Tagomi is perhaps correct that there is a Joe she can trust when he reminds Juliana, “That’s Joe in the film, not in this world.” The Joe of the show’s reality thinks that the Reich conquering every world is a dream worthy of pursuit, and he genuinely thinks he and Juliana can have a perfect life together under Nazi rule. So should we blame Joe for forcing Juliana into a corner? And when she later demands honesty about why Himmler let Joe live, she softens upon hearing the answer.
It’s surprising because early in the episode, Juliana appears to be trying to convince Tagomi that Joe in the film killed her in order to save her, and that still may be true if that Joe is different version of the one we know (and how could it not be now that this one is dead?). If that doesn’t get viewers’ hearts racing, what will?Ĭlearly all of the affection and manipulation between Juliana and Joe was building to something much more violent than we could have anticipated. John Smith has always been several moves ahead while unknowingly staying within Himmler’s carefully constructed plan, and Juliana Crain just made a bold move with her queen that will either decimate the board or leave her completely vulnerable to attack. Nicely done, The Man in the High Castle this is how you do the midpoint of a season for maximum excitement! This episode shows what happens when impulsive decisions are made during what amounts to a three-dimensional chess game of political maneuvering. The Man in the High Castle Season 3 Episode 5
This review contains spoilers for The Man in the High Castle.