Episode nine of The Human Division returns readers to the crew of the Clarke, in particular everyone’s favorite lieutenant, Harry Wilson, and the chief diplomat Ambassador Ode Abumwe. Only four more episodes remain and it is beginning to feel like there is a lot of story left to be told, leaving me curious as to how John Scalzi will use these remaining episodes to tie previous events together while bringing us the climactic reveal.

For the second time the crew of the Clarke is treated to visitors from Earth, this time to allow Earth’s representatives to witness a negotiation between the Colonial Union and the alien race known as the Burfinor. The purpose of the observation is to demonstrate transparency in the dealings between the CU and Earth.

Nothing ever comes simple for the crew of the Clarke and once again Harry Wilson will be called upon to perform duties outside of his purview in order to keep everything from coming apart…if he can.

Hereafter be spoilers!

I’ve mentioned this before but it bears repeating: it is fun to see Harry Wilson and Ambassador Abumwe interact. Their banter is always entertaining given the tension of their relationship. Additionally we get to see Wilson bandy words with one of the delegates from Earth, Dr. Danielle Lowen.

It comes as no surprise that the simplicity of the negotiations goes awry and I liked that this had something to do with the delegates from Earth being along to observe. It makes perfect sense that the Burfinor, or any opposite party in negotiations, would see a third party observation as something of a disruption and would play upon that to their advantage.

The sabotage angle of the story is one we are revisiting from an earlier episode, driving home the point that there are strange doings afoot and that the Colonial Union appears no closer to solving the mystery than before. I find it intriguing that the clues thus far point to a party or parties within the CU given that so many of the things that are happening appear engineered with CU technology. Or at the very least the clues point to human involvement. Given the title of the book that would make sense, however I would not put it past John Scalzi to be laying out red herrings. It won’t be long and we’ll know!

I enjoyed this week’s story. It had a few moments of humor that showcase a consistency in the writing for Harry Wilson’s character and once again I find myself enjoying him so much that I wish we didn’t have to go away from his story every other week. Reading the novel episodically leads me to wish for a collection of Harry Wilson short stories, somewhere along the lines of Keith Laumer’s character Retief. I’ve also mentioned in past reviews my desire for a series of adventures with the crew of the Clarke.

I was reminded yet again that I am glad I am reading these as they come out. Having discussed these stories with you these past few months I am of the opinion that there are benefits and drawbacks to this form of storytelling. Given that John Scalzi stated his intentions to have each story work on its own, each episode has to be judged in that fashion, but given that it is also part of what will be a finished novel it is hard not to be overly critical. The repeating of key events in the story thus far are consistent with stories that must stand on their own and yet I could also see them driving a reader to distraction who sits down to read the novel cover to cover in a few days. I can’t wait to read reviews from those who only read this in novel form (after I’ve read all the episodes myself, of course) to see how their views of the overall project compare to my own experiences and that of those who have been experiencing this one week at a time.

High marks for the Kermit reference.

What did you think of “The Observers”, and where do you think the story is going to lead? Next week’s episode: “This Must Be the Place”. I look forward to discussing it with you.