S01.E06: The Room Where It Happens

[WendyCR72]

Airing on April 4, 2021:

Mel goes undercover as a volunteer for a rising politician when McCall tries to help a despondent college student being threatened by someone inside the candidate’s campaign. Also, McCall worries when Delilah starts hanging out with a young girl who served time in juvenile detention and reminds McCall of her own troubled youth

[janeta]

Ha. ☺️ Kevin Chapman (the cop turned PI) had a bit part in the Equalizer 2 movie.

[Ms Blue Jay]

This episode is SVU.

For that reason, it was easy for me to follow, and I liked it, but......  This episode is SVU.  LOL.  (Then again, I couldn't get through the movie version and I know nothing about the original series so maybe this is par for the course.....?)

[Bulldog]

Maybe I'm just cynical about politicians, but I don't believe for a moment that the candidate was not aware of the extent of her campaign manager's crimes.  She saw an opportunity to throw him under the bus and took it. Not that I blame her, but I think her actions were much more calculating than altruistic.  She knew a scandal was about to break and her best path forward was to distance herself from him.   I kind of hope we get a follow up where we find out that she knew all along. 

[mertensia]

Of course Fusco was dirty. Oh, Lionel.

I cannot tell you how happy I am that Nikki was not evil. 

Sinead definitely knows. All the victims look like her. Noticed that that boardroom looked similar to Trump's on **The Apprentice**.

 

[Raja]

So the epilogue has hacker dude taking vigilante harassment to avenge his wife but it doesn't help her get justice because I don't think she knows

[Ms Blue Jay]

She is not interested in getting "justice"; she feels like she has moved past the situation.  The husband is getting her "justice" in his own way.

[possibilities]

I finally learned the names of Melody and Harry. Also, after someone commented about it in last week's episode thread, I looked more closely at Harry's wardrobe and I agree that he looks fancied up-- to me, he looks schlubby, but it's designer schlub.

[Trini]

33 minutes ago, possibilities said:

I finally learned the names of Melody and Harry. Also, after someone commented about it in last week's episode thread, I looked more closely at Harry's wardrobe and I agree that he looks fancied up-- to me, he looks schlubby, but it's designer schlub.

Which would be fine, except that I don't think that look fits his personality or the setting. For the wife, her fashion choices seem to fit more with her personality, but it still doesn't fit the setting most of the time. But these are minor nitpicks.

[paigow]

Note to Maya: Drive the car into the river....

[ML89]

4 hours ago, possibilities said:

I finally learned the names of Melody and Harry. Also, after someone commented about it in last week's episode thread, I looked more closely at Harry's wardrobe and I agree that he looks fancied up-- to me, he looks schlubby, but it's designer schlub.

I remember Chris Carter of The X-Files saying why Mulder was always well dressed was that it was TV and he learned in his first show that even someone who should be dressed by JC Penney will be dressed better. 

 

6 hours ago, mertensia said:

Of course Fusco was dirty. Oh, Lionel.

Yes. An alternate universe where the crew isn’t there to turn him...

 

 

7 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Then again, I couldn't get through the movie version and I know nothing about the original series so maybe this is par for the course.....?)

Yes, this is par for the course from the old series. McCall helped people out of all sorts of jams.

[janeta]

8 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

She is not interested in getting "justice"; she feels like she has moved past the situation.  The husband is getting her "justice" in his own way.

I think Harry would be within his rights to swat the guy/have him swatted.  IMHO.

[AnimeMania]

5 hours ago, paigow said:

Note to Maya: Drive the car into the river....

She would have had better luck killing herself by turning on the GPS and following it to the letter.

[mtlchick]

10 hours ago, mertensia said:

Of course Fusco was dirty. Oh, Lionel.

 

 

Every time I see Kevin Chapman on a New York based show on CBS (he was on Blue Bloods a few years ago) I want to tell myself this is a new directive by The Machine.  Not to mention this show gives me Person of Interest vibes. 

As limited as Lorraine Toussant is in this, at least she's doing SOMETHING compared to when she was on The Village. 

In the shallow department, the Queen's wardrobe and hair/makeup people are making her look well, regal in her overall look. 

[Netfoot]

"Unfortunately, they used VOIP. They obviously wanted to remain anonymous!"

Unlike me, who uses VOIP (WhatsApp Calls) because it's free...

These shows just love to equate simple technology with evil intent. Like using a "burner" phone.

<¡gasp! ¡horrified expression!>

The Baddie was identified within the first instant. Long before he said one single word.

