S02.E06: Paradise Lost

[Trini]

An unexpected trio emerges in the mission to take down Cortés, as Arman and Nadia's relationship hits a breaking point. Meanwhile, Fiona attempts to keep her family safe as Chris continues to grieve.

Airdate: October 24, 2022

[paigow]

Arman: We get Cortes to flip on Kamdar

Garrett: OK

Garrett: Too bad Cortes is dead... Arman you are under arrest...

[Raja]

Thony is not Heisenberg yet. But that devil over Maya's armed shoulder whispering that's not love is getting closer.

[Irlandesa]

I quite enjoyed this episode.  I felt it moved the plot forward quite well, although I fear Fiona telling her ex that Chris killed Marco might cause issues in the future.  He seems like a decent guy but after everything they went through to shut up the hotel owner, it feels risky. 

The thing I appreciated the most about this episode is that Garrett killing the unarmed Cortes gives Thony some leverage over him.  Even if he could probably talk his way out of it now that Thony planted the gun on him, he's going to know what she did for him.

The one thing that confuses me is the relationship between Arman and Nadia. In the very first episode, Nadia hit on Thony.  She also left Arman for weeks when she felt he wasn't doing enough to demand his due in Hayek's organization.  They never told us where she went or who she was with but the implication was that she left Arman. But now they've firmly put her in the jealous wife camp which feels a little too cliche compared to what they had hinted at previously.  I still enjoy her, though 

[paigow]

Nadia is going to choose the wrong horse... Sticking with Sayid Kamdar will land her in jail

[Raja]

7 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I quite enjoyed this episode.  I felt it moved the plot forward quite well, although I fear Fiona telling her ex that Chris killed Marco might cause issues in the future.  He seems like a decent guy but after everything they went through to shut up the hotel owner, it feels risky. 

The thing I appreciated the most about this episode is that Garrett killing the unarmed Cortes gives Thony some leverage over him.  Even if he could probably talk his way out of it now that Thony planted the gun on him, he's going to know what she did for him.

The one thing that confuses me is the relationship between Arman and Nadia. In the very first episode, Nadia hit on Thony.  She also left Arman for weeks when she felt he wasn't doing enough to demand his due in Hayek's organization.  They never told us where she went or who she was with but the implication was that she left Arman. But now they've firmly put her in the jealous wife camp which feels a little too cliche compared to what they had hinted at previously.  I still enjoy her, though 

Fiona calling auntie T over and over to help with Chris made her out to be too needy before J.D. showed up. She was an undocumented single mother alone in a foreign country long before Thony and Luca showed up and somehow got a house. Going back perhaps she was bigger in the drug trade than she wants to admit to herself and Thony now.

Not only Thony, Maya as a CI ex lover has leverage. I was wondering what happened to the rest of the security team when Garrett did fire. It was like they knew the boss was gone  and started their own escape and evasion. Only to be picked up by the other agents. In any case being 5 miles away, or over the hill you would think they could have driven up in the time it took Garrett to hike up that hill and sneak into the  hacienda.

I also think they did a retcon on Nadia. In the first season I got the impression that her major objection was that Arman would be seen publicly with a cleaning lady. That his having an attractive surgeon on the side would be just part of the price of being with a major hood. And now Nadia seemed to have come up in a somewhat sex worker position as a casino host who got the men to stay and gamble more than their initial playing  plan called for.

[paigow]

1 hour ago, Raja said:

I was wondering what happened to the rest of the security team when Garrett did fire. 

They used to be with CTU

[eel21788]

13 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

The thing I appreciated the most about this episode is that Garrett killing the unarmed Cortes gives Thony some leverage over him.  Even if he could probably talk his way out of it now that Thony planted the gun on him, he's going to know what she did for him.

I think it won't take more than a little investigating to have Thorny's attempt at covering for Garrett fall apart.

He was wearing his watch on his left wrist which would imply that he is right-handed. Thorny put the gun in his left hand.

[eel21788]

13 hours ago, Irlandesa said:

I fear Fiona telling her ex that Chris killed Marco might cause issues in the future.  He seems like a decent guy but after everything they went through to shut up the hotel owner, it feels risky. 

That is becoming the worst-kept secret. Someone they shouldn't have trusted with it is going to spill the beans.

[Trini]

So they're not captioning the Spanish dialog anymore.  :(

Well, I'm glad that Chris and Fiona have another person to talk to about Marco; for Chris' sake at least. But it looks like there's a chance that there's still video out there.... (Thought they would have combed that guy's apartment just to be thorough, but I guess not.) And yeah, Fiona's ex seems like a good guy; I don't want him dragged into all the other complications with Thony/etc.; but that's probably exactly what's going to happen.

Well, dang -- I thought this Cortes character was actually going to be a significant character and subplot, but they just killed him off immediately! Disappointing. He's dead but it looks like that might just complicate things for most everyone involved.

I wouldn't mind Garrett so much, but it's like they're committed to writing him as a sleazy jerkface. Having one straight-laced character in this sea of 'morally gray' could be an interesting contrast, but, nope.

I'm willing to handwave any differences from the pilot, since Nadia wasn't really a major character yet; but otherwise I don't think how she is now is terribly inconsistent with what they've shown about her before. In any case, I like her, but I hope she's smart about dealing with Kamdar, since she is supposed to know him. I'm glad she's making her own moves, but I don't think Kamdar will let her get away from him twice.

