SEAL Team - Call Out - Review: "Scooby Vans Don't Hide Everything" + Poll

In the last episode before the break, Bravo team was headed to a “pretty hostile” neighborhood in Jalalabad to find Tariq’s boyfriend, Azim, in the hopes that he has information that can help them find the person responsible for the bomb that killed Echo Team.

The Scooby Van that Jason predicted would let them get in and out of the neighborhood unnoticed was only ever going to work if they’d gone into the neighborhood after dark and/or in disguise.

Unfortunately, a team of fully kitted out SEALs entering an apartment building in broad daylight is impossible to miss. Two minutes after they find Tariq’s boyfriend, Azim, they are informed they’re being surrounded and in for a tough firefight.

Davis, as usual, has their backs. After they find themselves in a pretty serious firefight, (they fired an RPG at an apartment building!), she finds them the fastest, alternative, transportation out of the area possible.

I continue to enjoy the respect that this show (and The Brave show their female characters. It’s been a while since we’ve seen women on television serving in the military in capacities other than support or medical personnel.

Speaking of…we met a couple of new characters that look to be semi-regulars.

One is Paul Mulwray, a reporter looking for a story. I think it’ll be a few episodes before we find out if he’ll be more than a source of information for Ellis, her asset, or if he’ll be involved in any other stories. It still feels like the show is moving towards a deeper relationship between Jason and Ellis.

The other new character is Bravo Team’s new CST (Cultural Support Team), Staff Sergeant Vanessa Ryan. Her job is to deal with any women they encounter when they go into the field.

Sergeant Ryan’s usefulness is seen during their first mission. When Aresh Kamal, the man who built the bomb that killed Echo team, sends his deaf wife out, rather than facing the team himself,

Ryan’s presence calms the woman enough for her to signal that she is deaf. Ryan, a former Girl Scout, knows sign language. The team is more than relieved that they didn’t shoot a innocent woman. Am I the only person who considered that the bomb maker was hoping to get her killed?

Cerberus finally gets his moment in the spotlight. After Kamal’s wife is safely out of the way Ceberus is sent into Kamal’s house to check for explosives and determine if Kamal is in the house or not.

The dog climbs a ladder to get into the house’s second story. That was just kind of cool. He clears the house for the team so when Kamal pulls a knife, the team rushes in to save the dog (and grab Kamal).

When Kamal reaches for a detonator, Jason kills him. Ellis, the lead investigator in this manhunt, isn’t too bothered. Kamal was a killer for hire on this job.

Ellis is finally able to get Azim to talk. No one who knew Tariq has been willing to believe that he was actively involved with the Jihadist. Azim finally provides the information to convince the Navy that his family is right.

Azim reveals that the call he received just before Tariq led Echo team to their deaths was warning him to run and forget about the man in the red Mercedes.

Paul is able to give her a lead on the guy who drives the red Mercedes. Ellis believes Salim Hakan, Commander of the Afghan National Police and potential candidate for national office, is their guy. Given his status, Jason cautions they are going to need some pretty serious evidence before they can go after him. The quest to find out who killed Echo Team is definitely going to last a few episodes.

I’m glad we got an ep to watch everyone as they adapt to their new environment and the few unique aspects of this particular situation like moving in the quarters previously used by men they know were killed. Sonny’s statement that he’d taken over quarters of men who died before but never anyone he knew was a moment I hadn’t expected.

Just about everyone was a little testy this week. Not that they’re not justified, it was just unusual to see the stress get to so many of the characters on the canvas. Even Davis snapped at a couple of people. Sonny, Sonny, why would you disparage Davis’ ability to keep on top of details? LOL.

Deployment has been pretty successful for me so far. Seeing everyone in such a different environment and dealing with different stresses looks to be a source of some really interesting personal stories.

This episode had some nice moments like Sonny’s reaction to taking over bunks previously used by friends, now deceased, or Jason’s reaction to the intensity level of the firefight getting out of the Jalalabad neighborhood.

I think it was a good idea to make finding out who killed Echo Team a multi-episode story. I suspect that the missions won’t be specifically connected to the investigation until Ellis has gathered more information.

What did you think about the episode? Are you happy with the relocation to Afghanastan?