Exclusive ‘Foundation’ Season 3 clip 8 sees Hari Seldon and The Mule face off outside The Vault (video)

Apple TV+’s “Foundation” Season 3 continues to successfully prove that not only is this adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s “Foundation Trilogy” offering core fans some of the most startling sci-fi fare in the streaming sphere, but also that this latest season is perhaps the best of the entire series yet.

To whet fans’ appetites for “Skin in the Game,” the next intense episode airing on Friday (Aug. 29), we’ve got an electrifying clip that picks up right where last week’s “Foundation’s End” leaves off, with The Mule (Pilou Asbæk) strolling up to the The Vault following the fall of New Terminus.

He’s seen recounting his tragic backstory on the breadbasket world of Rossem prior to enlisting as a galactic pirate. When he turns to leave after failing to elicit a response, Hari Seldon’s (Jared Harris) hologram appears and casually asks how much of that sad tale is actually true.

We pick up that mesmerizing moment here in this fresh clip above as these charismatic enemies confront each other for the first time. The null field preventing anyone from coming close to the hovering diamond-shaped structure containing Seldon’s digital presence apparently has zero effect on The Mule, and the Father of Psychohistory seems perfectly at ease dealing with the rogue telepathic mutant.

“Careful, gloating is soft sand,” Seldon warns after The Mule boasts of his threatening power over the Seldon Plan. “And not the reason why you came.”

Season 3 is delivering some astonishing character performances and jaw-dropping special effects from VFX Supervisor Chris MacLean and his acclaimed teams. It’s set 152 years following the turbulent events seen in Season 2, when The Foundation has greatly enhanced its influence and the Cleon clones’ Galactic Empire is crumbling as Seldon and his paranormal protege Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell) have predicted. Empire and The Foundation must merge their resources and forces with the aid of the ancient android Demerzel to have any chance of vanquishing The Mule and thwarting his insatiable appetite to rule the universe by any means necessary.