The episode opens with a dreamlike vision of a beautiful woman.
The grayish landscape and Eastern European-inflected accents of the villagers certainly evoke vampire myths.
Suspecting a sympathizer, the soldiers head out for Heidekkers compound.
Credit: Laurie Sparham/Netflix
Here, we get our first view of the militarys sci-fi technology.
In her words, the roaches need to be exterminated if humanity is going to survive.
The other roaches scatter, but not before Stripe shoots some and falls to the ground tussling with another.
They resemble dull pokes in cardboard rather than bloody, messy squelches.
Afterward, Stripe examines the mysterious green light unit.
A few roaches escape, but Heidekker is captured after an ill-fated attempt at stabbing the commander.
The glitch continues later during push-up exercises, so he goes in for review.
Stripe isnt satisfied, so the doctor directs him to Arquette (Michael Kelly).
Judging by Arquettes office decor, hes the resident therapist, or at least the sci-fi equivalent of that.
Arquette suspects the problem has to do with the fact that these roaches were Stripes first kills.
This dream involves the return of Stripes recurring fantasy, of the beautiful woman surrounded by flowing drapes.
This time, though, its more intense.
Eventually, the glitch turns up again, and Stripe wakes up in the middle of the night.
He sits up in his bunk and looks out over his comrades, who are all peacefully sleeping.
The next day, its back to work.
Having extracted information on the roaches whereabouts from Heidekker, Stripes squad heads out again.
Stripe is surprised, upon arrival at the roaches hideout, that he can smell the grass.
Thats not supposed to happen.
Well, neither is the squad commander getting killed by a headshot, but thats exactly what happens next.
Apparently one of the roaches is holed up with a stolen rifle.
She slowly backs into the hallway, where shes immediately shot by Raiman.
Raiman then goes on a bit of a killing spree, mowing down everyone in the building.
It looks a little like the resistance movement fromChildren of Men, actually.
The woman declares, you see me as I am, and the mystery is revealed.
Roaches are just normal-looking humans; its the implant that makes them appear to be dirty vampire creatures.
The green-light rig was built to mess with the implants and make the soldiers see their victims as human.
Stripe then asks why the villagers despise roaches too, when they have no such implants.
NEXT:Arquettesultimatum
As Katarina explains it, 10 years ago DNA checks changed everything.
People with genetic predispositions to illnesses were scapegoated as roaches, a campaign instigated by television and internet media.
Stripe tells her that none of its true, but she knocks him out.
The next time we see Stripe, hes in a white-walled cell, getting a visit from Arquette.
Stripe says that the roaches look just like them, and Arquette says thats why theyre dangerous.
In his words, this implant is the ultimate military weapon.
Apparently the implant is more extensive than Stripe thought.
Arquette notes it also allows for the removal of memories, and uses it to blind Stripe completely.
All Stripe has to do is say the word, and all these difficult moral choices go away.
Hell be a regular, know-nothing soldier again.
Kelly, of course, imbues the character with a terrifying deadpan charm.
His performance is definitely one of the episodes highlights.
We dont see Stripes answer to Arquettes ultimatum.
Stripe is there, too, in formal military dress, albeit with a tear running down his cheek.
