Timeless Season 1 Episode 7 Review: Stranded
Dale McGarrigle
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Nothing like being lost in the primitive wilderness to bring people together.
On Timeless Season 1 Episode 7, the trio must depend on each other – and Lucy's French – to stay alive long enough to scavenge the materials necessary to repair the Lifeboat and return home.
The revelations that Rufus is a spy for Rittenhouse and Flynn is being guided by Lucy's future journal has left the team more than a little on edge.
Rufus: I get that I suck at this. I hate the outdoors and camping and bees and I hate this survivalist crap. That's why we have you.
Wyatt: And who do I have, Rufus?
Desperate times yield cooperation as the team must work together to stay alive while surrounded by the French, who think they are the hated English (even worse, they're actually the hated Americans), and the Indians who just see devious white people. There's no safe place for them to be.
This was Rufus's episode to shine and shine he did. He had to tap into his MacGyver-ish side to use ancient odds and ends to patch the gaping hole in the Lifeboat while cannibalizing the navigation system to replace necessary circuits.
Rufus even developed blacksmith skills, figuring out how to produce the metal parts he needed. Yes, once again, this show required more than the normal suspension of disbelief.
Rufus may have started out as the Cowardly Lion of this outfit, but he's certainly shown his heart as time progressed.
A nervous Rufus is a sarcastic Rufus, which meant he contributed many of the best Timeless quotes:
Wyatt: What are we going to do, walk in and ask to borrow a forge?
Rufus: Either that or we learn to start farming.
It was heartening to see Rufus and Jiya get off the schneid when they were finally reunited, with her kiss cutting off his incessant babbling. After all, it was she who caught Rufus' Star Wars reference and saved them.
Early on, they smartly figured out that the only history Flynn wanted to change was theirs.
That's smart. I can't image a worse place to strand us, 300 miles from anywhere, an area full of hostile forces, and, you know, smallpox.
Lucy
That's certainly one way to get those chasing you off your back: strand them more than 250 years in the past. I was surprised that beater of a time capsule didn't just fall apart on its own. Compared to the sleek model Flynn has, it's been an accident waiting to happen.
You've got to love Lucy's inability to think on her feet. With all of American history to choose from, she chose Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman as her cover identity.
Mason brought up a valid point when talking to the Rittenhouse representative Cahill: why choose a relatively young, untenured historian for such an important mission? What does Cahill know that no one else does? Besides being an eye-catching tour guide in period dress, what does Lucy bring to the table?
Wyatt still can't be bothered with the triviality of preserving history, blowing away the French officer's son early on. That behavior is sure to bite them in the butt down the road.
I didn't miss having Flynn twirling his non-existent mustache, although he's certainly on Lucy's mind, as she worried teaming up with Flynn is pre-determined. This led to an existential debate among the trio over fate versus choice in determining their futures.
What's the point of having a time machine if you can't fix your regrets?
Rufus
While hardship brought the team closer together, very little new information was revealed. Rittenhouse was mentioned only in passing, so it's largely a mystery. What do they want with a working time machine, other than it's cool to have one? Is Christopher investigating Mason going to get her in trouble?
To try to make better sense of it all, watch Timeless online.
Is the trio firmly back together, or will suspicion continue to get in the way? Did you miss Flynn? Don't you wish Rufus could be your mechanic? Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
