Transpose

"**Transpose**" is the second episode of the Prime Video series *Tales from the Loop*. It and all other episodes of the series were written by series creator Nathaniel Halpern. It was directed by So Yong Kim.

## Plot

A discovery in the woods gives two teenaged boys an opportunity to step outside their lives.

## Summary

### Trading lives

A teenage boy, Jakob, sits in his room, sketching a robot, the same robot seen in the previous episode. He nicks himself shaving and walks with his brother, Cole, helping him with a shoelace. At school, he sits next to a taller boy. Later, in an exercise room, he asks the boy to help him with a weight. The taller boy asks him if he's had enough and then says that it's his turn. They go to a local hangout spot and Jakob watches a girl he likes, May, while the older boy hangs out with another girl. They then play guitar in a garage, while the older boy sings. He stops and Jakob calls it not bad. The taller boy asks him if he's going to ask May out. He replies "maybe" and the taller boy asks why not. Jakob reiterates that he said "maybe," but the older boy comments that "maybe" means "no." He replies that it's not as easy for him. He asks about the girl that he was with, Lauren. He says that he's alright, but not smart like May. Jakob says that everyone likes him, but he doesn't like anybody. He says that it doesn't matter, that come the fall, they'll work at the Loop, that he's already getting recruitment calls. A whole new life. They try the song again.

Jakob has dinner with his family, the Willards. George Willard comments that things will change soon with his graduation and then he'll start at the Loop. Loretta Willard asks him if he's thought about what area he'll pursue. He mumbles noncommittally and George says that he doesn't have to specialize right away. Loretta says that it's something to think about it and George says that he doesn't know what he wants to do in general. He might want to draw. George replies that everyone needs a hobby. Jakob's younger brother, Cole, asks what a hobby is and George says that it's a point of interest. Cole asks what his is and Loretta says that there's still time, though not a lot. George says that he likes hockey. Up in their room, Cole shows Jakob a sketch that he drew. Jakob tells him he's getting better and has nice crosshatching. He asks Cole if he brushed his teeth, while works on a sketch of the girl, May. Outside in the morning, the taller boy paints a barn. Jakob approaches him, quipping that he missed a spot. He asks if he wants to trade and Jakob suggests he take a break, holding up a lighter. The older boy asks if he'd rather be invisible or hear people's thoughts. Jakob replies that he'd rather be invisible because then he wouldn't have to hear what people are really thinking. The taller boy points out that if he's invisible, people could say what they're thinking because they wouldn't know he's there. He replies that he'd stay away from people and the taller boy asks why be invisible at all in that case. They walk into the woods and make bird calls and use tree branches as play swords. They pass by the robot that Jakob was sketching before and discover a strange sphere sitting in the middle of the woods. The taller boy says that it looks like a sea mine, though it isn't one, really. He suggests that Jakob check it out.

Jakob does so and opens a door on it. He peers inside and the taller boy suggests he climb in. He does so and there is a strange whooshing sound and everything goes black. The taller boy appears to be passed out on the ground. He gets up and calls out "Danny?" Jakob peers out from inside the sphere, asking what happened. He gets out, asking "Jakob?" "I was, in there," replies the taller boy, Danny, or rather, Jakob. The two have apparently switched bodies. He says that he was in there and then... He says it isn't funny. Danny, in Jakob's body, tells him that it's going to be okay. Jakob, in Danny's body, tells him that it's not. Danny/Jakob tells him to just breathe. He says to let him think. Jakob/Danny shouts for help and Danny/Jakob tells him to wait. He suggests Jakob/Danny climb back into the sphere. He won't, so Danny/Jakob says that he'll go instead. He does so and the whooshing happens again. They come to and Danny gets back up. They're themselves again. Danny comments that Jakob was freaking out. He calls it wild. He says that the sphere isn't going anywhere, and it's reversible. Jakob asks if he wants to switch again. Danny asks if he's scared. Danny tells him it would be cool to be someone else for a day. "I'd be you and you'd be me?" asks Jakob. Danny agrees that they could do it for a day. Jakob considers and Danny says that it'll be funny. Jakob climbs back into the sphere and they trade again.

