PERSON OF INTEREST Recap: Masquerade

Person of Interest 2.03 Masquerade

At the end of last episode, Finch and Reese were as close as we’ve ever seen them, but once the adrenaline wore off, the awkwardness apparently set in. Finch shows up at the batcave where Reese is doing some research on Root, Bear sleeping in a bed nearby. Finch comments on the dog staying in the library (at least he hasn’t eaten any more books!) and they carry on a generally very uncomfortable, stilted conversation until the subject is changed to the new number.

This week’s number is Sofia Campos, the beautiful, obnoxious daughter of a Brazilian diplomat (we’re told that diplomats’ dependents get assigned temporary SS numbers, but for any fact checkers out there, according to the State Department website, this is only true if they are authorized employment by INS…). Her father is considering running for president of Brazil, so there are lots of reasons someone might want to harm her to get to him.

Back at the police station, Fusco shows Carter a box of evidence that he was able to save from Alicia Corwin’s hotel room – the only remaining evidence they have in her murder investigation. Fusco gives it to her but tells her that he thinks they should stop asking questions now that Finch has been found. Not surprisingly, Carter doesn’t agree. She continues to pursue the case and realizes that one of the items is a RFID reader. Curious, she goes to the medical examiner’s office to check out the body. While she’s there, she sees Agent Snow leaving. He tells her that he is no longer looking for Reese as he’s been reassigned. She soon finds out that he was also there for Corwin and her body had an incision on the arm that was not part of the autopsy – Snow apparently asked about the incision as well, so he didn’t make it.

Reese finds Campos and sees to it that her current bodyguard gets fired. He then applies for the job with a little help from Finch, who had to buy a security company and a credit bureau to build him believable credentials. While waiting for his interview, Reese manages to steal the wallets of all the other candidates, and uses them to distract the official from his actual ID. His plan works as Campos’ father is impressed. He tells Reese that his daughter is difficult, but Reese is sure he can handle her. He scores more points with her father when she insults him in another language and he responds in kind.

Later, after telling Reese that she’s going to bed, she sneaks out of the consulate. He is, of course, waiting for her when she gets around the building, much to her dismay. Someone else is also waiting and watching them – two men in a dark car. Reese gets a partial plate but nothing else. Reese drives her to a trendy club where she meets a friend, gets completely trashed, and starts dancing on the bar. Reese forcefully removes her from the club and takes her home. Party girl is not happy the next morning and tries to get her father to fire Reese, but instead he’s quite pleased with him, making her furious. She retaliates by dragging him on a marathon shopping trip. Predictably, she piles him up with clothes and then sneaks out under the cover of using the dressing room. Finch is tracking her cell and alerts Reese, who finds her outside on the street, meeting with her boyfriend in front of his fancy car. She doesn’t want her father to know about him as he wouldn’t approve of her dating an American. Reese takes her back to the consulate and Campos’ father is unhappy that she missed a photo op, but Reese covers for her to gain her trust.

Finch tracks the license plate to a car rental company. It was rented by a Brazilian private investigator. While Finch has been doing his thing, he and Bear are making friends…slowly. They start out with a tennis ball and he eventually ends up moving the dog’s bed directly next to his chair.

Reese intercepts a cell phone call from Campos to a friend. She’s worried about a guy named Paul. Before Reese can do much more about it, Campos comes downstairs ready to go clubbing. On the way to the club, a familiar car pulls up along side – the rental from the night before – and a man jumps out and starts taking pictures of Campos. Reese grabs the camera and removes the media card before driving off.

Carter is still wondering what Snow was up to and calls a number that she had for him. Someone else answers and asks if she’s had contact with Snow. She tells him that she has, and the man says they will be in touch and hangs up.

At the club, Campos’ friend doesn’t show and Finch notices some shady men with guns. He takes out 3 of the 4 while the music and strobe lights pulse, but the 4th escapes.  Finch notices some unusual scars on the back of their necks and sends pictures to Carter before escorting Campos from the club.  Back at the consulate, Reese questions a visibly shaken Campos. She didn’t recognize any of the men and is worried because her friend never showed. Reese asks her about Paul. Paul Romanos was a guy that she and her friend met at a club a few days earlier. He had invited the girls back to his penthouse, but she denies that anything happened between them.

Finch finds out that the guy “jumped” to his death from his penthouse that same night. Campos tells Reese that while they were at the penthouse, another guy showed up and things go weird, so they left. She has a video of the guy on her phone, in the background, talking to Paul, and Reese IDs him as one of the men from the club. Reese and Campos go to look for her friend.

Finch calls Carter  – she IDed the club guys by their scars as 14th St mafia.  Finch emails her a screencap from the cell phone video and Carter identifies Romanos as the man who fell from the penthouse and promises to track Campos’ friend’s cellphone.  Finch opens a drawer to get some dog treats to take Bear for a walk (awww!) and finds a file on Root. Carter, meanwhile, has tracked the friend’s phone – to the morgue. It was found on her body.

Reese asks Finch to come stay with Campos while he goes after the killer. Finch takes Bear with him and they leave but they don’t get far as he has a panic attack when he gets to the street. He runs back up to the library and tells Reese that he can’t help. Reese calls Fusco.

