That's not to say that there isn't a certain standardization, or familiarity, to an episode of POI. It seemingly will always follow the "new number each week" structure, but I think it's found some clever to juke around the constraints of the system. Plus, last week, they were able to use the number system to open up the "Machine" storyline a bit more, revealing the plans of government op Alicia and showing us Finch's old flame (played by Michael Emerson's real life wife, True Blood's Carrie Preston). This week, in the finale, I have to say that I was disappointed in myself for not being able to see the big swerve coming. Yes, I was genuinely surprised that Amy Acker's (Angel, Dollhouse, Alias) therapist character turned out to be "Root" even though I should have known better. I mean, hasn't most of Acker's TV career been built on her characters pulling big "180"s? Also, the episode title "Firewall" should have clued me in too. So, you know, shame on me.
Also, the set up, with both HR and the FBI cornering Reese and his "number" in a hotel totally mirrored episode seven, "Witness," when he was unknowingly protecting Elias. So now this show has managed to pull off two big "Keyser Soze" moments in one season. But that's not the only thing about "Firewall" that felt reminiscent. Did anyone else flashback to the pilot a bit when, in front of Fusco even, Reese blew up the back of the bad guys' car, flipping it over? I'm not saying that this show is being lazy, I just think it's making a few active call-backs - as a way to bookend Season 1.
It did seem strange to me that a season full of so many great conspiracy arcs would end with the ol' standby of "Reese protecting a damsel from some gunmen." Yes, the gunmen were from HR, but I think we all were waiting for something bigger to happen, right? And so in that respect, this episode needed that twist at the end. Because the take-down (for now) of HR felt a little bit underwhelming. And while I won't fully say that this is a fault of the show, one of the traits of this series is that it's able to, successfully, build and build to something, only to pull the trigger on something a bit too soon. Or, at least, too unexpectedly. For example, I wasn't expecting the Elias arc to end when it did. Or for Fusco to take down HR top brass with an anonymous email in this episode. I'm sure that's one of the challenges of having way more seasonal arcs than a typical procedural has any right to contain.
"Firewall" was exciting, sure. And it felt like a lot of things were converging/culminating on an FBI hunt/HR level. But I think the biggest thing it had going for it, aside from the "Root" reveal at the end, was Fusco and Carter finally finding out that they're both on the same side. In many respects, this first season was an exercise in team-building; creating a full pre-crime fighting support system while also enriching the bond between Reese and Finch. Now they can head into Season 2 as more of a force.
The use of Root as this season's outro villain was also clever because, well, who remembered Root? I mean, yes we remembered Root from episode 13 and knew that Root was still at large, but I don't think many of us expected Root to insert herself into Finch's history with "the Machine." And so the penultimate episode, and Alicia's spying, was all a bit of a red-herring. But it wasn't a wasted story since it still provided us with the idea of the government willing to "clean sweep" anyone who had knowledge of, or gets too close present-day to, Finch's device. The final image, with Reese on the pay phone, was a nice pay-off considering how much of his story this season involved trying to find that phone. Now, if he can just find Finch... Matt Fowler is an Editor of IGN TV. You can follow him on Twitter at @MattIGN.
