S02.E17: Solos

[thewhiteowl]

Quote

Jane and her new flame Oliver find themselves in a dangerous situation that exposes the secrets they've both been keeping.  Uncertain if they can trust each other, the couple must stay alive while Weller and the team race to save them.

[paigow]

Who is chasing them? Han? Hope? Napoleon?

[paigow]

Oliver is suspiciously competent - like Borden was - in unarmed combat for a millionaire citizen...he may not be a Sandstorm mole, but he is working for some other "shadowy cabal".

[omgsowicked]

I know Weller/Jane is the show's OTP but I really liked Oliver/Jane and was hoping to see them together after their secrets came out, at least for a little bit. And honestly, I just like Oliver so I wanted him to stick around. So I wasn't too far off with my name change theory, just that his dad was a criminal, not abusive. I thought that scene where Oliver impaled that man was suspiciously similar to when Borden nailgunned a baddie but otherwise, his fighting skills seemed pretty unpolished so I don't think he's involved with anything shady.

Some of the clues were a bit clunky, like Jane making every word of her sentence spell out a sentence, and the scratches on the couches symbolizing Oliver's charity. But I did like that Jane knew certain words would be flagged. The woman who's children were being held for ransom was so (unintentionally?) goofy with her bad wig and red glasses. Also unintentionally goofy was Patterson ripping apart her living room. I was with her until she sliced open her sofa.

I'm so glad they finally got Roman out of that cell! It was getting pretty boring. Hopefully he'll recover more memories and become more of a team member. Was that money from Jane's (Alice's) bank account left by their parents? Or was Shepherd putting money in the account and made Roman withdraw the funds after Jane started her mission? And why was he crying? If it's the latter theory, was he sad that she didn't remember him? Hmm.

Reade's plot is already a big drag but the fact that the person who got him hooked on the drugs is now telling him he's gone too far? "What are you doing, getting addicted to coke? It's only for funsies!" Infuriating! The way Reade acted with Weller was so childish, and then he got drunk and beaten trying to buy drugs. The promo for next week teased that someone would be leaving the show... I kind of hope it's him. It's a shame but his character has always been underdone (so has Zapata), so they may as well call it a day.

[mandigirl]

2 hours ago, paigow said:

Oliver is suspiciously competent - like Borden was - in unarmed combat for a millionaire citizen..

I thought so too. I liked Oliver just fine, and I'm sure he's going to pop up again... likely the second Weller tries to make a move because that's how it is on tv. Jane kicked butt this episode! It's been awhile since we had an episode so focused on her skills which are truly impressive.

3 minutes ago, omgsowicked said:

I'm so glad they finally got Roman out of that cell! It was getting pretty boring.

Seriously!! Jane and Roman's reaction to Roman's release was awesome. Great acting by both actors. They have such wonderful chemistry. Really hoping that Roman finally gets utilized by the team. Given that Roman is (hopefully) coming on board, I also suspect Reade is on his way out.

I don't know that I've ever seen a show squander good side characters the way this show has. Great actors, great characterization completely wasted on crappy storylines that do nothing to advance the plot. I see Patterson is about to be treated to her own ridiculous b-story now too.  I assume the character leaving has more to do with behind the scenes (actors wanting to leave) than a narrative choice.  The show would be better leaving the side-character's personal drama out of it but I guess its used as filler.

[saber5055]

I totally forgot what day and time it was so totally missed this episode. Comments here sound interesting though. Is it worth looking up to watch online?

Oh, and what's with the little one-word title?

[slf]

Damn, Oliver. The girl gets kidnapped because of your messed up dad's actions, saves everyone, and you break up with her because of her baggage? Just say you can't be with her right now because of how your life is, not because her life isn't simple enough to accommodate you.

Enjoyed Jane being resourceful and badass, especially her shimmying up the fireplace. But sometimes it feels like her skill level varies depending on what the writers need her to do; to me it seems like she should've been able to dominate the baddies in hand to hand a bit more than she did based on the combat skills she's shown in the past. I also liked that Zapata was able to figure out one of the clues based on her researching Oliver for Jane; I enjoyed their friendship last season and I'd like to see that come back.

I like Reade and Rob Brown but it feels like Brown's heart just isn't in his scenes; maybe I'm projecting my dissatisfaction with his storyline, I dunno. I think it had a lot of potential at the start but the writers just aren't making it work.

So Roman remembers stealing Remy's inheritance. Hmm. So did Remy know she had one and if so was she aware of what Roman was doing?

