Scorpion, “Da Bomb,” was written Kim Rome and was directed Steven A Adelson whose other credits include
12 Monkeys,
Beauty and the Beast, and
The Blacklist. The episode finishes off the story of Merrick (David Fabrizio). It also continues on Walter’s (Elyes Gabel) foray into speed dating – sort of. This episode really cranked up the tension as we see life and death on two fronts – as half the team tries to defuse a bomb and the other half has to save a rocket launch. It was another solid episode from an action standpoint. I have to admit that I am getting a bit impatient for some movement on the Walter/Paige (Katharine McPee) front. These things can be dragged on too long…
As the episode begins, Toby (Eddie Kaye Thomas) is acting as Walter’s wingman again. This time he has a date with speed date organizer, Linda (Brooke Nevin)! Walter tries to control all the variables by picking an efficient table – close to the kitchen (because everybody wants to sit in that noisy, high traffic area!) – and preordering the appetizer, which she is naturally allergic to! Walter continues his winning date ways by complimenting her teeth – her sharp canines! Toby finally abandons him in disgust!
The next day Sylvester (Ari Stidham) is prepping to go on Jeopardy. He’s using it as a way to get more comfortable on camera as he really wants to play the Price is Right – because that’s all numbers! His goal is to win enough money to donate to the Pediatric Ward to name it after Megan – aw! I did like that by the end of the episode, Sylvester had decided to simply be himself for his audition – not pretend to be someone he isn’t so the audience will relate to him.
Walter insists that his big date went very well, but Paige checks Linda’s Facebook page and she describes the evening as “interesting” – always a dead giveaway that the date was a disaster – or at least not very good. Cabe (Robert Patrick) arrives with a case, but before he can get to it, Toby accuses him of trying to look younger – and taller – because he’s got on a pair of biker boots with a pretty good heel! I loved when Cabe gets his boot stuck in the climactic fight with Merrick, and he too ends the episode by showing up with his old shoes on, also vowing not to be anything other than what he is.
The case turns out to be a top secret rocket launch. Cabe, Happy (Jadyn Wong), and Sylvester go on site, while Toby, Paige, and Walter support them from the garage. Both sub-teams end up with very unhappy surprises. Merrick greets the team at the base – and in fact, asked for Team Scorpion! He tells them that he works for NASA now, reporting to Captain Jackson (Laird Mcintosh). He’s still really angry at Cabe who he blames for destroying his career though. Meanwhile, Linda shows up at the garage with a bomb strapped to her and a thumb drive.
Walter puts her behind glass… just in case. It turns out she doesn’t remember much since she last saw Walter in the restaurant. Toby is appalled that Walter didn’t even walk Linda to her car. Walter’s reasoning? It’s an outdated, sexist tradition! She has a bitter taste in her mouth, and Toby is (miraculously) able to determine that it’s a government issue chemical. Paige has to tell Walter to consider Linda’s feelings.
The bomber, it turns out, wants the team at the base to sabotage the rocket. Cabe decides that they can’t let Linda die, so they will sabotage the rocket. Happy is going to put water in the fuel to change the trajectory of the rocket, but Sylvester has to distract Merrick while she does it. Sylvester has to go out of his comfort zone to do it because Merrick makes him nervous.
Meanwhile, at the garage, Linda’s phone rings and it’s a text from Walter – the first of several follow ups texts for their date that he pre-set to arrive throughout the day. Walter tries not to show it to her – and it’s bad – “Hope you’re having a blast today!” Unfortunately, it’s Walter who gets the blast. Linda tells him that he’s a weird man and the dinner was awkward and weird. Walter tells her not to worry about yelling at him as he understands she’s under stress and it doesn’t really affect him. Gabel is terrific in this scene because it’s clear that her words really do affect him. He tells her that he’ll still save her.
Walter uses satellite dishes that Toby steals from the bar next door to make a scanner. He discovers that the bomb has a signature in the wiring but it’s far too complex for them to defuse. Toby runs the signature through the FBI database.
Meanwhile, Merrick escorts Cabe, Happy, and Sylvester off the base. It’s 30 minutes to launch, and Happy notices that there are nitrogen canisters being loaded which means there are going to be 3 human astronauts on the rocket – the reason the mission is secret. It also means they can’t let the rocket crash.
Walter can’t disarm the bomb, so he decides that he will detonate it. They build a container and fill it with gel around Linda. When Walter’s second text comes in, he apologizes to Linda that she had such a miserable time. He tell her that he is smart enough to know he was floundering, and he told his friends it went well because he was embarrassed.
When Toby identifies the bomber from the signature in the wiring, they discover he’s dead but the pieces all fall into place for Cabe. Merrick was the one to catch the bomber and he would have access to the government knockout drug too. Merrick stops Happy. He tells her the rocket has to go down. Cabe and Merrick fight until Cabe’s boot gets stuck. Merrick admits to being on Beijing’s payroll for years. As the fight continues, Merrick ends up going over the railing and being killed. The others narrowly escape the fireball as the rocket takes off safely!
Meanwhile, Linda’s mom calls. She says she’s sorry Linda’s date was so awful, but Linda tells her she was wrong about the guy. He’s different but her mom would like him because he’s really smart and kind. But the bomb is still going to go off, so they hand Linda the iron plate to protect herself. It’s too heavy and she drops it, so Walter crawls into the gel behind her to hold it in place. Walter tells her that their date wasn’t the worst he’d ever had… Yikes!
The bomb blows up and they are both punched out of the container. Linda just gets a few broken ribs! It’s a pretty good effect too! Linda apologizes for being so rude, and Walter compliments her for being a very resilient woman. Then he mistakes her kindness for something more and invites her out to dinner again. Linda declines, saying the bomb has a lot to do with it! Walter admits that he’s worried that he’s going to end up alone. Sylvester found Megan, Happy and Toby have something. Even though he belongs in the team, he still stands out as different.
As with most episodes, we end with a nice scene between Paige and Walter. She explains to him that his date went badly because he tried to control everything. She tells him to be okay with who he is because that’s great! I liked the way this theme played out throughout the episode. Paige invites Walter out for dinner with her and Ralph (Riley B Smith), but Walter tells her he’s going to make papier mache with the gel because it will change color when it’s heated. Paige and Ralph exchange a look and then Ralph says they’re in! They’d rather stay with Walter. And as a final nice touch, Paige orders Walter’s favorite stinky fish that Toby wouldn’t let him order on his date! Ok, show. Walter is smarter than this. Let’s just get on with it with these two!!!
Overall a really fun, fast-paced episode with not one but two parallel cases. What did you think of the episode? Favorite scene? Line? Don’t you wish you’d seen the papier mache? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below!
About the Author - Lisa Macklem
I do interviews and write articles for the site in addition to reviewing a number of shows, including Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, Agent Carter, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, The X-Files, Defiance, Bitten, Killjoys, and a few others! I'm active on the Con scene when I have the time. When I'm not writing about television shows, I'm often writing about entertainment and media law in my capacity as a legal scholar. I also work in theatre when the opportunity arises. I'm an avid runner and rider, currently training in dressage.