 

[tennisgurl]

I knew it was the campaign manager the second he appeared onscreen, he just has that Law and Order SVU bad guy kind of look to him. Of course the plots of this show tend to go the way you think they're going to go, but they are done well so I cant complain. I was thinking either some kind of dark secret of sexual harassment for Maya to be so upset so when we saw skeavy guy I knew where this was going, but the journey was still satisfying. I am not sure I buy that Sinead didn't have any idea of what her manager was up to, it seems like she would have at least had some suspicions. I wonder if we will find out later that she was turning a blind eye to his crimes and threw him under the bus when the story came out, but probably not. 

Its like this is a darker timeline Fusco never met the rest of Team Machine and kept getting dirtier and dirtier. 

Interesting that Robyn's daughter was busted basically doing the same thing her mom is doing, breaking the law to try and do the right thing and help someone. 

[AnimeMania]

20 minutes ago, tennisgurl said:

Interesting that Robyn's daughter was busted basically doing the same thing her mom is doing, breaking the law to try and do the right thing and help someone. 

I don't see how it was against the law since she had a key and the guy invited her to move in.

[milkyaqua]

8 hours ago, mtlchick said:

In the shallow department, the Queen's wardrobe and hair/makeup people are making her look well, regal in her overall look. 

I'm always looking at the nice earrings they have her in, lol.

[wanderingstar]

6 hours ago, tennisgurl said:

I knew it was the campaign manager the second he appeared onscreen, he just has that Law and Order SVU bad guy kind of look to him.

Yeah, it was pretty obvious that he was the culprit, but it was still enjoyable to see Robyn untangle it all.

Continuing to enjoy this show. Queen Latifah is a delight, and Robyn's daughter has even grown on me.

[Ms Blue Jay]

10 hours ago, mtlchick said:

In the shallow department, the Queen's wardrobe and hair/makeup people are making her look well, regal in her overall look. 

That's true, I often like her clothes.

[jabRI]

2 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

That's true, I often like her clothes.

I found the red/black/white sweater distracting, I didn't really understand it.  But I love this show, its so nice seeing strong women bringing it and getting the job done.

[GHScorpiosRule]

I'mmajustgonnahaftasitdownandmakealist.

A list of what, one may ask?

A list of how many actors from Law & Order-Mothership-appear on this show!

This week it was Luis Antonio Ramos--who played the father. He was the murderer in Season 3's "Forgiveness", and also some bum in the first season's "Torrents of Greed".

So Fusco showed up. How long before John Reese* does? Or Finch?

*LALALALALALAAAAAA!!! I don't wanna hear about what happened to him! LALALALALALALALALAAAAA!!!!

[susannah]

I just caught a few episodes of this show, and I love Latifah in it. I love that a strong woman is kicking ass and not being half naked or apologetic while she is doing it. I have liked Lorraine Toussaint since she was on Any Day Now with Annie Potts. I like Melody, another kick ass woman, and Harry, though not sure why all computer geniuses have to be over the top with their knowledge, like able to hack into systems on Mars, like Garcia and Abby. I do NOT like the daughter, who is spoiled, rude, entitled and not fun to watch. She needs to have a come to Jesus meeting with someone now. Her mother and aunt bend over backwards to give her everything they possibly can, and all she does is bitch that it is not enough. Lots of kids have parents whose jobs take them away at times or have irregular schedules and they survive. This little snowflake has a nice place to live, nice clothes, private school, and a family who loves her and all she does is give them attitude. I guess it is required these days that all tv kids have to be hellish cretins, which is why I don't watch them. As for her rationalizing that it was okay for her to break and enter because her mother stole a car back in the day, there is the fact that getting police records as a teen can impact the realization of future goals. Did not like Latifah's telling her that the world was just waiting to lock a black girl up. That is stupid. If a kid of any race commits crimes, they need to take the consequences.

[Netfoot]

1 hour ago, susannah said:

I guess it is required these days that all tv kids have to be hellish cretins, which is why I don't watch them.

Art resembles life.

1 hour ago, susannah said:

Did not like Latifah's telling her that the world was just waiting to lock a black girl up.

You can commit murder, so long as you remember to go back and get your phone.

[ribboninthesky1]

This is the first episode where Mel and Harry felt like spouses for me. There was even physical affection! *clutches pearls*

As for Delilah, as far as TV teens go, she doesn't seem particularly obnoxious to me.  I don't think we've met the dad/ex-hubby yet, so not sure what kind of parent he was.  But based on what we know so far, Robyn seemed to be a rather absent parent until recently.  She's decided she wants to be a "full-time" parent when her daughter is closer to an adult than a child, and um....I don't really blame Delilah for side-eying her about that.  I assume Vi has been more of a mother to her than Robyn has.   

