The Last Ship: It’s Not A Rumor Recap

Synopsis: The Nathan James finds it’s way to Norfolk where they hope that some of their crew members might be able to reunite with their families. Unfortunately, things don’t go well for everyone. They do, however, discover a network of labs across the country and around the world and with the help of a few thousand sailors, pilots, and more in Norfolk, they start sending out the materials to make more of the vaccine.

Rating: ★★★★☆

This was one seriously emotional episode of The Last Ship, everyone. After last week’s two episodes wrapped up everything in Baltimore, it’s time for the Nathan James to go home. You’ve got to imagine that after so many months many of the crew members who have family in Norfolk aren’t going to be getting the same sort of happy ending Tom and his family got.

With the promise of a lab and materials to help synthesize more of the vaccine ahead of them, the Nathan James starts heading back to Norfolk. On the way, though, they make a detour to the White House to see what kind of intelligence they can recover. They discover that Norfolk wasn’t the only lab set up to make more of the vaccine if they were successful. Labs all over the United States and the world are waiting for them to get in touch and they find out that many of them are still up and running.

There is one problem though – the lab in Norfolk isn’t responding.

Still, they power onward. While the Norfolk lab is no longer viable they find a few thousand Navy SEALs, sailors, pilots, and other branch members hanging around the naval base. They gather all the scientists and pilots they can and start sending people off to all the operational labs and it’s a really fantastic sight to see these ships making their way into the world to spread the vaccine to those who have managed to survive this long. Rachel even gets in touch with an old friend in Florida where they plan to go afterward to get her to a working lab. Unfortunately, Michael – her boyfriend – hasn’t been heard from in months and remained stranded in China until the last moment.

At least Rachel has Tex. The two of them are able to bond a bit in this episode and he tells her that he’s just trying to get to Florida now to look for his daughter. She’s fourteen and he hasn’t seen her in years. It’s a touching moment and, honestly, I’m really hoping that Tex and Rachel happen at some point becase c’mon. They’d be such a a great couple. (Sorry, Rachel and Tom shippers.)

While the vaccine is being shepherded around the world, the crew members whose families lived in Norfolk begin to start going out and looking for their families. Some find success. Others find only disappointment. LCDR Garnett finds out that her family didn’t make it very long. Mike makes it to the safe zone where his family had been and finds that everyone fled for some unknown reason. Despite Tex’s encouragement to go out and look for them he has to make the hard decision to come back to the ship and continue on with the mission after leaving a note at home in case they came back.

Kara, at least, is lucky. She finds out that her mother – who she has always painted as an alcoholic who makes bad choices and chases men around – has been helping run a safe zone in town. They reconnect and both of them find that they have grown a lot since the world ended. Kara tries to play off Danny as ‘a friend’ but a mother knows and she surprises them both by giving her approval of Danny – and telling them she knows about the baby. Kara hadn’t wanted to tell her in case her mother asked her to stay.

Four other crew members do stay behind with their families.

Tom is almost among them. He’s so guilty about his wife’s death that he can’t imagine leaving his kids again. But Ashley, his daughter, won’t hear it. She tells him to go. His father tells him the same. The mission is important. Tom is literally saving the world. As his father tells him, “Whether you like it or not you’re Noah and that ship is your Ark.” The Tophets end up staying behind with them, moving in next door so that the kids – who have become close friends – will at least have each other while Tom is gone.

Back on the ship everyone gets ready to head for Florida. Alisha has had a hard time adjusting since the last episode. She won’t talk to anyone and feels like she has betrayed her crew. She led them to Baltimore, she trusted her mother. Tom doesn’t believe it and ends up promoting her to full lieutenant for her courage and loyalty. She never gave in to her mother’s crazy designs. She stayed true to her convictions and they need her with them. They trust her.

Meanwhile, Sorenson is working on gaining the trust of a really diabolical group of people. This group is led by a maniacal preacher who makes insane claims that the immune are a chosen group of people. Based out of Port St. Lucie, they are reaching out to the rest of the country through equally deranged missionaries. Sorenson sees this as a chance and he tells them all about the Nathan James and their attempt to distribute a cure. These crazies aren’t about to have their divine right stripped away from them and at the end it’s very clear they are going to do anything they can to destroy the cure and take out those labs.

I really think that this crazy religious group is going to be an interesting foil to the Nathan James. They aren’t working against someone trying to steal the cure but a group of people who don’t want the world to be saved. It’s an interesting dynamic and it shows just how far gone some people in this world are now. I’m really looking forward to seeing how things progress. I just also know I’m going to be incredibly frustrated with everything because I can’t imagine how people could be so selfish and hateful.

I can’t wait for next week’s episode. Things are just getting started!