Episode Report Card M. Giant: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Edgar, Dead! Grr.
By M. Giant | Season 5 | Episode 12 | Aired on 03.05.2006
The place obviously has more than one entrance, because Fucked-up Accent guy is using one right now, and he appears to be all alone except for the Redshirt stationed there. The Redshirt asks for Fucked-up Accent Guy's keycard, and he obligingly hands over the one that was stolen from McGill four and a half hours ago, before Bierko was even introduced, before the plan to kill Suvarov was even mentioned. Bierko may not have a great success rate, but he clearly inherited Habib Marwan's ability to travel through time and develop backup plans that have backup plans. The Redshirt swipes McGill's card through the reader, and Fucked-up Accent Guy's photo pops up on the screen over a name I can't read, but which is definitely not Lynn McGill's. Fucked-up Accent Guy cuts some shifty looks at the guard in front of him and the one on the mezzanine above, clearly ready to rock and roll if it comes to that. But the guard just says, "All clear, sir." Fucked-up Accent Guy smirks and enters, very large briefcase in hand. Is it worth hoping that he just packed a big lunch? It's 6:12:52.
6:17:03. On the CTU floor, Chloe gets off the phone and announces that Curtis is on his way back from the hospital. Audrey pretends to care. This is the last mention of Curtis for the hour, by the way, and he doesn't appear at all. Which is probably just as well for him. Kiefer shows up on the floor and calls Audrey over. He asks what Spawn's reaction was to the shocking news that he's alive. "She's a little confused," Audrey says, which is the exact opposite of shocking news. Audrey warns Kiefer that Spawn is with someone who might be her boyfriend, and gives his name. She also tells Kiefer that Spawn is up in the Field Ops office. Kiefer looks up and sees a blonde mane pacing on the other side of a glass wall. He thanks Audrey and heads up to meet his daughter. I wouldn't go up there empty-handed if I were you, Kiefer.
He gets as far as the outside of the glass door before she spots him. He lingers outside for a moment, possibly waiting to make sure she doesn't have a gun. She tries to keep it together while Barry looks worried. Finally Kiefer comes in and softly says, "Hey." Spawn's all cold as she says she doesn't know what he expects from her. She asks why he didn't tell her he was alive. Just as Audrey did earlier, he explains that such knowledge would have put her in danger. I don't know why everybody is universally assuming that that would be such a bad or unprecedented thing. Kiefer says he had no choice. "You could have chosen to trust her," Barry butts in, all angry and unsolicited. Kiefer is so taken aback that he totally forgets to kill Barry on the spot. He just says he wants to talk to Spawn alone. Barry refuses, and keeps bitching at Kiefer for his selfishness. "Kim," Kiefer says in that tone that means, "If I weren't already in such deep shit with you, this punk would have been dead thirty seconds ago." Spawn obligingly dismisses Barry, who leaves the room. "Don't judge him," Spawn tells her dad. "He was there when no one else was." That knocks Kiefer off his high horse for a second. He rallies and claims, "The most painful thing that I've ever been through was walking away from you. Even more painful than losing your mother. But it was the only way to make sure that you would be safe." Spawn's not impressed, and she unleashes a little psychobabble of her own: "There's something wrong with people like you. You can't hold on to anything." And yet she keeps dating versions of her father. First there was Miguel in Season Two, who could beat the crap out of people; then Chase, who was also a field agent and who also bailed (taking his kid with him, I hope); and now Barry, a fellow '80s Brat-Packer. Talk about a pattern. Anyway, she says she's glad he's alive, but "I can't give you what you want right now." I hope that's not because she gave it all to Henderson. Kiefer says he understands, all hangdog and poor-me.