Airs: Mondays at 8pm EDT/PDT 7pm CDT/MDT
This week’s episode continues the overall story line of protecting John Connor, with a new 42-minute adventure of fighting off a terminator. This one was action packed and we learned about a terminator limitation in this episode, plus we see how a former tie may reconnect.
The setup for this episode is as follows: Charley [Dean Winters] and his wife are leaving town, on the advisement of FBI agent James Ellison [Richard T. Jones]. The terminator Cromartie [Garret Dillahunt] has caught up with them at a highway gas station and that’s where this episode starts.
Cromartie is pretty smart and takes measures to distract Sarah [Lena Headey] and Derek [Brian Austin Green]. While this same-ol-same-ol pattern happens in each episode, it’s how it plays out that makes each episode exciting to watch.
Sarah is trying to put Charley in her past, but in this episode, she gets involved in trying to save him. A tragic turn of events happens [which I won't reveal here] that places the thought of a reunion of sorts. I can see this happening, but how it happens will be the key to keeping this series fresh. This is really where the term “Stay Tuned” should be heeded with importance.
One thing to point out that’s been happening in the all of the episodes is Cameron’s [Summer Glau] methods of becoming self-aware of her surroundings and trying to adapt with the humans. This episode involves a bird stuck in the house, with her natural reaction to kill it. The fine line of her trying to be human but still physically a terminator is actually fun to watch, but scary due to the overall nature of her being: a mission to kill. All programming aside, this tedious nature leaves the door wide open for her to turn at any time and like she did in the Season 2 opener. It keeps that on eye open to see how she is going to react based on her inherent nature.
I’m not going to offer any spoilers here, but the scene where all of the action takes place is when Cromartie is chasing down John off the pier. We learn at the conclusion of the scene that the T-888 cannot swim, which if you think about it, makes total sense. Metal sinks pretty fast, regardless of any skin covering the ecto-skeletal frame. Although we don’t see how exactly how Cromartie escapes the depths of the ocean, we do assume it’s walked along the bottom as we see him at the water’s edge, walking up to the beach. The anticipation of putting Cromarite into a thermite grave in a future episode intrigues me, but you know that’s not going to happen anytime soon.
Catherine Weaver [Shirley Manson] makes a brief appearance here, trying her best to tie the story together by recruiting Agent Ellison. She doesn’t morph into the T-1001 this time, but she does a pseudo sales pitch that leaves this part of the story open, at least until next episode.
And lastly, Riley [Leven Rambin] continues to be a distraction for John [Thomas Dekker] in a developing side story. The best I can make from this is simply the fact that John is a teenager and wants to be normal. If there’s anything else that’s going to come from this, I hope they meld it properly into the story line without making it too over-the-top or cheesy. If this is made too much like most other shows on the air, it will take away from the unique appeal of this series. Again, another “Stay Tuned” on this one.
And that, my friends, ends another Terminator: TSCC recap. I’ll try to get next week’s recap posted much sooner. Want to talk this episode up in more detail? Chat me up below.
on Sep 26th, 2008 at 9:48 am
I’m beginning to like Brian Austin Green as Derek Reese as well.
His pragmatism and his history is pretty interesting. Plus he had the best line of the episode in this one.
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on Sep 26th, 2008 at 10:16 am
b.e. earl - If it’s the line where they are at the church with Charley, yes, I agree it was one of the best lines.
Or were you thinking of another line?
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