Episode Report Card M. Giant: A | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Do-Over
By M. Giant | Season 7 | Episode 10 | Aired on 02.23.2009
Right then is when Moss bursts in, his weapon leveled, ordering Sean to get on the floor. Sean protests, "It wasn't me!" as Moss dorkily secures the room and calls Chloe inside. Sean spins a story about how he caught Erica trying to crash the servers. "She shot me. I went for the weapon and it went off." Moss barks into his walkie about needing a security team and a medic, and asks Chloe if they can recover the files. Sean keeps selling it, asking from the floor what the hell is going on. Moss yells the same question back at him, and Sean keeps burying Erica, saying he also caught her putting out a warrant on a vehicle. Moss asks why Sean didn't say anything to him, and Sean blames Moss for shutting him out. As he gets to his feet, Sean says he hacked into Erica's hard drive, found lots of incriminating schematics, and came to the server room to confront her. "She shot me, I went for the gun...Larry, I didn't mean to kill her." It's a good story, but I really doubt the scene is going to stand up to a detailed forensic investigation. He didn't even bother getting Erica's prints on the gun, let alone any GSR on her hands. But this isn't CSI, I guess. As the security team arrives, Chloe tells Moss that the files are gone. "She got everything," she says. It's 5:36:22, and the "she" is a pretty clear indicator that Sean's little plan seems to be working out fairly well for him. At least until Janis remembers that this wasn't the first time Sean has drilled Erica.
At 5:40:43, Moss visits Sean in the CTU clinic -- excuse me, the FBI infirmary -- as he's putting a fresh shirt on over his newly bandaged arm. I've had paper cuts worse than that gunshot wound. I'm actually not kidding -- I had to get a spleen transplant. Long story. Anyway, Moss is holding printouts from Erica's workstation, or so Sean claims. Sean acts like he's owed an explanation, so after looking at Sean and deciding that he looks pretty trustworthy with his hair falling over his forehead all Superman-style, Moss explains, "The government's been compromised by Dubaku. FBI, Secret Service, God knows who else. That's why I shut you out." Moss explains about the file they were decrypting when Erica wiped the server and says, "That was our only lead." Sean pushes his luck, lecturing Moss about how he should have trusted him. Moss says he didn't know who to trust, and after asking after Sean's arm, says he'll need to write a statement. "And keep your mouth shut. We don't know who else in this building might be working for Dubaku." Oh, the irony. Just then his cell phone rings. It's Chloe, saying, "Larry, don't ask me how, but I did it." Yes, she got the files back. "I was running a mirror file on an outside server. I always do that when I'm dealing with sensitive materials." Well, that certainly sounds like the opposite of reasonable. No wonder she just told us not to ask her how she did it. Anyway, she's already got the entire thing decrypted. I suppose you don't need to use very serious encryption on a computer file you've got stored IN YOUR BELLY. Moss tells her to cross-check with FBI personnel to be sure Erica was working alone. When he hangs up, I'm left thinking Don't tell Sean don't tell Sean don't tell Sean. And he tells Sean. "That's great," Sean lies, not smiling and looking all wide-eyed and creepy. Of course Moss doesn't suspect anything because Sean's always like that. Sean heads out to "get to that statement." On his way out, Moss suggests he see Dr. Weber. "You shot a fellow agent, you're gonna want to talk to somebody," he advises sensitively. "Yes, sir," Sean says. He walks back to his desk to grab his jacket, blowing Janis off when she asks what's up with the servers. "Ask Larry about it, Janis," he advises, walking off. "I gotta run an errand." "Now?" she asks plaintively, feeling kind of cheated that this is her only scene this week. And she doesn't even know yet how much trouble she's about to be in for covering for Sean earlier.