When you end a season in as chaotic a fashion and on a cliffhanger so near to the edge as Person of Interest did in its fourth season, it should come as no surprise that the following premiere feels just as crazy. And here, that ended up providing me with a slight feeling that things were being just a tad rushed.
But I don't care, because when an episode is as thrilling and action-packed as B.S.O.D. was, it's very easy to excuse the odd misstep and instead praise the numerous things that worked and illustrated why this show is the best on network television - and one of the best on television period.
And there were some magnificent things going on here.
Like, for instance, the flashbacks to 2006 as Finch contemplated putting the Machine in chains. We knew going in that Finch would do it (or certainly, suspected that he would; to show him consider it and then refuse, only to do it sometime in the future would have been a misuse of the show’s time), and yet the episode still managed to make the decision immensely compelling. The debate has been had between Finch and Root in the past, and the show is hardly treading new ground here on either side - Ingram’s argument that “if someone was going to build it, why not Finch?” perhaps the only new addition, and it’s a fair point. Yet B.S.O.D. treated it in this way, and instead toyed with our emotions, which is a far more effective avenue to explore given the known outcome, and what the show has taught us about the Finch-Machine relationship in previous flashbacks.
Again, Person of Interest gave the Machine an on-screen voice, using the typed word to communicate with Finch in its final minute before its memories were erased for the first time. And, much like in YHWH, it was tragic and probably caused some to get a touch misty eyed. We’ve seen the Machine grow into its own character over the past four seasons, culminating in last year’s climax, and this was only one step of the long road between this iteration’s inception on January 1st 2002 and the present day. What’s fascinating about this ‘discussion’ is that a previous iteration of the Machine overwrote Finch’s extermination code (as shown in Prophets), yet here, it didn’t even attempt to do so, simply questioning - in a last goodbye sort of way - whether or not he really wants to do this. The rapport between this AI and its creator has blossomed in those four or so years, so much so that Finch’s immediate response upon executing the code at midnight is one of desperation: desperate that his creation will recognise him. He may deny that the Machine is his child and that he is the mommy bird, but the past doesn’t lie.
Those flashbacks provided a relief from the stresses caused by the remainder of the hour, and we really needed that, because the show cranked the intensity up to about 15 here.
Picking up right almost exactly where we left off last season, B.S.O.D. played out in real time, following our heroes as they attempted to return to the subway with the Machine - and their lives - intact. That resulted in a two-way split of the original duo, Reese and Finch, and Root. The former attempted to get the briefcase containing the compressed Machine back to the subway before Samaritan’s operatives got their hands on it, while Root sought out a new identity. Well, that was her cover, anyway.
In actuality, she was after a whole lot of PlayStation 3 consoles to use as hardware to build a supercomputer that would enable them to decompress the Machine. Another crazy plan from Root, but another that worked. Her journey to get there wasn’t easy though. Having been shot in the arm during their firefight with Samaritan last season, her car was T-boned before some ex-criminals decided to try and take her out after receiving a little prompt from their new robot overlord. Oh, and then her contact for the new identity betrayed her to Samaritan. A standard bad day for Root, really, with Amy Acker doing some stellar work throughout.
As for Reese and Finch, their dynamic was certainly an interesting one, moving the episode forward. While Harold first expressed his deep concern for the Machine’s wellbeing and longevity, that quickly became franticness as he attempted to save his creation, despite knowing full well that it was almost certainly going to be in vain. Reese, meanwhile, maintained that it could be done simply because they need the Machine. Those beliefs are pretty representative of their respective characters at this point: Finch has a much more realistic, bordering on pessimistic, view of the world compared to Reese’s optimism. Considering where the pair started the series, it’s a nice place for them to now be.
Equally, their attempts to help the Machine summed up them both. As Shaw once said, “there's a time for a hammer and a time for a scalpel.” Finch is that scalpel, handling with care as best he can, while Reese is the hammer, yet to meet a problem he can’t solve with brute force. Here, he decided to, as Finch put it, give the briefcase (and by extension, the Machine) a lobotomy. Not the smartest of moves, you’d think, but it ended up working, so it’s hard to complain.
After a few issues, the Machine is now put back together. Will it work correctly? That’s a question for next week. And rightly so, given how busy this premiere was. With a full season, perhaps the events of B.S.O.D. would have been stretched out across a couple of episodes, though that may have detracted substantially from the intensity produced. While the progression from the Machine running on double AAs as the team fought for their lives to it being on the cusp of some sort of miracle recovery feels like it happened far too quickly, with such high stakes and a volatile situation like this, it wouldn’t have felt right had this part of the story been extended longer, so I’m happy to conclude that this was done as best it could have been.
All of this, of course, came after a flashforward in the opening moments of the hour, showing a destroyed subway base with Root providing an incredibly ominous voiceover. “Did we win? Did we lose?” she says. In about six weeks’ time, we’ll see the final outcome of that battle. But for now, it’s time to see how they fought back, and if this premiere was any indication, it will be one hell of a fightback. Person of Interest may have been gone for 364 days, but it is finally back and back with a bang.
Notes:
- While Team Machine essentially battled to save the world, Fusco dealt with issues of his own caused by the fallout to Elias and Dominic’s deaths. He told the truth about the sniper, and despite being later told to keep his conspiracy theories to himself, he received a commendation for his supposed service. Helps when the FBI agent in charge of the investigation is a Samaritan asset. He is, however, conducting his own investigation, exploring the rooftop from which the shots were fired. It’s hard to imagine that he won’t soon discover the truth about what his friends do and the enemy they’re up against. I rather enjoyed Kevin Chapman’s growing anger over being constantly kept in the dark too.
- In addition to Ingram returning, Grace (Carrie Preston) was back, bringing along a debut appearance for Chumley, Emerson and Preston’s dog. Perhaps Bear can now have a new friend to play with?
- Speaking of which, Bear!!! How you’ve been missed.
- Finch’s new hat was excellent. As was the way he acquired it.
- The song that played over the opening scene was ‘No Wow’ by The Kills, for those curious.
- “Had I known what we’d be up against now, I might have handled things differently,” Finch tells Reese. Like... killing the congressman?
- The dialogue between Finch and Reese after the latter knocks out the civilian using the vending machine: "Really?" "What? Sugar's bad for you."
- “You can just call me Root, bitch.” Root is the best.
- For all the fans out there upset that it took this long for the show to return (which is basically everyone), at least be thankful that you don’t live in the UK, where the fourth season finale is airing this coming Monday (at 11.45pm!).
What did you all think of Person of Interest’s return? What do you expect for the season to come? Be sure to leave your thoughts in the comments below and vote in our poll, also featured below.
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