Upload Review: Ingrid Steals the Season & The Nathan Love Square Heats Up!
Ingrid continues to be a saving grace.
There was so much to enjoy about Upload Season 3 Episode 5 and Upload Season 3 Episode 6.
We got so many fun tidbits from the Nathans coming face to face with one another, a Luke rescue, drunk Ingrid, and great teases with the quadrangle.
In the background, of course, we learned more about the nefarious plans with the billionaires.
And Aleesha's escapades with Karina are suspect and bound to lead her toward heartache, but at least she's proven to be a great mentor for the AI Guys.
Admittedly, much of Upload Season 3 feels a bit all over the place. It's as if they haven't fully committed to most of the central themes and plots of the season.
It feels like the revelation that Choak was in bed with Horizen and that nefarious billionaires have funded this massive political scheme to kill off or make most of the poor obsolete should be bigger.
Well, I'm glad we got rid of Nathan Brown, but my bank account would look a lot better if Ingrid was in that car with him.
Oliver
But if anything, much of the storyline regarding Freeyond, this scheme, and the impact it could have on millions feels shallow in exploration. There's little depth, consistency, or real devotion to exploring this storyline in a deep enough manner that it even stays at the forefront of the viewers' minds.
It doesn't feel as if Upload has fully committed or invested in this storyline much without it serving as background fodder. As a result, it's hard for many viewers to do it either.
Knowing Upload, it's something that will continue to sneak up on us until it can't be ignored or forgotten as the season concludes. But that's more of a reason why this arc deserved more consistent framing and focus.
Unsurprisingly, Karina is in bed with the baddies, and it seems Aleesha Morrison is on the cusp of realizing that.
At the very least, she's been put off by some of Karina's ways. Karina uses Aleesha to get what she desires and then pacifies her with empty gestures to keep Aleesha off her back.
It was disappointing initially when it seemed that Aleesha would do anything that would cause harm to Nora or get her in trouble.
Kidnapping Nora Antony was bold on their part, and making her think she was dead and uploaded in Lakeview only to pick her brain and determine how much she knew about anything was lowdown.
Karina pulled Aleesha into that and wanted to take full advantage of her friendship with Nora to get what she needed, which is such a violation of whatever relationship they're supposed to have and manipulative.
What happened to theme songs? You know? I used to love those things!
Luke
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One of the downsides of this season is the lack of friendship between Nora and Aleesha. We can understand that Nora keeps Aleesha in the dark to protect and spare her, which is fine, but she should also communicate that more instead of consistently lying to her friend.
There's such a distance between them that sucks, and their friendship is sorely missed and underutilized.
Despite how fractured they've felt for some time, there's comfort in knowing that Aleesha was still trying to look out for Nora as best as she could and that at least meant she got off of Karina's radar for showing up at Kapoor's place.
The revelation that Nathan's head wasn't some ticking time bomb waiting to explode was a bit anticlimactic. He's not in danger if Kapoor gave him Gas-X as some placebo.
Of course, the excitement of Rescue Mission was that it brought the two Nathans together.
The two coming face-to-face was highly anticipated, and once they were together, it didn't disappoint. We got all the hijinks you'd expect from this, and the series mined so much out of this particular plot.
The two of them on a mission to rescue Luke is the exact type of thing you'd expect to bring them together. The series thrives and is at its best when dealing with the afterlife world.
Double the Nathans venturing to the Gray Zone to save Luke from his half-scheme of luring the AI Guy there for money was pure entertainment.
Nathan: Hey, Backup, that was a pretty good plan.
Backup Nathan: Thanks.
Luke: Backup, I like it.
Nathan/Backup Nathan: You can't call me/him that.
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You could sense that Robbie Amell had so much fun playing both versions of himself, and now, with them together, you get a better sense of the characters being different, which is fun.
The switcheroo they pulled off was ingenious, and Luke realized that he had twice the Nathans to obsess over, which was hilarious.
Although, it was disappointing that we didn't get much of an initial reaction from him about two Nathans existing when he first heard the news. These are the little moments where the series fumbled with this particular arc.
We spent more time with Luke Crossley, expressing his frustrations that he didn't get to spend time with Nathan than we did him having much time with either version of him.
It's what the bulk of his scenes with Aleesha produced, and it's a fun aside that she's leaned on Luke as a confidant, something she never considered or would've anticipated.
And he has limited interest in her relationship with Karina, which keeps making one feel as though part of it is him feeling jealous.
Where the dual Nathan storyline has excelled is in producing the love square angle with both Nathans, Nora, and Ingrid.
We stumbled into the same beats, with Ingrid growing jealous of Nora, fearing the worst, and reacting to that rather than talking to Backup Nathan, which was a bit humdrum.
