The first season of David Goyer's Foundation has come to an end, finally revealing the true nature of Hari Seldon's plan - and critically undermining the Empire. Isaac Asimov's Foundation novels and short stories were inspired by the tale of the collapse of the Roman Empire, with the legendary author imagining a dark future in which a future Galactic Empire faced imminent collapse. This was foreseen by Foundation's psychohistorian Hari Seldon, who successfully created a branch of mathematics that allowed him to predict the future - yet who also realized certain steps could be taken to prevent the coming galactic Dark Ages lasting 30,000 years or more. The scale of Asimov's stories meant it was long considered impossible to bring to the big or small screen, but the TV industry has changed after Game of Thrones, granting David Goyer the opportunity to pitch a long-form, big-budget series that brings this epic to life at last.
Goyer has reimagined Foundation as a sort of galactic game of chess between the Emperor on one side and Hari Seldon on the other. The genetic dynasty of the Empire is resistant to change, with each clone Emperor fighting to maintain control of the galaxy in accordance with what can loosely be called their "birthright." In contrast, Hari Seldon is the master manipulator, orchestrating events in accordance with his predictions to allow controlled change to happen. Hari Seldon was murdered in Foundation episode 2, but it's become clear he orchestrated his death because he was suffering from a degenerative health condition, and his plans continue apace. Not everything has gone as he'd have wanted, of course: Gaal Dornick was supposed to accompany the Foundation, but she possesses some sort of psychic ability to sense the future, and she walked in just as Hari was being killed by her lover Raych. Blamed for this, she fled in a cryo-pod, only to stumble into some of Seldon's other plans before departing those as well, deciding she wanted nothing to do with all this.
Meanwhile, on Terminus, matters build to a head between the warlike Thespins and Anacreons, two human colonies who have fought one another for generations. The prize is what can only be called an Imperial superweapon, the Invictus, which was lost centuries ago but has turned up on the galactic rim. Here's how things play out, and how Hari Seldon's plans come to fruition.
Hari Seldon's Real Foundation Plan Explained
Hari Seldon had told the Emperor the only way to forestall the collapse of galactic civilization was to establish a Foundation on a distant world, where his followers - some of the greatest minds in the galaxy - would maintain records of civilization. This was, however, a lie: the purpose of the Foundation was not to curate knowledge, but rather to curate people. Seldon chose the members of his Foundation carefully to ensure a group of highly knowledgeable people were out on the rim, away from the Empire's watchful eyes, where they could help secure a new power base that would ultimately rival the Empire.
Seldon had predicted the Anacreons' discovery of the Invictus, Foundation's version of the Death Star; according to dialogue in Asimov's books, "It's got atomic blasts capable of blowing up a planet, and a shield that could take a Q-beam without working up radiation." The Anacreons lacked the scientific knowledge to repair the 700-year-old Imperial warship, and so they came to Terminus to force the scientific community there to help. This escalated, as Seldon expected, with Terminus calling on the Anacreons' rivals the Thespians for help. Finally, at the right moment, the Vault, Hari Seldon himself intervened. The Vault was apparently constructed from his coffin, containing an artificial intelligence bearing a copy of his consciousness. He revealed the ancient blood-feud between the Thespians and the Anacreons had been engineered by the Empire, motivating them to form an alliance. The Foundation would be the third spoke of that alliance, providing the knowledge and skills needed to build a fleet.
A pulse from the Invictus' engines simulated the destruction of the star Terminus orbits, meaning the Empire - already preoccupied, possibly with other things Seldon had orchestrated - wouldn't come looking. The Foundation, the Anacreons and the Thespians could operate with impunity, although it's unclear whether they will challenge the Empire directly or simply expand when it eventually collapses. It's a stunning plan, involving a great deal of deception, but Hari believes it's the only way to save the galaxy.
The Vault's Hari Reveal Foreshadows Foundation's Story
The Vault is the primary symbol of the Foundation TV series, and now its true nature has been revealed. However, this foreshadows Foundation's story going forward, as Seldon has set in motion a chain of events he expects to bring down the galaxy, and they will involve a number of so-called "Seldon Crises," key moments where things could turn one way or another. Presumably, he's worked out the timings carefully, and the AI inside the Vault will trigger at just the right moment to ensure he can give crucial words of guidance. Of course, the problem - which Seldon's AI arrogantly ignores - is that his plans didn't quite go as expected, because psychohistory can't predict the actions of individuals, only the great tides of cultural change. As time passes, the gap between Seldon's predictions and reality will increase, meaning the future will become increasingly questionable.
