It’s a gutsy move to take your main character and sideline him for the first episode back after a hiatus, even just a three-week hiatus. Still, Person of Interest is not afraid to make gutsy moves. As usual, it pays off.
While this episode won’t go down as one of my favorites, mainly because as another reviewer wrote, PoI works at its best when all of its cylinders are firing and that just isn’t possible when one of the four characters (especially the main) is out of the picture, but it is worth a re-watch or two simply to catch all the character moments. It is a solid episode of PoI proving they have faith in all their characters to carry the load as well as patience to not rush a storyline. Keep it up, PoI, don’t bow to pressure and rush that which will be best enjoyed in due time.
I intend to sit and watch this episode over the weekend again and simply soak in all the progress the characters of Finch, Fusco and Carter have made over almost a season and a half. For example: Carter is fully on board with derailing an FBI investigation. Quite a departure from last season’s “Many Happy Returns” when she balked at the suggestion from Finch that she do the same. Here she meets up with Finch and shows him that she’s proactively moved to protect Reese from Donnelly’s investigation having already deleted his fingerprints from the system. And whereas last season she balked at unsealing a sealed juvenile file and was aghast at the thought of breaking into One Police Plaza (a federal offense) here she carries off the breaking and entering as she replaces Reese’s DNA with another’s. (Someone she drugged in order to do so!)
Next week’s “Prisoner’s Dilemma” will be intriguing not only because we know without a shadow of a doubt that Carter will protect Reese, as will Reese protect her and neither will come away unaffected if it becomes known that they are working together, but much of the intrigue will be in watching Carter walk that fine line of her loyalty and her curiosity. Earlier this season Reese posed a question to her, “Critical,” 2.07, “how much do you really want to know.” Next week we’ll get to watch her struggle to answer that. Clearly she wants to know more; how to discover those mysteries without destroying herself and Reese in the process…well, that’s a job for the writers of PoI.
Fusco was highly enjoyable this episode. He never complained about working all hours, night and day, to assist with the PoI. There was no suggestion of other work that needed to be done. He did not wonder what Carter was up to or where she was. He simply investigated, followed leads and supported Finch at every moment on the case. He was part Carter, part Reese and purely Fusco all at the same time. Next week he gets to protect the lovely Karolina Kurkova; I say he’s earned that reward.
Finch ‘spun those plates’ as Nolan and Plageman said he would with great ease. Last season during “Blue Code” he was a bit more harried having to switch back and forth communicating with Detective Fusco and then Detective Carter. True, neither detective knew about the other so it was a bit dodgier for him, still this episode he carried on with the weekly PoI, drug dealers, depressed moms, suspect teachers, disengaged kids all while keeping tabs on Carter as she worked to free Reese. He did it all calmly and with great confidence. Finch was willing to go toe to toe with armed drug dealers to protect Caleb as well as confront a teacher in an empty and dark school – with no true understanding of the man’s motives or capabilities. Finch was fearless. All without Bear to back him up!
I remember in last season’s Super Finch complained about having to tramp all around New York City following their PoI. (I thought it was also a bit of an inside joke as not only did the characters trade roles in Super, so did the actors.) Here Finch spent 72 hours out on the streets, in the school or elsewhere; there was no library to be seen at all. Hope he managed to build an app to remind him to go back there and walk Bear a few times a day as well as provide food and water! Poor Bear! (I’m hoping to see sad Bear next week as he’s missing John or ‘tall man’ as he calls him on his twitter account).
There were plenty of little gems sprinkled throughout the episode that harkened back to earlier characters and moments. When the discussion was ongoing about the hacker who turned the Internet on its ear, I wondered about Root. Was she the great hacker or Finch? It quickly became apparent it was Finch; still it was an interesting moment. Wasn’t it Finch as the great hacker who wanted to ‘free something? Hmm, and now Root wants to free the Machine. Also, Finch has learned painfully that leaving others in order to protect them is not always the best option. John learned that painful lesson and it cost Jessica her life and nearly destroyed him. There is something redeeming about teaching others from the mistakes in one’s own life.