The show is still throwing in Thony/Arman moments, but it's not the same as last season. They lost some tension now that Thony is becoming more like Arman.

I thought it would have been interesting if Thony had asked Cortes about Kamdar, and we got some info on him from a different perspective.

Edited October 28, 2022 by Trini
multiple dropped words - oy

[rr2911]

Fiona calling Thony when she knew Thony and Arman were meeting Cortes just got on my nerves!

Garrett's biggest mistake was shooting Cortes.  Now Thony is going to take advantage of that.

I'm still waiting for a stray bullett to take out Thony.  Well, I can at least hope it happens!  🤣 

On 10/25/2022 at 8:20 AM, Raja said:

Fiona calling auntie T over and over to help with Chris made her out to be too needy before J.D. showed up. She was an undocumented single mother alone in a foreign country long before Thony and Luca showed up and somehow got a house. Going back perhaps she was bigger in the drug trade than she wants to admit to herself and Thony now.

Not only Thony, Maya as a CI ex lover has leverage. I was wondering what happened to the rest of the security team when Garrett did fire. It was like they knew the boss was gone  and started their own escape and evasion. Only to be picked up by the other agents. In any case being 5 miles away, or over the hill you would think they could have driven up in the time it took Garrett to hike up that hill and sneak into the  hacienda.

I also think they did a retcon on Nadia. In the first season I got the impression that her major objection was that Arman would be seen publicly with a cleaning lady. That his having an attractive surgeon on the side would be just part of the price of being with a major hood. And now Nadia seemed to have come up in a somewhat sex worker position as a casino host who got the men to stay and gamble more than their initial playing  plan called for.

Uh, you lost me with an "attractive" surgeon.  🤪

[quangtran]

I'm going to have to disagree with those thinking Nadia was ever inconsistent. The casting notes specially described her as a Lady Mac type, so my take is that the writers simply didn't think the pilot was the right time to introduce that part of the story. 

[eel21788]

On 10/26/2022 at 8:25 AM, rr2911 said:

I'm still waiting for a stray bullett to take out Thony.  Well, I can at least hope it happens! 

She'll get hit by a stray bullet, but then she will save herself by doing her own surgery to remove it complete with also simultaneously giving herself anesthesia.

[Raja]

8 minutes ago, eel21788 said:

She'll get hit by a stray bullet, but then she will save herself by doing her own surgery to remove it complete with also simultaneously giving herself anesthesia.

Nope she will talk Arman through it.

[paigow]

10 hours ago, Raja said:

Nope she will talk Arman through it....

While Fi stands there complaining that he is not family...

[eel21788]

12 hours ago, paigow said:

While Fi stands there complaining that he is not family...

As Nadia bemoans that he spends more time with Thorny than he spends with her.

[paigow]

54 minutes ago, eel21788 said:

As Nadia bemoans that he spends more time with Thorny than he spends with her.

And Kamdar is recording basically naked Thony with his iPhone... further enraging Nadia

[SunnyBeBe]

I’m new to this series, but isn’t it rather odd for Fiona to be boasting that she can take care of her family?  I mean, she seems to have a lot of issues.  
 

Also, why would anyone put the gun in a person’s left hand, unless they want the shooter to get jammed up.  Cortez used his right hand when holding his glass twice.  

Edited November 5, 2022 by SunnyBeBe

[eel21788]

4 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

Also, why would anyone put the gun in a person’s left hand, unless they want the shooter to get jammed up.  Cortez used his right hand when holding his glass twice.  

If I'm remembering right, the actress who plays Thorny is left-handed. That would make it logical for her to simply gravitate to his dominant hand being the same as hers when she was under too much pressure to stop and think about it for a minute. (Alas, maybe Thorny isn't as smart as she thinks she is)! 

[Raja]

4 hours ago, SunnyBeBe said:

I’m new to this series, but isn’t it rather odd for Fiona to be boasting that she can take care of her family?  I mean, she seems to have a lot of issues.  
 

Also, why would anyone put the gun in a person’s left hand, unless they want the shooter to get jammed up.  Cortez used his right hand when holding his glass twice.  

While an Armenian mob cleaner Thony is not Winston Wolf. She is  going towards other roles in the organization anyway 

[SunnyBeBe]

Yeah, but she placed the gun in his left hand.  Eventually, someone should notice. I wonder if she it did that on purpose….to use as leverage, maybe?  

[paigow]

1 hour ago, eel21788 said:

If I'm remembering right, the actress who plays Thorny is left-handed. That would make it logical for her to simply gravitate to his dominant hand being the same as hers when she was under too much pressure to stop and think about it for a minute. (Alas, maybe Thorny isn't as smart as she thinks she is)! 

When she was wiping the prints off the gun, she was holding the gun in her right hand and wiping with the left. Therefore, it was faster for her to plant it in his left hand because she would not have to reach across his body with SWAT arriving.

Edited November 6, 2022 by paigow

[phoenics]

On 10/25/2022 at 9:00 AM, paigow said:

Nadia is going to choose the wrong horse... Sticking with Sayid Kamdar will land her in jail

Actually I wonder if she's gonna end up dead playing around with a man who is obviously a psychopath.