In the eleventh episode of the third season of Person of Interest, what have y’all done to me. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE. Intrigued? Then it’s time for Mark to watch Person of Interest.Â
Well, I sure did fall for that really, really hard.
Origins
WHAT A FLASHBACK, y’all. I do love this specific storytelling device when it’s done well, and this was a fantastic chance to get a peak at the motivations for Harold, who long ago had a knack for taking things apart and putting them back together. It was heartbreaking to watch Harold interact with his father, though, for a very specific reason. I’ve written about it before, but my own father had Alzheimer’s, and his memory started going in the last few months of his life. It felt very familiar to what I saw in this episode, from the desire of wanting to “fix†someone whose mind has turned against them, to the frustrations on both sides. My dad didn’t enjoy forgetting things, either, but he resolved early on to just accept it – much like Harold’s dad did here.
But this flashback serves another purpose: to explain bias. Much like I did, I believed Arthur’s wife because I recognized this experience. Harold empathized with her! Yes, he also had his own motive here, since he suspected that Arthur knew something of vital importance. But that’s why Arthur’s wife escaped suspicion for so long: she blended in so perfectly.
Samaritan
I don’t even know what to SAY, y’all. TWO MACHINES. THERE ARE TWO MACHINES, AND ARTHUR NEARLY SUCCEEDED IN CONSTRUCTING SAMARITAN BEFORE HAROLD’S MACHINE WAS COMPLETED. It makes absolute sense to me that Control would seek out Samaritan after losing control of Harold’s Machine. I just never expected them to use someone DYING OF CANCER in order to get to it. Just???? Oh my god, Control. WE MET CONTROL. SHE WAS THERE IN PLAIN SIGHT THE WHOLE TIME!!!!
How does Vigilance fit into this? I mean, it’s obvious that Control had them followed, hoping that they would go to the right people, but Vigilance is brutal and dedicated to stopping entities from violating privacy. Are they going to turn against BOTH the Machine and Samaritan? THERE ARE STILL SO MANY THREADS AND VARIABLES! That’s astounding to me, though, because even with the dissolution of HR, this show still manages to keep multiple plot lines going at once. I just????
I’m overwhelmed. This episode was – shocker! – super intense, especially once Arthur revealed what it was that he knew. But the fact that John was missing from the action contributed to that suspense, especially since Shaw had to compensate for his absence. She had to work double time here! And she did a fine job, for the record, so this isn’t a commentary on her abilities. But John is an important part of this team, and both Harold and Shaw were at a disadvantage because John and Lionel weren’t around.
BECAUSE THEY WERE BUSY BEATING THE SHIT OUT OF ONE ANOTHER!!! Because men???? Oh my god, you two should be helping your friends but ANGST! JOHN! ANGST IS FINE, BUT MAYBE NOT IN THIS SPECIFIC MANNER! Shit, if they got arrested, that means… shit. SHIT. That’s terrible, right? A bad thing?
WHAT IS THIS EPISODE, TOO MUCH HAPPENED, I WAS LEFT HANGING!
The video for “Lethe†can be downloaded here for $0.99.
Mark Links Stuff
– My YA contemporary debut, ANGER IS A GIFT, is now available for pre-order! If you’d like to stay up-to-date on all announcements regarding my books, sign up for my newsletter! DO IT.
