Hi everyone!
Once again, this time a bit late, here’s my review of last nights episode. As always, herein lies huge honkin’ spoilers for The Value Of Secrets, and as of this posting I have not read anyone’s comments, so all ideas are my own.
Overall:
I’ve wondered what exactly the Agency was doing to figure out how to get the gland out of Darien’s brain...obviously he’s been wondering the same thing. Last we knew Charlie had said that Kevin was at most 18 months away from an answer, but it’s becoming clear that answer is not simply going back in and cutting it out. I’m beginning to think either an answer is never going to be found or by the time one is it will be too late. The quicksilver/counteragent have been referred to as "getting a fix", so how much longer before Darien becomes dependent on it not just to stay sane, but live? This thought probably has occurred to at least Claire, if not Darien as well, since both look rather desperate to figure out an extraction method ASAP.
The Good:
-Thomas Huxley and a bit of Pandora’s Box along for the ride this week. Plus a plug for Scientific American. Our little thief is growing up to be quite the nerd. :-) I’m just waiting for him to throw us all one week and quote...oh...Big Bird. :-)
-Well a few weeks ago we got to watch Claire headbanging, I guess it’s only fair we can watch Darien do the cha-cha down the hall.
-"You’re trying to keep me!"
"Alive, yes!"
-Hobbes can’t stand letting anyone wallow in self-pity except himself. Anytime Darien gets upset about his situation, or the gland, Hobbes is right there making fun of him. Give Hobbes half a chance though, and he’s got a whole list of grievances...
-In the If Looks Could Kill department, Eberts actually winces at the glare Charlie gives him when he announce they don’t know what the stolen object is either.
-So when they aren’t fighting with each other, or Hobbes isn’t trying to bust Darien, the two of them work really well together! Watch them in the hall after talking with Callahan and Kate.
-"OK I’m in....hopefully not locked in."
-Your scientific lab isn’t a scientific lab unless you have a whole bank of black computers with blinking red and green lights on them. Every time I see them in a TV or movie, they appear to be there for no reason except to look cool or be sat on by people staying out of the way. Any fan of Stargate will remember Daniel doing it in Crystal Skull...now Darien gets the Comfy Computer Chair.
-In the You Know Exactly What They Are Thinking By The Look On Their Faces category, when Darien and Kate are hiding and Darien quicksilvers the two of them, it’s fun to watch their expressions. Darien is clearly worried if he can do what he’s going to do, plus that now another person is going to know about his abilities. Kate goes through several different emotions, my favorite being the "What the hell?" look she gives when Darien first hugs her. That was some great acting!
-"It’s kind of a combo of hate and fear, so I’d like to switch to happier topics, like who just shot as us."
-Besides all the running around with the computer and Darien trying to get the answer to his gland problem, the other little plotline going on this episode is the growing friendship/partnership between Darien and Hobbes. Great Scene #1: The drive back scene is the perfect example, and just loads of fun to watch. As I said before, Darien and Hobbes work real well together, and Vincent and Paul obviously have tons of fun in those scenes....
-...and yet in this dysfunctional family called The Agency, Darien and Hobbes are the kids, who come back to play in Dad’s office. Rolling around in the chair, bumping into people, playing with Dad’s office supplies, being rather impressed by that picture of Charlie with JFK...
-...and then poor Eberts is left to wipe off the chair, clean the picture, throw out the stamped paper, AND be Mr. Exposition. :-)
-Uh, how many times were they going to say "Spooking the Perp?"
-Great Scene #2: Hobbes and Darien in the hallway after being told if they don’t solve the case, they’re dead. More fun interaction....plus Hobbes finally hits on something I’ve suspected for a while: Darien is an AWFUL liar. He can’t even look Claire in the eyes when she’s accused him of freeing Gloria, barely keep a straight face when talking about doing "testing on the gland" in Liberty and Larceny, and now Hobbes picks up on the one word answers. "If...the...of...check"
-I don’t want to know where Darien learned to ballroom dance. But I DID love the whole "premature quicksilver" scene. "Should I throw water on it? Is this the first time this has happened?" "Oh thank you, that helps!"
-Where did I get some of my suspicions about the gland I talked about above? From Claire, talking with Kate about finding a way to remove the gland and saying "I hope it works, for his sake." Something tells me she’s not just talking about Darien being frustrated with the Agency.
-Great Scene #3: Darien and Hobbes change a tire while discussing future changes of employment. Both have a point, and yet I don’t think either are right. Darien probably CAN’T go back to being a thief, and has appeared to have found a place where his talents (both his own and with the gland) are useful and unique. But Hobbes doesn’t appear to fully understand how stuck Darien is, how much he HATES being stuck....and how afraid he is of going insane. Plus lets think long term. Let’s say Darien survives long enough to be old enough to retire, or at least too old to be doing field work. Something tells me the government isn’t going to let the gland sit around doing paperwork. Can you say Gland Harvesting?
-While it was fairly obvious Callahan was using the hired thugs to get Kate and the computer, I think it’s great that it wasn’t for the "standard" reasons of financial gain or blackmailing governments. He truly feared what it could do in the wrong hands, and was willing to give up his life to see that another scientific evil wasn’t born.
-Anyone else go awww when Hobbes, in such a dejected tone, said "I want to get the girl."
-Check out the distraut look on both Kate and Darien’s faces when the box is destroyed...ouch.
-So Kate is now lumped into the "All women have left me" category?
The Bad:
-Why does Kate lead Darien into a dead end? Surely there must have been an exit on that floor they could have run to!
-I’m sorry, but the actor playing Callahan needed to speak just a bit clearer! I seriously had to turn on the CC a few times!
The Crap Count:
-After Kate and Darien become visible again: Kate "Oh Wow!" Darien "Oh crap."
-When Darien prematurely quicksilvers: "Oh crap"
-When the Keeper asks Darien what he knows about quantum physics: "No you, no me, that kind of crap."
The Nitpicky:
-Anyone else think the NSA guy looked like Billy D. Williams?
-Why doesn’t the background music fit to Darien’s little dance down the hall to see the Keeper?
-So what were Darien and Hobbes doing knocking on the gigantic wooden rocket in the Meyer building? And WHY was there a gigantic wooden dradel on the floor?
-Wasn’t Callahan the name of one of Clint Eastwood’s movie characters?
-Rejected Dialogue: Callahan "Lab A is only accessible to specially cleared personnel." Darien "I can be specially clear."
-Anyone else notice Kate hid the computer in the bag she carried from "Dunki Donuts"? Dunki??
-Uh...was anyone else a bit uncomfy with the idea that Kate is like HALF Darien’s age? Then again do we really know his age, considering his police records show him having no birthdate? :-)
-OK, last week I kinda went ballistic on Darien’s wardrobe. This week was MUCH better, no complaints except one minor thing...when Darien goes to convince Claire to help him, he’s wearing the Gas Attendant Jacket I really don’t like. I could swear it says "Jerry" on one side...WHAT is up with that!?
-Hobbes, you look over in the van to see the door open and close, and you still have to wave your hands around to make sure Darien is gone? :-)
"Freeze!"
"Hey, it’s the Jehovah’s Witnesses!"
-Sting look-alike and Darien
