Lovecraft Country: Every Location & Time Hippolyta Traveled To In Episode 7

HBO’s Lovecraft Country is filled with literary and cultural references, especially in what is, perhaps, season 1’s most interesting episode, “I Am”. Lovecraft Country season 1, episode 7 features Hippolyta embarking on an interdimensional journey that forever changes her — here’s everywhere she goes on her travels.

“I Am” finally centers around Hippolyta Freeman (Aunjanue Ellis), who is relegated to the background for most of Lovecraft Country season 1. Although she seems to know intuitively that she’s not living her best life even at the beginning of the season, it is her pursuit of the truth surrounding the death of her husband George in episode 2, “Whitey’s On The Moon”, that leads her on a journey of self-discovery far greater than she imagined.

It starts with the orrery—a model of the solar system—that Hippolyta ends up in possession of in season 1, episode 3, “Holy Ghost”. It used to belong to Hiram Epstein, a man who followed the teaching of Horatio Winthrop, one of the founding members of the Order of the Ancient Dawn. This is the same orrery that Christina Braithwhite is seeking, as she believes she can use it to find the missing pages of the Book of Names, the key to using the magic of the Order. When Hippolyta discovers how to open the orrery, she finds a key and some coordinates, which lead her to an observatory in Mayfield, Kansas that opens a portal to other dimensions. After she cracks its difficult math problem, she is sucked into the portal and travels to some very interesting times and locations. For starters, she ends up in an alternate Mayfield.

Alternative Mayfield, Kansas

Hippolyta begins somewhere that doesn’t seem much like the observatory in Mayfield, Kansas, but she is technically in the same place, only in an alternate dimension. The coordinates on the screen are the same as the ones she was given, 39.805499 and -95.159492. However, she seems to be on a space ship of some sort, where she is connected to this interdimensional realm by a purple substance implanted in her arm.

She is confronted by a higher being called Seraphina, a sort of robot goddess. The goddess asks her, “Where do you want to be? Name it. Who do you want to be? Name it.” As a joke, Hippolyta responds by saying she wants to be dancing in Paris with Josephine Baker. In a flash, she finds herself on stage in 1930s Paris.

1930s Paris

Hippolyta is, at first, rather startled to suddenly be on stage in 1930s Paris. However, she soon settles into her new life, first learning to master the dance moves, and then becoming friends with Josephine Baker herself, an American-born Black woman who moved to France and became famous for her dancing. Baker is also credited as the first Black woman to star in a major motion picture, Siren of the Tropics.

As Hippolyta begins to enjoy her new lifestyle that involves performing on stage and attending lavish parties, she comes to realize what has been missing from her life in America. She begins to think that even though she is considered to be free in the United States, she’s still a prisoner to discrimination. “I see what I was robbed of back there [in America]“, she says. This realization sparks anger in Hippolyta, so she decides that the next thing she wants to be is a warrior.

American Southwest (Circa The 1800s)

After an indeterminate amount of time in Paris, that may be several weeks or months, the portal answers her wishes and transports her to what appears to be the American Southwest sometime in the 1800s. In this alternate universe, Hippolyta becomes part of a group of Black warrior women. They seem to be escaped slaves rising up against white Confederate aggressors.

Hippolyta learns to fight over the course of what could be several months. When her training is complete, she joins her fellow warriors in open battle against an army of Confederate soldiers. In this way, she is finally able to act against white oppression. However, during the fight, she realizes that she’s no longer so angry, and decides that she wants to see her husband again. Once again, that portal answers her wishes.

Alternative Chicago (1955)

Hippolyta finds herself back in Chicago with her husband, George Freeman. Although she’s happy to see him, her new experiences bring her to realize that George has always suppressed her sense of self. While it appears that everything about 1955 Chicago is the same as the one she left behind, Hippolyta realizes that she is in an alternate universe version, one in which George never died.

After Hippolyta tells George everything about her adventures, her husband agrees to go with her to explore the cosmos. Together, they travel into deep space as a real-life version of their daughter Diana’s comic book, Orythia Blue.

Deep Space And The Cosmos

The events that take place in the deep space of the cosmos are not shown to the audience. Instead, it can be assumed that Hippolyta forms a mutually respectful bond with her husband as they go through numerous adventures together. At one point, George asks if anything that is happening to them is real, and Hippolyta responds by saying, “I don’t know what exactly it all means, but, God, it feels real”. 

Eventually, Hippolyta returns to the goddess Seraphina in the space ship. She is much wiser now than she was when she first embarked on her adventures, almost as if she’s lived through several lifetimes. Whatever the case may be, she now has a new perspective on life. Hippolyta has gained many skills during her travels, both intellectual and physical. Seraphina is pleased with how she has grown, and invites her to become part of a higher plane of existence. However tempted Hippolyta must be, she turns down the goddess’s offer in order to return to her daughter in her own, small corner of the universe.

Returning Home

Ultimately, Lovecraft Country is about family; Hippolyta highlights this theme by returning to her daughter, Diana, in order to care for her and the rest of her family. Despite not always getting along, Hippolyta believes that her responsibilities lie with Diana and her other relatives. After all, at this point in Lovecraft Country season 1, Diana is dying from a horrible curse and only Hippolyta and her new skills can save her.

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