Speaking of Vi and Robyn, I'm a bit baffled that Vi doesn't know about Robyn and the CIA.  Not saying she should know the details, but I don't get it beyond plot device.  It makes more sense for Vi to know what she's really up to, but I didn't watch OG Equalizer, so maybe that's a thing.    

On 4/5/2021 at 3:40 PM, AnimeMania said:

I don't see how it was against the law since she had a key and the guy invited her to move in.

I was confused about this too.  Maybe the guy caught them and decided to be petty and call the police?

On 4/5/2021 at 1:09 AM, possibilities said:

I finally learned the names of Melody and Harry. Also, after someone commented about it in last week's episode thread, I looked more closely at Harry's wardrobe and I agree that he looks fancied up-- to me, he looks schlubby, but it's designer schlub.

I need to pay attention to Harry's style because designer schlub is hilarious to me. 

[Starchild]

When Robyn found out about the pills, why didn't she immediately call the father to check on his daughter, instead of driving all the way over there in NYC traffic to check herself? Maya could have died in that time. Did I miss her saying he wasn't answering his phone? 'Cause if not, that kind of writing makes no sense in the time of cells, just a sloppy, illogical choice for the sake of drama.

[Trey]

3 hours ago, Starchild said:

Cause if not, that kind of writing makes no sense in the time of cells, just a sloppy, illogical choice for the sake of drama.

That kind of silliness is a staple of cop shows too.  They chase across the (rush hour) city to stop the crook from getting on a plane, instead of just calling airport police or precinct 13 which is just around the corner - all for the fake drama.

I've been meaning to watch this show but this was the first episode I finally saw.  I liked it - I'll watch some more.

Edited April 8, 2021 by Trey

[Court]

I hate the daughter. Sometimes I slightly soften to her and then she acts like an entitled brat. Also, the absent parent thing really bothers me. She wasn't out clubbing. She was working. There's lots of times I'm not there for my kids but I have to work. If I don't, well we won't have a place to live. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 4/6/2021 at 9:12 PM, ribboninthesky1 said:

I need to pay attention to Harry's style because designer schlub is hilarious to me. 

Like Sean John sweatpants?

 

Edited April 8, 2021 by Ms Blue Jay

[susannah]

1 hour ago, Court said:

I hate the daughter. Sometimes I slightly soften to her and then she acts like an entitled brat. Also, the absent parent thing really bothers me. She wasn't out clubbing. She was working. There's lots of times I'm not there for my kids but I have to work. If I don't, well we won't have a place to live. 

Exactly! It's not like Latifah is off to Monaco with the latest guy and can't be bothered to be there for her daughter.

[Starchild]

I don't think I'd mind the occasional storyline with the kid, like in the original, but weaving it into every episode is annoying me.

[ribboninthesky1]

Did I miss an episode where we found out if Robyn didn't work at the CIA, Delilah would have no shelter or food? I got the impression that due to the nature of her CIA work, it wasn't just a case of Robyn working late nights or weekends.  There are all kinds of jobs that don't fall under generic covert spy operations or whatever the TV version of the CIA is.  Also, I don't recall if the show has stated how long she and ex-hubby have been divorced - he may have been the present parent.  It's like that sometimes.      

Plus, at this stage, what Robyn does is a choice.  Not like if she stops the Equalizer work (which is a lot closer to home and riskier to the family), they'd be homeless and starve.  I think it's admirable and generous, but she's not doing it to pay the bills.               

[possibilities]

I thought they did say she tried to call, but the dad wasn't answering his phone, and that's why she rushed over there in person.

[susannah]

4 hours ago, ribboninthesky1 said:

Did I miss an episode where we found out if Robyn didn't work at the CIA, Delilah would have no shelter or food? I got the impression that due to the nature of her CIA work, it wasn't just a case of Robyn working late nights or weekends.  There are all kinds of jobs that don't fall under generic covert spy operations or whatever the TV version of the CIA is.  Also, I don't recall if the show has stated how long she and ex-hubby have been divorced - he may have been the present parent.  It's like that sometimes.      

Plus, at this stage, what Robyn does is a choice.  Not like if she stops the Equalizer work (which is a lot closer to home and riskier to the family), they'd be homeless and starve.  I think it's admirable and generous, but she's not doing it to pay the bills.               

It's her choice, because this is what she does, just like anyone else with a career. The father may have been the present parent, though they have been divorced long enough for him to be marrying someone else, but Delilah is not left alone or even with a nanny, she has her aunt with her. It is not like Robin is gone for days or weeks at a time. Delilah doesn't like it because she isn't always there the minute Delilah wants her to be.

