Ever since I saw the trailer for this episode of Chase, I've been reminded of the second-season premiere of Boomtown, which saw Rebecca De Mornay and Kelly Hu as a pair of thieves. Chase gives us Yara Martinez (Annie, the love interest of the late Hector Williams, in Season 3 of The Unit) and Cherilyn Wilson (Morgan on the new 90210), who play Karen Nelson and Ivy Collins, a pair of dangerous women whom you may remember from "The Comeback Kid" (episode 1.03). I don't, because I was too busy focusing on Robert Knepper's performance as an unhinged ex-mobster, but the two are credited as playing the same characters in that episode.
Karen and Ivy have a preference for robbery-kidnappings targeting small regional banks. This allows the Marshals to counter with their own "girl power," putting Annie and Daisy at the fore of the episode. The former is expected, but the latter is certainly welcome, given that we haven't seen much of Daisy since she disarmed a bomb in "Havoc." It's sort of ironic how Annie talks about how little she knows about Daisy's personal life, as if the writers are winking at how overly focused on Annie the series can be. Unlike Human Target (which seemed to do the same last week regarding the new cast additions), it comes off less as a constructive exercise and more a not-so-helpful reminder of one of the show's flaws. And really, did the show have to go for the pointless lesbian kiss just because the two villains are women?
The preview for this episode advertised it as much faster-paced than it was; by the fourth act, there's a lot more talking than action, unless you count Karen shooting people. (Actually, as much as I have griped about it in the past, this episode of Chase has a refreshingly low body count.) A lot of talking is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as it's engaging; the Homicide: Life on the Street episode "Three Men and Adena" centers entirely around one interrogation, and it's probably one of the show's best episodes. With Chase, however, all the dialogue hurts the pace. The show's been sold to us as, well, a chase...and there's not a whole lot of actual chasing going on this week.
Speaking of action, I'm still wondering if Annie and Jimmy managing to jump from one rooftop to another is plausible. If anything, I think Kelli Giddish must be one of the hardest-working women on TV, at least when it comes to stunt work. Every week, Annie seems to do something physically demanding and/or completely ill-advised; this week, however, putting that action at the beginning means the episode''s best action sequence (and it is a good one) is done before the credits roll. The final confrontation between the Marshals and Karen is a grand total of four minutes long, and not surprising whatsoever, unless you count that it's Jimmy who gets to haul Karen off the edge of a cliff.
Thinking back to that episode of Boomtown, I have to say that while that was another show I had a love-hate relationship with, Boomtown did this plot better.
Next week, two great things happen: Dark Blue's Omari Hardwick goes bad, and we finally get to meet Jimmy's oft-mentioned girlfriend, Natalie. I'm not sure which I'm more interested in, but I'm definitely interested. Alright, Chase, you've hooked me for another week, but I hope you make it worth my while.
Brittany Frederick
DigitalAirwaves.net
Examiner.com
