By M. Giant
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close.A subway car full of commuters suddenly seems overtaken by some kind of Rage virus, and Dr. Rosen and the team are brought in to figure out if an Alpha was behind it and other recent riots. After Rachel ascertains that the car was redolent with pheromones that trigger aggressive behavior, it sure looks like that's the case. They soon track down a young woman who seems to have been the epicenter, but in trying to nab her, they instead get their hands on a young man who was also there. He claims to be the girl's brother Matthew, the only one who can control her, although he clearly sucks at it. Rosen has just about convinced the kid to help them find his sister when Don Wilson (a returning Callum Keith Rennie) shows up and gets all pissy, just as the team realizes that Matthew's lying. Which not only blows the whole deal, but leads to the reveal that Matthew is the one who's been triggering the pheromone-fueled riots. Which he forthwith does, right there in Alpha HQ, with the unfortunate result that Callum Keith Rennie suffers yet another violent death on the SyFy channel, although it's at least as a different character this time.
So Matthew's on the loose again, but at least Rosen's figured out that Bill was immune to Matthew's pheromones thanks to his high serotonin level, which allows Rosen to inoculate him and Cameron before sending them out to catch Matthew again. Turns out the girl is just his ex-girlfriend who's been on the run from his creepy stalker ass, and although he starts not one but two rage-riots at the bus station, Cameron saves the girl and Bill catches the bad guy. Who ends up at Binghamton under Agent Cley's not-so-tender mercies, while the team talks some more about its tenuous future. I think I'll probably understand the show's premise better if it just explains it to me a few dozen more times.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!The camera zooms into, over and under Manhattan, landing in a crowded subway car being patrolled by a New York cop and a long-haired busker. A young woman angrily moves away from a dude in a blue hoodie, who tries to follow. The cop asks her if she's okay, taking her by the arm. The shot goes yellow as she pushes him away, leading to a chain reaction that instantly escalates from a guy spilling his coffee to everyone on the car beating on each other while the young woman cowers on the floor. The train screams through the stations without stopping. In the melee, someone grabs the cop's gun and, after a short struggle, shoots him in the head. The moral being, I guess, avoid the express train.
At the Alphas HQ, Gary is whining to Bill some more about that persistent hum he was complaining about last week. Apparently Bill had the cell phone company shut down the tower across the street, but now that it's back on and Gary wants Bill to just shoot it. Bill sends Gary out of the room without so much as a grenade.
Gary's visit is to Nina, who also refuses to Push anyone into helping him out. Their conversation is interrupted by Cameron's bouncy baseball from all the way down the hall, which he's sending through the corridors and back while arguing with his ex about getting to spend time with their kid. Dr. Rosen finds Rachel in the midst of an aromatherapy session, which tells him her folks are bringing her down again. But at least she has the stones to interrupt him while he's lecturing her about being more assertive. Cameron's stray bouncy-ball interrupts again, and Rosen finds him frustratedly hanging up on his ex. Rosen tries to calm Cameron down, but all Cameron does is throw the ball out of his office again, this time breaking what (according to Gary) is his third window. Rosen makes a calm observation about stress, which is fortunately interrupted by a cell phone call. Yay, they got Callum Keith Rennie back, so it's Agent Don Wilson, calling from the back of a limo. "Hope you got your Metrocard," he tells Rosen. Then we get a look at the inside of the bloody subway car before anyone else does. And that's all that happens before the first commercial break. Riveted yet?
During the ads, the crime scene folks have finally managed to show up at the subway. So have Rosen and Nina, who has apparently been Pushing a cop that vouches for the dead officer. Bill shows up, grumpy as usual, and while he leads them over to Gary, he says the now-recovered rioters are all completely confused as to what happened. While Gary chatters uselessly, Bill goes over to the cops at the cordon to get them to let Cameron in, and bitches at him for leaving the crime scene. Which makes Bill look like a dick and lets Cameron make a lame donut joke. Win-win.