Episode Report Card M. Giant: B- | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Small Consulation
By M. Giant | Season 6 | Episode 12 | Aired on 03.04.2007
At this point, the Veep enters, wanting to talk to Tom alone. Despite the fact that Tom is at the very least a "person of interest" in a crime that just put the Veep in the Big Chair, everyone's okay with this, and a moment later, it's just the two of them in the room. Tom calls the Veep by his first name, Noah, and says that he tried to stop it. The Veep says that he wants to believe that, but awkwardly segues into how he'll wait for the Justice Department's verdict on that, as well as on Assad's involvement. Tom insists that Assad was being framed, but the Veep isn't buying. He says he heard that Tom thought others were involved. "Only because [Chad Lowe] implied as much," says Tom, now that he knows there were only two guys. Except that the Veep still believes Assad could have been one of those unnamed conspirators. "That makes no sense whatsoever!" Tom shouts. I'm going to convert that to a sound file for my computer to play every time I open a 24 recap. The Veep thinks that a terrorist like Assad would have been all about martyring himself to kill the President. Tom comes out of his chair, saying that's exactly what Chad Lowe and Carson want the Veep to think. The Veep says that he's about to address the nation, and doesn't intend to say that Assad is innocent until he has all the facts. I don't know why Tom and the Veep are having such a heated debate about Assad's guilt or innocence instead of Tom's. The Veep's about to walk out, but Tom stops him and accuses him of scapegoating Assad so that he can "get even more aggressive with the Muslim community." "It's your plan, Tom!" the Veep duhs. He says that they have a chance to do some good: "The Cabinet knows that you are the architect of the plan. If you're not the face of it now, it will raise questions." He asks whether Tom has changed his mind, and Tom says that he hasn't. The Veep lays it out for him: "You can stick to your assertion of Assad's complete innocence, or I can clear you of these charges and you can help me to initiate your plan, which we both know is in the best interests of the country." Satisfied with his false dichotomy, the Veep leaves Tom to his debriefing. Okay, that scene was crap. Both actors did fine, but they were forced to spout dialogue that was more about explicating upcoming plot points than what people would actually say in this situation. Although God knows this show's plot points could occasionally do with a little more explicating.
At 5:35:42, Kiefer hops over the wall surrounding the Consulate grounds. He pulls out his borrowed Secret Service earpiece and ditches it, I suppose just in case he feels the urge to call for help. Making his way toward the main building, Kiefer's stopped by a guard, who comes out of a French door one level above and asks in subtitled Russian, "Why are you here?" In equally fluent and subtitled Russian, Kiefer responds, "I was told to guard the back of the building." This seems to satisfy the guard, who continues on his way. After all, what American intruder would bother to learn Russian? Although I do wonder how a building that appears to consist of two rooms and a hallway could have a large enough security force that they don't all know each other by sight. Kiefer answers his vibrating cell phone to find Chloe on the other end with the news that she's ready to create Kiefer's localized blackout. She says that he'll have sixty seconds before the building's own power kicks in. Again, nice security. Or maybe when they built the place, the city just refused to give Russia a permit for an emergency generator. "Sorry, Russia, it's against code. Say, do you need to renew your driver's license while you're here? Hey, Maxine, take good care of Russia here for me, would you?" Kiefer positions himself by a back door, under and out of view of a security camera that's probably just an empty shell anyway. He tells Chloe to go ahead, and she does. He opens the back door and walks right in. Lucky for him there wasn't any kind of mechanical lock, or one that automatically engages if the power goes out. Poor Russia. Ever since they lost the Cold War, they never get to have anything nice.