In which everyone gets their torture on
Or: ow ow ow ow ow ow ow.
Also you might want to brace yourself again. Partly because of my boy, but also because it's time to return to one of our favourite places.
Interrogation Moralising 101.
VERY MANY THOUGHTS THIS WEEK, some of which can be summed up as OMG TONY but not all of them because also OMG ANDY and OMG ERIC and OMG TOM and basically OMG.
ALSO MY BOY IS STILL HERE, AND THIS NEEDS TO BE SAID AGAIN, BECAUSE I CAME BACK AND IT WAS STILL REAL.
And I can start using this icon again *points* AND THE UNIVERSE HAD BETTER LISTEN THIS TIME.
...
Hold on one moment whilst I take some deep breaths.
...
Better. Now. Let's begin...
- Mariana standing up for Andy. Hooray! She doesn't even know him that well but she still took the time to do it and to continue proving that she is composed of awesome. And still needs more to do besides poking computers with great competence.
- That first scene with Eric and Jadalla. Yes, I'm calling him Jadalla now. Yes, I remember that Emo Terrorist is a better name. Don't ask why I switched, I just did. It feels right this time. So. Eric and Jadalla. Yes. That moment where they saw each other face-to-face for the first time was so cold and chilling and it set up a lovely battle of wits that played all the way through this ep. And went to some bad places. But we'll get to that.
- Isaac and Nicole taking down the guys Jadalla sent after them was so very slick and cool and seriously those two work alarmingly well together. Also Nicole continues to be kickass despite having no formal training and I love her for it. And they found themselves another dodgy warehouse (they appear to be especially in this season) to hole up in whilst Isaac got his torture on with the Unfortunate Minion. And OK yes he was alarmingly competent but no one is trying to paint the guy as a saint and also let us not forget that he got what HE wanted out of HIS subject and as such is the ONLY person this week whose interrogation was successful. Y'know, just saying. And then he called up his crew so that they could go after Eric. And of course they called him out on it. And of course it was Nicole's Big Damn Speech on family that won the day. Because she is awesome. And currently in the care of Very Tall Omar, who should probably take her to CTU before this gets any worse. Much as I adore the woman, she has Protagonist's Loved One Syndrome, and as such bad things are attracted to her like paperclips to a magnet. Death paperclips. To a doom magnet. Shush I never said I was sensible.
- On the topic of family and suchlike, and picking up on what I said last week, apparently Jadalla DOES like family drama because he just had to bring up the whole Eric/Nicole/Isaac love triangle thing. And yes he was trying to throw Eric off balance, but even so. Family drama. I bet he watches soaps in his spare time. On account of being so EMO.
- AND NOW SOME TRAUMA. Because of the whole thing with the FAKE FLASH DRIVE OF DOOM, and the LOOK on Andy's face when he realised Jadalla had tricked him, and ARGH ARGH ARGH my heart. Followed by ARGH ARGH ARGH GIANT KNIFE, and whilst it must be said that I happen to LIKE giant knives, I do not like them being STABBED INTO MY ANDY, thank you very much. And nor does he. AND NOR DOES HIS BOYFRIEND, WHO HAPPENS TO HAVE A LOT OF GUNS AND A LOT OF LARGE FRIENDS WHO ALSO HAVE GUNS. And whilst I realise I previously stated Isaac was the only one who got what he wanted from his torturing, it must be admitted that Jadalla comes second because he sort of did for a little while. BUT THEN HE DIDN'T.
- PEOPLE NEED TO STOP HURTING MY ANDY OK.
- Aaaaaaaaaand then we have to talk about JOHN AND REBECCA and also my TONY, and MERCIFUL POWERS ON A BIKE but that first scene where John came storming in was so GOOD, and then Rebecca talked him down, and THERE they were all over again, my IDEALIST and my REALIST and it is so perfect and right and also likely to end in pain and suffering. And just because I have suspected as much since the PROMOS does not make it any easier to bear. Especially because I love them BOTH and I can see why John is upset and why Rebecca is doing what she's doing and HERE WE ARE, back at one of my favourite places, INTERROGATION MORALISING 101. Something ELSE the oft-mentioned Season Seven covered with such aplomb. ALL THESE REFERENCES, SEE HOW THEY MAKE THE CAPSLOCK?
