this episode is split into 3 main sections, and i have very different thoughts about each. overall, this episode has the least plot progression so far but instead offers a nice time for reflection and some really great dialogue and character moments.

Dom's plot line focuses on her inviting an online 'friend' over to her place to fuck, where it's revealed the girl she invited was actually a dark army undercover worker, and she kills dom. this is then revealed to be a dream. this part of the episode achieves a few things: it gives a solid reason as to why we've seen her bust so many nuts (she does it to feel in control, as she can control her fantasies, and lacks control in real life, since the dark army is in control of her), and it emphasises the never ending fear of death, and how it could come at any moment. i do, however, feel like this could have all been conveyed in a much more efficient way. i don't hate the scene but i don't really like it either. do we really need another scene of her sexting some random person to get across the idea she lacks control
in her life? in the scenes in previous episodes where she was threatened, and a colleague was killed by the dark army, her reactions made this point pretty clear, so i do think in some ways this was unnecessary. it didn't really hurt the episode too much tho.

darlene's plot is just her meeting a guy in a santa costume and going on a car journey with him. i loved this one. he ended up being a really interesting  character with a great story to tell, which helped darlene to figure some of her own shit out. it felt like a similar journey to elliot and olivia's from last episode, and it's done just as well and is different enough where it doesn't feel repetitive. it had some really heartfelt moments too, i really enjoyed it.

elliot and tyrell's plot line of walking through the forest to find a dark army van is probably the best though. it's really atmospheric and well shot, and allows for an exploration of the weird, complex dynamic between elliot and tyrell. tyrell has had a great, but inconsistent arc which at times felt a little all over the place. maybe his absence through season 2 made his arc lose more momentum than was necessary but i think on rewatch it would be a lot better. it's wrapped up perfectly here though with his heartbreaking death. he spent most of his life doing things to try and get people to like him, or to get respect, because as he said, he 'cares'. through this need to be liked and respected he loses everything which actually mattered to him: his son and his wife. he was so insecure, and i think he never really knew what he wanted to be. 

i think, after realising elliot doesn't care and how much he cared about what people think, he truly realised it doesn't matter and saw he'd lost everything that actually mattered and just stopped caring about life. his death was perfectly 'anticlimactic'. the light at the end is something i'm not completely sure about, but other than purely symbolising his death i think it might show his escape from all of his insecurities of life too.

low 9/10