I am happy to say I enjoyed “Welcome to Gitmo,” the second episode of “The Last Ship.” For me, it was much better than the pilot. After last week I wanted to see more in terms of character focus and development. I wanted some emotional connections. And I wanted to see some slower moments to offset all the high-paced action. I felt the episode delivered.
The characters explored weren’t always the main characters. But it worked. In fact, it was nice to see some of these other crew members that we didn’t notice before being highlighted. It made it feel like more of a team. And that’s important in a show about the Navy. Focusing on the ensemble broadens the horizon and gives the show a wider scope. So I liked the development of watching the nervous, scared young man go from being yelled at all the time to earning his colleagues’ trust after a successful mission. I liked the female engineer who seemed to be a hard worker but was injured in an explosion while trying to get fuel. And I liked Lt. Danny Green, who is still my favorite character. He continues to be more fleshed out than the others and keeps growing from week to week.
My favorite scene in “Welcome to Gitmo” involved Green. In the beginning of the episode, he isn’t dealing with his friend Frankie’s death. His semi-girlfriend, Lt. Foster, tries to get him to talk about what happened but he responds by saying that everyone is dead, likely including their families, so what is the proper way to deal with that? He can only express anger. Later one of his team members gets shot and Green is clearly scared he will lose someone else. But after the man survives, Green breathes a sigh of relief. When Foster finds him looking through his friend Frankie’s belongings, it is an emotional moment. He recognizes that he should be preparing these items to give to the young man’s family, but there is no one to give them to. And he finally gives up control and breaks down. I thought this was a great scene. Actor Travis Van Winkle did a nice job portraying the evolution from a sailor who pushes his fear and pain aside to accomplish the mission to someone who can’t hold in his feelings any longer and needs to take a moment to grieve for all he’s lost. I actually teared up during the scene. These kind of emotional moments are necessary to build a connection with the viewer. They give us a reason to care about the characters and what they are going through because you see how much things matter to them.
In this same vein, I also liked the scene where the crew held a candlelight vigil to talk about their friends and families. As they offered prayers for those they loved, you could see the fear and sadness in their eyes. It drove home the seriousness of what they were up against and how important their role was now to the world. Again, the focus was on the entire crew as a team, which was appropriate in this scene. When the captain has to be stoic and fearless (at least on the surface), these emotional vulnerabilities have to come from other places.
I thought the main characters also interacted with each other in more meaningful conversations and contexts this week. We saw how Slattery doesn’t trust Dr. Scott, and we saw him continue to question the captain. They still have some tension between them. But the captain now trusts Scott. In the beginning he says there really isn’t another option. But by the time she saves one of his men, he tells her she has nothing to prove. The trust between them is becoming genuine. (I did, however, find it extremely coincidental that Scott just happened to be a medical expert who could save this man. That was too convenient for me. It seemed a forced way of enabling her to prove herself and earn everyone’s trust. But it’s something I could overlook.)
Unfortunately, I still am not impressed with the writing and acting of the main characters. So far they are the most one-dimensional of the show. But I am hoping this will improve.
As for the plot and action, I enjoyed them both this week. The plot wasn’t too overloaded with action, and the pacing was more evenly balanced. You weren’t on a constant adrenaline rush the entire time. And when you were, there was a good reason for it. Guantanamo Bay also proved to be a nice setting. You never knew what was going to happen as the Navy teams made their way to land at Gitmo. That tension of not knowing what to expect made you anxiously anticipate what was coming next or what could be around the corner. And the three teams seeking food, fuel and medicine were always up against something, whether it was Al Qaeda detainees on the loose, a broken fuel valve or their oxygen running out. I liked all the different plots going on at the same time, so when one team got past their obstacles, another team was still in trouble. It added to the suspense. I especially liked the oxygen subplot and the captain giving his team secret coded instructions through his dialogue with the terrorists.
I also enjoyed the new character who was introduced at Gitmo – Tex, the Gitmo guard. At first you didn’t know if you could trust him but he quickly passed the captain’s litmus test. He seemed like he could be both a tough guy and an amusing source of comedic relief so I look forward to more of him on board the ship. Plus, it’s nice to see a new (and non-military) character brought into the fold.
As for someone we don’t trust, we still didn’t find out too much about Quincy. Fortunately he didn’t get anywhere with his attempt to flood the ship with poisonous gases but his job isn’t over yet. As the episode ends, Quincy is still stalling the ship. The reason is intertwined with the Navy’s newest problem – a Russian vessel that passes itself off as British to get close to them. Just how dangerous are the Russians? We will find out next week, along with more about Quincy and why he’s sabotaging the Navy.
What did you think of “Welcome to Gitmo?” Did you enjoy it more or less than the first episode? Are you enjoying the series? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
About the Author - Tonya Papanikolas
Tonya Papanikolas is a freelance journalist who loves covering entertainment and television. She spent more than 10 years as a broadcast news anchor and reporter. Now she does everything from hosting to writing. She especially loves writing TV articles and reviews for SpoilerTV.
