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Real life interrupted my reviewing time, so this ended up being a double review. Kind of apropos for a two parter.
This was one of Bravo Team's tougher missions, but before I get to that (and since it was so front and center in part 1) I have to mention Sonny's spiral after Lisa broke up with him.
Personal:
All Along the Watchtower illustrated one of my biggest problems with the idea. Sonny and Lisa exited the friend zone and it doesn't look like they'll be able to return.
Lisa tried to approach Sonny as friend and he shut her down.
If they ever return to a place where they can talk it will take a while to happen and it won't be the same. I hate that.
Sometimes I don't want reality in my fiction. LOL
Sonny’s moving backward for the moment...fighting, drinking, and I'm pretty sure casual sex is on the list. Sonny, lacking any demonstrable reason for being dumped, believes Ray said something to Lisa. So, when not on mission, Sonny was continually sniping at Ray.
Ray, once again, has a member of Bravo Team angry with him. The difference is that this time, Ray has no idea why.
This is one of those plots that reminds me of my beloved daytime soaps. Characters that have issues with each other but never actually talk to each other about them.
Sonny did finally let Clay in on what’s going on with him. It broke my heart for him to say that he wasn’t ever going to open up to anyone again.
Lisa tries to talk Sonny down, but he’s not listening,...not that anyone in his position would.
Even Sonny, felt the need to speak to Clay about it. Writers, please don't take Clay back to the guy I didn't like.
Jason, meanwhile, is still in pain. He gets it in shape (with painkillers) for the mission, but in the field he starts to limp.
I grew up listening to the women in my life (mother, grandmother, aunts and their friends) talk about men being big babies. That was the first thing that came to mind when Jason snuck out of the building to avoid having to deal without Natalie.
After Jason stopped by her office I thought that was going to go differently.
Are we going to have to watch Jason find himself in a position where Bravo Team has to bail him out during a mission? I really hope not. Partially because it feels too much like Ray's shoulder story and partially because it just seems like the obvious direction.
Mission: Personal Security Detail for US Ambassador Nicole Marsden in North Yemen
Ray and Clay were the first sent over to Yemen to be bodyguards for Ambassador Nicole Marsden. She’s trying to broker peace between to tribes that are a hair’s breath from armed combat.
I rather liked her too. Unfortunately, that convinced me that the episode was going to end the way it ended.
The meeting with the first of the two tribal leaders went well. Everything was looking good until they realized the opposing tribe was setting up to attack the diplomatic residence.
Of course the powers that be were hesitant to send the rest of Bravo Team end. They weren’t turned loose until shots were fired and a civilian contractor was shot.
Once Bravo Team was cleared hot, things ratcheted up.
Just about everything you can think of got tossed at Bravo Team this mission: rockets, a 50 caliber machine gun, lots and lots of bullets. They even had enemies breeching the compound.
She's willing to listen to their council, even as she argues to complete her mission....negotiating for peace between the two tribes. But overall she worked with the team. No bullying or sneaking off by herself.
The only problem I had was her, kind of stereotypical, belief that everyone was playing the game as fairly as she was. I could accept the belief that, if she could talk to the leader of the Bakil Tribe, Musa Khawlan, she could stop the violence.
But Ray’s point that he was intent on the violence and she was the excuse seemed to be born out by the strike that ultimately killed her.
The timing of that strike strongly implied to me that the phone conversation was a way of getting her into a known location long enough for his men get into position to fire that rocket.
(I would have had her in a dark room to make that call...or used the stealth lighting. I certainly wouldn't have had a lamp on.)
But judging from Jason’s words to Clay as they were getting on the plane, she at least got the two tribal leaders to talk.
Great pair of episodes. I am really enjoying watching Lisa’s first year as an officer. Her scenes with her mentors are interesting. The only thing that has me a little worried is that Clay and Sonny felt a little like they were moving backward instead of forward. Things with Clay reset themselves by the end of the episode, but I think it’ll take Sonny awhile.
What did you think about the episode?