- Connected to the above, and if you will allow me to get more thoughtful for a moment, this whole situation throws up some interesting questions about the kind of man John Donovan is and the kind of president he would be. We already know he wants to pull out of the race - for moral reasons, it would appear - and if we continue to accept for the moment that face-value is correct and he is NOT a mole or up to something else dodgy (jury's still out on that one) then we are left asking how his reaction to all of this affects what we might think of him as a president. Currently he is presenting as a genuine idealist who believes in Goodness and Right and the Rule of Law, and doesn't want to drop to the kind of levels that his wife, he is learning, is far more comfortable with. Now, of course his reactions are affected by the fact that the subject in this whole equation is his own father and therefore he is emotionally compromised. But would it be different if it was a stranger? If it was just some random person who had the information the good guys need? We will likely not get the chance to witness the answer to this question, so we are left with what we have. And right now? I can't help wondering if John lacks the stomach to make the hard choices. And that is going to cause problems. (But we shall see.)
- And. That whole part where John's brain caught up with everything and he realised how well prepared Rebecca is for all of this. "You've done this before." Statement, not question. And oh sweetie, of course she has. She was National CTU Director. She's done this many times. And you must have understood that, even if you've never witnessed it up close.
- Tangentially connected to the above, Tony watching Rebecca and John have that initial discussion was all kinds of confusing, and I really need to know more about what past connections John and Tony have. Do they know each other? Did they like each other? Is this about to turn into another Love Triangle of Doom or just a little bit of history? Hard to say. But that look... that look was telling.
- Also, also, much as I realise Rebecca didn't really have a choice, she should NOT be letting John watch her ex-lover torture John's father. Just saying. That IS NOT GOING TO END WELL. (It didn't. More soon.)
- Back to Jadalla and Eric. The whole thing with the chair-smashing and the GRENADE was especially awesome (Jack Bauer would be proud) and I did like the verbal battle between the two of them. Although the best part came closer to the end. (More soon.)
- MISSILES. I realise everyone in this 'verse is CRAZY but FUCKING MISSILES? They decided to MISSILE the terrorists to death? In an American city?! Are they all HIGH?!
- Incidentally, my reaction to the above point suddenly kicked me to ask a very serious question that I should not have left until freaking Episode EIGHT to ask. WHO THE HELL IS PRESIDENT RIGHT NOW? I realise it almost certainly isn't James Heller, not after what happened in Live Another Day, so... who? Has there been an election? Is it his Veep? I know the President is not a key character this time around, but even so, I want to know.
- Back to the missiles. FUCKING MISSILES. Are they NUTS?! The scene where Tom found out about it was quietly agonising, though at the same time I'm impressed he didn't lose his cool. Because SOMEONE needs not to. Hopefully this will help him towards understanding IMPORTANT THINGS like how much he loves ANDY. (More soon.)
- And then. Then. That weird moment where Eric saw a guy he recognised. Nasiri, I think his name is. I was all huh? and bwah? and then I got distracted for a while and THEN I got smacked in the chest. (More soon.)
- Picking up on my earlier point about the verbal sparring between Eric and Jadalla, the BEST part was the one right near the end where Eric flat-out called him on it. The whole thing about the killing of innocents, and using religion as a thinly-veiled shield for hate, and yes, yes, thank you, it's about time someone actually acknowledged that part because THEY DO NOT DO THIS often enough. And it is RELEVANT. And also TRUE. Plus Eric being defiant and awesome is always good.
