FBI: International - Wheelman – Review

This episode was a great dive into the world of undercover work by our fly team. We were also able to see in this Raines-centric episode a more fulsome appreciation of his skill set, which goes beyond just technical analysis. We also were provided a glimpse of some possible things to come with our fly team and some possible changes in the future.

In the opening of the episode, Garretson is meeting up with Daniel LeDee. LeDee was supposed to be meeting with his contact Charles, and Smitty is posing as his daughter. When he insists he will only deal with Charles, she leaves but he follows her and says he will do the deal, and gives her some stolen art work. The Europol team moves in and busts him but LeDee tells Smitty that he has information that would be useful to her about a big heist taking place.

We then get a quick glimpse of Maya and Andre, who are getting closer and Andre has to leave because they have caught a case. This scene showed the reality of being involved with a member of this type of law enforcement, and that they often have to leave at a moments notice, which can be very difficult for loved ones and often causes strain on the relationships. We have seen this time and time again in many crime dramas, and it is no different for our Fly Team members. When they get to the office, Vo and Kellett tease him about betting and that he has covered the spread because the over under was three months, which again reinforces how hard it is in a career like this to develop a relationship with someone romantically.

Smitty fills the team in about the case. Daniel LeDee has told them that Michael Semien is in Budapest planning a major heist. Smitty wants to put Raines under as the get-away driver and LeDee will introduce him as a trusted wheelman. We also find out a bit more about Raines and his high marks while training for the FBI, which we do not know much about as viewers, so it is wonderful to learn a bit more about his past.

Forrester calls to talk to Kellett and fills her in that he is pushing paperwork in Warsaw currently. They are trying to figure out what Dandridge is up to and Kellett says she will handle things with discretion until he can return. This has been an ongoing theme for a few weeks now, and seems to be foreshadowing something sinister in the making. Sadly at the end of this episode, we will finally see what it is.

Dandridge arrives and asks what is going on and Smitty tells him that this is Europol case that needs help from the team so he agrees. Kellett asks him why Forrester is doing paperwork in Warsaw while there are actual cases that need attending to and Dandridge tells her that Forrester is where he needs to be and that she and Garretson will need to keep him informed at every step. This scene only served to reinforce that something is on the horizon and that it may not be something good.

They brief Raines on all the details for the meeting and Kellett is worried about them trusting LeDee but Garretson says they have him over a barrel. They discuss that Raines needs to take this all the way and they need to catch Semien with the stolen goods in order to make the charges stick. This really demonstrated to us as the viewer the stakes that are riding on this case. Vo helps Raines prep and she is clearly worried about him, but Andre tells her they’ve got this.

LeDee preps Raines and tells him that every moment is a test with Semien and he will kill them both if he does not pass. They meet Semien and he quizzes Raines about some aspects of getaway driving and then asks him to steal a car, and points to an Audi. Raines tells him he would not steal the Audi and why, and he asks him to swipe the BMW. He does and they drive off. The team has set up a police chase and make it appear like they are caught, and Raines shoots the officer and they drive off. The officer is fine and is a friend of Smitty’s from Europol. This scene really showed a different side of Raines, and we were able to see not only his finesse with driving in a car chase, but also how calm he can be in the face of pressure and danger. Semien seems impressed with his demeanor, and Raines clearly showed his bravery in his conversation with Semien and how he did not back down, even though he knows how dangerous a criminal he is. Semien agrees Raines is in as the wheelman. Raines checks in with the Fly Team and says he is boarding a private plane for Belgium and Kellett tells him to be careful.

Dandridge asks for an update and says he thinks Raines should be running through the local police in Belgium but Kellett reminds him that FBI protocol is that an agent can choose their handler and Raines chose her, so he agrees to let the team go to Belgium to run the operation but insists on daily written updates. This was such a great scene because it not only showed Kellett’s knowledge of procedure but also that she is not willing to let the team be in danger, and that she is willing to stand up for what is right and safest for the team.

The team arrives in Antwerp, Belgium, and meet Officer Nicolas Wesmael. Kellett gets a call from Forrester who is still stuck in Warsaw, and she tells him Raines is a little late with his check in.

Raines meets the full heist team, and finds out they are robbing the vault of a diamond exchange in downtown Antwerp. Semien says he has been observing them for a long time waiting for the right time to hit the vault and in two days, they will receive 200 million in diamonds. He lets the team know they will be practicing for the next two days so they all know what they are doing. Then they will divide the score and all go their separate ways.

