Line #25 Recap/TheExpanseS02E02DoorsAndCorners


1	The arrival at Tycho Station is tense, but the ''Rocinante'' crew defuses the situation by explaining what is going on at Thoth Station and where the data is going. Fred Johnson pulls together a strike team from rival OPA factions, killing one of their leaders in the process to assert dominance. The ''Rocinante'' is assigned as the mission's muscle, engaging the station's defenses and clearing a path for the boarding party. The station is not prepared to defend itself and falls easily to the team. After capturing the lead scientist on the project, Dr. Antony Dresden, he says that he is uninterested in who he answers to as long as he can continue his work. While explaining the source, dangers, and possibilities of the protomolecule, he is shot in the head by Miller.
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4	!!This episode contains the following tropes:
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6	* AdmiringTheAbomination: Dr. Dresden has a serious case of this. He almost sells Holden and Fred Johnson on it.
7	* BoardingParty: Fred Johnson has to get fifty OPA volunteers to assault the station. His recruitment pitch is a failure until he airlocks a dissenter and reveals what the stakes are.
8	* BoomHeadshot:
9	** Miller deals with Dr. Dresden this way.
10	** Subverted when Diogo gets shot in the face, only for it to turn out to be a [[ABloodyMess nonlethal gel]] round that doesn't penetrate his helmet.
11	* BottomlessMagazines / InfiniteSupplies: Averted; the ''Rocinante'' is running low of ammunition for its gatling guns with no way of replenishing it.
12	* BreachingPod: Field-improvised versions consisting of a "tin can taped to a rocket".
13	* ChekhovsGunman: Diogo Harari turns out to be one of the OPA volunteers, having apparently survived and eager to avenge his uncle. He's quite amused to find the Star Helix cop who let him go is also on the BoardingParty. Although his enthusiasm makes it appear he's a classic MauveShirt, he survives being shot in the face.
14	* CurbStompBattle: The OPA finds the military presence onboard the station to be woefully underpowered, with their main defence being the [[TheDreaded stealth ship]].
15	* CuttingTheKnot:
16	** Fred Johnson deals with the [[WeAreStrugglingTogether head of Black Sky challenging his authority]] by [[ThrownOutTheAirlock airlocking]] him.
17	** Miller's shooting of Dr. Dresden. He can tell Fred Johnson and Holden are being tempted into a DealWithTheDevil, so he kills the devil before the heroes can commit.
18	* DangerRoomColdOpen: The ''Rocinante'' getting destroyed by the stealth ship turns out to be a simulation.
19	* FailedASpotCheck: Amos tells off Holden for failing to secure his coffee cup before they're about to engage in combat involving high-G maneuvers.
20	* ForScience: Dr. Dresden's motivation. He has no loyalty to TheConspiracy and is entirely willing to work on the OPA's behalf as long as he's allowed to work without interference.
21	* HerrDoktor: Dr. Dresden invokes a lot of these tropes. Also, MadScientist and ForScience.
22	* InHarmsWay: Nobody would blame Miller if he sat out the high-risk assault, but he insists on joining the BoardingParty.
23	* ANaziByAnyOtherName: The horrific experiments conducted on Eros, the scientists, and others all invoke this.
24	* MidairRepair: Amos has to unstrap himself and go repair a broken thruster fuel line. Even his magnetic boots aren't enough to stop him being thrown about during an emergency high-G maneuver.
25	* MoodWhiplash: The room with the scientists is eerily quiet, since they are unresponsive to outside stimuli - they can't see the approaching team or hear anyone talking to them. When Miller disconnects the scientists from their virtual world, they instantly lash out in a rage, and are shot by the startled OPA troops.
26	* NiceJobBreakingItHero:
27	** Destroying Phoebe Station to deny it to Earth ends up escalating the tension between factions.
28	** Miller kills Dr. Dresden, who was prepared to reveal all about TheConspiracy. All the data is encoded so only he could access it.
29	* RedshirtArmy: Once they've boarded the station, the only resistance encountered by the boarders from Tycho is from guards armed with non-lethal gel rounds that can't penetrate a spacesuit. Which as just as well, as few of the OPA appear to have proper training--they end up killing the guards before they find out the rounds were basically paintballs, and Miller has to take command and tell them how to do a search and clear.
30	* RevengeBeforeReason: Miller kills Dr. Dresden before a deal can be struck between him, Holden, and Fred Johnson. [[ZigZaggingTrope ZigZagged]], since Miller didn't ''want'' a deal to be struck, believing that if Dresden were allowed to continue his work, he would commit further acts of genocide.
31	* ResignInProtest: Admiral Souther provides the page quote when he quits as UN fleet commander rather than obey the order to destroy Deimos.
32	* SacrificialPlanet: To placate the warmongers in the UN, Avasarala suggests Deimos as a target for a retaliation strike. The head of the UN military resigns in protest.
33	* SentryGun: Spin Station is not only defended by the stealth ship, but there's a fixed anti-meteor weapon that complicates matters as well.
34	* StealthHiBye: Alex is angsting to Amos over how they didn't try to save more on Eros, then turns to find that Amos has disappeared; a beautiful girl sits in his place, told by Amos that Alex would buy her drinks if she listened to him talk.
35	* StressVomit: Miller gets spacesick, to the amusement of the other Belters.
36	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Avasarala supplies her own, knowing full well what Admiral Souther thinks of her.
37	* ThereWasADoor
38	-->'''Miller:''' What's the go signal... for the, uh... for the assault?\
39	'''Drummer:''' ''[points at bulkhead of BreachingPod]'' That will explode and turn into a door. Good hunting.
40	* TitleDrop: Miller warns the OPA troops to watch doors and corners, the most likely areas of ambush.
41	* TrojanHorse: The ''Rocinante'' is cast adrift so it will look like a cargo container that has broken loose from a freighter, which sends a warning to Spin Station not to try claiming their property.
42	* WellIntentionedExtremist: Dr. Dresden; not only does he think that the protomolecule will help humanity evolve into SpacePeople, but he also believes that it is an AssimilationPlot by aliens against Earth, so they need to study it in a controlled environment. What happened on Eros was a NecessaryEvil for that to happen.
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Context Recap / TheExpanseS02E02DoorsAndCorners