S01.E12: Standoff

[thewhiteowl]

 

When a Texas state trooper is killed by a Mexican cartel smuggler, Elizabeth arranges an extradition deal before going on vacation to celebrate her 25th wedding anniversary in New York City. However, when political issues arise around the case, she is forced to cut their trip short.  Also, Elizabeth’s son injures himself while Blake is watching him.

 

 

 

[shapeshifter]

I love this show now, I just hope Tea Leoni and Tim Daly continue to play nice together as long as the series airs. Too much to ask from Hollywood?

I also loved Bebe Neuwirth's sighed, "OMG, we've got a real Mexican standoff."

And Blake is so adorable, I could eat him up.

[Texasmom1970]

Best things about this episode to me is we got more Blake yeah, love him! And no insufferable Stevie, double yeah!

[kwnyc]

Why the hell was Blake watching the kids? Is that REALLY part of a State Department job? Don't they have ANY friends/relatives they can prevail upon? 

 

And, while this show sometimes goes WAY off the rails with implausible plots, I think that there are probably right-wing militias that have the hardware to break someone out of a foreign prison AND that a a self-serving politician, perhaps from Texas, would pull a stunt like that to set himself up for a Presidential run.

[buckboard]

I agree with KWNYC that babysitting is not in Blake's job description; the temporary SOS would need his help and that of everyone on staff.

 

As for the actions of the governor and the Texas vigilantes, seems plausible to me.

[Kromm]

Why the hell was Blake watching the kids? Is that REALLY part of a State Department job? Don't they have ANY friends/relatives they can prevail upon? 

 

And, while this show sometimes goes WAY off the rails with implausible plots, I think that there are probably right-wing militias that have the hardware to break someone out of a foreign prison AND that a a self-serving politician, perhaps from Texas, would pull a stunt like that to set himself up for a Presidential run.

Overall this plotline wasn't quite "State of Affairs" level stupid--but it was getting there.  I can buy some Texas Governor going Cowboy.  I just don't think even in Texas one would risk a federal conflict like that, nor that the public of Texas would all magically support him.  And the resolution?  While it was a nice "Fuck yeah she's tough!" moment for the viewers, it does seem unlikely.

 

The spy storyline was even sillier though.  

 

In a way State of Affairs has become the more entertaining of the two show, because it's just so bugshit crazy.  This one had a plotline nearly as dumb, as I said, but it skews more "unlikely but boring" vs. "impossible but so bad it's hilarious".

[l star]

What I liked most about the final resolution was that it wasn't just resolved because she came up with a brilliant idea. She handled it because she was the only one involved with the power to do it. If she hadn't been out of touch there's no way IMO things would have gotten near that far, even with the incredible stubbornness of all the crazy Texas breeds. But there was no one pushing the governor back with any real weight and he was getting the attention he wanted so things went batshit fast. You could see the panic on his face the minute her convoy pulled up. He knew he was going to be in for a real fight now that the actual secretary had shown up unannounced.

Another point that accelerated things but wouldn't have happened with her around was Mexico's hasty pissed off responses. As soon as the ambassador said she must have been too busy to see him, the staff should have had alarm bells going off all around them.

I don't know what Blake's actual job title is but his job seems to be personal secretary/assistant. He keeps her work life in order but he also keeps an extra wardrobe of clothes for at work, picked up luggage for that sudden trip, did her unofficial digging into Nadine, and dealt with Stevie's stupid drama. Since he wasn't actually keeping them, just checking up on them, Blake being in charge of checking on the kids didn't seem out of line. It's what she needed done right then.

The spy story is stupid. Completely stupid. Mainly because Henry treats it like he's saving the world and keeping Elizabeth safe when he's really just playing a little catch in someone else's super secret softball game.

