The Swarm – Season 1 Episode 7 Recap & Review

Episode 7

Episode 7 of The Swarm begins with a meeting on board the Thorvaldsson. Some of the volunteers present their thesis as to where the Yrr might be. The Arctic and the Antarctic regions are cross-sectioned as the origin of the broadcast signals. It might mean that the Yrr has been active for thousands of years and quietly breeding in these regions without human knowledge. The group informs Captain Jasper to set course for the Arctic region; more specifically the Molloy Deep, as Charlie points out.

Mifune has a meeting with Sigur, Charloie, and Alicia, where the journalist is tasked with updating emergency contact info for everyone aboard and making clips of interviews of the volunteers. Mifune wants to keep tabs on whatever happens on a daily basis. Jasper sets some ground rules for Alicia, limiting her interference in filming how the ship is run. On the night, the ship experiences strange PS disturbance, indicating that the intelligence might be tracking them.

Samantha suggests to Leon that they should broadcast the signals from the Yrr back to them with slight spikes of their own. If they are returned in the same form, they can confirm that the Yrr picked up the signal. Establishing a communication bridge with them is key. Cecile and Sigur figure out that the intelligence might be injecting the substances into the creatures – the crabs and jellyfish and the like – through their NDMA receptors.

These are responsible for regulating behaviour changes. Using the substance, these are basically puppets in the hands of this intelligence. Samantha broadcasts the signal back into the ocean. Luther & Charlie take a submersible deep into the water, spotting a mass of some kind on sonar. Jasper picks it up too. Leon plays the signal they receive back from the water, which is the same one they had sent…but it is modulated Suddenly, the ship experiences PS disturbance and the HOV loses contact with them. When the situation gets dire, Luther decides to turn back and they return safely.

Samantha deduces that the modulation means the intelligence is “replying in kind.” Samantha now wants to tamper with the wavelength of the signal and make an image. She is sure that the Yrr will understand it when Jasper allows its broadcast. Later that night, sometime after the HOV resurfaces into the ship, the ship suffers a blackout. It is brief – only a matter of seconds – but it does a lot of damage. Alicia was standing next to the HOV and noticed something glittering in the water.

After the blackout, she is found unconscious with her hand in the water. She is brought upstairs and Cecile treats her. Although Alicia is stable, it is difficult to say if she will pull through. Cecile derives fluid from near her spinal cord to check what is wrong. Samantha reveals to everyone that she has discovered a blast of sound at the time of the blackout, the same as the one they received before. But this time, it is from inside the ship. The results from Alicia’s sample are not encouraging. Cecile all but confirms that the Yrr is inside her, and it is present on the ship in the hangar. 

The area is secured and Jasper consoles Sigur on the deck about how the volunteers came on board of their own volition. Samantha reveals that the image she is sending out is of human evolution; a common past to them and the Yrr.

The episode ends with the Yrr revealing itself in the hangar. Charlie witnesses it first-hand, while Sam and Leon watch on the feed. They also hear the signal it emits. The Yrr is shown to be a glowing entity that can seamlessly change shape and colour and is built like a constellation of stars. 

The Episode Review

There is an air of inevitability in Episode 7 that weighs heavily on the narrative. You can sense it on the faces of the characters. This change in tone is in stark contrast to how the rest of the series has played out. And perhaps the push was needed. The Swarm’s business end is fittingly set in the gorgeous Arctic region, with the mysteries of its water set to play a critical role. Episode 7 brought forth a stunning visualization of the Yrr, which is inherently intriguing and the perfect tease.

The humans established an unlikely communication bridge with it. But the intelligence is as intrigued by their presence. I have no idea how the finale will go…but I do want the conclusion of this arc in the least. Irrespective of what other stuff happens or not, the Yrr’s contact must be optimally utilized. 

Episode 7 is a little too technical in some places, even though the writers do their best to simplify matters with dialogue. It does lead to some degree of redundancy but that is the nature of the show’s setting. The suggestion that Mifune might be a bad guy is also a handy optionality going into next week’s finale. Let’s hope for a satisfying end to what has been an uneven and inconsistent journey.