S05.E07: Bang Bang Shoot Chute

[ElectricBoogaloo]

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Holmes and Watson search for two murderers after a base jumper is shot out of the sky by one killer, and has his parachute sabotaged by another. After Joan's sister, Lin, thinks she sees Shinwell with a member of his old gang, Joan takes drastic measures to make sure he won't be drawn back into a life of crime.

Promo:

[shapeshifter]

Just an FYI: Here in the suburbs of Chicago (CST), Madam Secretary started broadcasting on free, over the air TV at 8:45pm, and then at 9:15 pm the CBS signal pooped out. So if you are getting a good signal from CBS and  are in an area where sports often delays Elementary, then it should air from 9:45pm to 10:45pm CST, or 45 minutes later than "normal" primetime.

[33kaitykaity]

I think Joan should get Shinwell violated and sent back to prison.  The character has been on a self-imposed pity party.  Or let Sherlock be the heavy, reporting Shinwell's chess-sharking, giving Shinwell something real to feel sorry for himself about.  

[shapeshifter]

I thought Shinwell was being scary/mean to Joan in order to protect her, that is, to scare her away from something illegal and/or dangerous that was about to go down. Best case scenario, Shinwell got early release in exchange for doing some covert operation. Worst case, he is dealing drugs and/or murdering someone.

[Clanstarling]

I liked Sherlock's chess game with Shinwell - I liked Sherlock pointing out he was, what, three moves away from checkmate? Not that there was any doubt, of course, but it was a nice lesson to Shinwell who was smug and didn't see it coming. As for Shinwell himself, as much as I like the actor and want to keep seeing him, his story line isn't doing much for me, and Joan's part of it especially. I kind of wanted her to pull out her decent fighting skills to smack that boy upside the head.

Although I didn't like the complete dress, I loved the blue patterned fabric on that black and blue dress. I wanted to see more of it and didn't think the black fabric was cut in an attractive fashion.

If the wife had really wanted to stop her husband from jumping, maybe she should have been more explicit in her texts - instead of "don't jump" maybe adding: "don't jump, I cut the parachute cords" would have done the trick. So her remorse didn't really strike me as believable. Plus, all she and her father needed to do was keep their mouths shut. There was no actual proof that either of them did it. But then, we wouldn't have gotten to the honor killing story, I guess.

Edited November 21, 2016 by Clanstarling

[Zahdii]

I'm over Shinwell.  Cut him loose and do it in a way that doesn't leave Watson crying over him.  As stated above by shapeshifter, he might be doing some kind of covert operation, and if that's the case, let him or his handlers tell Joan about it and move him out of state to continue his job and out of Elementary.

[paigow]

12 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Just an FYI: Here in the suburbs of Chicago (CST), Madam Secretary started broadcasting on free, over the air TV at 8:45pm, and then at 9:15 pm the CBS signal pooped out. So if you are getting a good signal from CBS and  are in an area where sports often delays Elementary, then it should air from 9:45pm to 10:45pm CST, or 45 minutes later than "normal" primetime.

Kinda sounds like Sean Connery in "The Untouchables" talking about the "Chicago Way"....

"One of his men pulls out rabbit ears, you pull out cable, they pull a dish, you pull fibre"

[paigow]

Canada is now the airborne railroad... https://www.historicacanada.ca/content/heritage-minutes/underground-railroad?

[TV Anonymous]

I think this episode is very convoluted. Well, Elementary stories usually are, but this one is unnecessarily so. If the Afghanis are looking for asylum, why would they risk themselves by illegally smuggle to the United States in a rather unconventional and limited mean (only two persons per trip)? There are ways that enable them to go across together. Also, they think by smuggle themselves in they help their case with USCIS / ICE? They have arrived legally in Canada, why not seek for asylum there?

As well, as a new illegal immigrant, the son already has his hands on a sniper rifle?

[iMonrey]

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I'm over Shinwell.  Cut him loose and do it in a way that doesn't leave Watson crying over him. 

Agreed. At first I was intrigued. Now? Just bored with him. It's like the show is trying too hard to make him happen. Plus, I can't help see Nelsan Ellis as anyone but Lafayette from True Blood, and his sad-sack, monotone delivery for Shinwell is tedious.

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As well, as a new illegal immigrant, the son already has his hands on a sniper rifle?

Sadly, that's entirely believable. Maybe slightly less so in NYC than in some of the square states, but even so - it's really easy to get your hands on a gun in this country.

