Loveday Writing

We then see Nathan go to mandatory pet therapy due to his virtucide attempt. Luke offers to give him Ernie, a golden Labrador, to have his therapy session with. Ernie is revealed to be an avatar of another Upload staff member. Nathan starts to talk things out with Ernie, with Ernie pointing out to Nathan that he has experienced every kind of privilege but has never questioned it. Nathan admits to Ernie he wants to be independent. Ernie gives him an assignment to talk to and get to know five other Uploads, saying he may find a friend in doing so. Nathan grabs a notepad Ernie has sent him out of the Labrador’s mouth.

Nora goes to see her boss, Lucy, about an Upload loan she got from her bank for Dave, as she needs to sign off on the employee discount. It’s during their interaction that Nora reveals he is dying of vape lung, which he developed as result of vaping, which he thought was safer than smoking. Lucy won’t sign off on it until Nora gets a 4.8 star customer service rating.

We then switch to see Nathan walking around Lakeview and meeting a little boy hiding the bushes. He asks Nathan if anyone is looking for him, he sees the AI Guy and tells him the coast is clear. The boy walks out, only for the AI Guy to come after him and they fight each other. Nathan calls for Nora’s help and finds out from her that the boy’s name is Dylan, he has been at Lakeview for years, he fell off a cliff on a school trip, and has the AI Guys set to street fighter in game mode to treat his boredom. Later, Nathan calls Ingrid where it’s revealed that his funeral is being held that night and she is doing all the preparations.

When Nathan is walking around Lakeview, he finds Nora visiting while she is on her break. He asks her about her hook up with Byron and he talks to her about his funeral. After she leaves, Nathan meets David Choak, his wealthy neighbour, who is the first to suggest he was murdered as his app threatened the billionaire industry of uploading.

Shortly after Nathan’s interaction with David, we see Nathan’s cousin, Fran, inside his damaged car as she investigating the accident. Fran discovers that his car has been tampered with as it is unaware it is damaged and can’t find recordings from the night of the accident. Meanwhile Ingrid goes to an intimate suit shop to rent a VR sex suit, so she and Nathan can have sex. However when she sees how dirty the suits can get, she freaks out and leaves.

Later we see Dylan frustrated with Lakeview’s computers as he can’t connect with his best friend, Breck. Nora ends up calling Breck, who is revealed to be 18 and doesn’t want to speak with him as they have nothing in common due to the mental age gap between them. Due to his frustration over the situation, Dylan gives Nora a three-star rating, which Nathan sees him do. When Nathan requests to see Nora, he gives her multiple five-star ratings out of kindness. When Nathan points out that Nora has been cranky all day, she vents to him about her problems, and tells him about her dad and the unexpected death of her mother years earlier.

Nathan meets with Ernie again and tells him he didn’t like the five new Uploads he met, but he’s not going to commit virtucide again. Nora goes home and connects a ring device to her computer which has a copy of Nathan’s damaged memories. She is able to restore one memory which shows that Nathan and Jamie were preparing for a software deal before he died for their app, Beyond. Nora then receives a notification on her computer reminding her that Nathan’s funeral starts in 30 minutes.

Overall this was a solid episode as Nathan’s life in Lakeview is starting to progress as he meets other Uploads, his friendship with Nora is developing, and another puzzle piece is found in the mystery of his death when Nora is able to restore one of the damaged memories. We are also given an insight into Lucy, who is clearly corrupt, and into Dylan, who would have been 18 years old if he was still alive.

Stray Observations:

-The afterlife is also known as digital life extension.

-Nora knows exactly when to throw a drink out of her window and onto someone’s head. I’m guessing she’s done this to ungrateful hook ups before.

-Apparently vaginaplasty and putting bees on one’s face are common beauty treatments in the future.

-One of the residents, waiting for a friend to play tennis with, can freeze a tennis ball he is bouncing with his racquet mid-air.

-Including Nathan, Nora has 48 clients.

-It’s revealed that when someone is visiting and they take their virtual reality mask off, their avatars freeze until they put the mask back on.

-Nathan use to be a model.

-It’s revealed Nathan’s app allows people to save their Uploads, and design their own digital afterlives for free to pass on to their friends and family.

-Nora’s co-worker, Aleesha, accidentally put the memories of a hipster woman’s natural childbirth into an old male judge.

-As well as working at Upload, Aleesha has a dog-walking gig, does hair and is the night manager at Falafel Halal.

-Nathan’s list of the five Uploads he met is as follows: “violent kid, tennis jerk, creepy billionaire, snotty professor, mean old woman.” He also adds Nora as “cute angel”.