Beacon 23 - Season 2, Episode 1 - Godspeed

And so the return of the second season as we have the conclusion of the cliffhanger.....  Halan is the man in charge as the events of the episode unfold and places him in charge.

AsteI thought for sure that somehow Aster would be resurrected. But it seems she is done for good as she is sent packed with explosives into the artifact in a double cross move by Halan. The first half of the episode centers on Halan's emotional state as he deals with the sudden death of Aster. The rest of the show emphasizes the seeming omnipotence of Aleph. Although an algorithm, he displays lots of human emotions and characteristics ranging from admiration, jealousy, rage and cruelty.

The show also seems to go through a mix of characters every few episodes with the only constant being the Beacon itself and now Halan. I suspect the next episode will involve more people traveling to the Beacon and will involve mostly them. Aleph does plan to reassemble the artifact and hunt down the members of the column from information he obtained while interfaced.

Of all the characters that have come and gone, I grew attached to the AI's the most. The humans seem so annoying flawed that it is hard for me to identify with them, much less make the same choices. Aster was a very helpful, honorable character.

Interesting trivia

Aster Calyx - Time of Death Universal Standard TIme 14:02:36. 

Phi Modrani - the place Saldana can escape to, per Aleph's offer to take an escape ship.

Characters of Interest

• Aster (Parsim) Calyx - always seems to have a different plan that what she shows, very unpredictable character, purposefully so. She seems to have a very intimate connection with the Artifact and likely is the only person who can communicate with it. She is murdered at the end of Season 1.
• Keir - the worker from the Column sent to blow up the beacon. Returns to convince Aster to try to communicate with the Artifact. He is all in on the spiritual aspect of the artifact. Shows to be pretty cut-throat and murders Aster in a surprise cliffhanger move at the end of season 1.
• Halan Kal Nielsen -  Seems to be alone in this world, and was revealed more than once to have traveled over 84,000 star systems to get to Beacon 23. He is punished for his betrayal of Aleph by being placed on the beacon alone to end episode 1.
• Harmony - Aster's personal AI, revealed to be bound to QTA. Tries to be the voice of reason in this episode and is largely ignored. Appears to be punsihed and likely gone for good.
• Saldana - column terrost, likes to kill people.
  
• Finch - column terrorist with implants. Tries to kill Aleph through the interface and loses in virtual combat. He eventually is killed due to oxygen deprivation at the end of the episode.
  
• Aleph, the holographic transcendic consciousness, appears to be in the beacon computers. Exhibits his own cut throat features as well as a range of human emotions.

Mysteries and questions...

• The same symbol on Aster's pendant is in the rocks as seen under microscope. How are they connected?
• How and in what way does Aster's pendant affect Aleph (and only Aleph)?
  
• What is QTA Class C mission? likely a fancy term that will not be explained further that probably means a highly important and dangerous mission.
• Is Harmony ultimately loyal to QTA? During her dying moments, Coley calls out to Harmony expecting the AI to help her. Harmony herself says she is legally bound to QTA. She does seem to help Halan to betray Aleph and ultimately pays the price.
• Did the wreckers work for QTA? likely...
• What is Okun? is it like the column's bible? likely...
• What is quantic AI that Aleph is described as being? likely a fancy term that will not be explained further, Aleph describes him self as an algorithm without a singular purpose.