Silo Season 3's Finale Gives Us The Most Harrowing Scene In TV Since Andor

The following post contains spoilers for "Silo" Season 3, Episode 10, "Troy."

Yet another season of Apple TV's excellent and underrated sci-fi series "Silo" has now come to an end. Season 3, as it were, was a particularly strong outing for the show, blending storylines set in the past and present, introducing a compelling string of mysteries, and exploring how, exactly, the silos even came to be. The whole thing seemed to culminate last week when, via flashbacks, we witnessed the horrific nuclear attack that drove humanity underground in the first place. However, as terrifying as that scene was, it turns out Season 3 was saving its most heart-breaking moment for its finale, "Troy." 

Overall, this was a phenomenal episode to end Season 3 on, between the thrilling mission to cap the pipe carrying the Safeguard Procedure poison in Silo 18, Camille (Alexandria Riley) switching sides to fight back against the Algorithm, and Juliette (Rebecca Ferguson) declaring war on Silo 1. Speaking of which, we also learned the tragic truth about the Algorithm and how the silos are being controlled by a middle-management-esque central silo that puts people into cryosleep in-between work shifts. But perhaps above all else, we finally saw what happened to Silo 17.

Of course, we already knew that Silo 17's residents had managed to bypass the Safeguard Procedure, allowing them to safely venture onto the surface. Yet, rather than merely being killed by the deadly atmosphere, "Troy" reveals that the people of Silo 17 were actually slaughtered in a massive shoot-out conducted by Silo 1 via drones. The resulting scene is easily the most harrowing moment on TV since the much-celebrated "Andor" Season 2 gave us the Ghorman Massacre.

When "Andor" unveiled its take on the Ghorman Massacre (i.e. the Empire's brutal extermination of the Ghorman resistance against its illicit occupation of their planet), it was unlike anything we'd seen in the "Star Wars" universe before. And even though we knew Ghorman was doomed going into Season 2, nothing could prepare you for watching its downfall in action.

The Ghorman Massacre episode is basically the "Andor" version of the second half of "Les Misérables." It's even shot like a war documentary and focuses on the frenetic chaos, heartbreak, and confusion of the Ghorman rebels as they crumble. What's more, the entire thing unfolds from the perspective of those being killed on the ground, all while cold, calculating stormtroopers and droids shoot at them without even a hint of emotion.

Compare that to the demise of Silo 17. Through a flashback, we watch as thousands of people exit the silo and ... they're perfectly fine. Indeed, they begin celebrating and embracing one another, all while breathing the air with nary an apparent issue. It appears the folks from Silo 17 not only sabotaged the Safeguard Procedure, but they also proved it's safe to go outside again.

For whatever reason, though, Silo 1 cannot tolerate this. As such, Troy — the man formerly known as Daniel Keene (Ashley Zukerman) — wakes up from cryosleep in Silo 1 to lead a team to kill all of Silo 17. As he does so, Troy casually watches a screen offering him a bird's eye view of drones opening fire on nearly 10,000 people. Truly, the way Silo 17's residents are gunned down is malicious and evil. The sounds of their screams is enough to haunt you long after the episode ends.

The big difference between the Ghorman Massacre on "Andor" and the annihilation of Silo 17 on "Silo" is that the latter is shown through the eyes of those doing all the murdering. At one point, Troy even switches to a thermal view so his drone pilots don't have to watch thousands of innocents being shot down. He then proceeds to turn off the audio and, with it, the screams of all those people dying. It's really quite horrifying, especially given how little the pilots seem affected by their actions.

Even worse, we find out afterwards that the drone pilots seemed practically enthralled by what was going on. These people were directly responsible for the deaths of thousands of individuals, and they simply saw it as a bit of excitement to liven up their day. It's the perfect illustration of the banality of evil, itself a theme that "Andor" hit on throughout its run, the Ghorman Massacre (obviously) included.

This episode also touches on another pivotal issue in "Silo" Season 3: the true cost of leadership. After learning about the Safeguard Procedure and the way the Algorithm issues strict commands to the silos' heads of IT, we know now that the oppression, lies, and murders orchestrated by the silos' leaders are really just an attempt on their part to keep their residents alive. But while someone like Camille was torn apart by her duties, only a single person in Silo 1 objected to Silo 17's extermination. Suffice is to say, the true villains of "Silo" are finally emerging.

"Silo" is streaming on Apple TV and will return for a fourth and final season.