Burn Notice - 6.17 & 6.18 - You Can Run - Preview

Burn Notice season finale airs Thursday on USA, 9/8 C

It's an explosive ending to what may be the best season of Burn Notice so far. Cars race, motorcycles chase, bullets and a Molotov cocktail fly, medicine is used as torture, and people die. Jam packed with action, the two-hour season finale begins with Michael sneaking out to meet…..Jason Bly. Woo hoo! I love that character. Bly offers to bring Michael in as a CSS witness, pretty much guaranteeing Michael jail time but eliminating the threat of CIA dynamo Olivia Riley on his family and friends. That may be a bargain as Riley becomes more unhinged as the episode progresses. Of course the rest of the team doesn't see it that way. Unfortunately their situation goes from bad to worse when they try to get passage aboard a ship at port. Riley finds the union boss they bribed and in the resulting shoot out Jesse is caught and Sam is wounded. Michael sums it up: "It's been a rough week."

The theme of the night is how many bad decisions for the right reasons does it take to turn someone into a bad guy themselves. Primarily the subject is approached by Sam. It's evident he has issues with Michael's choices of late and implies that Michael is turning into the very people he fought so hard against. In one poignant moment, Sam makes Michael swear he will make things right again. Meanwhile Fiona is at her kick butt best, not taking no for an answer. While Michael looks for persuasion techniques with their hostage, Fiona prefers straight talk with a gun: "Hi! We haven't officially met but you shot one of my best friends. Michael has principles about not hurting people. I don't. Michael says that you're a nice guy and I could care less. And Michael thinks it's wrong to shoot people and I don't give a damn. So why don't you give me Riley's location right the hell now or I'll give you a 9 millimeter tracheotomy." Go Fi!

The finale contains poignant moments as well. Jesse is hit hard, figuratively and literally, in interrogation and Riley sure knows his weak spot. What starts off as snarky repartee ends in desperation and real emotion, giving us more insight into his character. I've liked Jesse more every season he's been in with season 6 being his best.

Other tidbits - A guest character I never thought I'd see again helps in a pinch. The ending had me literally yelling, "Say what? Nooo!" The 24-style split screens are back. Relationships are asunder. In other words, it's a typical Burn Notice finale that left me on the edge of my seat and anxiously awaiting season 7.

Burn Notice airs this Thursday at 9/8 C on USA Network. It is a two-hour double feature.