Donnelly is a man to be reckoned with. He is possessed with taking down the Man in the Suit. I’m wondering a bit if he’s goal isn’t so much concerned with the rule of law as it is about ego. He states here that he has been burned time and time again in trying to catch the Man in the Suit. It is starting to sound a bit strident. Is he unhinged slightly or is he truly desirous of the rule of law? Don’t know but next week’s episode is sure to up the stakes on this storyline.
Welcome back, PoI, you have been missed.
As always, thanks for reading, Elle2.
Scheduling notes:
Futon Critic has altered the lineup for PoI showing a break on 1/17 and 1/24 (“The Contingency” and “Bad Code”) and that episode 13 (Dead Reckoning) will not air until 1/31. Not sure if that will hold but that is a change from a few days ago. I try to remember (and console myself) that of the 20 Thursdays from January 3rduntil May 16th(the likely ending of the season) 14 of them will have new PoI episodes. While we may not like that we don’t get a run of 6 or 10 in a row, there are 14 (provided PoI gets 24 episodes this season…if anyone hears anything on that, please advise) .
That’s all I got this week! Have a great week, see you next Thursday!
Although Donnelly may be focusing on capturing The Man in the Suit due to ego, there is also the fact that the FBI has evidence that a rouge CIA agent may be working with the Chinese. Since there is a good chance that Stanton could be working with the Chinese (or doing something equally dangerous to national security) the FBI isn’t wrong about the danger. They just have the wrong rouge CIA agent. Previously The Man in the Suit was appearing and committing crimes, now it looks like he is about to compromise national security and the FBI needs to stop him post haste. So Donnelly getting all worked up about finding The Man in the Suit makes a kind of sense. I mean really, why would the FBI think that there are TWO rouge agents running around New York, one working for good and the other for evil?
Plus, Stanton knows John is alive and living in New York because she has Snow, so I’m sure she is doing everything she can to set John up for her actions.
Great points, percysowner!
There are a lot of interesting scenarios for the writers to play with. Next week should spin out some pretty cool stuff, simply by reading the extensive recurring character list it looks great!
I wonder how much Stanton does know, does she know John is alive? Does she know what he’s doing? How much has Snow told her…he certainly didn’t share much with Carter…he just said “she” he could have said Stanton. Does John know Stanton is alive? Is she working with the Chinese? (Very viable)…so many questions, it’s great! Is Stanton a friend or a foe to John. He after all didn’t shoot her in Matsya Nyaya (I spell that different every time 🙂 But she shot him. does she regret that? Is she looking to get back with her partner or simply avenge the setup? Don’t know.
Yeah, Donnelly has good reasons for doing what he’s doing, but it does seem a bit over the line to not even have them have access to the legal system. Of course, I don’t know what it takes to have someone categorized as an enemy combatant, so perhaps he’s dead on. I kinda like the idea, however, of someone truly on the side of law and order, very black and white, after the man in the suit…it will also lead (perhaps) to Carter wondering at her willingness to ‘cross the line.” Nolan and Plageman said they want to continue challenging the unethical and quite obviously illegal activities of Team Machine, so Donnelly is perfect to do that.
Great comments!
Although Donnelly may be focusing on capturing The Man in the Suit due to ego, there is also the fact that the FBI has evidence that a rouge CIA agent may be working with the Chinese. Since there is a good chance that Stanton could be working with the Chinese (or doing something equally dangerous to national security) the FBI isn’t wrong about the danger. They just have the wrong rouge CIA agent. Previously The Man in the Suit was appearing and committing crimes, now it looks like he is about to compromise national security and the FBI needs to stop him post haste. So Donnelly getting all worked up about finding The Man in the Suit makes a kind of sense. I mean really, why would the FBI think that there are TWO rouge agents running around New York, one working for good and the other for evil?
Plus, Stanton knows John is alive and living in New York because she has Snow, so I’m sure she is doing everything she can to set John up for her actions.
Great points, percysowner!
There are a lot of interesting scenarios for the writers to play with. Next week should spin out some pretty cool stuff, simply by reading the extensive recurring character list it looks great!
