing with seemingly-random, global disappearances, it’s almost inevitable that there’d be at least one place like Miracle out there, and it makes sense how people would react. The outsiders are curious, envious, desperate for a piece of whatever divine favor Miracle claims, while the townsfolk walk around with this spring in their step that we never quite saw in Mapleton. There, everywhere you go, something reminds you of the departures, and even the happiest moments are tinged with something wistful. But here, people are mostly untouched by the tragedy of the rest of the world (did no one in Miracle have friends or family living in other towns/states who disappeared?)

I like what we’ve seen of the Murphys so far. I’m seeing some everyfamily parallels with the Garveys, only without the trauma of the departures. John is a fireman, not a police chief, but he’s similarly wrapped up in some kind of strange goings-on and, like Kevin, apparently isn’t above using his position dishonorably for his own concerns. Michael has also gotten deep into religion, but while Tom joined up with a cult leader, Michael is very active in the local church. Evie is the somewhat-rebellious teenage girl, although she’s far less nihilistic and self-destructive than Jill. I’m not really seeing many parallels between Erika and Laurie, but Erika is the member of the family who’s had the least to do so far, so we’ll see what the show has in store for her.

The Murphys, like a lot of folks in Miracle, are Black, which is nice. I’ve complained before about how white the show is, so I appreciate seeing more BIPOC characters/actors. Jovan Adepo (who was the adult Antron in When They See Us and the young-adult Will Reeves in Watchmen) plays Michael, and Erika is played by the great Regina King, which I hope means that we’ll be getting a lot more from her character in the future.

There are a few characters from Mapleton who show up in this episode, coming in search of Miracle’s blessings. I won’t get into all of them at the moment, but they include Matt and his wife Mary. Given that Mary is paralyzed and played by an able-bodied actress, I have renewed worries about where they’re going to be taking that story; it’s obvious that Matt is hoping that Miracle will leave up to its name and somehow cure Mary. So I’m not crazy about that, but what I do enjoy is Matt the Episcopal priest kind of awkwardly carving out a place for himself in a mostly-Black Baptist church. Christopher Eccleson plays it with a light touch. He’s only in a couple scenes in this episode, but I look forward to seeing more of how he fits into this new town.

As a final side note, there are new opening titles this season that are really cool. I love the conceit of a montage of photographs, each with at least one figure removed, only their silhouette remaining. It emphasizes the individual lives of the departed, while the opening titles with the mural in season 1 emphasized the event of the departures.