S02.E21: Mom

[thewhiteowl]

Quote

The team finally breaks a member of Sandstorm leading to a major breakthrough.

[omgsowicked]

I don't think I fully understood everything that happened but I loved every moment of it.

So I'm not sure if I'm getting this right, the scene went by so quickly... the tattoos were both to reveal corruption and to put certain people into place for COGS? I'm thrilled that Weller being so important actually paid off. Shepherd wanted to overthrow the government and (somehow) knew about COGS, so she directed him into that role... I guess because she thinks he's got integrity and will be better than the current government? I don't know but hot shit, man. But I don't understand why the current government would no longer be in effect. Like, she blew up some government buildings, so now the President and Congress and all that just doesn't exist anymore?

I'm glad Roman also remembered that Shepherd was a piece of shit but he seems to have gone to her side... I was hoping he was faking it to make sure there were bullets in the gun before he went to kill her. Hopefully he's just playing along until the right moment. It makes sense that Roman wouldn't necessarily be reformed after one shot of ZIP but I hope he still has a chance for redemption. I'm worried he might not make it through, though.

I wish they hadn't shown Zapata getting shot in the promo... took the wind out of that sail. But I'm glad she survived. I wonder if Reade will decide to stick around after all of this.

I thought it was cool how they recalled Borden's time with the FBI, with him leaking the building design and creating an escape route. Still not into Weller/Jane but I thought they had better chemistry this time, at least.

Excited to see what happens in the finale, especially since the show's been renewed for another season. They've been surprising me lately so maybe they will go through with the rocket bomb and the show will become about the new government, lol. But I'm gonna guess that the bomb gets redirected into an ocean and Shepherd gets offed.

[pwdrpuff]

I'm still processing, but in my opinion, this was the best episode of the series thus far.  I'm still left wondering why she planned the de-establishment of government with those key people left in-charge of government, instead of doing so prior to the Truman protocol.  I guess total anarchy is not what she is after.  She must also have a strong hold over each one of them, not just Weller.  They were all strategically picked to be in that bunker and controlling government.    

I'm going to take a wild guess that Roman will be the one to stop her the next episode, and dies because of it.  She barely escapes with her life once again, only to return for another season of mayhem.  

Edited May 11, 2017 by pwdrpuff

[twoods]

This episode was so nerve-wracking and action packed that I can't go to sleep. Holy shit with everything. Shepherd killing all those FBI agents in cold blood was horrible to see, and I'm glad that the director was not a Sandstorm agent and fought until the end. I'm hoping Weller or Jane put a bullet in that bitch's head next week.

Roman and Jane fighting was also nuts- he wasn't half assing his moves and really wanted to kill her. 

I also agree that they shouldn't have showed Zapata being shot in the promos because I was expecting it, but still made me jump. I hope Reade doesn't go to Quantico.

[Dowel Jones]

53 minutes ago, twoods said:

I hope Reade doesn't go to Quantico.

That was the funniest moment of the episode to me, given the craziness that is Quantico every week.

I hope they send the remainder of the Hostage Rescue Team back to weapons training.  Good god, that shootout was incompetent, but it served its purpose, I guess.

Was anyone else thinking the Oceans 11 remake the minute they entered to office mockup?  I was yelling at Weller and Jane to maybe call some other PD to get to the FBI HQ.  Quit trying to contact them; it should have been obvious at that point

1 hour ago, omgsowicked said:

Hopefully he's just playing along until the right moment.

The camera specifically focused on the handcuffs as Shepherd was putting them in her jacket.  I think that will come into play later.

[dwmarch]

3 hours ago, Dowel Jones said:

I hope they send the remainder of the Hostage Rescue Team back to weapons training.  Good god, that shootout was incompetent, but it served its purpose, I guess.

No kidding! A fully automatic exchange of assault rifle fire and no one thinks to take friggin' cover?!?! They all just stand there and gun each other down?

I also can't help but think of the occasional wisdom of Jayne Cobb. Sure would be nice if we had some grenades, don't ya think?!

[paigow]

Good thing Shepherd watched "The Rock" multiple times...her Ed Harris impression was good, even her minion knocking over the coffee mug to start the firefight.

Edited May 11, 2017 by paigow

[Kelda Feegle]

2 hours ago, dwmarch said:

No kidding! A fully automatic exchange of assault rifle fire and no one thinks to take friggin' cover?!?! They all just stand there and gun each other down?

I also can't help but think of the occasional wisdom of Jayne Cobb. Sure would be nice if we had some grenades, don't ya think?!

