Dhruv Trivedi
‘Foundation’ is a sci-fi action drama based on a series of novels of the same name by Isaac Asimov. The series, an Apple TV+ production, follows the centuries-long struggle between Hari Seldon and his group against the galactic empire in the face of the impending destruction of the civilized galaxy.
The opening episode lays the groundwork for an epic saga of tremendous proportions and gives audiences many crucial details, including a clue as to what the namesake of the show — the Foundation — actually is. However, there might be a few bits and pieces overlooked in the dense opening episode, so let’s dive into ‘Foundation’ episode 1 and ensure we’ve got everything out of it. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Foundation Episode 1 Recap
The episode opens on the distant planet of Terminus, located on the edge of the galaxy. A few children approach a mysterious floating monolith-like structure known as “the Vault,” which is supposedly protected by spirits. One by one, they try to get close to it but suffer from debilitating hallucinations before they can get too close. Finally, one of them faints and is rescued by a mysterious woman who is known to be the only one who can approach the vault. We are then taken 35 years into the past, to the watery planet of Synnax where Gaal’s story begins.
As a child on Synnax, an orthodox planet that punishes anyone found to be studying mathematics or science, Gaal is sent away after solving a 500-year-old equation. She is summoned by Hari Seldon, a professor from the galaxy’s capital planet Trantor. Upon reaching there, she is told by Hari how he has devised a method of seeing the future through mathematical calculations.
He explains how the galactic empire is destined to fall into chaos, resulting in the widespread destruction of thousands of worlds. He then informs Gaal that he is to be arrested by the galactic emperor’s forces for making treasonous claims that disturb the peace. A shocked Gaal barely has time to study Hari’s work before the two are arrested, and she is called in front of a tribunal to disprove the forecast made by him.
Foundation Episode 1 Ending: What is the Foundation?
Gaal, to everyone’s surprise, stands by Hari’s predictions and therefore condemns herself to death. However, while they are being taken to their detention center, the planet is attacked, causing widespread devastation and millions of deaths. The emperor, as a result, changes his mind and decides to allow Hari and Gaal to live. The two are exiled to the obscure planet of Terminus, where Hari is ordered to work on a plan to help salvage humanity once the apocalypse happens. The episode then closes back in the present, where a now grown-up Gaal slowly approaches the vault and touches it.
At the end of the opening episode, Gaal hints that the Vault is connected to the Foundation, telling us that the monolithic structure might be, in fact, a part of Hari Seldon’s plan. As Hari outlines during his court proceedings on Trantor, the Foundation is meant to be a repository of all human knowledge, which will survive the apocalypse and pass on the collective learnings of one civilization to the next.
According to him, the destruction of the galactic order, and all the worlds under it, is set to occur in the next five hundred years. Following this, a dark period of chaos lasting roughly thirty thousand years will reign, only after which civilization will restabilize. The plan Hari proposes is to create a “Foundation” — a repository of knowledge that will help future civilizations get back on track faster — so that “they don’t have to reinvent the wheel.”
If all goes to plan and the Foundation is successfully created, Hari suggests that the dark period can be reduced from thirty thousand years to only a thousand. It is to create this very Foundation that Hari and Gaal are exiled to Terminus by the galactic emperor.
Does Hari Seldon Plan the Attack on Trantor?
The devastating attack on Trantor kills millions and destroys many levels of the multi-tiered planet. The timing is suspiciously fortuitous for Hari and Gaal. Before the attacks, the two are headed to their containment chambers to await execution. Because of these attacks, the two are released, and Hari even gets granted his wish to create the Foundation. To boot, the mathematician does not seem too surprised by the attack either.
His hand in the attack may seem logical, but it is not so. Hari has not shown any destructive tendencies and has merely maintained his claim of the empire’s fall. Despite being labeled a disturber of the peace, his goal is actually to help salvage humanity. The attacks themselves seem to be the work of the obscure tribes from the far reaches of the galaxy.
As we see briefly in episode 1, a peace summit is underway between the tribes of two warring planets. The two attackers on the sky bridge, one with visibly darker skin and the other with glowing blue eyes, seem to match the features of the two tribes, respectively. Therefore, the attack is most likely in response to the peace summit and is not connected to Hari or his plan.
Hari is not surprised by them because his mathematical model has predicted such events happening increasingly frequently as the galactic empire plunges into chaos. Therefore, though he couldn’t have predicted this particular attack, he knew that a large-scale attack against the empire was impending.
Read More: Where is Foundation Filmed?
