We have a siege. And a lot of character development.
Alec may have lied to Kiera about his family, and I can't blame him, but he was absolutely awesome in this episode. He played both sides with great cleverness and maturity, and refused to leave his mother. Alec's mother Ann was smart too, dialing 911 and putting the phone in her pocket.
Of course, I kept thinking it was way beyond the realm of coincidence that the confrontation took place at Alec's farm. Or was it? Julian and his friends called their action "Theseus Day." And then Kagame, with a Theseus tattoo on his arm we've never seen before (I think), said that everything that he is about started on the Randol farm that very day. At the end of the episode, Kagame found Julian via telephone, and Julian was holding a piece of paper with the same design as Kagame's tattoo, and looking over at a tattoo parlor.
Julian Randol said outright that killing wasn't what he was about and appeared to believe it, even though he was the one that shot Carlos. In fact, Julian felt much like Kagame in this episode – committed to his cause, but using violence when he believed it was warranted. When I first saw this episode, I was surprised that Julian was a more important character than I realized. It was also a surprise that Roland Randol wasn't a terrorist at all, poor guy.
Kellog continued to show some interesting and possibly good-guy depths. According to the flashback, Kellog wasn't Liber8 at all: his sister Laura was. Kellog cared deeply about his sister, just as he cared deeply about his grandmother. Angry and grief-stricken, Kellog left Laura's detonators behind when he was arrested by Kiera. Were they the ones Liber8 used in the explosion that killed thousands of people in the pilot episode? Is that why Kellog was to be executed with Liber8?
Kellog didn't know Kiera led the team that killed his sister -- until now. Is he being honest about forgiving Kiera for her role in Laura's death? Does Kellog genuinely care about Kiera? I could never have imagined Kiera romantically involved with Kellog before this episode, but don't they make an interesting pair?
When Carlos was shot, Kiera showed how much she had grown to care for him, too. As she was busily outwitting the teenage terrorists, she never lost her focus on saving Carlos. She even told him that she had a son and a husband and that "if I don't do everything right while I'm here, they may never exist". Carlos also overheard her talking remotely to Alec. How much will Carlos remember?
Kiera told Carlos that he was her only friend, but that wasn't fair. What about Alec?
Bits and pieces:
-- Alec got to show Kiera his set-up in the barn. And Kiera got to pet another horse.
-- Matthew Kellog's middle name is Lorne. There was a certain Lorne of whom I was very fond.
-- Theseus was the founder and unifier of Athens.
Quotes:
Kiera: "Come on, we get a day in the country! We can see horses and cows… it's amazing."
Roland: "So you're, what? The shit police?"
Alec: "Black is so much cooler than copper. Ask any nerd."
Kiera: "You sure know how to show a girl a good time."
Carlos: "Oh, yeah. Nothing says fun like a GSW."
Kellog: "Are you in a hurry?"
Kiera: "That depends. Does this conversation come in interesting?"
Kiera: "I seem to be present for all of your significant losses: your grandmother, your sister..."
Kellog: "What happens in the future stays in the future."
Three out of four cans of vegetables in a first aid kit,
Billie
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Billie Doux loves good television and spends way too much time writing about it.
Wow, this was a great episode and a great review Billie. I've been enjoying this show as the episodes moved along but this was the first episode that had me on the edge of my seat, caring about the characters. It was so unfair that Roland got shot and I can't believe that Julian wouldn't blame himself somewhat. He helped convince the police that his dad was the ring leader. And I agree - two surprises - Julian seems to be Kagame and Kellog and Kiera?? This slow lead up to a big pow seems very Whedonesque to me.
ReplyDeleteI really did not see the Julian = Kagame twist coming at all. Very interesting idea, especially if the older man begins interacting with his younger self.
ReplyDeleteI still don't trust Kellog, but I understand why Kiera, who's had one hell of a day, would turn to him for booze and sex. Not convinced it's true love.
“I really did not see the Julian = Kagame twist coming at all. Very interesting idea, especially if the older man begins interacting with his younger self.”
ReplyDeleteChris, that’s not the case. Kagame’s mother was pregnant of him just a few episodes ago.
But, yes, I’m among the ones who didn’t see Julian as a relevant player. I was sure he was just an annoying character that could destroy Alec’s lab in a moment of rage. Even though the show was very procedural-like on its first season, looking back you can see how much thought was put into it.
This is a good episode. I love that we get to see Kiera enchanted with a horse once again.