- And then. SURPRISE VAN. BECAUSE EVERY SEASON NEEDS A SURPRISE VAN. And this time it was Isaac and his crew who got to do the honours, bursting in out of nowhere to blitz the terrorists with gunfire. Now wasn't THAT a nice surprise? I mean, OK, it wasn't surprising because they'd said like twenty minutes previously that they were going to do it, but it is certainly interesting to have the Big Damn Rescue come not from CTU or the military or whatnot, but from civilians. Admittedly civilians who regularly engage in illegal activities and own a lot of guns that no country in its RIGHT MIND would let regular citizens buy, but there you go. /soapbox. And they burst in and suddenly everything went to CHAOS. And Andy got to a phone (Smarter Than The Average Techie) and called Mariana, in time to get warned about the FUCKING MISSILE (sorry I keep swearing, but seriously, a FUCKING MISSILE?!) And then my HEART STOPPED because everyone was running for it and Andy was frantically gathering up the tech and then JADALLA SHOT ISAAC and ERIC CARRIED HIM OUT. And then BOOM. Because apparently NO ONE WILL ASK QUESTIONS IF YOU RANDOMLY MISSILE A WAREHOUSE IN DOWNTOWN WASHINGTON.
- And then more chaos. Chaos that resolved into Isaac alive but badly wounded, into Eric covered in a lot of blood. Into Tom finding Andy and FAILING TO KISS HIM but also clearly being pleased he is ALIVE, and I WANT RESOLUTION, DAMN IT. I WANT RESOLUTION AND MAKING OUT. Also I am ONE HUNDRED MILLION PERCENT relieved that my Andy is ALIVE and mostly intact and now receiving MEDICAL TREATMENT from the good guys. (They are part of Tom's tac-team. This means they are good guys.)
- And THEN it transpires that the weird man Eric saw, Nasiri, is clearly relevant, because Jadalla the Emo Terrorist is DOWN (but evidently still alive) and Nasiri the Ninja Terrorist has escaped. And the plot just FLIPPED and I totally was not expecting that so soon. SO WHO THE HELL IS NINJA TERRORIST? (This is his name now.)
- AND... I saved the other plotline for last, even though the final shots were all about Ninja Terrorist. I need to stop and try to work through the final sequence with John and Henry and Tony and Rebecca and A LOT OF TORTURE DRUGS. And I'm not entirely sure how to do this because DAMN but that went badly. John flipping out really wasn't a surprise (seriously, Rebecca should NOT have let him watch, he is EMOTIONALLY COMPROMISED) but the real kicker was when Rebecca got word that Jadalla had been captured, and then SHE snapped and let John stop the interrogation. Which Tony was CLEARLY not happy about, especially as he obviously believes he was close to a result (and we know how he likes to get a result), and then there was a lot of SHOUTING and GLARING and from this I am left with the distinct sense of alarm that Tony is not telling us everything, and WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME HE DID THAT. Something is wrong. Maybe I'm over-sensitive about these things due to the MASSIVE EMOTIONAL TRAUMA I'm still carrying from, oh, I don't know, Seasons THREE, FIVE and SEVEN, but still. Something is wrong. I can feel it in my GUT.
- Rebecca and John are in serious trouble now, relationship-wise. Serious trouble. Henry remains evil and possessed of a particularly unsettling glare, and I'm not wholly sure I fancy his chances. Just a hunch.
- Also. Tony carrying out an interrogation with THOSE drugs whilst becoming more and more emotionally compromised himself, going from calm and controlled to anything but? Yeah. Triggery. Because we know what happened the last time he did that.
- Does John know the things Tony's done? And, if not (and I suspect not) can we please stop him finding out? For as long as possible? Because... oh dear, that's just not a conversation anyone wants to have.
- ALSO MY TONY, DID I MENTION MY TONY? EVERY SECOND IS A JOY I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER FEEL AGAIN. EVERY TIME THE ACTION CUTS BACK TO HIM I CAN'T QUITE BELIEVE IT'S REAL. I KNOW I GUSH ABOUT THIS A LOT BUT SERIOUSLY, SERIOUSLY, I JUST CAN'T EVEN.
I need more soon, please. Lots more. Very soon.