### Revelations

They walk together, back in each other's bodies. Danny/Jakob tells Jakob/Danny that he'll race him back to town. They race and Danny/Jakob marvels at the speed of his new body. They consider their reflections in a shop window. Russ walks up, calling for Jakob. Jakob/Danny taps on Danny/Jakob to tell him that he's up. He introduces his friend "Hi, this is Jakob... I mean, Danny." Russ shakes his hand, asking if they have "choice paralysis." Jakob/Danny says that they were just hanging out. Russ finds this dubious, but tells them he'll let them get on with it. He asks what they think about the vacuum cleaners in the shop window. Jakob/Danny tells Danny/Jakob that that's his grandfather. "He runs the Loop, right?" says Danny/Jakob. He comments that Jakob/Danny probably has a good job waiting for him there. Jakob/Danny says that he doesn't know and that they should get moving. They discuss arrangements for the night, how to deal with their respective families. Jakob/Danny tells Danny/Jakob not to get him in trouble, or go through his stuff. He then asks what he should do and Danny/Jakob tells him he should just keep painting the barn. He asks about his sister and Danny/Jakob tells him he should just ignore her.

Jakob/Danny goes to paint the barn and the girl, Lauren, comes to see him. She asks if he's staying up on the ladder and he climbs to see her. She says that it looks good and that her dad sometimes plays music there. She asks if he's been inside and he shakes his head. She takes his hand, saying she'll show him. They go inside and she comments that her parents aren't there right now, obviously. She moves to kiss him, but catches him off-guard. She asks if they should try again and they kiss. He goes to Danny's house and Danny's mother, Kate asks him how his day was, speaking both verbally and in American Sign Language. Danny's little sister, Beth, is there with her and now it's clear why Danny/Jakob had asked about the sister because she's deaf. He replies simply "fine" and walks away. He then goes to take a shower, examining his new body. Beth comes in and he shouts at her, telling her to go away, that he's in there. She does nothing and he waves her away. Downstairs, he has dinner and Kate asks if he finished the barn. She sits, asking if he's considered his uncle Harry's offer. He replies "not really" and she that she knows he wants to work at the Loop, but he has to be realistic with his grades, that he doesn't have the same options as his friend Jakob. It's not the end of the world if he works at the quarry. That evening, he goes up to Danny's room and finds that Danny's pet tarantula escaped from its cage and is in his bed. He grabs some papers and uses them to place it back in the cage. He overhears Danny's parents arguing, Ed asking if Kate is going to force Danny to work at the quarry. She replies that she wouldn't have to if she knew he was also with her, if they had a united front. He tells her that he's with her, but he's also with Danny, and he's not interested in pushing him into something that he's not interested in. He tells her that she has no idea what it's like to walk out of the door every day to something that she hates. She tells him that she's done. Jakob/Danny shuts the door. Meanwhile, Danny/Jakob has a strange vision in which he sees Jakob's body appearing to move robotically.