Raines checks in and lets Kellett and the Fly Team know it is a crew of five – Ambroz is the electrician, Pederson is the techie, Vesperov is the enforcer, Ledee is on locks and Semien is mastermind.

Semien comes in while the team is sleeping, wakes them all and says he has a contact that says Europol has moved a task force into the area and Raines says he better not be accusing him. Raines says he only took the job because he owed LeDee a favour but he will happily leave. Semien gets Pederson to look up online and see if there was media coverage and if the cop actually died in Hungary and they find a news article confirming the death from their car chase. Pederson says he is out because of too many amateurs and Semien says maybe he is the mole. Again, we are able to see how calm Raines is able to stay under pressure, and how he is able to really hold his own undercover and think on the fly. It is clear there is much more to this character, and it is wonderful to see the writers peeling back the layers and letting us see more about how Andre has earned his spot on the Fly Team.

Kellett hears from a contact at headquarters that Dandridge has been contacting the commissioner about the Fly team and they wanted her take on it. Kellett and Garretson decide to keep their heads down and plug on, but yet again, this is definitely hinting of something unpleasant that may be on the horizon for the team.

The heist team are practicing their roles and the men are not sure with Pederson gone how smoothly things will go and LeDee suggests they call it off but Semien says they cannot delay and find another tech expert and they have to hit the vault now. Raines jumps in says he will be the tech guy too and shows his tech savvy by explaining the system and what needs to be done and says he will need another 10% at the end, if he is covering both roles. Raines pulls LeDee aside afterwards and asks what he is pulling asking Semien to call it off. LeDee says it is too dangerous but Raines tells him if they don’t catch Semien in the act, his deal is off and he will walk him into prison himself. This scene really showed Raines’ passion for the case, and his bravery in standing up to a criminal who could easily out him to the heist team and put his life in danger. I feel like Raines has really been an underestimated asset to the Fly Team at times, and we saw last year also that he was really able to prove himself as brilliant tactically also.

Raines asks again for an address and Semien won’t give him one and says the car will be parked where he needs. He updates Kellett and says he does not have the heist address but gives them the address of where they are and that they are practicing, in hopes that the team can identify which business has the matching equipment.

Kellett, Vo and Garretson go to the address and find the practice location and take pictures and they are alerted by a security guard to a body in a dumpster. When they look inside, they find Pederson, shot in the head.

Raines and Ambroz take cart in pretending to be exterminators, and gain access inside the diamond exchange. They meet up with Semien and LeDee and Vesperov at the vault after Raines fixes the security system so they will go undetected. At the same time, the team finally identifies the heist location and head out.

LeDee gets the safety deposit boxes open and the rest of the men collect all the diamonds. As they finish, Vesperov kills LeDee and turns and holds a gun on Raines. Semien says LeDee was working with Europol and brought him in. Raines and Vesperov fight and eventually Raines knocks him out. Semien and Ambroz get caught by Garretson and Vo and Kellett in garage as they are fleeing the scene. Semien goes to reach for weapon but Raines is behind him and holds a gun on him.

The Belgium Europol office discovered the leak which was a junior officer in the department – he was bribed by Semien months before and told Semien that LeDee cut a deal with Europol and the plan was to leave Raines and LeDee in the vault and he would preoccupy the police while Semien got away. The junior officer will be going to jail as they have zero tolerance in their department.

Raines calls Maya and says he will see her soon. You can tell they both want to say more but hesitate. It is clear that their relationship is growing deeper and it will be interesting to see how this plays out over the season.

Scott arrives back at the office in Budapest and says he used every connection including Jager to get back there and tells the team well done. He congratulates Raines on how he handled himself, which not only shows he is a great and supportive leader, but reinforces that they are seeing Raines true value as a member of the team. He sees Dandridge and asks why he has been running around for three weeks doing busy work while his team is busting their butts. Dandridge says the team is undisciplined and takes unnecessary risks. He says that he blames Scott as their leader and lets him know he will be transferred in two weeks to the admin division in Alabama.

So as this episode concludes, we finally see all of the nonsense with Dandridge come to a head. Will this be the end of Forrester and the Fly Team? Only time will tell.

Let us know what you thought about this episode in the comments below.