‘The Institute’ Episode 5 Review

Episode five of ‘The Institute’ delivers another tense entry in this adaptation of Stephen King’s 2019 novel.

With time running out before he’s sent to the “back half”, Luke puts a plan into action to try and escape, with the help of Maureen. While Tim gets closer to the truth, and closer to danger.

For the first time, we get to see behind the curtain at the real work the Institute does. The kids in the back half take part in what’s called a “sparkler night”, where they use their psychic powers to see through the eyes of a Russian doctor, influencing him to give a lethal injection to a mobster.

This obviously raises a lot of questions. It puts the doctor in a hard spot, as he’ll likely be killed for what he did, but more importantly, what was the purpose of this? The actual powers behind the Institute are sketchy. It appears they are supported and funded by the government, but they clearly operate outside the law, so what is their purpose? Sigsby says their work is of vital importance for the safety of the country, but does she even know what they are doing?

If their mission was vital for world security, it would at least give some reason for what they do. That wouldn’t excuse their methods, or the large number of kids who die as a result, but it does add some complexity into the mix, especially about how the people involved could convince themselves it’s all for the greater good.

On the outside, Tim is getting closer to finding out the truth about the Institute, as he continues to investigate what happened to the kids who apparently drowned a few years ago. Of course that puts him at greater risk from Stackhouse. He’s obviously a much bigger problem than Annie, even without psychic powers, and much harder to get rid of. His connection to the police will make it more suspicious if anything happens to him, but he’s also something of a drifter with no real family to worry for him if he disappears.

Another great episode that delivers a big emotional blow as Luke learns that his parents are dead, which almost makes him give up on trying to escape. But with Nicky’s encouragement, he puts together a plan to exploit the weaknesses in the building’s security, and it appears that he’s made it so far, but will he manage to escape to safety?