Person of Interest is unafraid to shake things up.  They sidelined the action hero in “2piR,” then the whole main cast in “Relevance”; in “The Crossing” they killed off one of the founding cast members, and later dished up an entire episode of flashbacks, save the final few moments, “RAM”; and now they serve up /, which I’m told is computer speak for Root Path (but I’ll leave that to others).  (From Alice – us Unix operators find it quite apropos!)

Once again, the opening moments are altered as we hear first Finch and then Root take over the duties.  After that, Root takes center stage to open the episode.  In an all-too brief appearance by Colin Donnell – miss you, Tommy! — we see that Root is not constrained by New York City.  She is a bit more of a gypsy, happily running missions for the Machine…still lovingly referred to as “her”.  Our Ms. Root has found her calling.  


This episode unveils Root a bit more, as we are introduced to some of her regrets, as well as the results of her hubris, and finally we see her make a choice – one that can be debated at length as to its appropriateness in the bigger, emergent picture; however, from the human and ethical point of view, she made the right choice.  And, the fact that the team failed to secure the chip simply means we’ll get a humdinger of a finale again…and then launch into the lengthy hiatus assured of a Season 4 that will likely only get crazier as it goes.  

I also have to say that as much as I know Nolan and Plagemanlove working with Amy Acker – and she lights up the show with her presentation of Root, I’m a bit fearful that all of this groundwork being laid is setting us up for the loss of another cast member.  This is just me being me; however, the fact thatshe has gone from enemy number one to reluctant ally to now clearly someone who is willing to look hard at herself, admit her mistakes, and make a choice to save a life, rather than coldly complete the mission, makes me think her arc is coming to a close.  If that is true, it’s been phenomenal, and I’ll enjoy every bit there is left.  If it’s not, well, then things are truly going to get crazier and crazier as we go.

317Rootpath002

This episode left very little room for relaxation.  I love how we once again view the action through another’s activities only to have Finch and Reese and Shaw appear partway through.  We know what they’ve been doing to get caught up, so it’s nice to see the action unfold that brought them into the picture.  Also, it is intriguing to ponder just how the Machine works.  It has three parts to it, and this season has managed to separate those parts by contacting different groups, but then, when they are going to collide, it seems to have no problem with bringing in other parts to counteract the likely result.  

We saw that in “4C” when the Machine sent the number to Control – who proceeded to follow their mission code, but it also maneuvered John Reese to intercept and stop both a relevant and an irrelevant tragedy.  Here, the Machine tried to prevent the theft of the chip to stop Samaritan from becoming a reality, so in self-preservation mode it has been assembling a team to assist in that endeavor; however, deeming Root a danger or in danger, sinceDecima and Vigilance were fast in pursuit, it contacted Finch and Co. to add protection.  It boggles the mind…and makes for wonderfully trippy thought exercises.

Reese and Root managed to argue and work together, and I really liked that he gave her his perspective on the power that she wields so casually.  Finch similarly countered some of Root’s thoughts that he broke the Machine rather than set it free.  Finch has most definitely been the loving ‘dad’ as well as disciplinarian to the Machine and, once he created it, he set it free to do what it was meant to do.  Root has yet to accept that the Machine already is free.  She did learn a valuable lesson that despite the Machine’s seeming omniscience, there are times when working with others is critical to the success of the Machine.  Perhaps she should take a page from her ownexperience, as it was Root who first lectured Finch that they ought to work together; well, now is the time.

I like how PoI humanizes their characters.  Whereas Root first appeared as cunning mercenary – and has the history to back that up as we learn definitively here, she now also appears to be able to empathize, as she went back to save Cyrus rather than complete the Machine’s bidding.  I wonder if there will be anyrepercussions from the Machine that she assisted on the irrelevant side of things rather than work to protect the Machine from Samaritan’s birth.  Like I said above, allows for some fun mental exercises.

Notes of Interest:

I wonder why Reese wasn’t buttoned up a bit more.  We’ve seen him buttoned up in the cold rather than his shirt open…JimCaviezel must have been so cold.

Love the call back to the Pilot again, only this time with Root:  Your Machine gave me a job.  She never said it would be easy.  

Fusco’s and Root’s exchanges are as much fun to watch as his and Reese’s in Season 1 and Shaw’s earlier this season.  Fun for me, poor Fusco is always on the receiving end of a tease…but at least he has a new battery for his smoke alarm!

Another excellent installment of Person of Interest; until next time, thanks for reading, Elle2

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