That morning, Jakob/Danny is awoken, startled by Ed, telling him that he slept in and they're late. He tells him to get going. He considers his shirtless body and then rides with Ed, listening to a weather report on the radio. He sees Danny/Jakob walking with Cole. They pull up and he starts to get out, but Ed gives him a hug. He tells him to "knock 'em dead." "Okay," he replies and gets out. In the gym, Jakob/Danny asks Danny/Jakob how it feels. He asks him if anything happened, and they both agree that nothing really did. They talk about popping zits and Danny/Jakob says that he had a weird dream in which he was him and there were two of him. He asks if he had any dreams and Jakob/Danny replies that he thinks so but he doesn't remember. He asks Danny/Jakob if he still wants to switch back that day, but he suggests "How about tomorrow?" He asks what the difference is and Jakob/Danny tells him that his mother wants to know if he'll work for his uncle at the quarry. Danny/Jakob is surprised she talked about it and asks what he said. He replies that he said nothing. Jakob/Danny asks why he lied about getting calls from the Loop. He says that his parents don't think it, but he's better than that, that there's no way he's going to spend the rest of his life crushing rocks. Jakob/Danny asks what he's going to do and he replies that if his mother asks again to just say no. He asks what he'll do for him if he says no. He tells him he'll think of something and tosses him a basketball. They go through the day, doing their schoolwork. They walk together through the woods and Jakob/Danny goes back to painting the barn, considering a flock of geese flying by. He spots Danny/Jakob and heads down from the ladder, then sees him kissing May in a field. He goes back to the barn and knocks down the ladder, then tells a group of staring adults "I'm not me." The paint spills out of one of the knocked-over cans. He mutters again that he's not him and goes to his real house and knocks on the door. He greets George, who answers, as "Dad." George motions his eyes in confusion and he says "Uh, I mean, Mr. Willard." He asks if Jakob is home and he tells him that he's in his room.

### Confrontation

Jakob/Danny goes upstairs, where he finds Danny/Jakob listening to a punk rock song. He asks him about May, saying that he wants to switch back, that he knows he likes her. Danny/Jakob replies that he wanted him to do something for him, so he did. Jakob/Danny replies that if it's for him, then they should switch back, now. Danny/Jakob tells him to listen, but he replies that he wants to be himself again. "I don't," replies Danny/Jakob. They stare at each other and Jakob/Danny asks what he means. He replies that he's been thinking, about the future and how his grandfather runs the Loop. "I told you," he says, "I'm not gonna crush rocks for the rest of my life." Jakob/Danny shoves him, hard. They get into a fight, until George comes in, shouting at them to stop. He tells the boy he believes is Danny to go home. Jakob/Danny gives one last look at Jakob/Danny and leaves. Danny/Jakob walks along, sniffling. He goes to the forest, passing by the robot and stands before the sphere. The whooshing noise from the sphere grows louder and everything goes black.

Back at the Willard home, Danny/Jakob is with Cole. Cole shows him a drawing, asking him how to draw a car. He takes a pencil and tries to draw, but of course, is no good at it. He sighs and tells him that cars are tough. George knocks on the door and comes in, telling Danny/Jakob that Danny's father is on the phone. He asks if he knows where Danny is, but he shakes his head. George comments that they were fighting and Danny/Jakob says that he doesn't really want to talk about it. "Well, who the hell said I did?" comments George, closing the door and leaving. Danny/Jakob leafs through Jakob's sketchbook, chuckling at nude drawings of girls, then staring at one of his drawings of May. He goes to school the next day, but there is no Jakob/Danny sitting next to him. Lauren asks him if he's seen Danny. He asks her why and she says that her father saw him at the barn and he looked upset. Danny/Jakob replies that he's sure he's fine, but he hasn't seen him and leaves. He bounces a basketball by himself at the gym and shares a kiss with May outside on a bench, giving her a non-nude sketch that Jakob made of May. She says that she loves it, but asks if her neck is really that long. He stares at Jakob's name on the painting and she asks if he's okay. He goes out to the woods, shouting for Jakob. He reaches the sphere and again calls Jakob's name. He looks inside and gasps, then runs, shouting for help.

### A bad feeling

He is now inside a hospital, where his true body is now lying on a hospital bed. He stares inside the hospital room, then enters. His mother, thinking him to be Jakob, tells him that he needs a haircut. He replies that he will. Ed asks if he knows what he was doing in the woods. He shakes his head and Kate comments that he never thought about his choices and how important they are. Ed chastises her for speaking of him in the past tense and she addresses Danny/Jakob again, saying that he thought the world of him. "Thinks," insists Ed. Danny/Jakob says that he feels bad for how things happened. Ed nods, saying that they do too. Kate turns away and Danny/Jakob, unable to think of anything else to say, leaves. Lauren comes up and hugs him, asking what Danny was thinking. He replies that he doesn't know.

