Person of Interest - season 1 thread (1 Viewer)

[Matt Hough]

The show's ratings have risen with its increased quality over the course of the series. Nice to see their efforts rewarded with an increasing audience.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Officially renewed for a second season

 

[Matt Hough]

I just read the list in Variety of the 18 series that CBS has renewed. I couldn't be happier about this one or The Good Wife.

 

[Robert Crawford]

Originally Posted by Adam Lenhardt /t/315038/person-of-interest-season-1-thread/120#post_3906733
Officially renewed for a second season

Not surprising as it was #4 last week in ratings only behind American Idol and The Voice. Also, it's ratings for 18-49 has steadily rose throughout the year.

 

[Matt Hough]

For the first time in quite a while with this show, I was two steps ahead of the writers with the surprises this week.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

For the first time in quite a while with this show, I was two steps ahead of the writers with the surprises this week.

Me too, but only because I've been expecting an identity theft episode for a while now. And once you set up that dynamic, there are only two ways to play it: the identity thief is who they think it is, or it's the other person.
Even when the episodic story doesn't keep me on the edge of my seat, I still find myself involved in the episode because of the character work. More than most procedurals, they've taken very deliberate steps to grow these characters over the course of the season. I loved that scene near the end, where Reese asks Fusco which he prefers, good cop or bad cop. Part of that's because Reese isn't sure whether he'll be able to get Carter back fulfilling the good cop role. But part of it is because Fusco's earned it.
Seeing his transformation from someone who was blackmailed to someone who's doing it to satisfy something within himself has been one of the great pleasures of this show. I was very glad he got his win at the end, keeping true to his promise and getting the more meaningful victory.
The FBI scenes were useful in making more or less the same point about Reese; without Finch stepping in when he did, Reese would have ended up dead or a monster. I think Reese is grateful.
Maybe that's why he didn't press his advantage with Finch at the end, when he could have probably heard about any one of Finch's many secrets. There's a loyalty there that's really admirable.

 

[Matt Hough]

I really love the balancing act they're doing with Carter and Fusco. It's one of the series' most admirable traits.

 

[todd s]

I kinda of feel bad for Fusco... Reese still treats him like crap.

 

[Greg_S_H]

I've often thought that, but remember . . . he was taking Reese to the middle of nowhere to kill him. He'd still be doing that if Reese hadn't gone all black ops on his ass.

 

[TravisR]

I think Reese notices the change in Fusco over their time working together but at the same time, Reese is not a very warm guy and he's not really a forgive and forget type of guy either so I think that's why he and Fusco aren't going out for post-mission beers.

 

[Greg_S_H]

I do think if you want to push somebody over to "good cop," you need to give them an occasional attaboy. Otherwise, they realize it's a dead-end street and figure how to make their break out from under your thumb and back to the dark side. There's a lot of fiction where just treating somebody better would have kept them as an ally. In his way, Reese did give the attaboy this week. Having Lionel and Carter know about each other would probably be helpful.

 

[Matt Hough]

Well, Elias has gotten what he wanted. And I guess he can run his business from where he is now as well as anywhere else (especially with all the assistence he'll be getting from his seemingly infinite army of confederates). I guess the show now has its own "Wo-Fat" for the heroes to contend with a few times a season.

 

[Robert Crawford]

A really good episode last night.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Well, Elias has gotten what he wanted. And I guess he can run his business from where he is now as well as anywhere else (especially with all the assistence he'll be getting from his seemingly infinite army of confederates). I guess the show now has its own "Wo-Fat" for the heroes to contend with a few times a season.

The interesting thing is that he didn't get quite what he wanted. Of the five families, he took out four. The one don smart enough to go into protective custody without the liability of being related to Elias or in Elias's pocket, survived. Whether they follow up with him, we'll have to wait and see. But presumably he could unite what's left of the five families and be a more solitary adversary for Elias.
Elias is a great villain, and Enrico Colantoni gives a great performance. It'd be easy to have a mustache twirler in the role, but they've sidestepped those expectations nicely. Elias has a personal vendetta against the Morettis, but otherwise he's a cool logical customer. He's not afraid to kill, but he doesn't kill unnecessarily. He's a sociopath without the excesses we associate with sociopaths.
And there is a relationship of mutual respect between Elias and Reese. Elias stays out of Reese's way to the extent that Reese doesn't interfere with his plans because he respects Reese's objectives, his methods, and his meticulous and tidy bearing. Everything that disgusted Elias about the dons, Reese is the opposite of. When Reese interferes, Elias doesn't take it as a personal slight but rather as the inevitable calamity that occurs when an irresistible force meets an immovable object. He's not going to stop, and neither is Reese. Neither will come out unscathed. It's unfortunate, from Elias's point of view, but a foreseeable cost of doing business. For his part, Reese never underestimates Elias. He treats him with the respect of assuming that Elias will do what he himself would do.
At this point, Fusco has to be suspecting that Carter's working with Reese and Finch.
I also love that as the time line of surveillance footage goes backward, the video shifts from crisp blue digital to a grimy, staticy analog. If they ever flashback to the sixties, I'd love to see handheld, cinéma vérité style 16mm film establishing shots.

A really good episode last night.

An apt statement that applies to just about nine out of every 10 episodes for this show.

 

[Robert Crawford]

We all this, but an Elias/Reese partnership would be quite awesome.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Absolutely fantastic episode tonight. Almost missed it with CBS's wacky scheduling lately of single new episodes in the middle of weeks of repeats.
Let me count the awesome: 1) the PoI of the week being a double crossed double crosser; 2) finally seeing what went down with Reese's partner and what forced his exit from the CIA; 3) Fusco moving from the defensive to the offensive and really showing he understands the game they're playing; 4) the reveal, somewhat expected from the very long shot of the explosion, that Reese's CIA partner is still alive; 5) Agent Snow getting the crap tortured out of him.

 

[Matt Hough]

Reese took a real beating in this episode. I was feeling his pain this week. I did love the episode for all of the gaps in history it explained. And the twists were great fun.

May sweeps started last night (I know, it's not May yet; go figure) which accounts for all the networks airing new episodes last night. They'll continue this until all shows have their season finales in the upcoming weeks.

 

[stevelecher]

Apparently, there are two new episodes left that are airing on the third and the 10th. Should be exciting. Will you buy the DVD set of this season?

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I'm coming up with three more new episodes: on the 3rd, the 10th and the 17th.

 

[stevelecher]

I stand corrected. Thank you. Looking forward to these three episodes. There's probably going to be a pretty big cliffhanger for the season end.