Bonus points for that reference

[Bouffe]

That was such a nerve racking episode! The show has done a great job casting Shepard. Every time she comes on screen, I grit my teeth and feel angry. I really wanted Roman to stop talking and put a bullet in her, but I guess the show would be over LOL so I knew it was not going to happen.

Speaking of Roman, count me in with those who are disappointed Roman chose Shepard. I too have a feeling this particular duo/storyline is not over, and will end with one of them dead at the hands of the other.

I am not completely clear on what Weller and the others are suppose to be doing in that bunker. Are they the new "government" and will act in accordance to Shepard? Or work against her? 

I feel really confident Reade is NOT going to go to Quantico.

An I may be in the minority, but I was glad to see Weller and Jane kiss!

[LisaM]

I thought this was a very good episode. Still not clear what COGS in the bunker actually means but I liked seeing some of the faces from the prior episodes (the CDC rep, the CIA guy). I half expected Nas to show up. 

When they were walking Weller down the hall, I was sure that Shepherd and Roman were on the other side of the door. 

Shepherd's rocket has to factor into this somehow. Plus - are we sure that Borden is actually dead?

I can't see Shepherd making it to next season. 

[blackwing]

I enjoyed this episode, even if I don't fully understand it.  So Shepherd's whole plan was to identify people she thought were good people who would be at the forefront of a new government?  So she is going to take out the current government and replace them with this group of hand-chosen people?  So Weller and Julia Chang the CDC deputy and the rat faced CIA guy, are they supposed to act for her once they get the power?  I don't see why any of them would do that.

I'm wondering what kind of season finale we are going to get... at the time of filming I wonder if they had thought they would get renewed.  A cliffhanger?  I think Shepherd is a great villain but I wonder if they would really have extended her time to a then-hypothetical Season 3.

Whatever happens, Roman must live.  I really hope they find a way to bring Roman back into the FBI fold.  I saw the camera focus on the handcuffs Shepherd took off him and I'm also wondering if he is going to use them next episode to cuff her to a bomb.

[slf]

Way to go, Breanna. If they've managed to take the FBI headquarters then they're the exact opposite of people you want to give a passcode to. (I know and understand that she was afraid of dying, but still.) Kudos to the director guy whose name I don't remember; I liked him in this episode and I respect the way he went out.

Reade's kind of dumbfounded response to Zapata getting shot is one of my tv acting pet peeves; after shooting the guy fifty times (yay!) he sort of stares before squatting next to her and saying "you're hit" (or whatever). Actors on procedurals do that all the time unless the script calls for a bigger reaction. Drives me nuts.

I'm hoping Roman is just playing Shepherd. I completely get why he's pissed at Jane- what she did was a violation and she lied to him for months after. But my dude. Your mom is a psycho mass murderer. You'd better have a plan here, I need my faith in you to pay off.

On 5/10/2017 at 11:48 PM, omgsowicked said:

But I don't understand why the current government would no longer be in effect. Like, she blew up some government buildings, so now the President and Congress and all that just doesn't exist anymore?

Maybe I wasn't paying close enough attention this season but I don't get it either. Taking out even the entire FBI won't stop the US government from existing.

[Black Knight]

To clarify, the Truman Protocol was revealed to be a protocol where, upon the sitting President of the United States activating it, the government is changed from the current one to a government made up of the COGS - Weller and the other people in the room with him. The man speaking at the end explained that in the event of more attacks, the Truman Protocol would be activated.

It's an interesting idea. The usual assumption has been that if the government were going to respond in an extreme way to an emergency, it would be by activating martial law. But this show is presenting an alternative, where the President willingly steps down in favor of the COGS. Presumably the show will explain the history and rationale for the formation of the Truman Protocol as an alternative to martial law, but my guess is that President Truman created it because, even if there was a situation he felt warranted the suspension/elimination of the current government structure, he didn't want the military in charge. The COGS, as we saw, is a more diverse group than simply military types.

[Agent Dark]

I don't think the President is going to be "willingly" stepping down... They deliberately put the shot of Shepard and Roman standing in front of what I can only assume is a nuclear missile as one of Roman's flashbacks.  I think that COGS will end up being the government, simply because Shepard is planning to purge the current government in nuclear fire.  Shepard, it would seem, must think that the members of COGS are ones she's sees as "fit" to run the new government.

[paigow]

Shepherd is going to cripple the US economically - COGS are irrelevant - by wiping out infrastructure, agriculture and making it uninhabitable for hundreds of years...China will be bankrupted because they hold trillions of US$ bonds and lose their biggest export customer. Which country stands to gain? Is the real Sandstorm boss named Vladimir?