Ingrid: Just give it to me straight.
AI Guy: Your drama is of your own creation; your mistrust of Mr. Brown comes from your mistrust of your own self-worth. Be honest with him and live with the consequences however he reacts.
Ingrid: No one has ever talked to me like that, I have to go talk to Nathan. Thank you.
As much as you could appreciate Ingrid's fierce defense of Nathan to her supposed friend, you could understand why her friend would be tired of the merry-go-round of Ingrid's Nathan obsession and wouldn't even feign interest in hearing about it.
The series spends a lot of time this season trying to sell Ingrid's obsession with Nathan as genuine, true, healthy, unconditional love, devotion, and loyalty.
The only reason it even comes close to working is because of Allegra Edwards' phenomenal performance and the depth and complexity she adds to the character.
Because, in reality, there's not much reason to root for Ingrid and Backup Nathan. As fun, lighthearted, and amusing as things are, it's still offputting that Ingrid exists, for this man revolves her entire life around this man, even to her own detriment.
Can you imagine how I feel? My guy is alone with the woman you are constantly choosing over me. What is that? What's wrong with me?
Ingrid
There's something profoundly sad about that. As a fan of Ingrid, the individual, you want and hope for more for this woman.
And yet, despite that, she's exuded such growth as a character, arguably one of the strongest of them all.
And let's be honest: Ingrid Kannerman is carrying this season on her back. Baby girl deserves a massage!
Drunken Ingrid was a gift from the heavens. The comedic timing of every single bit, from the time she was at the bar with the AI guy to her vulnerable moments with Nathan and wanting to check out his penis, was pure gold.
Ingrid and Nathan had the type of genuine conversation that often eluded them when they were an actual couple. And it was the perfect thing to cement what they are as former lovers and friends.
Nathan may not be in love with Ingrid anymore, but he does love her, and you can feel the genuine affection and respect he has for her despite their complicated and checkered past.
When she heard the horrible thing her father said about wishing she was in the car with Nathan when he died, you could see that Nathan was just as upset about that as Backup Nathan.
They've unlocked another level of the Ingrid/Nathan relationship.
Nathan: Be honest, if you met me today, you wouldn't even be into me.
Ingrid: You told me to be honest. I'mma be honest. You can be penniless and have, like, diarrhea every day, and I would still be into you, Nathan Brown.
And while there was a lot of tension abound during Memory Crackers, it feels like they've mostly put to rest the idea of their being a swap of partners or anything like that.
Nora and Backup Nathan certainly had a lot of tension between them. Out of the four characters, those two were the ones who felt as if they could've taken that extra step and crossed a line. The chemistry was there, and I forgot who I was rooting for because, whew!
And it's a weird situation when a different version of your boyfriend is hitting on you and flirting with you.
Backup Nathan appears to have a real appreciation and cares about Ingrid, but it still doesn't always feel balanced, which was prevalent with Nora.
Two Nathans, one Nora, never fantasized about this before.
Nora
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He was still ready to risk it all for Nora if she allowed it, and often, she was the one who reminded him of Ingrid and reassured him about his relationship with her.
It's still weird when they pass Ingrid's obsessive love off as cute and passionate, but for the sake of Backup Nathan realizing what he has and not instigating a mess, it works.
Nora may have enjoyed the flirty charm of Backup Nathan, how carefree he feels compared to current Nathan, and even his lower body fat percentage. She's "imprinted" on her version of Nathan Brown as they've gone through so much together.
As an aside, the running body fat joke has gotten old, and it wasn't funny in the first place. It's surpassed odd and is straight-up offputting how often they poke fun at Nathan for picking up a fraction more weight.
You are Nathan Goddamn Fucking Big Badass Brown, bitch! Nathan fucking Brown. Nathan fucking Brown, woo!
Luke
It would be nice if they were leaning into the idea that he's living in a financially insecure state, and thus, poorer diets and lack of access to affordable healthy food often contribute to weight issues among the working class.
It also could've been a nod at how having more worries and being more depressed could be a factor, but it's doubtful that they're doing that here.
Nathan and Nora feel perfectly content with where they are in their relationship, with Nathan even describing it as exactly where he's supposed to be.
And we know Nora is certainly more content with their active sex life we keep hearing about.
Despite the quadrangle teases abound during this installment or any of the real-life issues that this pairing has faced together now that Nathan is uploaded, it doesn't feel as if they're in any jeopardy of not being a solid couple.
It's my afterlife; let me after live it!
Luke
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Over to you, Upload Fanatics.
Are you a fan of the Dual Nathan Love Square? What's your favorite storyline of the season? Hit the comments.
The final two episodes of the season will air next Friday on Prime Video!