[Trey]

35 minutes ago, TV Anonymous said:

They have arrived legally in Canada, why not seek for asylum there?

That is exactly what I was wondering. And wondered why Holmes didn't ask them that.

The Shinwell story better heat up soon because right now it's fairly boring.  Since the actor is in the credits as a regular there must be more story coming.

I agree, he was so rude to Joan so as to protect her from the shit storm that he knows is coming.

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If the wife had really wanted to stop her husband from jumping, maybe she should have been more explicit in her texts - instead of "don't jump" maybe adding: "don't jump, I cut the parachute cords" would have done the trick.

Ha! That would have been better; just "don't jump" was pretty useless since she says he never listened to her. But he won't do that again.

Edited November 21, 2016 by Trey

[33kaitykaity]

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

Agreed. At first I was intrigued. Now? Just bored with him. It's like the show is trying too hard to make him happen. Plus, I can't help see Nelsan Ellis as anyone but Lafayette from True Blood, and his sad-sack, monotone delivery for Shinwell is tedious.

OMG, I thought I recognized Shinwell from somewhere.  Thank you.  I loved Lafayette.  ;)

[shapeshifter]

2 hours ago, TV Anonymous said:

...They have arrived legally in Canada, why not seek for asylum there?...

Because this episode was written and filmed before the US elections?

 

5 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

...If the wife had really wanted to stop her husband from jumping, maybe she should have been more explicit in her texts - instead of "don't jump" maybe adding: "don't jump, I cut the parachute cords" would have done the trick. So her remorse didn't really strike me as believable. Plus, all she and her father needed to do was keep their mouths shut. There was no actual proof that either of them did it. But then, we wouldn't have gotten to the honor killing story, I guess.

Wouldn't an expert parachutist always check his equipment pre-jump?

[Trey]

41 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Wouldn't an expert parachutist always check his equipment pre-jump?

You would think. I thought they always did check, but apparently not.

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

Wouldn't an expert parachutist always check his equipment pre-jump?

Funny, I never thought of that. Good point.

47 minutes ago, Trey said:

You would think. I thought they always did check, but apparently not.

One would think, I agree. So the dead guy is not only a smuggler, but careless at what is supposedly his field of expertise.  I think I'm experiencing a delayed lack of sympathy for the victim.

Edited November 21, 2016 by Clanstarling

[shapeshifter]

30 minutes ago, Clanstarling said:

Funny, I never thought of that. Good point.

One would think, I agree. So the dead guy is not only a smuggler, but careless at what is supposedly his field of expertise.  I think I'm experiencing a delayed lack of sympathy for the victim.

I probably only thought of it because I saw another show's episode in which it was established that the victim would have always checked his equipment at time X before the jump, so that meant the window of opportunity for the perp to sabotage the parachute was between time X and time Y when the victim donned his gear. Sorry I can't recall the show; it might have been one that only lasted a short season.

[paigow]

38 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I probably only thought of it because I saw another show's episode in which it was established that the victim would have always checked his equipment at time X before the jump, so that meant the window of opportunity for the perp to sabotage the parachute was between time X and time Y when the victim donned his gear. Sorry I can't recall the show; it might have been one that only lasted a short season.

The Mentalist did something about corporate team building skydiving murder by sabotage...

[MaryHedwig]

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Wouldn't an expert parachutist always check his equipment pre-jump?

Especially one who keeps his parachutes in an unlocked storage shed because "we live in a very good neighborhood." Where is this good neighborhood in New York City? It better have the same security around it that the Trump Tower currently has.

Edited November 22, 2016 by MaryHedwig

[Clanstarling]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

I probably only thought of it because I saw another show's episode in which it was established that the victim would have always checked his equipment at time X before the jump, so that meant the window of opportunity for the perp to sabotage the parachute was between time X and time Y when the victim donned his gear. Sorry I can't recall the show; it might have been one that only lasted a short season.

That sounds vaguely familiar...

[Moxie Cat]

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 I think I'm experiencing a delayed lack of sympathy for the victim.

Yeah, that hit me as soon as the wife revealed he was going to leave her when she was 8 months pregnant. Call it Bridget Moynihan syndrome!

[orza]

1 hour ago, MaryHedwig said:

Especially one who keeps his parachutes in an unlocked storage shed because "we live in a very good neighborhood." Where is this good neighborhood in New York City? It better have that same security around that the Trump Tower currently has.

