The story of Netflix’s Pacific Rim: The Black isn’t over. And, luckily, the show has been greenlit for another season.
It’s due to arrive … we’re not sure. But given its popularity, hopefully, late 2021/early 2022!
There were many unanswered mysteries from Season 1 intended to keep us waiting for Season 2, but there are also some common questions floating around the internet, which I’ve listed (and attempted to answer) below! If you have any other questions, post them in the comments or join our friendly Discord channel.
Warning: Spoilers!
What exactly is The Black?
A nickname for Operation Blackout. In the event that Kaiju overwhelm an area, the PPDC declares it lost and begins an emergency evacuation to designated cities before isolating the compromised location.
The Black is the resulting area that is cut off from the rest of the world. Basically, it’s a no-communication zone between it and the PPDC/other countries. We aren’t told 100%, but it appears, in this case, it involved destroying the PPDC’s geostationary communication satellites for Australia. They would have done so to prevent any tech infiltration by the Precursors.
What does the PPDC stand for again?
Pan Pacific Defense Corps.
Who is Shane?
Aside from a sadistic megalomaniac?
We’re not sure. Why was he in The Black? Why does he want Jaegers? If he stole Mei as a child, and she’s at least eighteen (I’m presuming), he’s been planning something for a while.
What is the deal with Boy and the Mecha-Kaiju?
I initially assumed Boy was a PPDC project due to his home in the tube. Then, in episode 6, when he treated the Mecha-Kaiju as his elevated attack dog, I guessed Boy was genetically created/enhanced to drift with the Mecha-Kaiju (which I had assumed was another PPDC project, perhaps created in tandem with Boy).
Yet, at the end of episode 7, we hear that “the Precursors can create Kaiju that look like us!” This opens up all sorts of implications. Do the Precursors intend to take over earth with these lookalikes, or is this just a way to fully infiltrate the human population for eventual destruction? Is Australia their testing ground or have they already moved on to other countries? Is Boy a captured Precursor or is he a Precursor creation? Is Hayley just wrong, and was he created by the PPDC? Or, even more sinister, has the PPDC colluded with the Precursors?
More Questions About Boy
How, physically, did Boy transform from Boy to the Attack on Titan version of himself? Where did all that mass come from? Did he channel a fissure inside himself that let out the Kaiju version? Is he inside of it, like a Jaeger, somehow? Can he change back?
What’s up with the “Sisters”?
Do they worship Kaiju? It appears they do, yet they have also tamed the canine Kaiju. Are they Precursors in disguise? This seems less likely, as why would Precursors venerate their own creation? Either way, they seem very taken with Boy, referring to him as a Messiah.
Did that Walkie Talkie bomb make sense?
While definitely one of the most surprising (and horrific) moments of the series, I wondered afterward how that would work. In truth, I don’t think it would. It clearly wasn’t triggered by radio waves alone, given it didn’t explode when Shane first called in. So to set it off, Shane would need to lock into a satellite feed linked to the GPS coordinates of the walkie. Given they’re in The Black, there aren’t any satellites, which makes this impossible. Even if he did have a way to track the walkie and make it a bomb, wouldn’t an undeniably strategic person like Shane use the technology to track Mei in secret instead of “teaching her a lesson”? And while Shane is a conniving and distrustful person, wouldn’t Mei, his second-in-command, not know of these devices? It’s a small thing to nit-pick about, but I found this scene a bit of a stretch.
Why are the breaches now above water?
From what I gather, the breaches were underwater in the movies to draw less attention and hide where the Kaiju were coming from. The Precursors probably don’t care about that anymore, so they open up breaches wherever they see fit.
What do the survivors eat out in The Black?
Kaiju bits?
The answer is pretty simple. Canned goods looted from houses and apartments. Given most people were evacuated, there would be plenty of food left behind. An almost ideal post-apocalyptic situation, really. Aside from the rampaging monsters and maniacal middle-aged man. I can think of a few worst wastelands to hang out in, that’s for sure.
Here’s hoping we get more Kaiju, Mecha, Mei, and LOA (and Taylor and Hayley too, I guess!) sooner rather than later!
