Contributor: Edmund B.
Written by David Slack
Directed by Jeffrey Hunt
“Person of Interest” spent the first few episodes of this season setting up the new status quo for the team. We got a full introduction to Root, and a brief appearance by Elias, to establish them as the nemeses. Having Carter and Fusco read in gave the team greater flexibility, and plausibility, as a crusading task force. And, of course, Bear came on board, to serve as Finch’s therapy dog, for now. (We hope he makes it back into the field, whenever he tires of that squeaky toy.)
With “Bury the Lede”, the show returns to the corruption endemic in its fictional version of New York City. The Machine serves up Maxine Angelis, an investigative reporter who just happens to have filed stories on Elias, HR, and the mysterious “Man in a Suit” rumors. Making Reese operate anonymously yields some classic comedic material, from the Clark Kent glasses to realizing “he”/Finch just sent her an amusing text. Sure, Reese could have read up on the file after Finch hacked her online dating account, but do we really think it would have made a difference?
Anyway, the key (I say, with unabashed bias) is calling in Zoe Walker to validate Reese’s eligibility, and reintroduce her before the next episode’s suburban experiment in wedded bliss. In the end, Reese does navigate the Manhattan dating scene pretty well himself. The three failed first dates line was a deft deflection of third date expectations. It also set up Maxine’s perceptive comment about his thing with Zoe. I’ve never subscribed to the ‘shipper side of TV fandom, but I do admire the way they’ve used the chemistry between Jim Caviezel and Paige Turco to inject that frisson of possibility.
In the season one finale, Reese and (we eventually learned) Root were caught in a pincer between the FBI and HR, and that provides the main thrust for this episode. Agent Donnelly hasn’t forgotten, and is now committed to taking down HR, as well as the “Man in a Suit”. Given her job and beat, the presumption is that Maxine will be the target. That is turned on its head when her lead on HR’s elusive boss turns out to be tragically wrong. She’s been used to take out the FBI’s informant and discredit herself.
All this leads to some good twisty sleuthing, as they hunt for the informant’s ledger. Bear does get eased into the field as date bait, and Finch gets a close-up view of Reese’s armory. I know John doesn’t expect to have visitors, but that arsenal did seem a little too visible. The TV trope of the concealed weapons cache wouldn’t have gone amiss here.
The existence of the ledger also puts Fusco at risk. Simmons resurfacing brought a nice touch of “Godfather 3“ Michael Corleone (“Just when I thought I was out…they pull me back in.”) It seems Fusco is destined to be ever compromised, and doctoring the ledger to preserve himself and HR’s inner core is sure to reverberate down the line. In a show that toys with super-hero and comic book undertones, it also injects some harsh reality. As Quinn says in the final reveal, people like him and Simmons always find a way to survive.
Once again, there is a well-balanced mix of an immediate problem to be solved, plus plenty of background action to be revisited later. With Elias sidelined, pulling strings from prison, HR becomes a more active threat, and all the more dangerous, now that they’re back in the shadows. Maxine feels like another character they may return to. I don’t, for a minute, believe she doesn’t suspect that the “Man in a Suit” did, in fact, help her. Like Carter and Zoe before her, she’s just playing along, now that she’s seen him in action. HR’s survival adds to the Rogue’s Gallery they’ve been assembling. As I’ve said before, the team’s going to need all the help it can get when they start coming out of the woodwork.
Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Directing: 2/2
Style: 3/4
Total Score: 9/10
