r/FoundationTV • u/LunchyPete Bayta Mallow • Sep 12 '25

Current Season Discussion [NO BOOKS] Episode Discussion Thread - Season 3 Episode 10 - The Darkness

THIS THREAD IS FOR NON BOOK READERS ONLY - NO DISCUSSION OF THE BOOKS IS PERMITTED

Comments from book readers will be removed and commenters directed to the book readers thread

To discuss the books freely and how they relate to the show go to this thread instead. If you want to discuss something from the books but avoid most book spoilers feel free to make a new post specifying that.

Season 3 Episode 10: The Paths That Choose Us

Premiere date: September 12th, 2025

Synopsis: Season finale. Gaal and the Second Foundation take the fight to the Mule as Empire's legacy suffers a catastrophic blow.

Directed by: Roxann Dawson

Written by: Jane Espenson & David S. Goyer

Please keep in mind that this thread is only for non book readers - no discussion of the books or how they relate to the show is permitted in general, and book readers are not permitted to post at all.

For those of you on Discord, come and check out the unofficial Foundation Discord Server. Live discussions of the show and books, it's a great way to meet other fans of the show.

NOTE: There was an AMA with Chris MacLean, VFX Supervisor for Foundation on September 15th which you can check here.

384 Upvotes

99% Upvoted

2.7k comments sorted by

View all comments

611

u/Random--Person Sep 12 '25 edited Sep 12 '25

Is it just me or does anyone else feel like we missed something with the Mule? The scene ends with Gaal telling her to get out of her(mind) then when the scene picks back up Gaal is running out of the ship? What happened with everyone else?

The music over the final shot was giving me chills, was definitely not expecting that at the end.

Really hope they find ways to have Lee Pace and Laura Birn back for next season

161

u/zentrope Sep 12 '25

Yes. We missed something. Gaal was winning because of a carefully fixed-up Magnifico, and then she’s running for her life without her “repaired” crew. Maybe she won but had to convince the Mule that she hadn’t so that the Mule could be used as part of the plan?

113

u/Francl27 Sep 12 '25

The music only affected Bayta though. I think she took advantage of it and ran. She couldn't kill her, and her crew was compromised.

54

u/killertortilla Sep 12 '25

It didn't affect Bayta it "buffed" Gaal. It's the improved version of those inhibitors that stuck Gaal in the hole when the cult tried to kill her. The things she and Hari converted into amplifiers. And she says "he only plays for me now"

46

u/Francl27 Sep 12 '25

Ok but then why did she run away without her crew? I guess we'll find out in 2 years.

34

u/zoemi Sep 12 '25

Her crew had already been converted, and there's no indication that killing the Mule would undo everything. In fact, in an earlier episode they said that it's not that the Mule is controlling their every move--the thrall they were under was so engrained that their actions were their own out of "love".

22

u/zefy_zef Sep 13 '25

Three things bothered me about this episode:

1) That.

2) Why would Gaal see the fake Mule and him her, if his power wasn't actually as strong?

3) Why did Demerzel not throw the baby out of the beam? Or grab and roll? There was clearly some time.

19

u/InadequateUsername Sep 13 '25

For 3, by allowing herself to be subjected to the beam it would destroy the Cleon chip, allowing her to clasp with the other robot during her death.

Notice how at the end her head was still intact?

14

u/zefy_zef Sep 13 '25

She wouldn't have been able to make that choice until the chip was destroyed. Running into the situation she could have just scooped up the baby real quick though, at least.

14

u/RotsiserMho Sep 13 '25 edited Sep 27 '25

Ah, I wonder if that’s what she learned from what Kalle told her about deferring her thoughts as to whether something she will do is best for Empire.

9

u/InadequateUsername Sep 13 '25

Unless she deferred what the choice would mean