I wonder how much Stanton does know, does she know John is alive? Does she know what he’s doing? How much has Snow told her…he certainly didn’t share much with Carter…he just said “she” he could have said Stanton. Does John know Stanton is alive? Is she working with the Chinese? (Very viable)…so many questions, it’s great! Is Stanton a friend or a foe to John. He after all didn’t shoot her in Matsya Nyaya (I spell that different every time 🙂 But she shot him. does she regret that? Is she looking to get back with her partner or simply avenge the setup? Don’t know.
Yeah, Donnelly has good reasons for doing what he’s doing, but it does seem a bit over the line to not even have them have access to the legal system. Of course, I don’t know what it takes to have someone categorized as an enemy combatant, so perhaps he’s dead on. I kinda like the idea, however, of someone truly on the side of law and order, very black and white, after the man in the suit…it will also lead (perhaps) to Carter wondering at her willingness to ‘cross the line.” Nolan and Plageman said they want to continue challenging the unethical and quite obviously illegal activities of Team Machine, so Donnelly is perfect to do that.
Great comments!
Great review Elle2! I really loved the episode, and watching Finch spin those plates so to speak. I did miss Reese though, and I’m okay with him being gone like this for one episode or so. I was thinking the same thing about Bear though, “Is Finch going back to feed and walk him?”
It is interesting how Carter can so easily cross those lines now. Finch didn’t even have to ask, although I like how he was concerned about her getting in trouble. Next week’s should be extremely interesting. How is Carter going to play both sides?
Too bad the show is only back for a couple of weeks, but I guess that means we get see what happens to Reese early. I’m okay with that.
Hi, Alice,
There always seems to be a price to pay for things. 🙂 We get PoI back after only three weeks (instead of last year’s four) but then another break. Actually, they did that last season too with 11 and 12 and then a one or two-week break, so not unheard of.
I do love how they keep shifting the characters, growing them and then challenging them. Carter seemed completely at ease with her nefarious deeds this week. Next week will really challenge her as she and Reese will sit face to face and play the game…should be great!
Great review Elle2! I really loved the episode, and watching Finch spin those plates so to speak. I did miss Reese though, and I’m okay with him being gone like this for one episode or so. I was thinking the same thing about Bear though, “Is Finch going back to feed and walk him?”
It is interesting how Carter can so easily cross those lines now. Finch didn’t even have to ask, although I like how he was concerned about her getting in trouble. Next week’s should be extremely interesting. How is Carter going to play both sides?
Too bad the show is only back for a couple of weeks, but I guess that means we get see what happens to Reese early. I’m okay with that.
Hi, Alice,
There always seems to be a price to pay for things. 🙂 We get PoI back after only three weeks (instead of last year’s four) but then another break. Actually, they did that last season too with 11 and 12 and then a one or two-week break, so not unheard of.
I do love how they keep shifting the characters, growing them and then challenging them. Carter seemed completely at ease with her nefarious deeds this week. Next week will really challenge her as she and Reese will sit face to face and play the game…should be great!
SUCH a gutsy move and one I was glad to see. Made me respect the show more and that’s saying a lot.
The character development for Finch this season is just as strong, in a totally different way, as the development of Reese last season. It just makes me hunger for more (of both) every episode. Of course all the characters are constantly developing but Finch is really carrying it this first half of the season. I never watched Lost so this is my first exposure to Michael Emerson. Can’t say enough about what he brings to this character.
Had you asked me beforehand an episode with Reese in only a couple of scenes I would have frowned upon. I happily stand corrected.
Hi, Stef,
I agree with you on all your points. While I greatly enjoy the interaction especially between Finch and Reese, this was a highly enjoyable episode. Finch was always quite brave last season, he stared down the assasin in Ghost, went straight into danger in Mission Creep to warn Reese (and these were episodes 2 and 3 of the show) so Finch is no fraidy cat. Still, bounding out of Fusco’s car with three armed drug dealers surrounding his PoI…Finch was seriously brave!
Last season really unwrapped much of Reese which was so necessary. When we first meet him he’s for all intents and purposes dead. The season was a slow progression as this man put himself back together. This season he has found his footing (and his happiness) and is moving confidently forward with his new misison in life. The past still haunts him, though. Perhaps not Jessica so much anymore but there is plenty of dark secrets that will burble up to nip at his heels. I like that the writers take their time.
