In one of the final scenes of Season 4, Cosima and young clone Charlotte found their way to a village, which viewers learned in the Season 5 premiere was named "Revival." But what is Revival on Orphan Black, exactly, and what are the people who live there doing? Remember, the inhabitants of the ramshackle town include the presumed dead Delphine, who was taken there by Dr. Van Lier after being shot in the Season 3 finale. But is Delphine a resident or a captive? What is she working on? And why was Charlotte so scared of this place?
When Susan Duncan helped Cosima and Charlotte escape from Rachel's terrifying coup in the fourth season finale, Charlotte cautioned Cosima to steer clear of the village on the island; but when Cosima fell too ill to keep going, they were rescued by shadowy figures and taken to Revival against their will… where Cosima was reunited with Delphine. However, their reunion was short-lived; in "The Few Who Dare," Delphine is promptly whisked away from Revival for alleged research purposes. But before she leaves, she fills Cosima in on some of the town's secrets.
The village of Revival sits in the shadow of a giant castle that is supposedly the residence of the mysterious P.T. Westmoreland, the 170-year-old founder of Neolution. And how has Westmoreland managed to survive for so long, you ask? Well, the secret behind his longevity is exactly the reason for Revival's existence.
The village is referred to as the "heart" of Neolution, where the scientific philosophy is explored in its purest form. Susan Duncan's clones and Evie Cho's maggot-bots were all technology created in pursuit of achieving human perfection; but if perfection is your goal, then what should be the first step? Prolonging life, naturally. That's what the residents of Revival believe, and that's what people come there for from all over the world: a cure to their cancer and other illnesses, and a chance to drink from "the fountain." (Whether this fountain is a metaphor or a literal wellspring is TBD.)
In fact, the secrets that Revival promises to unlock are so tantalizing, that Cosima decides to stay there — among its batty cult-like inhabitants — even after Sarah shows up to rescue her. (And it looks like Sarah will be staying there too, although against her will, since she's captured by Rachel while trying to escape in a boat.) With Cosima and Sarah trapped in Revival and Alison and Helena still somewhere on the mainland, will viewers ever get to see all of the sestras together again? Hopefully they find a way to reunite and escape the crazy cult town before the become guinea pigs in Westmoreland's and Rachel's experiments.
But if Westmoreland actually exists and is really 170 years old, then why are he and the rest of Revival still pursuing the key to immortality? It certainly seems like he's discovered it already, right? Whatever's going on in that town, there's bound to be more revealed before the final season of Orphan Black comes to an end.