[DearEvette]

51 minutes ago, susannah said:

It is not like Robin is gone for days or weeks at a time. Delilah doesn't like it because she isn't always there the minute Delilah wants her to be.

I think that is a somewhat harsh reading.  It feels like the show has tried to establish that Robyn had been a somewhat absentee parent or if not completely absentee someone who regularly missed milestones or events important to Dee. For instance, She hadn't told Robyn about the performance in Times Square and downplaying its importance because I got the impression it was because she felt Robyn would miss it anyway.  Not unusual since the show has also established that Robyn was definitely a field agent who has been all over the world. And it isn't outside of the realm of possibility that Robyn made promises to be somewhere but had to break them when work called. 

 The show is not spelling it out in big letters but the inference is there and I got the impression that that was how we were supposed to read the prickly relationship between them.  There is context behind Vi's comment about ' But I am the one she called."  Meaning Delilah reached out to the person she thought would be there when she got into trouble.  Now that Robyn is home all the time Delilah is now having adjustment issues.  It is hard to trust a person who has disappointed you over and over especially when that person is your parent. 

 

[blackwing]

On 4/6/2021 at 8:12 PM, ribboninthesky1 said:

Speaking of Vi and Robyn, I'm a bit baffled that Vi doesn't know about Robyn and the CIA.  Not saying she should know the details, but I don't get it beyond plot device.  It makes more sense for Vi to know what she's really up to, but I didn't watch OG Equalizer, so maybe that's a thing.     

I agree... I don't understand why Robyn won't tell Vi what she is doing.  It seems obvious that Vi doesn't really know... she may suspect but we haven't gotten any confirmation that Vi knows what is going on.  I don't understand why and I was trying to figure out if she ever knew that Robyn was in the CIA?  Robyn was in the CIA, gave it up, and is now kind of back in.  Nothing's really changed in terms of Robyn's commitments, except maybe there is less international travel and being gone for weeks at a time.

Are CIA operatives allowed to tell their spouses/family that they are in the CIA?  Or has her "international charity consultant" always been her cover job that has fooled even Vi?  Or did Vi know she used to be at the CIA but is now out and running a charity?  I'm confused as to why Vi doesn't know.  If Vi knew, Vi could certainly help smooth things over with the daughter a lot more easily.

On 4/8/2021 at 5:33 PM, Court said:

I hate the daughter. Sometimes I slightly soften to her and then she acts like an entitled brat. Also, the absent parent thing really bothers me. She wasn't out clubbing. She was working. There's lots of times I'm not there for my kids but I have to work. If I don't, well we won't have a place to live. 

 

On 4/10/2021 at 11:00 AM, ribboninthesky1 said:

Did I miss an episode where we found out if Robyn didn't work at the CIA, Delilah would have no shelter or food? I got the impression that due to the nature of her CIA work, it wasn't just a case of Robyn working late nights or weekends.  There are all kinds of jobs that don't fall under generic covert spy operations or whatever the TV version of the CIA is.  Also, I don't recall if the show has stated how long she and ex-hubby have been divorced - he may have been the present parent.  It's like that sometimes.       

I think the problem is that the show has clearly established that Delilah has no idea that her mom was in the CIA or doing whatever she is doing now.  I think the current story is that Robyn runs an international charity.  But from Delilah's perspective, she doesn't have a good concept of why this job requires working all hours of the night.  She probably wishes that her mom had a "normal" 8:30 to 5:30 job like many of her friend's parents probably do.

I did like the fact that the daughter referenced her community service (imposed on her in an earlier episode) and that she met someone she really wanted to help.  She met someone that she thought needed help and a friend.  Things didn't turn out the way she wanted, but I think she had good intentions.

When Robyn said "she's not your daughter" and Vi mentioned that Delilah called her and not Robyn, I think that said a lot about how Delilah knows she can't count on Robyn.  That seemed to really hurt Robyn and it led to another one of those "human" moments that Latifah is so great at.

[possibilities]

I assume Robyn isn't allowed to tell anyone she's CIA. The fact that they don't know, to me, proves this. I also think that if the father had been a primary caregiver, Delilah would have gone to live with him after the divorce. So, probably Delilah is not used to seeing either of her parents as really making her a priority. We don't know how long Aunt Vi has been there, so it might be that Delilah has a history of not feeling supported.

[Grrarrggh]

On 4/5/2021 at 8:56 AM, janeta said:

I think Harry would be within his rights to swat the guy/have him swatted.  IMHO.

I don't because that effects innocents more than it does the rapist.