He trudges back to the woods, where he finds a group of men disassembling the sphere. He goes back to his real home and tries to enter, but finds the door locked. He sneaks in through his window and knocks on the aquarium of his tarantula, then plays the song before on his guitar. He grabs the tarantula aquarium and carries it downstairs, where he finds Beth watching TV. He sits down the aquarium and signs to her "I'm still here." He then picks up the aquarium and leaves. He goes to the Willard home, considering his new face in the mirror. He finishes painting the barn, and has dinner with his new family. Loretta asks if he's thought anymore about what he's going to do after graduation. He says that he knows his grades aren't great and she says that they're good. He tells her he's going to start working at the Loop. George says it's great and he can always draw as a hobby. He tells him that he doesn't think he likes to draw anymore. George and Loretta chuckle at this and she tells him he's making the right choice. George agrees that his grandfather will be very pleased. He sits, staring vaguely and she asks what it is. He tells her that he misses his friend. Upstairs, the tarantula is now with him. He tosses in turns in bed, recalling times he had with Jakob together. He hears a creaking outside the window and looks out. He goes outside with a flashlight and shines it. He sees the robot from the woods. It moves in a very familiar way. "Jakob?" he asks. The robot stops moving and makes a whirring motion. It blinks and nods, walking away, then starting to run.

## Cast

### Starring

* Rebecca Hall as Loretta Willard
* Paul Schneider as George Willard
* Duncan Joiner as Cole
* Daniel Zolghadri as Jakob
* Jonathan Pryce as Russ Willard

### Guest starring

* Tyler Barnhardt as Danny Jannson
* Nicole Law as May
* Lauren Weedman as Kate
* Dan Bakkedahl as Ed

### Co-starring

* Alessandra de Sa Pereira as Beth
* Tatiana Latreille as Lauren
* Victor J. Ho as Zhi
* Christin Park as Stacey
* Sierra Alexis as Zoe
* Blair Burns as Performer 1
* Alex Hiebert as Performer 2
* Janet Shum as Performer 3
* Ray Chrunyk as Performer 4

## Scene breakdown

*The following are the scenes of this episode, as indicated via Amazon's X-ray feature*:

1. Amazon Original (00:00:00)
2. Title Sequence (00:00:05)
3. A day in the life of Jakob (00:00:26)
4. Family dinner (00:05:06)
5. Hanging out with Danny (00:06:54)
6. Finding something strange in the woods (00:10:27)
7. Switching places (00:15:18)
8. Life as Danny (00:18:47)
9. Getting to school (00:25:57)
10. Betrayal (00:28:24)
11. Danny's missing (00:35:47)
12. In the hospital (00:40:12)
13. Stuck (00:42:44)
14. Finishing the barn (00:45:59)
15. A tough choice (00:46:30)
16. A late night visitor (00:48:15)
17. End Credits (00:50:22)

## Behind the scenes

* In a scene commentary for this episode, "Jakob and Danny," showrunner Nathaniel Halpern stated that he felt that the story of the episode was somewhat universal and that people can find their own way into it through ideas such as "the grass is always greener." He continued that he wanted to create a situation where there was empathy for everyone and that while Danny made a questionable choice, he was not thinking far ahead. He praised the actors who played Jakob and Danny, stating that the two did a great job of studying each other's mannerisms in order to portray the other character inside their body.
* The idea of switching bodies using the object seen in this episode originates from the original *Tales from the Loop* book by Nathaniel Halpern. In the book, however, it is two identical twins named Jens and Håkan who swap bodies. According to Håkan, their parents never noticed.

## References

1. ↑ Writer's Guild of America West - *Tales from the Loop*
2. ↑ *Tales from the Loop* on Amazon