Also, help. Please send that.
Also you might want to brace yourself again. Partly because of my boy, but also because it's time to return to one of our favourite places.
Interrogation Moralising 101.
VERY MANY THOUGHTS THIS WEEK, some of which can be summed up as OMG TONY but not all of them because also OMG ANDY and OMG ERIC and OMG TOM and basically OMG.
ALSO MY BOY IS STILL HERE, AND THIS NEEDS TO BE SAID AGAIN, BECAUSE I CAME BACK AND IT WAS STILL REAL.
And I can start using this icon again *points* AND THE UNIVERSE HAD BETTER LISTEN THIS TIME.
...
Hold on one moment whilst I take some deep breaths.
...
Better. Now. Let's begin...
- Mariana standing up for Andy. Hooray! She doesn't even know him that well but she still took the time to do it and to continue proving that she is composed of awesome. And still needs more to do besides poking computers with great competence.
- That first scene with Eric and Jadalla. Yes, I'm calling him Jadalla now. Yes, I remember that Emo Terrorist is a better name. Don't ask why I switched, I just did. It feels right this time. So. Eric and Jadalla. Yes. That moment where they saw each other face-to-face for the first time was so cold and chilling and it set up a lovely battle of wits that played all the way through this ep. And went to some bad places. But we'll get to that.
- Isaac and Nicole taking down the guys Jadalla sent after them was so very slick and cool and seriously those two work alarmingly well together. Also Nicole continues to be kickass despite having no formal training and I love her for it. And they found themselves another dodgy warehouse (they appear to be especially in this season) to hole up in whilst Isaac got his torture on with the Unfortunate Minion. And OK yes he was alarmingly competent but no one is trying to paint the guy as a saint and also let us not forget that he got what HE wanted out of HIS subject and as such is the ONLY person this week whose interrogation was successful. Y'know, just saying. And then he called up his crew so that they could go after Eric. And of course they called him out on it. And of course it was Nicole's Big Damn Speech on family that won the day. Because she is awesome. And currently in the care of Very Tall Omar, who should probably take her to CTU before this gets any worse. Much as I adore the woman, she has Protagonist's Loved One Syndrome, and as such bad things are attracted to her like paperclips to a magnet. Death paperclips. To a doom magnet. Shush I never said I was sensible.
- On the topic of family and suchlike, and picking up on what I said last week, apparently Jadalla DOES like family drama because he just had to bring up the whole Eric/Nicole/Isaac love triangle thing. And yes he was trying to throw Eric off balance, but even so. Family drama. I bet he watches soaps in his spare time. On account of being so EMO.
- AND NOW SOME TRAUMA. Because of the whole thing with the FAKE FLASH DRIVE OF DOOM, and the LOOK on Andy's face when he realised Jadalla had tricked him, and ARGH ARGH ARGH my heart. Followed by ARGH ARGH ARGH GIANT KNIFE, and whilst it must be said that I happen to LIKE giant knives, I do not like them being STABBED INTO MY ANDY, thank you very much. And nor does he. AND NOR DOES HIS BOYFRIEND, WHO HAPPENS TO HAVE A LOT OF GUNS AND A LOT OF LARGE FRIENDS WHO ALSO HAVE GUNS. And whilst I realise I previously stated Isaac was the only one who got what he wanted from his torturing, it must be admitted that Jadalla comes second because he sort of did for a little while. BUT THEN HE DIDN'T.
- PEOPLE NEED TO STOP HURTING MY ANDY OK.
- Aaaaaaaaaand then we have to talk about JOHN AND REBECCA and also my TONY, and MERCIFUL POWERS ON A BIKE but that first scene where John came storming in was so GOOD, and then Rebecca talked him down, and THERE they were all over again, my IDEALIST and my REALIST and it is so perfect and right and also likely to end in pain and suffering. And just because I have suspected as much since the PROMOS does not make it any easier to bear. Especially because I love them BOTH and I can see why John is upset and why Rebecca is doing what she's doing and HERE WE ARE, back at one of my favourite places, INTERROGATION MORALISING 101. Something ELSE the oft-mentioned Season Seven covered with such aplomb. ALL THESE REFERENCES, SEE HOW THEY MAKE THE CAPSLOCK?
