November 21, 2006: Heroine
Wow. Tonight was hostage-tacular. We had Anya and Eddie, the mother and son at the church, the man on the bus, and then Anya and Graham. It was an outright action bonanza!
I have to confess, I jumped the gun and was disappointed that the Anya storyline appeared to be morphing into a
Fatal Attraction situation. Luckily, it took a relatively fresh turn. The hostage became the hostage taker. Interesting. It surprised me that I've never really wondered what happens to the victims after each ordeal we witness in these episodes. But, yeah, it's not hard to see how the victims could come undone after all the dust settles. I found myself thinking, "Poor Anya," which was a lovely break from my usual "Poor, tormented HT" thoughts. (Though I should point out that by the end, Anya was the hostage taker, so I guess I really couldn't go a whole episode without feeling sympathy for the criminal.) I'm still not entirely sure that Graham wrote that message on her windshield, however. The way she was forcing him to admit it to her made me think she was trying to convince herself. I'm wondering if perhaps we haven't seen the last of Anya. She seemed to have a pretty fair amount of crazy in her. Add to that some extensive trauma and a crush on her negotiator. Sounds like a recipe for a returning character. Just a thought
Now onto Matt. Seriously, what is his deal? He always seems to be the one who lets his emotions get in the way of his work and his relationship. Emily seems so much more reliable and consistent. Why isn't she the partner that gets to take the lead? And I mean "partner" in both senses. I hate to be the kind of fan who calls for the end of a happy TV romance, but I'm starting to root for Emily to kick Matt to the curb. He's just not all that good to her. He's aloof and, at times, inconsiderate. But the most frustrating thing is that Emily won't yell at him. She usually resorts to a few carefully phrased and calmly delivered interactions. But I suppose maybe that's what it's like to date a hostage negotiator; maybe they have better control of their emotions. And that, my friends, is why I'd be no good in the F.B.I.
Here are just a few final random notes on the episode:
1. The other two standoffs in the peripheral storylines dealt with immigration and city employee pensions and benefits. Has FOX decided to get subtly political?
2. Why were Emily and Matt investigating the stalking case? I mean, I understand committing yourself to a case, but these guys are hostage negotiators. I doubt the bureau would want them spending time tracking down creeps for something that is not an active crisis.
3. I cringed a bit watching the man playing Tio (Eddie's brother) do the "tough guy" act with Matt in the interrogation room. It was so awkward and unconvincing. Sorry Tio!