Salvor Hardin's Gaal Dornick Connection Redefines Foundation Season 1
Gaal Dornick was originally viewed as Hari Seldon's protégé, but Foundation season 1 has turned her into a real threat. Gaal can somehow predict the future, a psychic power that meant she sensed impending danger on the day Hari was murdered. She sought sanctuary for a time aboard another vessel containing a copy of the Seldon AI, and he correctly realized her knowledge could doom all his plans, because acting intuitively she could turn left where he had expected her to turn right. Salvor Hardin is actually the daughter of Gaal Dornick and her lover Raych Foss, created using an egg and sperm that had been stored against radiation damage to ensure the Foundation could reproduce. She has inherited her mother's psychic powers, and there is an intuitive bond between them. As a result, it seems all Salvor's visions were not cast by the Vault at all. Rather, they were cast by Gaal's mind, even as she slumbered in cryogenic suspension.
Hari Seldon was lucky. The Vault was programmed to allow only Gaal Dornick to come close to it, but with her gone it should have been inaccessible. Fortunately Salvor Hardin's DNA was a close enough match to Gaal's for the Vault to allow her into its presence as well. Without Salvor, the Vault would never have been triggered and the Seldon AI contained within would never have awoken. All Hari's plans would have come to nothing had Salvor Hardin not been born.
Empire's Genetic Dynasty: How Was Cleon's DNA Sabotaged?
Meanwhile, the Empire faces another crisis. It seems rebels secretly infiltrated the Imperial Palace decades ago, contaminating the genetic samples of the Cleon clones - and even managing to contaminate the DNA of Cleon I, meaning it is no longer possible to create perfect clones. The methodology is still unclear, but what matters is its effect upon the regime. As Lee Pace explained in a Screen Rant interview, every Cleon's psyche is a balance between continuity and individuality. "On one side of their mind, they believe they're the same person. They actually believe this, and they believe that person is the Emperor of the galaxy... And on the other side of that mind, are a series of individuals who, whether they like it or not, are individuals." It's long been clear the balance was skewing towards individuality, potentially threatening the genetic dynasty, but now the reason for that change has become clear. There's no going back, either: the sabotage conducted to Cleon I's DNA means the Empire can't simply destroy these particular clones and start over.
It will be particularly interesting to see how Brother Dusk and Eto Demerzel respond to this discovery. As seen in the Foundation season 1 finale, Brother Dusk - likely the last remaining true Cleon, more warlike and brutal than his "brothers" - believes an imperfect copy is an abomination. Meanwhile, Demerzel, the android who assists the Cleons, is ultimately loyal to the genetic dynasty itself - with this programming even leading her to kill Brother Dawn, who she believes compromises it. The Empire is in complete disarray at its highest level.
Has Hari Seldon Engineered The Empire's Crises?
The interesting question is whether or not Hari Seldon engineered all the Empire's crises, because all seem to have been seeded at the time he was on Trantor, right before the Foundation was formed. It's certainly possible Seldon brought down the Skybridge, deliberately ensuring the Thespians and Anacreons were blamed for the terrorist attack so they would be driven away from the Empire - ultimately becoming part of his outer rim alliance. It's likewise curious that the Cleon DNA seems to have been sabotaged at the same time, essentially bringing down the genetic dynasty at a stroke. The rebel movement may well be another of Seldon's legacies.
Foundation Season 2: What The 100-Year Time Jump Means
Foundation season 1's finale ends with yet another time jump, taking viewers forward another 138 years. It sees Gaal Dornick return to her homeworld of Synnax, only to learn the destruction she foretold there did indeed materialize. To her surprise, she discovers another cryo-pod - one containing Salvor Hardin, who went looking for her mother but crash-landed upon the water-world. The two psychics are now united, although they seem to be stranded on a deserted planet, so no doubt Hari Seldon's plans will continue - at first. It's possible Foundation season 2 will initially step back in time to explore the immediate impact of the genetic dynasty's collapse, and its impact upon the Cleons and Eto Demerzel. However, even if it does, it's reasonable to assume Gaal and Salvor have awoken for the second Seldon Crisis, and that this will take place 138 years after the alliance formed between the Thespians, Anacreons and the Foundation itself. Isaac Asimov's Foundation stories charted a millennium, so more time-jumps are clearly on the cards in order to align the show with his vision.