For all the deep and insightful commentary Person of Interest provides on the nature of AI, sometimes the show can be at its best when it mostly ditches that idea and has a profound amount of fun with its story. That was no less apparent than in the opening scene of SNAFU, which featured the Machine mixing up the faces of our main characters as the makeshift supercomputer struggled to work correctly.
When the scene was released at New York Comic-Con back in October, I had initially assumed it was simply a non-canon promotional video shot purely for entertainment value to release at the event. Imagine my surprise at its inclusion here. It was welcome surprise, however, because as much as this was a drastic, albeit brief, change of tone, it was highly effective and fit right into the story being told. Even looking deeper than the surface enjoyment, the odd shot of Finch and Root looking at the monitors indicated that we were looking through a different set of the Machine’s eyes to them, an intriguing concept despite how little the show will likely explore it beyond what did later in the hour.
But to the scene itself I must applaud, because all four performers nailed each other’s characters. In particular, Michael Emerson’s intense bordering on menacing portrayal of Reese was masterful, evoking memories of his time on LOST as the villainous Ben Linus. Paralleling that was Emerson’s much more relaxed stint as Root, telling Reese “Clear your jets, Johnny Boy. You’re the muscle, Harry’s the maestro.” Amy Acker got to play all four involved, with her Finch impersonation near perfect. His intonation makes up much of his personality, and Acker emulated her co-star flawlessly. Before the scene was out, she was given the opportunity to play everyone at once in a scenario that both scares and excites me. Four Amy Ackers? I’m in for whatever would happen.
And for pure humour, look no further than Kevin Chapman as Root, telling the Machine “Hi in there, pretty.” What a way to kick the whole thing off. Also nice was seeing Jim Caviezel being given the opportunity to do something more than his usual whisper; his role as Fusco another entertaining moment (the way he held and ate the burger simultaneously captured the detective’s traits while being nothing like him was a nice touch). Ramin Djawadi’s techno score added infinitely to the scene, deftly setting the tone as one not to be taken especially seriously but moving the dialogue along as needed.
Enough about that opening scene, however, because the remainder of the episode amounted to one of the best of the show to date. After a quick heist from Reese and Finch - including a fist bump! - the Machine appeared to be working correctly, even listing Reese as having been directly responsible for 62 deaths and disappearances, a number that seems pretty realistic if not ever so slightly concerning for Finch. Not only was it working correctly, but the Machine was now an open system, displaying information on anyone and everyone in Times Square as shown in a thrilling sequence.
That was only an illusion, however, as it was very quickly revealed that the Machine was still having issues. Namely, that it was reliving all 42 of its past lives at once, unable to distinguish one from another and spouting completely irrelevant numbers, including that of one Carlo Breda who died in 1965, who was being presented as a new number after Finch used Breda’s demise to teach his creation good from evil. And while the Machine attempted to figure out up from down and where in the timeline it was, Finch asked that he and Root be considered for context to enable it to view the 30 numbers provided - one of whom was involved with death, but in a stage performance where his character died while his acting threatened to kill the art of live theatre, according to Reese - in context.
What a mistake that was.
Instead of focusing on the good that the pair have done and that Finch created the AI while Root is its analog interface, they were both given a red box and designated as threats to the Machine’s very existence. Finch has been given this before, back in Prophets’s flashbacks as he took a hammer to the Machine when it tried to asphyxiate him, but seeing either of them classified as such is no less shocking. Granted, there was good reason for it: The Machine realised that they planned to alter or shut it down due to the faults on show, and while this was by no means an intentionally hostile act, it’s difficult to argue with that opinion.
While we’ve almost always watched Person of Interest through the Machine’s eyes, we’ve rarely experienced events from its perspective. To us, Finch and Root are the heroes of the story, doing what they can to save as many people as possible, and fixing the Machine’s bugs here was just another part of that. For the Machine, they planned to change it, and that’s not something to just be accepted - particularly now that it’s an open system - because to it, there was nothing wrong. Much like an illness, the Machine refused to accept that there was a problem when really, an observer’s diagnosis was needed. So fundamentally human.
And much like a human, the Machine did what it needed to do to survive, including using Root’s implant against her. It reached a point where the self-defence actions being taken were nearly as malicious as those Samaritan enacts, even extending to hiring an assassin to take out Reese. "What if it comes down to the machine or us?" asks Finch.
Fortunately (and obviously, since the show was never going to choose between one or the other, certainly not this early in its final run), it didn’t come to that. But even the contemplation is fascinating. Would they have sacrificed the Machine for their own lives and allowed Samaritan to run free and control the world, or would they have given their own lives to provide the world an incognito chance? Disappointing, perhaps, that we didn’t get to see that come into play, but Finch teaching the AI that once called him father that they can be trusted and that they’re on the same side made for exhilarating viewing. For the fourth consecutive episode, Person of Interest managed to hit all the emotional beats using a computer system. Good lord, this show is superb.
“I am sorry,” the Machine says. “We all do terrible things,” Finch replies.
Now, the Machine looks to be back in full working order. That’s a far quicker resolution than I would have expected and perhaps hoped for, but given that this final season only has 13 episodes and how expertly these opening two have progressed to this point, there will be no complaints from me. With 11 episodes remaining, the focus can turn towards Samaritan. If they turn out as well as these two have, we could be in for quite a season.
Notes:
- One of the numbers was legitimate as ex-con-turned-painter Jeffrey Blackwell, who was deemed as yet another mistake number by Reese, ended the hour becoming Samaritan’s 704th asset. His introduction to the side came from an operative named Mona (played by LaChanze), who used Finch’s iconic line from the pilot to recruit Blackwell: “You need a purpose. More specifically, you need a job.” Perhaps too on the nose with the callback?
- Chekhov’s automatic subway car door?
- The instant shift in Finch’s mood from saying Reese’s name having discovered that the Machine paid the assassin in advance to telling him to run for his life will never not be brilliant. As will Fusco’s reaction to seeing the later-revealed-assassin walk into the precinct after taking another of Finch’s cases.
- Just after the case of mistaken identities, Root gave Harold a kiss on the cheek and a slap on the rear. This both amused and greatly confused me.
- We learnt the names of Reese’s family members! His parents were Conor and Margaret, and he had a sister named Sophie. All deceased. Perhaps we’ll see that in flashbacks this year?
- "Finch, how did you teach your machine to be good?" "By example." Breaking and entering is a good example to set.
- "The technical term is bananas"
- "I'm literally watching paint dry."
What did you think of SNAFU? Leave your thoughts in the comments below and vote in our poll, also below.
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