- Connected to the above, and if you will allow me to get more thoughtful for a moment, this whole situation throws up some interesting questions about the kind of man John Donovan is and the kind of president he would be. We already know he wants to pull out of the race - for moral reasons, it would appear - and if we continue to accept for the moment that face-value is correct and he is NOT a mole or up to something else dodgy (jury's still out on that one) then we are left asking how his reaction to all of this affects what we might think of him as a president. Currently he is presenting as a genuine idealist who believes in Goodness and Right and the Rule of Law, and doesn't want to drop to the kind of levels that his wife, he is learning, is far more comfortable with. Now, of course his reactions are affected by the fact that the subject in this whole equation is his own father and therefore he is emotionally compromised. But would it be different if it was a stranger? If it was just some random person who had the information the good guys need? We will likely not get the chance to witness the answer to this question, so we are left with what we have. And right now? I can't help wondering if John lacks the stomach to make the hard choices. And that is going to cause problems. (But we shall see.)
- And. That whole part where John's brain caught up with everything and he realised how well prepared Rebecca is for all of this. "You've done this before." Statement, not question. And oh sweetie, of course she has. She was National CTU Director. She's done this many times. And you must have understood that, even if you've never witnessed it up close.
- Tangentially connected to the above, Tony watching Rebecca and John have that initial discussion was all kinds of confusing, and I really need to know more about what past connections John and Tony have. Do they know each other? Did they like each other? Is this about to turn into another Love Triangle of Doom or just a little bit of history? Hard to say. But that look... that look was telling.
- Also, also, much as I realise Rebecca didn't really have a choice, she should NOT be letting John watch her ex-lover torture John's father. Just saying. That IS NOT GOING TO END WELL. (It didn't. More soon.)
- Back to Jadalla and Eric. The whole thing with the chair-smashing and the GRENADE was especially awesome (Jack Bauer would be proud) and I did like the verbal battle between the two of them. Although the best part came closer to the end. (More soon.)
- MISSILES. I realise everyone in this 'verse is CRAZY but FUCKING MISSILES? They decided to MISSILE the terrorists to death? In an American city?! Are they all HIGH?!
- Incidentally, my reaction to the above point suddenly kicked me to ask a very serious question that I should not have left until freaking Episode EIGHT to ask. WHO THE HELL IS PRESIDENT RIGHT NOW? I realise it almost certainly isn't James Heller, not after what happened in Live Another Day, so... who? Has there been an election? Is it his Veep? I know the President is not a key character this time around, but even so, I want to know.
- Back to the missiles. FUCKING MISSILES. Are they NUTS?! The scene where Tom found out about it was quietly agonising, though at the same time I'm impressed he didn't lose his cool. Because SOMEONE needs not to. Hopefully this will help him towards understanding IMPORTANT THINGS like how much he loves ANDY. (More soon.)
- And then. Then. That weird moment where Eric saw a guy he recognised. Nasiri, I think his name is. I was all huh? and bwah? and then I got distracted for a while and THEN I got smacked in the chest. (More soon.)
- Picking up on my earlier point about the verbal sparring between Eric and Jadalla, the BEST part was the one right near the end where Eric flat-out called him on it. The whole thing about the killing of innocents, and using religion as a thinly-veiled shield for hate, and yes, yes, thank you, it's about time someone actually acknowledged that part because THEY DO NOT DO THIS often enough. And it is RELEVANT. And also TRUE. Plus Eric being defiant and awesome is always good.
