Episode Report Card M. Giant: B | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Finger Pointing
By M. Giant | Season 8 | Episode 2 | Aired on 01.17.2010
Hassan enters an office suite to find his very upset family watching the news. His daughter hugs him, but his wife is suspicious, asking how the reporter got so close in the first place. Hassan says he considered the article Reed was working on to be an important way to get his message across to the American people, but his wife isn't buying it. Hassan tells her to speak her mind, so she does: "You should never have let her into our lives! You've put us all in danger!" Their daughter begs them to stop, and into this highly fraught atmosphere walks Farhad, asking to talk to Hassan alone. I'm sure Hassan is only too happy to oblige, under the circumstances, and the brothers step out into the hallway together at 5:21:59.
Farhad dismisses the hallway guards and tells Hassan that Meredith Reed is on her way to CTU for interrogation. Hassan is in denial, wondering what her motive might be. "What reason does any American have to do anything? Money," Farhad says. Racist. He insists that she's guilty, she's going to talk, and he needs to know what she's going to tell them about her relationship with Hassan. "Be honest with me. Tell me everything," Farhad presses gently. "It started three months ago," Hassan admits with barely a pause. "We met for an interview, in her hotel room. Dalia and I had been fighting that day." Farhad cuts him off to say, "If this affair becomes public, it will destroy your credibility and everything you've worked for." Wait, what happened to "tell me everything?" He hardly told us anything! I mean, I wasn't expecting the names of sexual positions, but I've seen more prurient language in Guideposts. Farhad insists that Hassan deny it if it comes out, resisting the urge to do the honorable thing. "I need to be with my family," Hassan says, and walks back to the suite. The fact that he'd rather go back into that lion's den than continue this conversation is not a good sign.
Alone, Farhad takes out his cell phone and tells someone, "I just spoke with my brother. I told him to deny the affair." Who's he talking to? Toombs, of course, who is riding along in the back of a cab. Toombs really wants Hassan to deny it. "The reporter's claims need to be discredited. CTU needs to continue to think she's my contact on the inside." I'm sure Farhad would agree with that imperative, as the actual contact on the inside. "We only need another hour," Toombs says. "I'll be ready to move by then." He hangs up at 5:24:07.