The best scene in the whole episode, for me, was Jane and Roman grinning like idiots when Roman was being released. Like, he has a monitoring device on his ankle and he has to go live in a safe house with his sister while FBI agents sit outside their house and he was just so genuinely happy. I love them.

[mandigirl]

4 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Is it worth looking up to watch online?

I thought so. It was an enjoyable episode IMO.  If you are a Roman fan (and who isn't, lol!) you'll probably want to see it. 

4 hours ago, saber5055 said:

Oh, and what's with the little one-word title?

All the titles this season have been palindromes.

[calipiano81]

2 hours ago, mandigirl said:

I thought so. It was an enjoyable episode IMO.  If you are a Roman fan (and who isn't, lol!) you'll probably want to see it. 

All the titles this season have been palindromes.

I second mandigirl on both points. :) Especially the first...I love watching Jane be a badass!

[MissLucas]

Oh show, you finally give me Roman and Patterson in the same room, decoding something together and yet not really talking to each other? That's just cruel.

Jane got Roman a nice pillow case, is that standard FBI issue for dangerous killers they want to placate? Although if they were so concerned about Roman spiraling into a dark place how about giving him a prison cell with a less drab color scheme in the frigging basement without windows? Ever heard of chromotherapy? Never mind, at least he's finally out of that cell - it was getting frustrating to watch.

I want to know what shrink-with-Checkov's-crutch's deal is. I just know this crutch is not there just for dramatic reasons. Maybe Patterson will snap it in two next week to check for bugs and then we'll see if Dr. Sun really needs it.

I feel bad for Rob Brown - he's constantly getting side-plots that isolate his character and bring absolutely nothing to the table. And that scene in Weller's office felt completely forced and OOC.

I suppose we should be wondering who's behind the investigation? I say Dr. Sung (because reasons).

[milizard]

11 hours ago, slf said:

But sometimes it feels like her skill level varies depending on what the writers need her to do; to me it seems like she should've been able to dominate the baddies in hand to hand a bit more than she did based on the combat skills she's shown in the past.

Agree.  This tendency is something that drives me crazy while watching this show.  She can kick multiple people's asses with her hands tied behind her back, but not when they're free?  (Plus, escape from 3 fully trained CIA agents after enduring a month of torture, but random chick gives her trouble.)  And, she doesn't think to grab a gun or 3 before trying to walk out the front door?

[dwmarch]

Really, the palindrome for this one should have been "A man, a plan, a canal, Panama" but I suppose they're saving that for the season finale.

Once again Jane is kidnapped by bad guys who know she's got some ass-kicking to do before the end of the episode so they thoughtfully give her leather jacket back to her just in time. She wasn't wearing it at the end of the previous episode.

I loved Jane's use of Sandstorm code-words to bring the FBI down on the kidnapper's heads.

[romantic idiot]

But they are all so common except Phase 2. I mean, "roman" and "shepherd" must be used so often. Poor NSA. And poor Nas, discounting all those false positives. 

[paigow]

21 hours ago, dwmarch said:

Really, the palindrome for this one should have been "A man, a plan, a canal, Panama" but I suppose they're saving that for the season finale.

Sandstorm endgame is to kidnap all "Amazing Racers"....and PTV recappers are in on it!!!!!! OMG!

[Latverian Diplomat]

11 hours ago, romantic idiot said:

But they are all so common except Phase 2. I mean, "roman" and "shepherd" must be used so often. Poor NSA. And poor Nas, discounting all those false positives. 

That conference on animal husbandry in the Ancient Mediterranean barely avoided a drone strike.

[thuganomics85]

Man, despite being kidnapped and getting dumped, Jane seems to be better off then most everyone else, since she at least as Roman now that he's out of his cell and on house arrest.  Meanwhile, Reade quits and gets his ass kicked, Zapata is all sad before of Reade being Reade, and Patterson is refusing to go to counseling, even though she clearly still has psychological issues over what happen between her and Borden.  This group just can't seem to ever be honest with one another: especially themselves.  It ain't healthy!

Another non-tattoo case, since it was mainly about the sins of Oliver's father.  Zach Greiner was good as always, even though I still can't have that much sympathy for him, since he was willing to use children as bargaining chips as well.  I get grief can do a number on you, but that is going past stepping the line: that's doing an Olympic hurdle over it.  But, hey, Jane kicked ass, so it's all good.

