Mythic Quest season 3 episode 7 recap & review: Sarian

Episode 7 of Mythic Quest dives deeper into the lives of Ian and Poppy as they’re growing up and what led them to meet each other and start their wonderful partnership. The episode is streaming on Apple TV+.

Recap

A young Ian is in the principal’s office with his mother as the principal explains that Ian is refusing to do a project assigned about the solar system and wants to do it on a planet he made up.

The principal tells Ian’s mother, Sarah, that she needs to do better and he needs to take things more seriously or else he’ll fail. She says that Ian will get exactly what he deserves and when they leave, she gives him a candy bar and supports him.

It shifts to a young Poppy who’s at the breakfast table enjoying some pancakes and her mother and father ask her what she has planned for the weekend. She says she’s going to be playing a video game and describes how she’s made it all the way to the final boss.

Her father tries to be supportive but her mother wants Poppy to be more outgoing like her sister and not stay inside all day. They also want her to practice the piano for her upcoming recital but she’s not as interested in it.

Ian is at home trying to work on his assignment but he’s having a difficult time. Sarah is talking to her father who tells her that Ian’s father has sent another letter from a lawyer regarding custody.

She goes in to check on Ian and notices that he’s having trouble with his work but sees that his drawings by the side are very good. She tells him to follow her and takes him to the stationary store.

Poppy is practicing on the piano with her dad reading the paper by her side. She’s constantly stopping to tell her dad about the video game and how she plans on beating it but her dad tells her to get back to practice.

He then tells her to treat her recital like a final boss and practice hard to beat it. She asks him what prize she’ll get for “beating” the recital and he says that he’ll get her something really cool. She then asks if he wants to watch her fight the final boss and he says yes.

Sarah asks Ian to describe the planet that he wanted to do his project on and as he goes into detail, she picks up items that can help him create those effects. They make a mess at the store and when a clerk sees them, they run away.

When they get home, Sarah collects things Ian will need for his project and tells him to work on his planet while she makes pancakes. She says that she’ll deal with his teacher.

Poppy is playing the game while her dad watches and her mother walks in. Her dad and mom walk away and she listens in on their conversation as they talk about how she doesn’t have any friends and they’re worried about her.

Ian wakes up on the floor with his completed project and a plate of pancakes next to him. The house is in a mess and Sarah is in bed looking very sick so she isn’t able to take Ian to school. Ian tells her that he’s naming the planet “Sarian” after them.

Poppy starts practicing earnestly on the piano and the day of the recital, she performs wonderfully making her mom and dad very proud. She tells her dad that for her gift, she would like a bicycle to ride around outside.

Ian has to go into the principal’s office to get a late slip and when he asks him why he’s late, Ian says that his mom is having a “bed day”. The principal asks him if this happens often and Ian shrugs. As he leaves, the principal calls someone up.

Ian returns home and is very excited about how his report went but his grandfather is standing there solemnly and suddenly Ian’s father comes out with a bag. He tells Ian that he’s going to be staying with him because his mother is too sick to take care of him.

He drags Ian away kicking and screaming because he doesn’t want to leave his mother who is still lying in bed. Poppy takes her new bicycle and rides it out to the local library where she uses the internet on one of the computers.

She finds a website with user-created games and the top game is “Sarian” so she picks that and starts playing it.

Many years later, Poppy is in a class at college that Ian is taking and he’s talking about his life and his most recent game, Twin Daggers. Poppy approaches him after the class and tells him that his game inspired her to become a programmer.

He assumes that she’s talking about Twin Daggers but she says it was Sarian that inspired her. He’s impressed by her and she asks him if he’s working on something next.

He begins telling her about a multiplayer online game with a medieval setting that he’s thinking about as they leave the classroom.

Review

• ‘Sarian’ is this season’s self-contained episode much like ‘Dark Quiet Death’ and ‘Backstory’ and while it isn’t as good as those offerings, it’s still a very high-quality episode on its own.
• The transitions between Ian and Poppy’s lives and the tone of the scene are seamless. It moves from relatively sweet and happy to very sad and serious with ease.
• 2 and a half seasons in, this episode adds an extra layer of depth to these characters and makes them more endearing than they already are.

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Also Read: Mythic Quest season 3 episode 6 recap & review: The 12 Hours of Christmas