Contributor: Edmund B.
Written by Denise Thé and Jonathan Nolan
Directed by Richard J. Lewis
“Person of Interest” returns from its triumphant freshman season with some urgent business still at hand, Root’s abduction of Finch. But, first, we need to spend some time getting to know the newest cast member, freshly promoted from its behind-the-scenes supporting role, the Machine itself. Using the show’s signature blend of flashbacks and present-day procedural, it soon becomes clear that Finch has indeed created the first artificial intelligence. It is equally clear that, at best, it has reached the stage of petulant adolescent. Given that still malleable state, the implications of what might happen if Root does liberate it are truly chilling.
The conversation we’ve been anticipating since Reese forced the Machine to call him turns out, naturally, to be a little more complicated than Reese anticipates. First, he has to break the Machine’s code, which turns out to be the best use of the Dewey Decimal System since Parker Posey reorganized Leo’s record collection in “Party Girl.” Then he has to deal with his frustration as he realizes the Machine has led him not to Finch, but to the latest Person of Interest, Leon Tao (Ken Leung, “Lost”). The Machine is a chip off the old block, invoking the titular “Contingency” and manipulating him just as deftly as Finch does.
Reese’s cold fury at his situation leads to an even more off-handed approach than usual. His exasperated march through the skinheads Leon embezzled from, acting like he really can do this with one hand tied behind his back, was punctuated by the exterior cutaway with skinhead defenestration and Reese et al. calmly walking away. It’s a gag they used last season, but never to greater effect. Of course, no act of hubris goes unpunished on this show. Loath as he is to admit it, it’s a good thing Carter and Fusco got clued in to each other, because Reese really did need a hand in the end. Plus, he picks up a dog to help ease Finch’s absence, albeit a killer Dutch attack dog.
Why the Machine is acting this way comes out in the flashbacks. We see Finch move from doting dad on the first day of school, to proud papa as it overachieves, to rigid rule-setter when it gets too attached and he has to cut its apron strings. (And how much longer before using ‘it’ as its pronoun feels inappropriate.) The Machine won’t tell because Daddy told it not to, which is a wonderful twist to stretch out the abduction plot. Even in that final game of chicken, Reese, the man who can stare down anyone, can only squeeze a few hints at Root’s past out of that security camera.
Keeping Root in the picture as long as possible is definitely a plus (and not just because she’s the lovely Amy Acker.) She is Finch’s evil twin, a warped mirror showing him what he feared becoming himself. He may have developed a modicum of compassion, but he still showed more genuine affection for his surrogate child than any of his human contacts. The reasons why the firewall protects the Machine as much from him, as the government or Root, are becoming clearer.
As they wend their way through East Coast eateries, there is a sense that Finch could have escaped at various points, especially given the pointers he’s picked up from Reese. He doesn’t, partially out of fear of what this bat-$#@! crazy woman would do in retaliation, but also out of a prudence heightened by fascination. The old saw about ‘keep your enemies closer’ was never truer. As her seemingly random acts of violence carry them into the orbit of the Machine’s Washington handlers, a possible endgame emerges. There is also ‘the enemy of your enemy is your friend.’ Root may help take out one side of that equation, before Reese and Carter catch up, and she faces her final reckoning.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Directing: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Total Score: 9/10