Is Li Jun Li's character the new Borden?  Didn't she have a job before this?  Is she on the FBI's payroll, now?

Everyone just got served.  Hmm... 

[Latverian Diplomat]

On 3/30/2017 at 7:57 PM, dwmarch said:

Really, the palindrome for this one should have been "A man, a plan, a canal, Panama" but I suppose they're saving that for the season finale.

 

I've always been fond of "Sit on a potato pan, Otis." If Weller's middle name is Otis, it could work. :-)

On 3/30/2017 at 0:21 PM, mandigirl said:

All the titles this season have been palindromes.

FWIW, they switched to palindromes after the midseason break. The first nine of this season were still anagrams.

[Dowel Jones]

On 3/31/2017 at 10:09 AM, romantic idiot said:

Poor NSA.

All I can think of is those two drones from The Good Wife picking this up, and then going back to skydiving cat videos.

[LisaM]

I liked seeing Jane in the van kicking ass with her hands tied. The scene where Roman was released was gold.

Tired of the Reade subplot. I like the budding friendship between Jane and Zapata. They have come a long way.

[Trini]

Not too many comments on this one. At least it wasn't a tattoo case!

I like Patterson - stop putting her through all this torture! Again, please let her get a vacation.

Didn't have any strong feelings about Jane/Oliver, but I liked that Jane was trying to have a personal life outside the FBI.

Well, TV safehouses are never safe, so I expect a Sandstorm attack by the end of the season. Even though it makes no sense to have Roman free, it does allow him to do more stuff.

Reade and this drug arc... ughhhhh. It was either this or a Reade/Zapata romance, wasn't it?

Edited April 2, 2017 by Trini

[LisaM]

One other thought: if someone is really leaving the show, I think that Reade is a fakeout and that it will be someone else - Zapata perhaps or Nas.

[Bishop]

I feel like the show has finally righted the ship, and I just hope it's not too late.  What sunk the ratings was what the writers did with Weller and all his women.  I have no idea what they were thinking, but it was stupid.  Happily, they have removed all that unnecessary baggage from his character, and he is now back where he was at the end of season one (for the most part).  

I LOVE that Roman is out of his cell, and I really hope that we can get a season three with Roman on board as a member of the team.  I think the Roman/Jane dynamic is wonderful, and I also like the Roman/Weller dynamic as well.  I am still suspicious of that psychiatrist who is ALWAYS stating how psychotic and unstable Roman is, and it makes me worry that she's right, and the writers will pull a surprise on the audience that he was faking or really just crazy.  I hope that's not the case.  The other theory is that the psychiatrist is deliberately trying to sabotage Roman as part of the group.  Maybe she's a mole for Shephard, but that would seem repetitive with Borden having been a traitor.  She just seems too eager to keep Roman locked up.  I guess we'll see.

The only weak link in the show right now is Reade.  WHAT are they doing to his character and why?  It's an unnecessary and boring side story.  I agree that the girl who got him hooked on drugs is now all preachy and telling him "I can't have you in my life."  It's dumb.  A mother of a child should not be doing coke and drinking because it's only fun "once in a while."  That's even more stupid.  So apart from the Reade story, the rest of the episode was good.

I also really want Patterson and Roman to have more scenes together, and this episode was just a tease of their potential.  Those two work really well on paper because they have both been damaged and seem isolated, but I only hope that can translate - with these writers - to the small screen.

Edited April 4, 2017 by Bishop

[blackwing]

I enjoyed this episode... too bad Oliver is gone, he seemed like a decent guy and with him around we could avoid the inevitable Weller/Jane pairing for that much longer.  Are Weller and Nas still together or did he end it?

I couldn't give a flying rat's ass about Reade.  If kicking him off the team is what allows Roman to join the team full time, then I'm all for it.  More Roman.  More Roman and Jane together.  Luke Mitchell is one of the only things making this show watchable right now.

[Beatriceblake]

I liked this episode well enough but I wish they hadn't written Oliver out. Apart from anything else it was really predictable that they'd write him out with that "oh your crazy life is too hardcore for me" type plot. 

Speaking of other plots I don't like, I hate Reade's whole downward spiral thing. It distracts from the main plot and it's unpleasant. Hopefully they aren't about to do the same thing with Patterson as well.

[PurpleTentacle]

I just wanted to mention that this is not the prisoners dilema. This is the opposite of the prisoners dilema. As there is no downside to being first, there is no dilema.

Edited December 20, 2022 by PurpleTentacle