Aahana Swrup
HBO Max’s ‘Scavengers Reign’ is an animated sci-fi show that follows marooned shipmates’ individual tales of survival on a beautiful yet deadly moon planet. After veering off-course, space freighter Demeter 227 gets stranded above the unknown moon Vesta under less-than-favorable conditions. As a result, only four human survivors managed to escape through shuttle pods. Now, Commander Sam attempts to make it back to his ship alongside his younger companion, Ursula. Likewise, Azi, a lone fighter with great survival skills, plus Levi the robot, tries to reach out for help via radio signals while Kamen remains in isolation.
As these individuals fight for their lives, they utilize whatever resources they can from the planet to live another day and fight back against Vesta’s bloodthirsty lifeforms. By the time the storyline comes to a close, the characters begin to cross paths again, drawn to Demeter 227 like moths to a flame. Thus, given the critical circumstance that the characters find themselves in, viewers must be wondering about their ultimate predicament. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Scavengers Reign Recap
Demeter 227, a cargo ship carrying people and equipment alike, disappears after rerouting from The Company’s standard course. However, The company has little interest in tracking down the vessel and forsakes it to its doomed fate. Meanwhile, the surviving Commander Sam and Ursula count their days and attempt to use their pod batteries to jumpstart their ship and land it on the planet. Even though the pair has to travel out to a nearby pod and endanger their lives after their first attempt fails, they successfully bring Demeter 227 to Vesta’s surface, allowing them a chance at escape.
Consequently, as the Demeter enters the atmosphere, it catches the attention of another survivor, Azi Narnine, a cargo sector worker, and her companion droid, Levi. Although the duo have faced their own share of threats from local fauna, they have also sectioned off an area for themselves with farmed food stores and security measures. Nevertheless, Azi realizes traveling to Demeter proposes a better shot at survival than her regular rescue signals.
Simultaneously, Kamen, who has been trapped in his pod so far, also emerges free once Vesta’s native psychic creature, a Hollow, discovers and takes an interest in him. Hollows utilize their psychic powers to compel other creatures to hunt and bring food for them. As such, the small, meek Hollow that finds Kamen grasps the opportunity and puts the weak man under its spell. Under Hollow’s influence, Kamen hallucinates his ex-wife, Fiona, and re-lives happy and sad memories depending on his ability to bring his four-legged master food.
Furthermore, a deadly storm strikes the planet the following night, putting each group’s lives in peril through unique methods. Yet, the survivors do what they do best and persevere through the impossible hurdles that the planet throws their way. Nevertheless, Kamen, who continues hunting prey and predators for Hollow, soon succumbs to his fate. When he fails to bring proper offerings to the Hollow, it puts him through his worst memories.
As a result, the implications wash over him of failing Fiona and endangering his crew’s life by going against Sam and rerouting Demeter 227 for his selfish gain. For the same reason, Kamen allows Hollow to consume him and hold him inside his flesh as a parasite.
The same results in Hollow tracking down Levi, a robot manufactured and voiced by Fiona. Although Azi and Levi try to fight the creature off, it easily tears the latter to shreds with its powers. However, Azi barely gets enough time to mourn before some space scroungers arrive at the planet, responding to her distress signals. Yet, Kris, Barry, and Terence are only interested in looting the Demeter ship to bring equipment back to their colony.
Still, Azi teams up with the trio after Kris, the leader, agrees to take the Demeter crew on her ship and drop them off at a nearby planet. Nonetheless, her intentions change soon after Hollow destroys the trio’s transport vessel, and Terence falls victim to the planet’s deadly tendencies. Meanwhile, Ursula and Sam deal with their own problems after the latter gets infected by a parasite that infuses him with deep desires to hurt others around him in service of the hive mind.
Although the pair try to fight it, as they close the distance to Demeter, Sam realizes he’ll only endanger others’ lives and convinces Ursula to leave him behind. After the woman says her reluctant, teary goodbye, the man tears the parasite out of his heart, ending his own doomed life. Soon, Azi also realizes that Kris doesn’t intend to wake the Demeter passengers from their cryo sleep. Consequently, a fight breaks out between the group.
Even though Barry is reluctant to harm Azi, he listens to his leader and overpowers the woman. As such, the next time Azi awakes, she is bound by a riverside, with few means of escape. On the other hand, Kris and Barry arrive at Demeter and prepare to take off with the ship’s cargo, condemning the passengers to a tragic fate.
Scavengers Reign Ending: Is Levi Dead?
As the only robot in a cast of human survivors, Levi’s character easily garners the interest and affection of the audience within the first few episodes. However, for the same reason, it comes as a big surprise when the droid dies halfway through the show. From their first introduction, Levi’s character stands out due to their connection with the planet, which has developed over the weeks since they have been here. After interacting with the planet’s signature flowering white plant, some of its sap and pollen seeped its way into Levi’s system.
As a result, the planet’s flora begins to take over the robot’s mechanical parts and mainframe over time. Still, it doesn’t lead to any malfunctions. Instead, it improves Levi’s quality of life, bestowing the ability to feel touch, pain, and pleasure upon the nut-and-bolt being. Such a detail further adds to Levi’s character appeal, allowing the viewers the ability to become invested in their storyline.