Campos opens up to Reese about how she’s been lost and acting out and it lead to her friend’s and Romanos’ death. Reese tells her that he was lost too, but then someone found him and gave him a purpose (Finch is listening in when he says this).

Reese leaves Fusco and Campos at the consulate. There’s a big reception going on and Fusco accompanies her. While she is talking with her father, Finch calls (Fusco has Finch in his phone as “Mr Good News” LOL) . Finch continues to work on enhancing the cell phone video. Campos needs some air, so her and Fusco leave the party. Fusco gives her some privacy in a closed room (you’d think he’d know better!) and she calls her boyfriend. She tells him that they can’t meet because of the party, but he tells her that he’s outside.

Carter finds out that Romanos recently got into moving huge amounts of designer drugs. She has the address of the bar where the 14th St mafia like to hang out and where they might find the gunman from the club. Reese goes in alone to do what he does best, much to Carter’s disbelief and exasperation.

Finch identifies Campos’ boyfriend in the video – he’s apparently the one who has been bankrolling Romanos and Campos is in danger. Reese calls Fusco, but of course Campos has given him the slip and is headed to meet her boyfriend. Standing by him on the sidewalk is the man who escaped the club – the same one for which Carter and Reese are looking – and he’s got a gun. The weasel leaves and the mafia thug demands Campos’ phone and leads her away at gunpoint to his car. They watch the video on her phone and she swears that she hasn’t shown it to anyone. He draws his gun to shoot her, but is interrupted by Fusco.

Fusco’s no Reese, though, and the gangster manages to wrestle his gun away and turn it on both him and Campos. Fusco distracts him while Reese and Carter ram into his car from behind, knocking him to the ground and capturing him.

Reese and Campos then go to visit her ex, and he is very happy to talk once Reese hangs him over his balcony. After Campos tells him off and Reese punishes him a bit longer, they turn him over to the police. Campos thanks Reese for his help and invites him to come to Brazil with her and her father, but he declines.

Carter is heading out of the station later when she’s intercepted by a female agent who asks her about Mark Snow. Carter tells her to talk to his dead partner, Evans, and leaves. We then see one of the shadowy government guys driving away. He was the one that retrieved the microchip from Corwin’s body and his supervisor calls him in for a meeting.

Another meeting is also taking place. This one’s in a dark basement between Snow and Reese’s ex-partner, Kara. Apparently Snow’s been working for her. He tells her that Corwin is dead and she would have known who sent her and Reese into China. Then he unbuttons his shirt to reveal a bomb strapped to his chest. Kara opens a panel and changes some settings., then leaves him in the room in the dark.

Finch is in the library working on a bulletin board of information about Root. Reese enters and convinces him to go out for a beer. The two of them and Bear leave together.

My Thoughts:

It really bothers me when shows put characters in traumatic circumstances, resolve them at the end of an episode, and then seemingly forget about them by the next episode and I was glad to see that it didn’t happen here. Clearly all of the characters are still affected by their experiences, especially Finch (rightly so!). He still has his hand bandaged from where Root cut him and clearly the wounds extend much deeper, as his panic attack in the middle of the street made clear. As I’ve said before, I think the evolution of the Finch-Reese relationship has been extremely well developed and is always entertaining to watch.

Speaking of entertaining, the Carter-Reese buddy-action comedy that we first saw last episode was continued this week with amusing results. The chemistry between the two is fantastic and the witty writing made these my favorite scenes by far.

Everyone who has been wondering what Kara was up to got at least a few of their questions answered. I’ve gotta wonder what her endgame is as keeping an ex-CIA officer hostage with a bomb strapped to him is a rather extreme measure. It will be very interesting to see where she pops up next and whether she’s on the same side as Reese or not.  I wonder what Finch might know about her… likely more than he has let on. Things are bound to get interesting in future episodes with two beautiful, intelligent, extremely capable but definitely (Root) and potentially (Kara) psychopathic brunettes running around.

Person of Interest rarely disappoints and this episode was no exception! What did you think of the episode? Tell me in the comments!

Favorite Quotes:

The consulate conducted a background check on your credentials that was…strenuous – Finch
Let me guess, you had to buy another security company? – Reese
And a credit bureau – Finch
I will try to make you proud! – Reese

This, this…distraction you adopted keeps interrupting my work! – Finch

John’s not his usual cheery self without you around – Carter to Finch

Having seen the kitchen, I would advise you to stay away from the shrimp puffs – Finch to Fusco

Why don’t you wait in the car. -Reese
Why don’t *you* wait in the car. – Carter
Give me 3 & half minutes. – Reese
Oh please, there at least 10 guys in there. – Carter
OK, 4 minutes. – Reese

I got bored sitting in the car and it took you longer than 4 minutes – Carter
Well, this guy hit me over the head with a neon sign, not very sportsmanlike, and none of them want to tell me where to find their pal. – Reese
Yes, that’s why you should ask them *before* you knock them out! – Carter

Watch Person Of Interest on CBS on Thursdays 9/8c!