Trials is the ninth episode of The Last Ship's first season.
Dr. Scott's prototype vaccine is ready for human testing but, because of her limited resources and the fact that she has only the ship's crew to choose from, she can only test six volunteers.
The Six, as they come to be known, enter into quarantine, are intentionally infected with the virus, and things quickly take a turn for the worst.
This episode provides examples of:
- Anguished Declaration of Love: Tex, delirious with fever, makes one towards Dr. Scott.Tex: "You make me want to live again."
- Bottle Episode: "Trials" mainly takes place in Dr. Scott's makeshift lab.
- Fatal Family Photo: Each trial subject brings mementoes with them into quarantine, making it more difficult to peg who's going to die.
- Kara brings photos of her mother and her dog.
- Chief Engineer Garnett has a photo of her daughter.
- Tex has a locket containing a photo of an unknown woman.
- Maya brings her phone so that she can read old e-mails from her boyfriend. She dies quietly when everyone was focused on the delirious Master Chief.
- Imperiled in Pregnancy: Kara has a particularly violent reaction to the vaccine. Further testing reveals that she's pregnant.
- Manly Tears: Chandler and Slattery don't bother hiding their sadness when it seems like there will be no survivors from the vaccine trial.
- Later, Chandler and Danny cry in relief. Chandler because Rachel tells him that they have a vaccine and a cure. Danny because his baby will be born naturally immune to the virus.
- Plucky Comic Relief: Tex takes it upon himself to keep everyone's sprits up but he's eventually incapacitated like everyone else.
