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Nikita: With Fire

"Oh, Nikita. You have no idea what's coming."

What a dark and powerful hour of Nikita. Well done, show.

The terrorism layer added a genuine dose of real-world horror to the spy shenanigans this week. From the horrifying grenade in the elevator to that farmer's market shooting, Nikita really managed to unsettle me this week while continuing to position Amanda as a force to be reckoned with. I do hope Mandy doesn't take any more weeks off from the show because whenever she's on-screen, I'm on the edge of my seat.

And Ari's back! Peter Outerbridge has always been a standout player on the show, so it was a joy to see the sinister Gogol operative again. The supervillain's attachment to his son provided a welcome dimension to the character, as I actually found myself quite sympathetic to his plight. The flashback with Nikki sparing Ari's life seemed random at first, but I loved that the hit was really a test on Amanda's part, who has always been one step ahead of our heroine.

Last week, the show drew some fascinating parallels between Nikita & Ryan's relationship as compared to Amanda and Percy running Division. I'm glad to see the duality continued this week as we got to compare Nikita/Michael versus Amanda/Ari in terms of a more romantic relationship. The latter duo are a twisted couple to be sure, and a perfect embodiment of how this "business" can corrupt and destroy any semblance of love. And now that Michael and Nikki are settling on a wedding date and place (thanks to Ari), it's creepy to think what trials might befall them. The touch of blood at the end wasn't very subtle, but has me sufficiently leery of the future.

Maggie Q was exceptional this week. She really sold Nikita reaching her breaking point through her interrogation and torture of Ari. From removing the engagement ring (the last shred of her humanity) to suffocating Ari with a plastic bag, the entire storyline was harrowing yet undeniably engrossing to watch.

Bits & Bullets

- Badass flashback with Amanda turning on Ari and stabbing his henchman. Still not a fan of Melinda Clarke's short hair.

- The terrorist videos were a chilling touch to the hour. I especially loved the narration about anger transitioning into Nikki viciously beating up Ari.

- Gorgeous shot with Nikki punching Ari in slow motion with her bloody hands.

- Epic moment with Ari making fun of Michael's hand, only for Nikki to try and chop off his.

- Not too sure what to make of the Alex-Owen-Sean dynamic. Is there a love triangle brewing here? Or will Alex and Owen always remain platonic? Hmmm... Nevertheless, I did enjoy Alex opening up to Owen about the butterfly tattoo as Sean listened in.

- I liked Alex saving the day by shooting the terrorist-chick in the suburbs. A little fight scene wouldn't have hurt though.

- Awesome moment with Birkhoff unveiling Selim's face only for Amanda to blow his brains out on a live webcast.

Nikki Notables

Nikita: 50 million? Dollars, not Monopoly money?

Nikita: What does Amanda get by helping a bunch of terrorists?
Ari: Why does Amanda do anything these days? You.

Alex: Are you telling me that Shadowbot is not up to the task?
Birkhoff: Bite your tongue, princess.

Nikita: (to Ari) What are you waiting for? She ruined you! Let's bury her.

Alex: Owen Elliot - Designation: third wheel.

Nikita: I'm here to protect the innocent. The difference is I'm not gonna lose myself in the process, because if I do - Amanda wins. And I'm not gonna let that happen.

- An absorbing and downright haunting hour of Nikita.

4 out of 5 elevator grenades.

Previously posted on Nad's Reviews.

7 comments:

  1. I`m glad that we didn´t get a bad episode after last week`s good one.

    But this one left me thinking once again that I would have liked to see Nikita on cable television. Everything is resolved so quickly that the viewer can`t appreciate the suspense and fear. To me it would have been more thrilling if the ties between Amanda and the terrorists would have lasted longer. The terrorist´s messages though were chilling.

    Loved the Ari/Nikita interaction (I laughed at her try to cut his hand off) and your observation of the parallels is great, Nadim. Love it.

    According to Devon Sawa there won`t be any Olex which I am greateful for. No more love triangles, please.

    The blood at the end is bad. And I think that is the signal that one of our beloved characters will go down at the wedding.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Anonymous I never thought of Nikita on cable. You just depressed me because I'm picturing how much more epic the show would be if that were the case.
    I agree about Amanda and the terrorist lasting longer. Can you imagine those attacks being spread out over the season? The show would become a horror series! Positively harrowing!

    Thank God about Sean and Alex. Or did I kind of prefer them together? I'm not sure.

    One of the character dying at the wedding would be epic but so very traumatizing! I can't wait!

    Thanks for commenting!

    ReplyDelete
  3. An additional point: I wish that the timeline was handled a bit more realistic.

    They hunt down the terrosists in what it seems a couple of seconds and they get to the place to stop them in seconds as well. How fast they always get to Europe is fascinating. Imagine how fast they would have found and brought down Bin Laden.

    The show lacks a bit of a timeframe in my mind. It is too detached from time and space.

    Sorry Nadim :) Wasn`t my attention at all. I hope the next episode is stunning again, just to lift your spirits ;)

    ReplyDelete
  4. Enjoyed this ep, too, Nadim.

    Nice to see that Mikey has finally snapped out of his melancholy place.

    I don't know, probably it's just my weird thinking - I had this scenario of Mikey himself cutting off Ari's hand. Hehehe.
    Ari's lucky that Mikey loves Nikki enough to spare him.

    A death at the wedding... hmmmm.
    I think it'll either be Sean or Owen.
    Hope it's Sean. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Here I go upsetting Nadim again -- sorry in advance, my friend.

    I hated this episode so much I am seriously considering dropping the show all together. The torture scenes with Nikita were too much for me and, frankly, any sympathy I felt for her as a character is gone. To be someone who could beat someone that viciously and without remorse is not someone with whom I want to spend an hour every week. The wedding bit at the end just made me feel ill -- I now truly believe that Michael can do better than this crazy person.

    Likewise, the scene with Alex telling Owen the story about the butterfly irked me. She's meant to be in a relationship with Sean, yet she refuses to tell him the story thereby infusing it with more meaning that it might have otherwise. Instead, she opens up to Owen who is what to her? And, did she really not know that her comm was open and Sean was listening? Please.

    I am disappointed because I have loved this show for a while. But, this one was a step too far from me. I will probably give it another week to see if it can be redeemed, but I am not hopeful.

    Sorry again, Nadim. The show was crap but your review, as always, was great.

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  6. Heartbreaking that you hated it so much Chris! Of course I wouldn't want you to watch a show that upsets you but we stuck with TVD for a long time this year, give this show a few more eppies :)

    By the way, the fact that Nikki torturing Ari disturbed you so much really made me question myself. Why was I not as irked out as you were by our protagonist's vicious acts of violence? Why was I so amused by Nikita really embracing her dark side (a la Amanda). Am I such a whacko myself? I guess I love my ANTIheroines (Emily Thorne, Nikita etc...) a bit too much. But you seriously raised a very fascinating notion. I guess because Nikita has been through a lot, I wanted her to dish out some pain and revenge. But that's quite sadistic of me isn't it? Hmmm.... Oh Chris what have you done to me!

    Let's see how last night's eppy was and then further discuss :) Always a pleasure to read your thoughts!

    ReplyDelete
  7. What an amazing episode and to have Nikki brutally torture Ari was both disturbing and brutal (in the sense that we don´t see this side of her very often) but also kinda badass.
    The blood in the end makes me wonder: who will die?

    The episodes have been great because I have no idea what´s coming next and what Amanda has in store.

    ReplyDelete

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