PERSON OF INTEREST Recap: Liberty

Episode 3.1: Liberty

Finch, Reese, Shaw, Fusco, Carter

After a long summer of anticipation, the season 3 premiere is finally here and Team Machine has expanded – Shaw is now part of the team and as the episode starts, she has been paired with Fusco to save a POI and he’s not thrilled with her devil-may-care approach. Finch also isn’t entirely happy with this arrangement as he thinks she’s too violent and because she refuses to carry a cell phone between jobs.

Meanwhile, Reese is off saving a POI of his own. Just as he manages to get him away from his kidnappers (after causing a pretty impressive car crash), Carter arrives in a patrol car. She’s been demoted – she’s in uniform and stuck on a normal beat now.

We learn that The Machine is still giving both the government and Finch and Reese numbers, but Finch worries about what else it is doing. This week’s number is a sailor – Jack Salazar – and the episode is set during Fleet Week – a Navy carrier has arrived to allow 6,000 sailors the chance to spend a few days shore leave in the city. They don’t waste any time filling the bars, starting brawls, and trying to pick up women. While it seems like it will be like finding a needle in a haystack, Reese finds their man in the 5th bar he stops at, but loses him after a fight breaks out between Jack, his shore leave buddy, RJ, and a few marines.

Reese enlists Carter to help him track down Jack again and she tells him about a secret bar hidden behind a deli. Sure enough, Jack is there, trying to keep RJ out of more trouble, which turns out to be quite the challenge. RJ leaves the bar with a hooker, promising to return well before curfew. As curfew approaches and he doesn’t arrive, Jack leaves the bar  looking for him. Outside, he runs into a group of nasty marines who want to know where he put their stuff.

He tells them that he doesn’t have it, and they shoot him in the arm, beat him and then throw him into the trunk of a car. Conveniently, Reese has already commandeered the car and he is able to rescue him. He takes him back to the library and he and Shaw patch him up.

Jack tells them that he helped smuggle a war trophy from Somalia for the men who attacked him – an AK47. They got it through US Customs and his buddy RJ unpacked it and gave it to them. He doesn’t understand why they beat him up or what they want.

Finch does a bit of research and finds out that some marines busted a ship of pirates with a cargo of stolen diamonds and he suspects the gun was used to hide the diamonds.  Seconds later, Jack’s phone rings – it’s the thugs, they have RJ and they will kill him if he doesn’t bring the diamonds to them. Jack’s not sure where they are, but RJ tells him to check the pack of cigars that he gave him earlier to hold.

Shaw, Reese and Jack reconnoiter the drop point and manage to get inside to a room where they are holding RJ. He’s tied to a chair rigged to an IED attached to a propane tank. Taped to his chest is a phone and the marines are using it to watch the room. They aren’t happy to see Reese has come along with Jack. They tell Jack that if Reese leaves the room, they will detonate the bomb. Reese tries to get Jack not to go, but he has to help RJ.

To find Jack, Finch and Shaw need to find the diamond fence. They ask Carter if she has any ideas and she goes to Elias, who is hiding out in a basement somewhere in the city. Apparently she hasn’t told Finch or Reese about her part in his escape. He gives her the name of a Russian named Maxine to check out and offers to eliminate both HR and the Russians for her, but she declines.

Finch loops the tape of Reese standing in the room with the bomb (just like in Speed) to trick the captors into thinking he’s still there. He then sends in an unsuspecting Fusco as a reinforcement. Reese throws out a few suggestions on disarming the bomb as he leaves Fusco and RJ with the bomb.

Jack takes the diamonds to the meeting point and is told to take them to Maxine at a local pawn shop and then come back with the money. When he gets there, Maxine decides he wants the diamonds AND the money and figures Jack won’t be able to prevent him from taking both. The marines of course aren’t going to let this happen; they all show up and then there are guns drawn all over the room. Maxine tries to negotiate with the marines and it gets very tense until the door jingles as Reese enters the store.

All the armed men aren’t too impressed with Reese or his attempts to negotiate the diamond price to get Jack out and avoid more violence.  The head marine detonates the bomb when he realizes Reese is no longer in the room with it, but Fusco has managed to disarm it just in time. Shaw realizes that she’s not the only sniper watching the store and warns Reese. He and Jack duck as gunfire erupts around them. Pretty much everyone is dead except for Reese and Jack, who leave the store. After they leave, Elias’ right hand man enters and removes the diamonds and the money from the counter.

Carter gets home after her shift and Reese calls. He asks her how she’s doing and tells her that he’s always available if she needs help. She thanks him and goes to her closet. On the back wall, behind all her clothes, is a bulletin board covered with what she knows about HR.

Later, Reese meets Jack at a bar for a drink. RJ took all the blame and Jack basically got a slap on the wrist. His captain thinks he could be a Seal, but he’s not sure. Reese tells him that he also was forced by a judge into the military, but it turns out he was good at it. Reese tells Jack that with his talent, it won’t be long before the CIA shows up. When they do, Jack should say no. Jack thanks Reese and leaves to re-board his ship.

Finch and Reese sit at the bar talking – Finch still has a very bad feeling about what’s going to happen next, but lets Reese buy him his first boilermaker.

Root and the Machine

Root is still the psych ward where we left her last season. Her therapist tells her that other patients have heard her talking late into the night, obviously to herself. She tells him that she has a direct line to a higher power, which of course makes her sound as crazy as she actually is, except for the fact that it’s actually true. She doesn’t of course mention the Machine, specifically, but does talk about it. The Machine wants her to stick around awhile and “work through some methodology”.

She steals her therapist’s Blackberry to communicate with the Machine. She tells him its important that she be in contact because she’s having a disagreement with the Machine. He retrieves his phone and dumps her in solitary.

Later, he asks her to tell him the truth. She tells him that he’s the 43rd smartest man in the building, that he cheated on his medical boards, smokes, and does a number of other unsavory things. God is 11 years old and was born in Manhattan and she has chosen Root and she’s a little scared about what’s going to happen. She demands her phone back – she’s arguing with the Machine over whether she should kill him.

My Thoughts: 

I really enjoyed the scenes with Root and her therapist – so funny to have her actually telling the truth, but sounding crazy as ever. I can only hope that the Machine plans to prevent her from hurting anyone else.

The tenderness and trust between Reese and Carter is also great. I hope to see more of them working together, although I wonder if more Shaw will mean less Carter. I also wonder if we’ll see any of Zoe now that Paige Turco has a steady role on the CW show The 100. The dynamic between Zoe and Reese was too good to lose, so let’s hope we haven’t seen the last of Zoe.

Memorable Quotes:

Perhaps in the future you might try to complete your assignment with less violence – Finch to Shaw

For what it’s worth, you’re looking pretty badass in that uniform – Reese to Carter

This gun is wasted on shooting knee caps – Shaw

Hey Reese, no offense, but if the vigilante thing doesn’t work out for you, I’m not seeing a future in conflict resolution – Shaw

I would have taken a head shot, but Finch gets annoyed when I kill people – Shaw