"To Sail Beyond the Stars" Review

by Mike Helba

"To Sail Beyond the Stars" is a fairly solid character-building episode that still allows the arc to advance a bit.

Jeremiah has a romantic encounter with Claire, a woman who is surprisingly independent in this violent post-apocalyptic world. Jeremiah is intrigued by her strength and her desire to sail across the sea. Just as with those who oppose space exploration today, it is easy to come up with reasons why Claire shouldn't undertake her mission. However, those reasons always come up short when confronted with human nature. That's what humans do. We look beyond the horizon to see what's there. We always have, and we always will.

Meanwhile, Kurdy's adventure is less romantic as he finds himself serving as a midwife. This gives both the audience and Kurdy the opportunity to learn more about him.

As for their mission, Jeremiah and Kurdy encounter Eddie, an entertaining character who runs a pool hall with the walls papered in worthless hundred dollar bills. Eddie's main business is a low-tech communication service. People pay him to keep track of where they live, and he holds messages that they leave for their friends and relatives.

Jeremiah and Kurdy want to learn about the Burners from Eddie, but they soon learn about them first-hand. The Burners are a group of organized men wearing modern protective gear and carrying flame throwers. Jeremiah fears that they are burning possible new outbreaks of the virus. Claire kills a burner, and Jeremiah discovers a strange insignia on his protective suit: a biohazard warning symbol. Could the Burners come from Valhalla Sector?