FBI: Most Wanted continues to impress with “Money Moves,” an episode that masterfully balances the team's personal lives with the gripping armed robbery case at its heart. Despite some predictable elements in the plot, the narrative shines in its exploration of the double-edged nature of 'family matters.' The phrase reflects the concerns or issues that come with family and their paramount importance in the characters' lives. Let me explain.
"Money Moves” – FBI: Most Wanted, Pictured (L-R): Caroline Harris as Cora Love and Edwin Hodge as Special Agent Ray Cannon. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
The theft occurred at Agee Cash, a pseudo-banking facility that warehouses excess cash for banks at their off-site location. Remy (McDermott) finds himself talking to the facility's manager, Jody (Gulturk). She explains that she'd made several unheeded requests for additional security, and now a guard is dead. Her easy cooperation immediately piqued my suspicion, which was later confirmed by Remy when he discovered that she was, in fact, the reason Agee Cash’s previously undisclosed location, got disclosed.
"Money Moves” – FBI: Most Wanted, Pictured: Dylan McDermott as Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott. Photo: Mark Schafer/CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Members of the criminal crew include Nate (Stanton) who is Jody’s fiancé, his brother, Mike (Fischer), and two of Mike's ex-con buddies, Wayne (Barrington) and Chico (Arroyo). Viewers quickly learn that Nate is the brains of the outfit. His brother Mike is the brawn, I suppose. No, it's more accurate to describe Mike as bold, given that he is clearly the more reckless of the two. For example, when a security guard responds to the breach, Nate attempts to talk to him. Nate reasons: "The money is insured. We'll be out of here in 58 seconds." The security guard, heroically trying to do his job, shoots Nate. Mike then kills the guard despite Nate's protests.
Remy and the team arrive onsite. Remy correctly intuits that this crew is at the beginning of their spree. The DNA from the blood evidence at the scene linked at least one unsub to an inmate serving time for—wait for it—bank robbery. Remy and Ray (Hodge) race off to meet with this guy who is Mike and Nate's uncle. Remy quips, "You taught them the family business." "You're damned right," the uncle boasts. The uncle confirmed that Nate was smart; a note Remy filed away. He also promptly provided the FBI with his nephew's phone number in exchange for a reduction in his 25-year sentence.
"Money Moves” – FBI: Most Wanted, Pictured (L-R): Shantel VanSanten as Special Agent Nina Chase and Dylan McDermott as Supervisory Special Agent Remy Scott. Photo: Mark Schafer/CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Special Agents Nina (VanSanten), Sheryll (Sternberg), and Hana (Castel-Hughes) investigate Nate's home. The home gives up several of his secrets, including his plan to leave the country, proof of a recently acquired pilot's license, and an engagement ring.
Nate's crew is holed up outside the pharmacy, where they went to get supplies to treat his gunshot wound. Nina and Remy narrowly avoid apprehending them due to Nate's clever ruse of throwing "funny money" at the public. This action created a crowd that stood between them and the FBI. The spree continued as they hijacked a second Agee Cash armored truck that had been rerouted to an alternative location in Charlotte in response to first heist. The Charlotte facility has $100 million stored. The crew knocked out one guard and kidnapped the driver. Nina recognizes that the crew retained the truck and the regular driver, using them as a 'trojan horse' to enter the facility.
Watching the latest video footage, the Fugitive Task Force sees Mike hit Jody. Remy notes dissension within the ranks as Nate stops Mike from further attacking Jody. The question is: Was Mike's attack planned to sell Jody as a legitimate hostage, or was he truly hostile toward his brother's fiancé? I think it was a bit of both. Remy announces that he's spoken with their uncle. Negotiations begin. Nate offers to release one hostage, Jody. Remy counters, asking for the release of a "real" hostage, since Jody is an accomplice.
Cornered, the crew prepares to make a mad dash to the nearby airfield, where Nate's airplane is gassed up and waiting. Nate tells everyone that the plane can only hold four people. Without hesitation, Mike executes Chico. Nate agrees to release all the hostages. Mike, Nate, Jody, and Wayne pile into the armored car and use the fleeing hostages as a screen as they escape. Predictably, the FBI fires at the truck, but armored vehicles are bulletproof, right? The FBI's actions here seem useless and over the top.
Inevitably, there’s a final showdown between the Fugitive Task Force and Nate's remaining crew. Wayne panics. He cries out, "I'm not going back to jail," effectively committing suicide by cop. Earlier in the episode, Mike also said he wasn't going back to jail. He screams, "No," clearly upset as Wayne is gunned down. His reaction is in sharp contrast to when he murdered their other partner, Chico. Mike's response suggests that Wayne, in terms of his core identity and values, may have been more like family to him than Nate.
"Money Moves” – FBI: Most Wanted, Pictured (L-R): Bryce Michael Wood as Louis and Edwin Hodge as Special Agent Ray Cannon. Photo: CBS ©2024 CBS Broadcasting, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Remy knows that the remaining crew is basically family, and family matters. He uses the discord he witnessed earlier between the brothers to encourage them to surrender. Nate, the smart one, prioritizes his fiancé—his family—over himself and his brother’s fate. He instructs Jody to say it was all his fault because she might get a lighter sentence. Nate held Mike at gunpoint, demanding that he give up. Mike is likely thinking "Et tu, Nate," then slowly smiles and surrenders.
“Money Moves” ends where it started—at Ray's home because family matters. Lou (Wood), Caleb's bio dad, shows up to take Caleb to a rap concert. Ray, without cracking a smile, warns Lou not to take the boy around drunk people as he is only 14. Lou chortles uncomfortably, "Is this what it's like to be married to a cop?" Cora reminds him to have Caleb home by 11:00 p.m., while Caleb looks on, absorbing the tension between the adults in his life.
Overall, this episode exemplifies FBI: Most Wanted's ability to communicate the complexities of human relationships while still captivating viewers with a literal ‘cops and robbers’ drama. The showrunners of "Money Moves" deftly explore how family matters through a variety of dynamics, including the deep bond within the fugitive task force family, Ray's evolving family with Cora and Caleb, Mike's almost familial relationship with his fellow convicts, and the seemingly breakable bond of blood brothers. By diving into these areas, the episode broadens our perspective of what family matters means, delivering to viewers a must-see, multifaceted story.
Did you enjoy this episode? Do you think Caleb’s wanting to be around his largely absent father means trouble ahead for Ray and his family? Leave me a comment and let’s talk about it.
Overall Rating:
9/10