- And then. SURPRISE VAN. BECAUSE EVERY SEASON NEEDS A SURPRISE VAN. And this time it was Isaac and his crew who got to do the honours, bursting in out of nowhere to blitz the terrorists with gunfire. Now wasn't THAT a nice surprise? I mean, OK, it wasn't surprising because they'd said like twenty minutes previously that they were going to do it, but it is certainly interesting to have the Big Damn Rescue come not from CTU or the military or whatnot, but from civilians. Admittedly civilians who regularly engage in illegal activities and own a lot of guns that no country in its RIGHT MIND would let regular citizens buy, but there you go. /soapbox. And they burst in and suddenly everything went to CHAOS. And Andy got to a phone (Smarter Than The Average Techie) and called Mariana, in time to get warned about the FUCKING MISSILE (sorry I keep swearing, but seriously, a FUCKING MISSILE?!) And then my HEART STOPPED because everyone was running for it and Andy was frantically gathering up the tech and then JADALLA SHOT ISAAC and ERIC CARRIED HIM OUT. And then BOOM. Because apparently NO ONE WILL ASK QUESTIONS IF YOU RANDOMLY MISSILE A WAREHOUSE IN DOWNTOWN WASHINGTON.
- And then more chaos. Chaos that resolved into Isaac alive but badly wounded, into Eric covered in a lot of blood. Into Tom finding Andy and FAILING TO KISS HIM but also clearly being pleased he is ALIVE, and I WANT RESOLUTION, DAMN IT. I WANT RESOLUTION AND MAKING OUT. Also I am ONE HUNDRED MILLION PERCENT relieved that my Andy is ALIVE and mostly intact and now receiving MEDICAL TREATMENT from the good guys. (They are part of Tom's tac-team. This means they are good guys.)
- And THEN it transpires that the weird man Eric saw, Nasiri, is clearly relevant, because Jadalla the Emo Terrorist is DOWN (but evidently still alive) and Nasiri the Ninja Terrorist has escaped. And the plot just FLIPPED and I totally was not expecting that so soon. SO WHO THE HELL IS NINJA TERRORIST? (This is his name now.)
- AND... I saved the other plotline for last, even though the final shots were all about Ninja Terrorist. I need to stop and try to work through the final sequence with John and Henry and Tony and Rebecca and A LOT OF TORTURE DRUGS. And I'm not entirely sure how to do this because DAMN but that went badly. John flipping out really wasn't a surprise (seriously, Rebecca should NOT have let him watch, he is EMOTIONALLY COMPROMISED) but the real kicker was when Rebecca got word that Jadalla had been captured, and then SHE snapped and let John stop the interrogation. Which Tony was CLEARLY not happy about, especially as he obviously believes he was close to a result (and we know how he likes to get a result), and then there was a lot of SHOUTING and GLARING and from this I am left with the distinct sense of alarm that Tony is not telling us everything, and WE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED THE LAST TIME HE DID THAT. Something is wrong. Maybe I'm over-sensitive about these things due to the MASSIVE EMOTIONAL TRAUMA I'm still carrying from, oh, I don't know, Seasons THREE, FIVE and SEVEN, but still. Something is wrong. I can feel it in my GUT.
- Rebecca and John are in serious trouble now, relationship-wise. Serious trouble. Henry remains evil and possessed of a particularly unsettling glare, and I'm not wholly sure I fancy his chances. Just a hunch.
- Also. Tony carrying out an interrogation with THOSE drugs whilst becoming more and more emotionally compromised himself, going from calm and controlled to anything but? Yeah. Triggery. Because we know what happened the last time he did that.
- Does John know the things Tony's done? And, if not (and I suspect not) can we please stop him finding out? For as long as possible? Because... oh dear, that's just not a conversation anyone wants to have.
- ALSO MY TONY, DID I MENTION MY TONY? EVERY SECOND IS A JOY I THOUGHT I WOULD NEVER FEEL AGAIN. EVERY TIME THE ACTION CUTS BACK TO HIM I CAN'T QUITE BELIEVE IT'S REAL. I KNOW I GUSH ABOUT THIS A LOT BUT SERIOUSLY, SERIOUSLY, I JUST CAN'T EVEN.
I need more soon, please. Lots more. Very soon.
Also, help. Please send that.