Elizabeth is still the character I'm most connected to and that was clear this ep. I love her scenes with Blake. Henry drove me crazy but she had some great lines and reactions in the first hotel scene. I just couldn't with the marriage drama this ep though. I couldn't even track what the problem was. I was with them from her confused look when her security drug her out to when she told him to stop yelling at her but lie=bad was the only part I understood. I remember him not liking the room and using her name to get tickets, her talking about Stevie and insisting on answering her phone (she's the S.O.S. and they have two kids at home so he can just fuck off with that pissiness. His request was stupid from the start), her inviting the guy her husband was shooting death glares at to dinner with them, Henry's lie, and her apologizing at the end. Did I miss anything? Or more importantly how those things added up to the end scene?

I wish we saw more of Allie. Just an occasional scene with her mother would work. I don't need Stevie levels. I like that she seems to be the athlete of the kids, and her scenes always bring to my mind that shocked and overjoyed expression on her face when her mother said she would come to her soccer game. That dynamic has a lot of potential.

[kwnyc]

...also meant to say: Beckett would most likely NOT be a sellout, even off-Broadway, and there's no worry that they would have bumped a tourist from it ;-)

[betsyboo]

I love Blake. Do we know if Bess brought him with her or if he was already there when she got there..? I don't remember. If they have a previous friendship, then him checking on the kids is normal.

 

What i didn't understand is that last time the McCord parents went away, Stevie had to come home to be with them - and look at how that turned out. Now she's ok leaving them both alone???

 

I did enjoy the scene in the hotel bed while Henry was taking down a big food platter and Bess is all "I haven't even been gone 24 hours!"

 

No daisy/matt drama - hurrah!

Edited January 5, 2015 by betsyboo

[Netfoot]

Why the hell was Blake watching the kids? Is that REALLY part of a State Department job? Don't they have ANY friends/relatives they can prevail upon.

 

He wasn't watching them so much as popping by to see all was well.  Stupid kid just goes and picks that very moment to bust his foot.  Blake really couldn't just walk away after that.

 

What i didn't understand is that last time the McCord parents went away, Stevie had to come home to be with them - and look at how that turned out. Now she's ok leaving them both alone???

 

Given the disaster she made of it last time, it's no surprise they chose to go a different way this time.

 

No Daisy/Matt Hurrah +1.

 

Couple things I didn't understand:  First of all, doesn't a criminal conviction prevent someone from holding the office of President?  Because I thought all She'd have to say is "We arrest you, your presidential dream goes up in smoke." 

 

Second, is the Governor of Texas immune from arrest for criminal behaviour?  Because if I was in charge of that FBI detail, I'd have said "Hand over Wossname!" and if the Governor said "No..." he'd be in bracelets and in the vehicle so fast his feet wouldn't have had a chance to touch the ground, far less him have a chance to Grandstand before the press.

[Kromm]

He wasn't watching them so much as popping by to see all was well.  Stupid kid just goes and picks that very moment to bust his foot.  Blake really couldn't just walk away after that.

 

 

Given the disaster she made of it last time, it's no surprise they chose to go a different way this time.

 

No Daisy/Matt Hurrah +1.

 

Couple things I didn't understand:  First of all, doesn't a criminal conviction prevent someone from holding the office of President?  Because I thought all She'd have to say is "We arrest you, your presidential dream goes up in smoke." 

 

Second, is the Governor of Texas immune from arrest for criminal behaviour?  Because if I was in charge of that FBI detail, I'd have said "Hand over Wossname!" and if the Governor said "No..." he'd be in bracelets and in the vehicle so fast his feet wouldn't have had a chance to touch the ground, far less him have a chance to Grandstand before the press.

Of course he's not.  But you probably need a Federal Judge willing to sign off on it, a cooperative Attorney General willing to put his neck on the line over this, and likely an entire Grand Jury proceeding.

[Netfoot]

Of course he's not.  But you probably need a Federal Judge willing to sign off on it, a cooperative Attorney General willing to put his neck on the line over this, and likely an entire Grand Jury proceeding.

