Episode Report Card M. Giant: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Two Can Play at That Game
By M. Giant | Season 7 | Episode 1 | Aired on 01.11.2009
Kiefer and Walker lurk in the hallway outside Schechter's office, watching shadows move behind the textured glass door. Kiefer warns Walker that Schechter won't talk easily. Walker correctly understands this Kieferese phrase for "let me hurt him let me hurt him let me hurt him," and reminds him that this is an FBI operation and they're staying within the law. He all but rolls his eyes at her as she instructs him to threaten Schechter, but not touch him. "The minute I see you crossing that line, I will pull you back, understood?" Kiefer agrees. Wow, even he respects her now.
Walker raps on Schechter's door at 8:53:18, and a beefy bodyguard answers. Walker flashes her badge, and he closes the door on her so they can wait for Schechter in the hallway. When Schechter himself opens the door, he's pretty surprised to see Kiefer standing there next to Walker. "Didn't know you were FBI," he says with a Scottish accent. "I'm not," Kiefer shrugs pleasantly. "Just came along for the ride." Walker explains that Kiefer's there on her authority, so Schechter's like, "That means I can hold you responsible for anything he does while he's here. I have a witness." Walker agrees to that, and Schechter lets them in and invites them to sit, right near a row of large, sunny windows that open out to the street beyond. Schechter starts right in on Kiefer. "How's the Senate thing doing? I hear they dismantled the CTU. Don't tell me -- it was your fault, wasn't it?" Walker says she has some questions, and starts right in with a big one: "Where is Tony Almeida?" Schechter acts surprised. "In the greyoond, I suppose. Unless he was cremated. Didn't he die at CTU a while back?" Seeing where this is going, Kiefer cuts Schechter off and tells him, "They're not after you. They're willing to accept that you didn't know what Tony Almeida was going to do with the components that you helped him steal." Schechter gets serious, denying any knowledge of anything. Having let Kiefer offer the carrot, Walker offers the stick: "You could be a co-conspirator to multiple terrorist attacks." Alarmed, Schechter says they're done talking. "I've tried to answer all your questions honestly [all one of them], but I think from now on, you can speak to my lawyers. So goodbye, Jack, and good luck with the Senate. I hope they fry your ass." Kiefer doesn't move, even though you can see that contentedly psychotic look he gets whenever a suspect mentions lawyers. Schechter calls the bodyguard, Ari, over to show them to the door, and they both get to their feet. But when Ari makes the mistake of taking Walker's arm to lead her out, she doesn't move, and in fact twists his own arm for him. And when he makes the further mistake of reaching for his gun, she has him disarmed and flat on the rug in about two seconds. In the meantime, Schechter produces a weapon of his own from the sofa cushion, and both Walker and Kiefer draw on him and order him to drop it. Which he wisely does. Wait -- Kiefer was issued a weapon? Schechter brays about the "unprovoked" attack. "Your man Ari was going for his gun. I've got a witness," Walker says. With the tables properly turned, Kiefer again asks where Tony is. Schechter refuses to talk, even while staring down the barrel of Kiefer's gun. Kiefer finally says to Walker, "What do you want me to do? This is your call." Because, by God, if he's going to torture someone, he's going to damn well make someone else a party to it. Walker responds, "Do whatever it takes." Aw, Renee, we were getting along so well. Kiefer holsters his gun, whispers, "I'm going to enjoy this," and grabs a ballpoint pen off the coffee table. He then climbs right into Schechter's lap like he's going to blind him with a Bic. Jeez, I'd hope for at least a nice Uniball. We'll never know if Kiefer or Walker were bluffing, because Schechter goes totally origami on us, agreeing to talk. Kiefer backs off, and a brief shot reveals that Ari is sitting up, although the fight appears to be gone from him. "There's no need for me to lose my good looks over this," Schechter jokes, and begins, "The last time I saw Almeida -- "