The Peripheralwas an incredibly ambitious show given its convoluted sci-fi premise. This is why it managed to grab hold of the attention of audiences from its first episode to the last. The show is based on the William Gibson novel of the same name and takes place in a dystopian future whereinhigh-tech innovationshave become pretty much inseparable from daily life — a fact that has had some unintended consequences.
The Peripheralrevolves around VR gaming wunderkind Flynne Fisher. Flynne, who lives in North Carolina and works at a 3D printing shop to help cover her mother’s medical bills, gets involved with a mysterious gaming company called Milagros Coldiron that changes her life forever. Her brother Burton, who is a professional VR gamer, gets invited to test the company’s new VR game calledSims. When Flynne tries the game out, she soon realizes that this is more than just a game as it manages to bring her consciousness into the future.
Now, we understand that the show has a lot going on. Things become even more complicated down the line, as the show further delves into the complex world it’s managed to piece together. And given that Prime has chosen tocancel the series, audiences can’t expect any more answers from a second season that they’re possibly never going to get.
To help you out, we thought it would be useful to put together a brief explainer of the show’s ending. If this is something that you’re interested in, read for a thorough rundown of everything that went down inThe Peripheral.
Does Flynne Die?
Fed up that their attempts to deal with Flynne have all failed so far, the Research Institute decides to blow up Flynne’s entire town to ensure that they’re all wiped out. After racking her brain for a solution, Flynne comes up with a plan that lets her save her loved ones.
She makes her way to a stub portal, a “stub” being the term the show uses to refer to alternate splinter timelines, and creates a new connection with her body. Instead of letting her uninhabited body go to waste, she decides to “fake” her own death by having Connor shoot her. By doing this, the Research Institute will have no reason to go after Flynne’s family.
Why Is the Research Institute Going After Flynne?
The Research Institute is the main threat in thisepic sci-fi series. They’re after Flynne from the get-go and audiences aren’t really told why. It’s eventually revealed that the main reason why the Research Institute has its sights set on Flynne is because they’ve managed to put the entire library of files from the Research Institute into Flynne’s brain.
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Aside from the information on the work of the Research Institute, Flynne also contains data on a “neural adjustment mechanism.” If we had to guess, this data may revolve around a device that allows for mind control. This is aligned with the Research Institute’s goals as they’re constantly in search of ways of preventing violence and crime in their world.
To make matters even more complicated, it’s also revealed that the data could be physically harming Flynne. Since Burton was the one that the Research Institute intended to enter the VR game, the data was supposed to be downloaded into his haptic implants. Because Flynne doesn’t have haptic implants, the data turned into bacterial DNA. This begins to take over Flynne’s brain and causes her to lose control of her body and have random fits of seizures.
Who Is Lev Zubov?
Lev Zubov is a character that’s shrouded in mystery. We don’t get much on Lev early on but the show slowly reveals bits and pieces about who Lev is and what he’s trying to do. Lev is considered to be one of the good guys at the beginning of the show, as he and Wilf assist Flynne.
However, Zubov’s righteous facade starts to fade away as audiences learn more about his character. Apparently, Zubov actually had all the other versions of himself from other timelines murdered by assassins. To do this, he instructed the assassins to take out his family in the splinter timelines.
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By the end of the show, Zubov’s true intentions are revealed. Apparently, Zubov has been working with Aleita this whole time in order to steal information on how to open stubs. With this knowledge, Zubov and the other wealthy families that benefited from The Jackpot can use these timelines for their nefarious means. A particularly disturbing example of this in action is when Zubov’s brother Alexei uses alternate timelines to do human testing for drugs that are being developed — essentially making them human guinea pigs.
Aleita goes against Zubov after destroying an implant that alters her memories. Once her original memories were restored, she recalled how Zubov’s family was the reason for the death of her and Wilf’s family. They did this because they feared a contagion, which is what led them to wipe out over five million people.
What Does the Post-Credits Scene Mean?
Some of you may not be aware that the show’s season finale had a post-credits scene. The scene follows Zubov and his wife Dominika who are on their way to lunch. However, the couple is surprised to find three men waiting at the table they reserved. The men order Zubov to eliminate Flynne as she could seriously compromise their plans.
Despite being initiallyrenewed for a second season, Prime Video has opted to scrap the series altogether. Given this, we’ll never really know what the post-credits scene means for the show’s story.
