Episode 6 opens on Ray, strapped to a chair aboard a private jet. Helpless, he watches the newly transformed Byron have sex with a stewardess. Ray cautions him to be more careful—they still don’t fully understand the virus’s capabilities or its pathogenic effects. Unfazed, Byron brushes off the warning and heads to the restroom, once again admiring his altered appearance. In doing so, he also reveals his third nipple. When Byron returns, Ray confronts him bluntly: “You’re a caveman playing with fire now, and fire burns.” He warns that the virus could produce unpredictable anomalies and side effects. Ray predicts that The Beauty will inevitably become a street drug. If the stewardess passes it to someone else, the infection will multiply rapidly, flooding the market and driving its value down. This holds Byron’s attention. They exit off the private jet, with one of Byron’s assassins shooting the stewardess dead. 

The episode then follows Byron as he heads into the pharmaceutical lab, with Ray trailing behind. The scene plays out like a choreographed musical number, as a team of doctors carefully and precisely administer his next dose.

Back at the mansion, a group of housekeepers and stylists helps him get dressed and ready. He walks into the dining room to meet his wife, Franny, for the first time since his transformation. To prove he’s really Byron, he reveals his third nipple—revealed to be named “Archibald.” Franny’s initial shock fades, but she’s ultimately not impressed. Even after Byron lays out his big plan to sell the drug to the world, she brushes him off, reducing him to little more than a talentless salesman rather than the visionary he believes himself to be.

Back at the lab, Byron and Ray stand behind a glass screen, watching a replicated sample of The Beauty inside an incubator-like machine. Without warning, it bursts into flames. Ray explains that, based on their current data, The Beauty has a lifespan of 855 days. Alarmed—for both his own survival and the drug’s market potential—Byron immediately orders his assassin to kill Ray. Desperate, Ray pleads for his life, promising he can find a cure and refine The Beauty to its full potential. Byron hesitates and ultimately calls off the hit. Instead, he forces Ray to kneel before him, arrogantly declaring himself as God.

From there, the episode shifts its focus to Mike, a gentle, slightly insecure but genuinely kind lab technician working at the pharmaceutical facility. He chats with his coworker Clara, complimenting her courage for committing to her gender transition. During their friendly banter, Mike admits he has a crush on Jen, another employee who works in a different department of the facility. At lunch, he sits down with Jen, and she excitedly shows him a photo of Larry, a chimp she works with and deeply cares about in her department (Zone 4). Working up the courage, Mike finally asks her out. Jen reveals she has a fiancé, warmly relegating him to “work buddy” status. Later, Mike vents his disappointment to Clara—just as the entire facility suddenly goes into lockdown for a Zone 4-related incident. 

An hour later, the lockdown is lifted. After work, Mike spots Jen outside, clearly shaken. She tells him that Larry was injected with a serum that initially transformed him into a massive, muscular version of himself—but he quickly became violent, attacking the lab staff before ultimately being shot dead. Mike asks if she knows where the serum came from to which Jen reveals that it was taken from the cryogenic room in Zone 4.

The next day, Mike shares everything with Clara. Frustrated after being misgendered again, Clara vents to him, wondering if that serum could finally allow her to fully become the person she’s meant to be. Later that day, Mike notices another lab employee using a facial recognition scan to access Zone 4. That night, back at his apartment, Mike scans his own face and hacks into the facility’s security system, uploading his facial data into the database to grant himself access.

The next day, Mike manages to slip into Zone 4. He sneaks into the cryogenic room and steals two injector needles. That night, lying in bed, he injects himself. The effects hit almost instantly—his body twisting and contorting in agony. By morning, a new Mike steps out of the bathroom, staring at his newly sculpted, muscular physique in the mirror. He leaves his apartment, passing a suspicious Antonio on the way out.

Mike then shows up at Clara’s apartment and confesses that he took the drug. He reveals the second needle. Though she hesitates—unsure how the drug might interact with the testosterone and estrogen already flowing in her system—she ultimately decides to take the risk. Mike injects her. When she wakes up, she finds herself transformed into a beautiful young woman. Overcome with emotion, she throws her arms around Mike in a tight embrace.

The episode jumps ahead two years to Venice, where Antonio is tracking down a runner—now understood by audiences to be Mike. After a phone call with Byron, Antonio locates Mike and shoots him with a poisonous dart as he walks by. 

Episode 6 continues by flashing back to the early days of the virus, tracing its origins and the first signs of its spread. In doing so, the episode slows down the momentum of the series, putting Cooper and Jordan’s storyline on pause. The episode also addresses a major overarching question: how long does it take before the virus causes someone to combust? It becomes clear that Byron isn’t exempt from this fate either. Beyond that, the episode explores compelling themes of power, creation, and beauty. At one point, Ray calls Byron his “creation,” only for Byron to turn the tables moments later, referring to himself as God while Ray kneels before him. These Frankenstein-like dynamics appear to comment on the corrupting influence of Big Pharma and the power wielded by the wealthy elite.

When the story shifts to Mike, it’s clear he’s a genuinely good-hearted person—offering a sharp contrast to Jeremy’s more troubled, incel-driven origins as shown in Episode 1. By showing that even someone kind can be drawn to the superficial allure of beauty, the episode highlights an underlying honesty in humanity’s desire to transform and improve themselves. Clara’s heartfelt wish to use the drug to fully become the person she feels destined to be also explores a compelling new perspective on its potential use.

That said, the episode still succeeds in tackling significant questions and themes, even if it temporarily slows the series’ overall pace. Hopefully, the next episode will return to Cooper and Jordan’s journey as they continue to discover more and more about the virus. 

Rating: 7/10

Photos credit: Courtesy of FX Networks