Their time has been well-spent fleshing out Finch. Still eager to really discover what drives him though. We know the backdoor and the irrielvant list wasn’t his idea, it was Ingram’s. So hopefully we’ll get that full picture by season’s end, much as we did last year with Jessica.
Next week looks like a great balance of person of the week and the larger conspiracies swirling around Reese and Finch coming to the forefront.
🙂
SUCH a gutsy move and one I was glad to see. Made me respect the show more and that’s saying a lot.
The character development for Finch this season is just as strong, in a totally different way, as the development of Reese last season. It just makes me hunger for more (of both) every episode. Of course all the characters are constantly developing but Finch is really carrying it this first half of the season. I never watched Lost so this is my first exposure to Michael Emerson. Can’t say enough about what he brings to this character.
Had you asked me beforehand an episode with Reese in only a couple of scenes I would have frowned upon. I happily stand corrected.
Hi, Stef,
I agree with you on all your points. While I greatly enjoy the interaction especially between Finch and Reese, this was a highly enjoyable episode. Finch was always quite brave last season, he stared down the assasin in Ghost, went straight into danger in Mission Creep to warn Reese (and these were episodes 2 and 3 of the show) so Finch is no fraidy cat. Still, bounding out of Fusco’s car with three armed drug dealers surrounding his PoI…Finch was seriously brave!
Last season really unwrapped much of Reese which was so necessary. When we first meet him he’s for all intents and purposes dead. The season was a slow progression as this man put himself back together. This season he has found his footing (and his happiness) and is moving confidently forward with his new misison in life. The past still haunts him, though. Perhaps not Jessica so much anymore but there is plenty of dark secrets that will burble up to nip at his heels. I like that the writers take their time.
Their time has been well-spent fleshing out Finch. Still eager to really discover what drives him though. We know the backdoor and the irrielvant list wasn’t his idea, it was Ingram’s. So hopefully we’ll get that full picture by season’s end, much as we did last year with Jessica.
Next week looks like a great balance of person of the week and the larger conspiracies swirling around Reese and Finch coming to the forefront.
🙂
Hi Elle, thanks for the great review. I really enjoyed this episode, even though Reese was only seen a few times. I’m loving the developement of Finch’s character. Whereas last season, he would balk at doing a whole assignment on his own (so to speak), this season, he doesn’t even question it. And Carter! Oh, my, she’s one ballsy woman. All I could think about when she broke into the lab was, please don’t get caught. I was literally biting my nails! 😀 I’m loving this show the more I watch it, and seeing as my cable provider always cuts of the preview for the next episode, I never know what I’m going to get!
Hi, Sylvie,
The characters are developing wonderfully. Nolan and Plageman have made it clear several times in interviews that they want to always be developing their characters, sometimes that leads to tension between members of the team but that there will be a constant growth, moments at a time. This is an opportunity for some really big steps, and last week’s gave three of the characters huge steps forward as each rose to the occasions put before them marvelously.
I manage to catch all the previews for the next week, however, my DVR cuts off before the final three seconds, usually the most heart-wrenching part of the preview too. Thank goodness for SpoilerTV who usually gets them up quicklY!
🙂
Hi Elle, thanks for the great review. I really enjoyed this episode, even though Reese was only seen a few times. I’m loving the developement of Finch’s character. Whereas last season, he would balk at doing a whole assignment on his own (so to speak), this season, he doesn’t even question it. And Carter! Oh, my, she’s one ballsy woman. All I could think about when she broke into the lab was, please don’t get caught. I was literally biting my nails! 😀 I’m loving this show the more I watch it, and seeing as my cable provider always cuts of the preview for the next episode, I never know what I’m going to get!
Hi, Sylvie,
The characters are developing wonderfully. Nolan and Plageman have made it clear several times in interviews that they want to always be developing their characters, sometimes that leads to tension between members of the team but that there will be a constant growth, moments at a time. This is an opportunity for some really big steps, and last week’s gave three of the characters huge steps forward as each rose to the occasions put before them marvelously.
I manage to catch all the previews for the next week, however, my DVR cuts off before the final three seconds, usually the most heart-wrenching part of the preview too. Thank goodness for SpoilerTV who usually gets them up quicklY!
🙂