They mentioned in the scene at West Point that the guy lived in Poughkeepsie. There are plenty of very safe neighborhoods there. I'm glad they actually took the time to drive up to West Point to film that one scene on campus.

[mojoween]

*Checking...*  Nope, still don't care about Shinwell.

So not only was the guy catting around on his pregnant wife, he was jumping while holding his mistress's prayer beads?  Ass.

[DeLurker]

13 hours ago, Clanstarling said:

If the wife had really wanted to stop her husband from jumping, maybe she should have been more explicit in her texts - instead of "don't jump" maybe adding: "don't jump, I cut the parachute cords" would have done the trick. So her remorse didn't really strike me as believable. 

And then stay out until 2 am with the girls as the designated driver.  At 8 months, I was lucky to make it to 10 pm.

[theatremouse]

But that part was probably a very intentional alibi-ing herself.

[fauntleroy]

Staying out late alibis the shooting but not the cord cutting.

Yea Shinwell yawn. Bring something to the table or depart!

Detection of inherited unibrow another case of superhuman eyesight/nonsense.

[Ailianna]

On 11/21/2016 at 3:56 AM, 33kaitykaity said:

I think Joan should get Shinwell violated and sent back to prison.  The character has been on a self-imposed pity party.  Or let Sherlock be the heavy, reporting Shinwell's chess-sharking, giving Shinwell something real to feel sorry for himself about.  

Nothing Joan or Sherlock have seen would get Shinwell violated on parole.  At most his parole officer might remind him that he's not supposed to hang with his old gang members, but in real life, that condition is not even close to sending someone back upstate.  And for the chess--his parole officer would probably be thrilled he's not actually robbing someone, or using drugs, or violence, or anything else that's more likely to be the cause of a parole violation.  And chess-sharking is barely gambling, and really only takes money from people who think they can out play guys who play chess for a living in the park.  

20 hours ago, Zahdii said:

I'm over Shinwell.  Cut him loose and do it in a way that doesn't leave Watson crying over him.  As stated above by shapeshifter, he might be doing some kind of covert operation, and if that's the case, let him or his handlers tell Joan about it and move him out of state to continue his job and out of Elementary.

Ad if he's doing some sort of work for the police, they need his connections.  The only value he really would have is that the people they would want to go after for drug dealing/gun running/whatever, already know and trust Shinwell, so he has access.  Moving him out of state, in addition to requiring the out of state parole agency to accept his transfer, means he has no connections, and therefore no use.

[LisaM]

I fell asleep in the middle of the episode but recall that I am not thrilled with the Shinwell storyline. 

[iMonrey]

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Wouldn't an expert parachutist always check his equipment pre-jump?

How much of an "expert" would a thrill seeking base-jumper be, though? It's not as if people get certified for that. And he may have diligently checked his chute before his wife sabotaged it. So long as he has checked it some time before the jump and it hasn't been used I don't think the amount of time between checking the equipment and the actual jump would be a factor.

[theatremouse]

8 hours ago, Ailianna said:

And for the chess--his parole officer would probably be thrilled he's not actually robbing someone, or using drugs, or violence, or anything else that's more likely to be the cause of a parole violation.  And chess-sharking is barely gambling, and really only takes money from people who think they can out play guys who play chess for a living in the park.

I actually really loved how his response was "chess lessons". Bored by the storyline, but appreciated that moment.

1 hour ago, iMonrey said:

How much of an "expert" would a thrill seeking base-jumper be, though? It's not as if people get certified for that. And he may have diligently checked his chute before his wife sabotaged it. So long as he has checked it some time before the jump and it hasn't been used I don't think the amount of time between checking the equipment and the actual jump would be a factor.

My sample size of people who have done this is small, and it's skydivers, not building-jumpers, but at least if you're paying someone to take you, a standard pre-jump checklist is checking the equipment. Pre-jump in the sense of, right before you go up, not the night or morning before. I know partially that's because of liability reasons, but it's also just sensible when doing something very dangerous. So the amount of time should be a factor because if she cut it overnight, then next day he took the stuff out of the shed (without checking it), traveled to the site (without checking it), put it on (without checking it) and then jumped it means he's assuming it's fine since the last time he used it after having been stored in an outdoor unlocked space. As an amateur, maybe he is that reckless, but the check isn't even really about making sure nobody cut your chute. The check is to make sure nothing is damaged in general, which yes can happen via attempted murder, but also other less nefarious reasons.

