The following contains spoilers for Paradise episode 7, "The Day," now streaming on HuluThe penultimate episode of Paradise's ability to shift between genres has made it an entertaining and unpredictable mystery. One of the things that makes it stand out from other shows that heavily rely on twists and turns though is the way it remains laser-focused on character throughout.

Paradise's cast of characters has been afforded a great deal of depth, with the heroes' failings and the villains' redeeming qualities on display alongside their more expected decisions. The result is a show where Samantha Redmond can have several innocent people killed because she fears for her daughter or where Xavier Collins can feel morally responsible for leading a potentially bloody coup against the leadership of their town. One of these reveals in Paradise episode 7, "The Day," quietly recontextualizes one character's behavior, making them into a tragic hero within the narrative.

Cal Bradford Helped Save The World Before His Death In Paradise

Cal Bradford's Big Decision In "The Day" Kept Nukes From Destroying The World

During Paradise's episode-long flashback to the end of the world, it's revealed that Cal Bradford rebelled against the advice of Samantha Redmond, saving countless lives and the world in the process. "The Day" largely focuses on an extended flashback to the day that a catastrophic ecological event caused the end of the world as we know it. However, on their way to Colorado and aware of nuclear missiles that had been launched around the world amid the chaos of a massive tidal wave wiping out entire countries, Bradford revealed a secret failsafe built into the nuclear launch device.

Capable of shutting off all the electronics across the planet, Bradford was able to use the device to shut off the nukes before all of them could go off. While this cost Bradford and his allies their communication capabilities with other potential survivors, it also meant that countless lives that might have been wiped out were spared. Notably, Bradford did this despite the insistence of Redmond. Despite being characterized as a pushover for most of Paradise, "The Day" highlighted the moral core of the character and redeemed at least some of his actions during the end of the world.

A Scared Air Force Leader From Decades Ago Also Helped Save The World

The Failsafe Against Nuclear War Was Set In Place Decades Before Paradise

"The Day" notably doesn't open on Cal, Xavier, Redmond, or any of Paradise's other main characters. Instead, the episode initially flashes back decades to the aftermath of the Cuban Missile Crisis. After Russian Naval Officer Vasily Arkhipov went against orders and prevented a nuclear standoff from setting off between the United States and the USSR, a shaken United States Air Force Colonel endeavored to make sure there were options in place to prevent another event from like that happening. This turns out to be the origin of the EMP plan that Bradford activates in "The Day."

It's an important moment that highlights a vital empathy that sets Bradford apart from many of the other leaders...

In both cases, Bradford and the Air Force Colonel were making a decision in the dark. There was no clear way to predict what was going to happen next, the possible fallout, if the plan would even work. However, the possibility of their nation being responsible for the end of the world through nuclear conflict couldn't be allowed without deg a failsafe. It's an important moment that highlights a vital empathy that sets Bradford apart from many of the other leaders seen in "The Day" and adds new layers to his self-destructive guilt towards the end of his life.

Paradise's Unseen Heroic Moments Define The Show's Future

Paradise's World Can Rebuild And Evolve Because Of His Restraint

At the core of Paradise is an undercurrent of the necessity (or dismissal) of morality when confronting political, societal, and ecological threats. Some, like Redmond, are willing to cross serious moral lines for the sake of preserving the status quo. Others, like Xavier and Robinson, refuse to abide by the whims of the powerful even if ensures a straightforward peace. Cal Bradford had formerly been portrayed as a weak-willed figure, who finally took his fate into his own hands by working to expose Redmond's actions.

Working within a bureaucratic system that inherently has to reduce individual lives to statistics, Bradford (as well as the Air Force Colonel acting long before his time) still refuse to ignore their morals. Xavier seems to only truly get to Bradford emotionally when he calls him out for only finding his conscience when it was too late. However, Xavier didn't see Bradford double-down on that empathy, which quietly ensured that Xavier's wife had a chance to survive. It's a major emotional reveal in the penultimate episode of Paradise's first season, and a big turn for the show's deceased President.