 

Ah yes.  The law is applied differently for the rich and famous!

[Dowel Jones]

My jaw just dropped when her staff effectively said "The White House won't take a stand.  We need to call the Secretary of State!"  Who do they think she gets her marching orders from (absent the Chief of Staff, of course)?  And where was the master plotter, anyway?

 

As has been shown recently, the TNG has no effective power in the area of immigration.  They can't detain, they can't arrest, they better not shoot.  I think Madam SOS could have led off with another ploy, maybe telling the Governor that, as of 5pm this day, all Border Patrol agents in Texas will be reassigned elsewhere, and good luck with the aforementioned National Guard.  The whole thing could have been avoided if the deputies had gone about the bust in a proper manner, instead of Chuck Norris style.  I'm puzzled how the druggies missed the red lights in the dark.  As for the Mexican Ambassador, early on she should have said "Okay, no extradition?  You got him, then.  If he comes across the border again, we will hold Mexico responsible and there will be economic consequences..  Bye."

 

 

 

As for the domestic scene, I ht the FF button so often I lost count.  Okay, she's a helicopter mom, we get it. 

 

Mainly because Henry treats it like he's saving the world

 

Is he available for special assignment still.  'Cause, like, my boys at Cal football could really, really, use it. 

[Calamity Jane]

Overall this plotline wasn't quite "State of Affairs" level stupid--but it was getting there.  I can buy some Texas Governor going Cowboy.  I just don't think even in Texas one would risk a federal conflict like that, nor that the public of Texas would all magically support him.  And the resolution?  While it was a nice "Fuck yeah she's tough!" moment for the viewers, it does seem unlikely.

 

The spy storyline was even sillier though.  

 

In a way State of Affairs has become the more entertaining of the two show, because it's just so bugshit crazy.  This one had a plotline nearly as dumb, as I said, but it skews more "unlikely but boring" vs. "impossible but so bad it's hilarious".

I watch this one for engaging entertainment, expecting a reasonable level of plausibility, whereas State of Affairs is, as you so aptly styled it, just bugshit crazy, and thereby lots of fun to laugh at.  

[torqy]

Peter Gerety should stick to playing NY/Chicago Irish cops/judges. Bad TX accent!

[Tim McD]

The prison break was preposterous, as is the idea of a right-wing militia even having a chopper. You can't just fly into Mexico without raising alarms on both sides of the border.

[CheshireCat]

On ‎05‎.‎01‎.‎2015 at 12:30 PM, betsyboo said:

I love Blake. Do we know if Bess brought him with her or if he was already there when she got there..? I don't remember. If they have a previous friendship, then him checking on the kids is normal.

 

I know this is about four years late but the episode is being re-aired ... I've always wondered where Blake came from as well (if Bess knew him before or if he applied for the job and she hired him). They do seem to know each other some in the first episode although they have certainly grown a lot closer.

Either way, Bess certainly trusts him a lot because she asks him to investigate Nadine in episode 5 - another indicator that they might have known each other before the pilot.

 

On ‎05‎.‎01‎.‎2015 at 12:30 PM, betsyboo said:

I did enjoy the scene in the hotel bed while Henry was taking down a big food platter and Bess is all "I haven't even been gone 24 hours!"

 

I loved that, too!

I also always enjoy the dialogue between Henry and Bess when she tells him that they'll pencil in a better time to fight. And that the weekend is a disaster is so realistic. So often something that you really, really want to be perfect ends up anything but.

And Henry grabbing Bess' coat and pulling her out the door at the beginning is so cute. I wonder if that was scripted or something he came up with.

 

I also love the exchange between Bess and the Governor, especially that he thinks she wants to talk somewhere more private because she wants to plead with him to stand down. And not sure if that needs to be in spoilers but just in case:

Spoiler

I would have loved to see him make an appearance during season 3/be one of Conrad's opponents or at least, if they had mentioned that he lost his party's primary.