‘Fortitude’ review: Season 2 Episode 7’s final moments are filled with shock and grief

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After Hildur’s dramatic exit last week, her fate is the elephant in the room throughout Season 2’s seventh instalment.

In a poignant episode, Hildur’s friends and family continued to investigate the strange events in Fortitude without knowing of her murder.

The police discover that murdered barman Tomak was behind the murder of a pharmaceutical worker, and may be further involved in corporate espionage. Between the alcohol and his slimy personality, Munk isn’t doing a very good job of concealing his involvement in the case.

Out on the ice, Michael, Rune, and Yeva discover the hut where the wasp survivor was experimented on in 1942. Rune and Yeva discover ingredient for muscimol, shortly before Michael is assaulted by a Russian soldier who’s missing an eye. Forced to kill their attacker, the trio resolve to take the body back to Fortitude, much to Yeva’s displeasure.

Back at the Lennox house, Freya falls increasingly ill. Vladik offers to end her life for her, before relocating to an underground bunker with Hindemith’s head and beginning to plan out a ritual. Freya declines, choosing to lie to her doctor about her illness and steal insulin from his bag instead.

After breaking into Hildur’s room and finding her missing, Eric confronts Freya about the imagined affair between his wife and Michael. Eric is so preoccupied with his wife, he fails to notice Freya burning incriminating evidence. It’s frustrating to see Eric routinely miss the clues in front of him, so hopefully he will uncover more of the conspiracy in the remaining episodes.

Natalie discovers that Dr. Khatri drugged Elena, and performed live experiments on her without her consent. The newly embittered Vincent ignores Natalie’s pleas for help.

This isn’t the first time a woman has approached Erling Munk about corruption after her lover has disregarded her theory; given what happened to Hildur, Natalie should probably tread wisely.

Vladik’s confrontation with Dan puts them at odds, with the shaman convinced that Dan is about to transform into the ‘demon’ that rises after the wasp attacks. Vladik may be a little unconventional, but after another character makes a shocking exit this week, it appears he’s right.

Dan has done the one thing he swore he never would- kill Elena, the woman he loves so obsessively. In a disturbing scene, Dan hugs Elena so forcefully he suffocates her, whilst Elena stares helplessly at a picture of a polar bear. Dan infamously fed Elena’s rapist to a polar bear in season one, and so the photo is a disturbing reminder of how far Dan has fallen.

The corruption of Dan is dovetailed with the discovery of Hildur’s body in the lake. With the governor dead and the sheriff lost to his mindless aggression, Fortitude has lost its twin protectors.

It’s no surprise that the episode’s final moments, filled with shock and grief, are the saddest of this season so far. The town seems utterly without hope, unless the citizens can come together and heal their community.

Aired at 9pm on Thursday 9 March 2017 on Sky Atlantic.

Buy Season 1 on DVD on Amazon here.

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