AVENUE 5 S2E2: “What an Unseasonal Delight”  

The Sun is our closest star and the most vital source of energy for life on Earth. It is also the most imminent danger to the poorly supplied and operated Avenue 5. The Avenue 5 is on a course to pass dangerously close (albeit millions of miles) to the sun. “What an Unseasonal Delight” features the crew scrambling to concoct a plan to avoid being incinerated as the climax to the disastrous voyage. Second Engineer Billie McEvoy has remained relatively calm through the drastic changes in course, a false alarm in oxygen levels, and even witnessing the deaths of people (by their own stupidity) via being exposed to the vacuum of space.  Billie loses her shit when Captain Ryan inquires if magnets can repel heat.  Billy retorts “Yes, I see people fanning themselves on beaches with fucking magnets”.

Some of the passengers are selected to go into a shielded area of the ship. Mia, who is pregnant with someone other than her husband’s child is selected to hold up in the shielded area. Husband Doug has just found out that the unborn child may only be “partially” his. Doug sneaks into the haven and responds that a child cannot be partially his. It is all or nothing. If you remember, this type of dialogue was present in intense political turmoil in Iannucci’s VEEP too. The craftsmanship in the production, the sharp writing, and the calculated performances make this quirky and brief series worth the ride.

The Avenue 5 passes the perihelion of the Sun and miraculously everyone survives, albeit all are sweating bullets. Hermann Judd may be a rich idiot, however, he did not spare expenses on the ship’s heating shield. The melting crisis is averted, yet mental health and food supply issues remain. Back on the third rock from the Sun, Iris becomes an executive producer on the soap opera depicting the events of the Avenue 5.

AVENUE 5 continues blindly navigating the Solar System on October 14, 2022, at 10PM ET on HBO.