[milizard]

Starting to like this show again.  Seems that only watching the last 3 episodes of a season are necessary.  The rest is mostly filler.

 

Still, the FBI on this show has got to be the most incompetent law enforcement agency I've ever seen depicted seriously on TV.  And still drives me batty that Jane struggles to take on random chicks in fight scenes, but easily disarms well trained and super strong men (i.e., Roman, multiple CIA operatives, etc.).  I'm a woman, so I'm all for equal opportunity, but come on. Don't get ridiculous with it.  Some consistency would be nice here.

[MissLucas]

Man, Shepherd you're so competent in everything except speechifying (and maybe parenting). 'Freedom, flag, sacrifice, new America yaddayaddayadda' - nobody watching that video will have the slightest idea what you want. Of course 'I'm going to put in place a new non-corrupt government but only after having sent this country's infrastructure to kingdom come.' is a bit of a hard sell, so carry on.

So, Roman's the wild card now - works for me. Of course his chances for making it to season 3 are not good.

[Layne]

On ‎5‎/‎10‎/‎2017 at 10:01 PM, pwdrpuff said:

I'm going to take a wild guess that Roman will be the one to stop her the next episode, and dies because of it.  She barely escapes with her life once again, only to return for another season of mayhem.  

Repeat of last season. Boss is killed in pre-finale episode (Mayfair, Pellington) by Sandstorm operatives. Then in the actual Season Finale, Jane kills a man from her past who she loves (last season Oscar, this season Roman). Maybe she ends up back in CIA custody getting waterboarded and the season comes full circle again.

Edited May 16, 2017 by Layne

[Bishop]

You know what?  This show actually built up to a great end of a second season.  Shepherd's plan was pretty brilliant, and Remi and Roman were all a part of it.  The tattoos were put on Remi's body in order for the FBI to figure them out, arrest the parties involved, and then remove the heads of those departments because of the fallout, which would then leave open a spot for their replacements - inserted by Shepherd and Roman.  I thought that Phase 2 would be a terrorist act, but it was a surgical op that put people into key places of Shepherd's choosing, including Weller.   I am liking this story more and more.

As for Roman, I don't think he trusts anyone anymore.  He doesn't trust Shepherd or Jane.  So why go with Shepherd?  Look at Roman's options:  1) stay in a glass box forever; or 2) be transferred over to a CIA black ops site (which is where he was about to be sent before Shepherd arrived).  Also, Shepherd was about to blow up the building with Roman inside, but she gave him a choice of leaving with her.  He left in handcuffs.  So she clearly didn't trust him either at that point.  I really hope that Roman doesn't go dark side.  The writers better remember that Roman has become a popular character on this show, even moreso than some of the main cast.

I am really curious about the season finale - and I'm thrilled it got a season three.

[Rus-L]

On ‎5‎/‎14‎/‎2017 at 9:51 AM, milizard said:

And still drives me batty that Jane struggles to take on random chicks in fight scenes, but easily disarms well trained and super strong men (i.e., Roman, multiple CIA operatives, etc.).  I'm a woman, so I'm all for equal opportunity, but come on. Don't get ridiculous with it.  Some consistency would be nice here.

Thank you.  :-)  This has been driving me absolutely crazy.  I'm glad others noticed it.

[luckyroll3]

Man, the director was a bamf! Glad to see someone on one of these shows who stays true to the "no negotiations with terrorists" and actually believed in the tenants of his job.  Shitty that he died for it, but he earned mad respect.

Great episode overall.

[thuganomics85]

Fare well, Pellington.  At least he went out not giving Shepherd what she wanted and even if another agent did break, I'd like to believe that his refusal and death helped Patterson and the rest be able to stop her from fully accomplishing her mission.  Nice to see a Dylan Baker who isn't bad (even if he still has the normal Dylan Baker smarm!)

Reade, you would hate being an instructor at Quantico, if the ABC show is any indication.  Heck, you could ask your doctor about it since Lin Jun Li did a stint on that show!  But I'm going to guess Zapata getting shot and taken out of the action is going to make him step up in the finale, and he'll end up staying.

So, Shepherd's grand plan was manipulating the government to initiate the "Truman protocol", and have all the leaders of the main government organizations be locked up in a bunker, while she takes out the rest.  And each of them were picked and maneuvered into those positions, because I guess she deems all of them worthy?  And almost all of them where characters from past episodes.  Talk about long term planning!

Onto the finale!

[PurpleTentacle]

"This country was founded on fairness."

Yeah sure Sheapard, tell that to the slaves.