Cosima tells Sarah that Neolution plans to harvest Kira's eggs for cloning, which puts the pressure on them to retrieve Kira from Dyad. They try to discover Westmoreland's true identity to sway Rachel's allegiance away from him, but they do not realize that her loyalties have already been shaken by her own discoveries. Meanwhile, Alison returns from her trip to find herself with a new hairdo and a new outlook on life.

In this episode, Kris and Stephanie discuss episode 5×07 of Orphan Black “Gag or Throttle.”

Rachel

• Effing Rachel. Orphan Black has always walked an interesting line with her character. She so clearly functions as a villain, and she has done irredeemable things, but the writers do not let the audience lose sight of the fact that she has also been victimized by the clone experiment.
• “Who hurt you?” “All of them.”
• Flashbacks! These glimpses into Rachel's past focus on how she was subject to the clone experiment and yet desperately wanted to distinguish herself from the other clones, primarily by being awful.
• Flashbacks also suggest why Rachel seemed so happy in the premiere. She had at least been led to believe that she had been emancipated from the clone experiment. The entire course of the episode unravels Rachel's feelings of security both signing that document and ascending to the head of Neolution had brought her.
• Westmoreland is using the eye to spy! Not surprising.
• Rachel is terrible, but also terribly clever – coming up with a plan to divert Westmoreland’s security team/enforcers so she can get Kira back to her family with an assist from Art.
• Rachel dons a black eyepatch to free Kira — amazing!
• She emails the board Westmoreland's “obituary.” Her email includes the line “His anomaly is his ability to deceive.”
• Because Rachel seems either practically comatose or completely monstrous, she removes her cyborg eye in the most gruesome way possible.
• But now she is at least a little more free.
• How is Rachel so functional after drinking so much??

Kira

• Her code names paid off!
• Skyler Wexler delivered a good performance this episode.
• Despite her treatment, Kira still shows compassion to Rachel.
• Kira gave Rachel a friendship bracelet, and she wore it the entire episode.

Castor & Coady

• Mark and Gracie return! Boy, is Stephanie not happy to see them!
• Coady tells Mark that she needs an ejaculate sample. (Is she planning to use it to fertilize a Leda egg, as had been previously discussed? Or Kira’s? shudder Or does she want it to isolate the Castor sterilization mechanism?)
• Coady manipulates Mark, showing him Ira's grave and making a big show of weeping about the dead Castors. But also admitting that she decided which one to give to Susan by drawing straws.
• Is Coady telling the truth? Are all the other Castors dead?
• Is Ira really dead? While he was not in good shape at the end of 5×06, he was still alive.

Alison

• Alison has a new haircut, tattoo, and outlook on life. We shall see how long that lasts.
• Out with the crafts and in with the Korg!
• (This is a third-life/identity crisis if we've ever seen one.)

Cosima & the Guys

• Cosima and Charlotte made it (thank goodness) with a large amount of Cosima's cure (double thank goodness).
• Cosima and Scott finally reunite! And hug!

Random Thoughts

• We've had Alison, Cosima, and now Rachel flashbacks this season. Should we expect Sarah and Helena flashbacks in the last three episodes?
• The document that Westmoreland had Rachel sign listed her designation before her name.
• What is the state of the relationship between Revival and Westmoreland?
• The board members include Dr. Ian Van lier, Hashem Al-Khatib, Leslie Richards, Daniel Lee, Dr. Jules Martin, Terry Locke, and Seong Pak.

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