The Way Home Season 2 Episode 1 Review: The Space Between
Carissa Pavlica
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Our time-traveling adventure begins anew with The Way Home Season 2 Episode 1 (don't forget to click that link for a full recap).
The premiere, though, was actually devoid of said traveling, providing more of a jumping-off point for the next phase to begin.
It’s clear the pond is not done with this family, and no matter how hard they work to stay away, only nature itself can prevent them from taking a dip.
“The Space Between” reminds us of how it all works.
First of all, weather is a factor, as Kat and Alice soon found out. You can’t jump into the pond without knowing if you’ll be trapped under the ice forever.
There are dangers involved with time travel, even through a local family pond.
At this point in the story, at least, the pond acts as a linear portal through time. To jump in the pond means you’ll resurface in the same location at a different time.
Whether that remains true as the series continues is anybody’s guess. Nobody knows how it works, so I’m not ruling out popping up on another property belonging to the family.
We saw how the pond worked to separate Kat Landry and Alice. It has a mind of its own, and until the writers establish its boundaries, all options are on the table.
Factoring in weather is only part of the equation.
If Alice weren’t nearby to participate in and share the experience with Kat, the show would change dramatically.
So, Brady Dhawan needs to get used to the fact that his daughter will not spend much time with him — at least not during the summer months. It might be time to reconfigure the family calendar so Alice spends holidays with dear old dad.
We’ve already seen that Brady is more than willing to travel to Canada to visit so their relationship can remain intact, and she will be free to spend all good weather days in Port Haven.
It may take the entire series run to determine how and why the pond is connected to the Landry family.
But without a doubt, it is connected, and it holds and reveals secrets at will.
The pond returned Alice’s bracelet to her. That’s either an act of kindness or thanks, or it means she’s got more business with the pond regardless of what Kat says about it.
After what Alice experienced and how impactful it was on Kat’s life that she did, it would be cruel for Alice to be sidelined so soon in the story.
Alice is not a distraction, Brady. She’s the glue.
Kat
While they gave up travel for the winter months, Kat’s discovery after Evelyn Goodwin’s donation of historical artifacts to The Herald sure caught her attention.
Uh, I thought we were just talking about a couple of boxes. This is like the end of an Indiana Jones movie.
Kat
Jacob always liked art, and Kat’s mind was reeling with the idea she could reunite with her brother, who may paint the portrait “My Katherine” in 1814.
If we use the Outlander time travel rules as our guide, we know that hearts can be torn in two, with great loves traversing time and space.
While “My Katherine” could have been painted from a sibling’s perspective, there’s also a possibility that in the amount of time Kat eventually spends in 1814, she falls in love with someone during that time.
After all, things with Elliot, while certainly on the upswing after his return and their chance to talk, are not settled.
He’s still sore about Kat’s part in her father’s death — a loss he takes as personally as if Colton was his own father.
Don’t waste any time kid because it’s never guaranteed.
Colton [to Elliot]
It’s so interesting that he feels so much a part of their family while still harboring romantic love for Kat, but the heart is a crazy thing, and we don’t always get to choose who we love or why.
They have a lot to discuss and discover about each other before they’re on solid ground. And if she continues traveling to the past, and she must if she's to have her portrait painted in 1814, it could drive them further apart.
Elliot Augustine’s feelings are intertwined with his memories. He can’t shake the fact that he was urged to share his feelings with Kat before things with Brady got too serious and that by not doing so, he lost her for decades.
Will he be so stubborn about time travel to lose her again?
Alice: I saw that look between you and Elliot. Are you two together?
Kat: No. But we were. After a million years of friendship, I, we thought maybe we could be more, then, maybe we could be forever.
Until they know of Jacob’s fate — hell, maybe until they all meet again — Kat will continue her journey through the pond. I can’t think of anybody alive who would do it any differently.
If a pond popped up in my backyard right now (well, minus the darn weather), I’d allow it to swallow me up and take me on a grand adventure.
Knowing that your brother is out there would be more than you could bear, especially if you had the chance to get him back.
That’s also why it’s so strange for me when Del refuses to listen to Kat when she excitedly tells her that she believes she knows what happened to Jacob.
Maybe it’s because Del Landry spent so much time alone with her thoughts, just lost so much, her daughter included, that she’s not willing to dive back into her memories the same way Kat is to hers.
Secrets are always revealed, though, and it’s hard to think about the moment when she discovers that Kat has been chasing after her brother through time itself, and Del was unaware.
As they work so hard to repair their relationship, will that threaten to break it all down again?
Not for a while, at least, as with a neighbor selling his property and leaving Del with unleaded acreage, she’s got a lot on her plate.
There is also a mysterious horse appearing in her field, which part of me wants to believe is traveling through the pond (like their dog!), and the other part wants it to be something more substantial for Del to hold onto.
Do you think it’s a message of some kind for Del, or is it a more grounded way for her to reconnect with her land and get a new lease on life?
But, let’s circle back to the opening scene, which suggests Jacob understands the pond and knows he can return, even if an adult tells him that now is not that time.
It’s hard to imagine a little boy knowing he could find his way home through a magical pond, only to be held back for reasons unknown.
Is there a greater reason for his disappearance? Is there something the pond needs the Landry family to understand before they can be reunited? Why would it tear apart a family so brutally?
Someday, there’s going to be only one name left, and it will be Jake, and then we’ll know where he wound up.
Kat
On lesser shows, I’d wonder if that’s an answer we’d ever receive, but on The Way Home, it seems like the creators know exactly where the pond is taking us and why.
That’s so refreshing, and taking this trip with the Landry family is the better for it.
Seven months passed in the premiere, and as soon as the pond was safe again, Kat escaped the present for the past. Her gift? A bullet wound.
We know she’s not going to die, but it could explain why she’s going to be in the past long enough to have a portrait painted.
Will she go missing as her brother once did, leaving Alice alone, trying to explain to a grieving family what occurred?
We’ll just have to watch The Way Home Season 2 to discover what secrets the pond is hiding, waiting for us to uncover.
I hope you are ready for another engaging and exciting season and that you’ll share your thoughts on this beautiful show as the story progresses.
You’ve come this far. Why not drop your comments below?
It’s always so much better to share this with readers than it is to do it all alone.
Carissa Pavlica is the managing editor and a staff writer and critic for TV Fanatic. She's a member of the Critic's Choice Association, enjoys mentoring writers, conversing with cats, and passionately discussing the nuances of television and film with anyone who will listen. Follow her on X and email her here at TV Fanatic.