Edited November 22, 2016 by theatremouse

[Clanstarling]

18 hours ago, iMonrey said:

How much of an "expert" would a thrill seeking base-jumper be, though?

Did I imagine them saying his background was that he'd been a military paratrooper and instructor? I could be conflating his background with someone else's, maybe even on a different show. I truly don't know. But that's what I believed.

Edited November 23, 2016 by Clanstarling
fixing typo

[Ailianna]

I'm not a paratrooper or base jumper, but I am a scuba diver.  And we check our gear every single time, right before we hit the water (as well as before leaving dock).  When your hobby has a realistic risk of death, everyone just by habit checks before playing.

[Abra]

Well, I'm still a Shinwell fan and am looking forward to see where his character's storyline goes. I do hope the writers address Joan's need to fix him, though.

And I have to say, the comment Sherlock made about being a sponsor brought back my upset at the way the show just completely dropped the Randy storyline from a couple of seasons ago. Are we supposed to think that he's still Randy's sponsor? Or is he the sponsor for someone else now, and we're just supposed to not wonder what happened to Randy? I guess it's to the shows credit that I still care about a character that was only in two episodes, though.

[Eneya]

I remember the Kitty treatment and then it got better. I think it may be the same thing, slowburner and then BAM!. :)

[MisterGlass]

On 11/22/2016 at 5:52 PM, Clanstarling said:

Did I imagine them saying his background was that he'd been a military paratrooper and instructor?

You are correct, he was a paratrooper and instructor.

Clyde sighting right off the bat.  They know how much we watch for him.

[thuganomics85]

The case was at least a bit interesting, since there were two different people (killer and attempted killer) and motives to figure out, but it ended up being a bit too pact.  I kind of would have liked it if both of them weren't even connected to each other, and it was just a random, wacky coincidence.  And, yeah, I just had a problem believing that this guy didn't check his parachute.  I get he was someone who lived dangerously, but I would think that stuff was basic.  And I also wasn't sure if I was suppose to believe that the wife really regretted it, because she could have found other ways to stop him from jumping.  Even if she wanted to hide her attempts, at least toss a "Honey, some asshole kids broke in and cut up all your parachutes!"

I like Nelsan Ellis, but I do hope Shinwell's storyline picks up soon.  I do think it's obvious that his spat with Joan was mainly to an act and to drive her away, because he thinks he's protecting her from whatever mess he is currently in.  But I just hope they make it kind of interesting, because despite Ellis, it hasn't fully grabbed me.

Clyde!!!

[jhlipton]

I have to agree with those that think BASE jumpers (I've seen it in all caps -- does it stand for something?) would check their chutes several times pre-jump, including once just before jumping.

[mahree]

Building, Antenna, Span, Earth.  BASE jumpers will jump from any of these four things.  Link:  

https://officialbridgeday.com/base-jumping/

[jhlipton]

4 hours ago, mahree said:

Building, Antenna, Span, Earth.  BASE jumpers will jump from any of these four things.  Link:  

https://officialbridgeday.com/base-jumping/

Thanks!

[fallaway]

On 11/21/2016 at 7:19 PM, Moxie Cat said:

Yeah, that hit me as soon as the wife revealed he was going to leave her when she was 8 months pregnant. Call it Bridget Moynihan syndrome!

Hey now - they split up before she knew she was pregnant. It was an unfortunate situation, but no-one was the bad guy there, and they've co-parented and melded families in an exemplary way.

 

Uhhh... back to topic - slow show as most have been lately. Let's move it along with Shinwell, please.

[Vermicious Knid]

I meant to comment on this episode and then forgot. They got honor killings very wrong. The father would likely have not only been fully on board with the idea but actively encouraging his son to wipe this stain from their honor. There's a good chance the mother would as well. Real honor killing.  Real honor killing in the US.

I know they were trying to be clever with the crime, a BASE jumper who would have died from his cut parachute also being shot. But were they at all aware there are literally dozens of people who have died from BASE jumps and using wingsuits? Fatality list.  I was pretty uncomfortable with the story because I did know, and then they threw in the honor killing on top. It's just a smorgasbord of bad writing all over.

[Clanstarling]

I believe they laid the groundwork by stating that the parents themselves weren't fanatics, and that one of their reasons for fleeing their country was to get their son away from those who were starting to indoctrinate him. So I think it tracks, in this particular set-up.