The Man In The High Castle Season 2 Overview: People Look Out For One Another Here

"The Man In The High Castle" (currently airing on Amazon) is an interesting look at an alternate history. What if the Axis had won WWII instead of the Allies? Our lives would be VERY different. Season 1 set the stage as we learned about the main characters and their motivations. See my reviews here: TMITHC Season 1 Season 2 has many changing alliances.

Juliana Crane is in the Japanese occupied West Coast. The Resistance suspects her of being a traitor. Her relationship with Joe Blake puts her in very vulnerable position. Joe turns out to be a double agent for the Germans. Gary tries to kill Juliana. She narrowly escapes and requests admittance into the Nazi occupied territories of the East.

There were a number of shocking scenes this season but Juliana's physical exam by a German doctor stands out to me as particularly distressing. Her sole job in the Reich would be to mother as many Aryan children as possible. Those who cannot provide value will be exterminated. Juliana passes thanks to help from Obergruppenrfuhrer Smith.

John's family "sponsors" Julia. We know that Smith is just using her for intel and will dispose of Juliana if/when necessary. Juliana secretly connects with George Dixon (her sister Trudy's biological father). He is working for the Resistance.

Speaking of Smith, he originally was depicted in season 1 as a baddy. His attempt to conceal son Thomas' illness has definitely humanized him. Thomas suffers from a form of muscular dystrophy and per Nazi protocol he must be exterminated. Watching John and Helen grapple with this decision is one of the highlights of the season.

Smith and Chief Inspector Kido also have some sort of alliance. I'm not sure of the specifics but there's something going on. Meanwhile Joe makes a trip to Germany where he meets his father Reichminister Heusmann. Joe learns he is "lebensborn" (a Nazi program to produce racially pure children). There were lots of such children during the war (since soldiers were encouraged to have sex with as many Aryan women as possible).

Mr Tagomi (the Japanese Trade Minister) enters some sort of meditative trance and sees an alternate reality. It's still 1962 but is a world where the US detonated the bomb and won WWII. In this version of history, Julia is his daughter in law.

Frank Frink has gotten much more involved in the Resistance in season 2. His bestie Ed and Robert (the antique dealer that they worked with) leave for the Neutral Zone. As the bus drives across the Golden Gate Bridge, they see a huge explosion in the distance. Frank and Sarah have blown up the Kempeitai (Japanese secret police) headquarters. I fear both are dead. Inspector Kido however survives.

Obergruppenrfuhrer Smith heads to Germany. The situation is dire. Joe's father Heusmann has poisoned and killed Hitler. He assumes power and plans to blame the Japanese for Hilter's death. The new Chancellor will give the order during a speech to detonate a bomb that will wipe out the Japanese (who are viewed as weak because they dont have the bomb yet) and most of the United States. John relays to Himmler that the Japanese indeed HAVE the bomb (per Mr Tagomi's film). Smith also extracted from his captured spy that Heusmann is the ringleader. Both Heusmann and Joe are arrested. Himmler (who is now in charge) praises Smith during an international broadcast.

Juliana escapes the Germans (after killing George). She also destroys the tape of her discussion with Thomas about his illness. She again meets Hawthorne Abendsen in the Neutral Zone. He is "the man in the high castle" who creates/curates the alt-history movies. Remember, this all started with Juliana finding the film "The Grasshopper Lies Heavy" while searching for her sister. Joe eventually took it to Smith who then sent it to Germany for the Fuhrer's viewing pleasure.

Hawthorne tells Julia he has seen many versions of history but the one constant is Juliana and her belief in the goodness of mankind. Abendsen opens the back door and Juliana sees Trudy. I thought she was killed by the Kempeitai long ago. In the finale scene Lem (from the Resistance) visit Tagomi. He says he's a friend of Juliana Crane and has several reels in tow.

Grade: 4 1/2 Monsters (out of 5). I very much enjoyed the twists and turns of season 2. My only compliant is that when Tagomi entered "our" reality, the show moved from historical fiction into fantasy territory. I wasnt really expecting it-- but maybe this was the point all along? How many others have crossed over? We know Tagomi's assistant has.

Also, I have a hard time watching anything these days without comparing it to our current political climate. This makes "The Man In The High Castle" even more disturbing. When Helen tells Juliana in Nazi America that "people look out for one another here" she actually means you're being watched all the time. Everyone is one step away from the gas chamber. Scary stuff!