Warning! The following contains spoilers for the Quantum Leap episode "Secret History." Read at your own risk!
Quantum Leap has brought back Season 2 regular Eliza Taylor as Hannah, and after she shared a tender kiss with Dr. Ben Song, viewers are no doubt very interested in how she fits into this story. "Secret History" also featured Ben meeting Tom Westfall for the first time, and Ian and Jenn confronting the individual stealing data from the program. By the end, I didn't know which questions I should be asking going forward, so I talked to co-showrunners Martin Gero and Dean Georgaris for help.
I had the honor of speaking with Quantum Leap's showrunners for this game-changing episode and had to know what questions fans should be asking at the end of "Secret History." Martin Gero said it's difficult to talk about the questions that should be asked, but had some guidance for what fans shouldn't be worrying about as we move into the next few episodes:
I don't think they should be trying to figure out if Hannah is like some sort of time traveler or Evil Leaper or something. She's really just a person traveling through time normally. And Ben for some reason has, both seemingly like an emotional attraction too, but also some sort of like temporal attraction to that Ziggy keeps putting Hannah in his path. So that's, that's gonna be a fun thing that we try and figure out why.
Ben had not crossed paths with someone from one of his leaps more than once, and the odds of it happening coincidentally are astronomical. Ziggy is putting Hannah in his path for a reason, but what could that be?
Martin Gero was happy to give one part of the answer to fans, as well as some more insight into the beauty of a storyline like this. He also talked about having a guest star like Eliza Taylor and not wanting to lose someone so great after one episode:
She's going through a lot at the moment is kind of the answer, and could use a recurring friend. The tough part about the show is that if you have a great guest star like Eliza [Taylor], you know, that's it, she's burnt, she can't really come back. And so for us, it was important to see her because we're trying to enrich the emotional lives of the present-day characters to give Ben the ability to do that as well in the past.
Hannah has been a welcome addition to the show, especially for Ben, who is on the rebound following his breakup with Addison. The kiss is another example of how the three-year time skip deepened Season 2 and provided more emotional stories. Of course, it's hard to say whether or not there's any real future with Ben and Hannah, especially considering they never know where they may meet next.
Outside of the events of the episode, co-showrunner Dean Georgaris spoke to the larger message of Quantum Leap Season 2. He evoked the words of Tom Westfall while talking about the mission of the quantum accelerator and what it means for all involved:
I think maybe one of the questions we're sort of trying to pose, both in the original and this, we have an assumption that the quantum accelerator puts Sam and Ben into people's lives to change their lives for the better. We don't talk much about what it might be doing for the lives of Ben and Sam and or the people in their life. One of the things we're trying to do is to expand the breadth of the Quantum Leap universe as much as possible in by telling one story. Like when Tom mentions what if sacrifice is required. He doesn't know that to be true. He's just asking bigger questions. But I think what we start to really say here is does the quantum accelerator, does the universe, have a plan for Ben? For Addison? Are our characters a part of something greater which I find really exciting and I think it feels very consistent with the original show.
The larger questions Quantum Leap poses are what keep me watching episodes on repeat with my Peacock subscription and why I think all fans of the original should watch the new series ASAP. I'm intrigued by what all of this could mean for the rest of Season 2 and where the adventure is headed. Are Ben and Hannah linked because Ziggy believes they're the right people for each other at this time?
The best solution might just be to sit back and enjoy the ride because there's so much to appreciate beyond the reveal of a potential new enemy. I really love the cast tagging in as Holo assistants and would love for Ernie Hudson's Magic to get more screen time because of it. We also continue to get more Sam Beckett references in Season 2, which has me optimistic Scott Bakula could eventually show up.
Quantum Leap will return with a new episode on NBC on Wednesday, December 6 at 8:00 p.m. ET. Season 2 has a bright future, and while I don't know exactly what's ahead, the hints from the showrunners make it sound like this will be must-watch television.