In the end, the same thread plays a crucial role in—what is essentially— Levi’s resurrection. The robot has its pieces torn and hurled into the flowing river when Hollow attacks Azi and Levi. Even though Azi tries to salvage Levi’s parts, she gives up quickly, realizing the action would be in vain. Nevertheless, the same is not the case for Vesta’s insects and moving vines.
Levi had a special connection with Vesta’s plants and animals, feeling a natural pull toward them. Therefore, the bot had a habit of doing kind things for the surrounding animals, like farming food for them and decorating their forests for no apparent reason. Consequently, after Levi dies, the planet comes together to weave the robot’s parts back together, mending their broken seams and crevices with organic matter.
Ultimately, Levi gets to be born again, retaining some of their memories while also recognizing that they aren’t the same droid they had been before. Eventually, when Ursula arrives near the ship, she crosses paths with the unfamiliar robot. During their short interaction, the duo overhears Azi’s screams from nearby, where she is still bound and left for the dead by Kris.
What Happens to Kris?
Although Kris responds to a distress signal, her intentions for arriving on the planet have always been self-serving. Kris, Barry, and Terence want to bring helpful resources to their colony. As such, a Demeter freighter is a gold mine for handy equipment needed for development. Therefore, the minute the trio arrives on the planet and appoints Kris as their leader through a competition, their goal has been set.
However, initially, there are two ships for Kris and the others to use. Thus, when the trio learns about the cryogenically frozen passengers aboard Demeter, Kris agrees to rescue them from the planet on their own ship while using the cargo vessel to carry the equipment. Nonetheless, Hollow ruins their plans by bringing destruction to one of the two vessels.
As a result, Kris decides that she has no responsibility to the survivors. She plans to leave the planet with only the cargo that her people need. Furthermore, Terence’s death leaves Barry emotionally fragile and dependent on the woman, ensuring no one would question her authority. For the same reason, Azi proposes a threat to Kris’ plans.
Azi has strong morals and would never allow Kris to leave Demeter’s passengers for the dead. At first, Kris tries to tempt her to their side by having her occupy Terence’s place in their dynamic. Nonetheless, eventually, the fragile partnership breaks. Thus, Kris and Barry bind Azi and leave for the ship, preparing for lift-off.
Nevertheless, while the duo makes preparations for their escape, Hollow also sneaks into Demeter 227, drawn to Fiona’s corpse. The creature lies down beside the dead woman, allowing Kamen, who is still alive but unconscious inside of it, to recall how his selfishness had led to Fiona’s death. In the meantime, Kris unleashes his detonator bombs to clear the debris, which sends the ship crashing over Hollow.
As such, a final showdown breaks out, with Ursula and Azi teaming up to confront Kris and Barry while a bloodthirsty Hollow continues to go after everyone in its sight. Ultimately, Barry tries to stand up to Kris, insisting they don’t leave innocent people behind to their deaths. Although Kris pretends to give in to Barry’s insistence, she betrays the kid once Barry leaves to help Ursula and Azi wake the surviving passengers from Cryo.
With Barry gone and Demeter 227’s path cleared Kris flies part of the ship away. Since the woman knows Azi has her outnumbered, she decides to save her own skin and leaves with whatever profit she can. Yet, while in space, Kris’ dwindling resources give out, leaving the woman alone with no food or water to sustain her life. Eventually, a group of cultist aliens find the ship and the frail woman within. As the show ends, Kris’ fate remains up for speculation, but it’s hard to imagine anything good left in store for her.
Do The Demeter Survivors Escape Vesta?
Since the show focuses so much on the survival of its characters, protagonists, and antagonists alike, the Demeter passengers’ escape from the planet remains a looming mission throughout the tale. When Sam and Ursula bring the ship to the ground, they do so to wake the passengers and attempt to chart a path back to the safety of a human planet.
Likewise, Azi holds the same motives and stands against Kris to ensure the safety of everyone who might have survived the vessel’s unfortunate journey. Many passengers aboard fall victim to the planet’s wild fauna that manages to sneak into the ship before any survivors can return. Similarly, many of the other humans on Demeter 227 lose their lives after their Cryo chambers malfunction, thanks to Kris and her inhumane plan.
Furthermore, the gluttonous Hollow also presents a more pressing threat to everyone at Demeter, passengers and survivors alike. While Hollow had started out as a small, meek thing, it has grown in size and power since it met Kamen. Now, as a behemoth of its kind, Hollow attacks Azi, using its psychic powers to overpower the woman. Nevertheless, just as things begin to look bleak, Azi’s old friend, Levi, built anew, arrives and confronts Hollow.
As the creature tries to put Levi under its spell using its mind-controlling slime, Levi’s connection to Vesta and his mystic ways overwhelm Hollow. The interaction results in a blinding blast that sends Hollow back to its original form, no bigger than a cat. Similarly, Kamen detaches from the being and stands no longer under his master’s spell.
Meanwhile, Ursula and Barry wake numerous people from their cryogenic sleep. Mia, Azi’s previous lover and tentative friend, is among the passengers who manage to survive everything the planet has thrown at Demeter 227. Since Kris has taken the central ship with her, and the survivors have no pilot among them, they decide to abandon the idea of escaping from Vesta.
Instead, the Demeter survivors form their own society on the planet, utilizing technology and nature to build a perfect home for them. Even though the survivors don’t escape from the planet, they find a happy and peaceful way to survive away from their previous homes and start a new life on Vesta.
Read More: Scavengers Reign: 8 Must-Watch Similar Animated Shows
