Oh, Mexico. Whenever it makes an appearance on TV, it never lets me down. I was loving the Wild West imagery tonight: From the camera's pan up toward the blazing sun between scenes to the traditional shot of the shack framed in the foreground by Emily’s hand at the ready beside her holster. I was half expecting a few tumbleweeds. Or maybe even some nice tavern-door swinging. But all jokes aside, the situation in which Matt and Emily found themselves tonight was pretty gritty. There was so much carnage, so much venom. I guess a change in location really did turn the tables, because everything seemed to be opposite from what it usually is. There was very little talking, reasoning or bargaining. There was a lot of shooting. Matt and Emily were not in control of the situation. The “bad guy," Felix, was just that: really, really bad. Downright villainous. Cheryl was not able to save the day. Overall, there were no warm and fuzzies coming from this episode at all. That said,...
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Angela was great tonight. Maybe even the best guest star of the season so far. She was a nice addition to the show because she actually made me see the hostage norms that I have come to take for granted in the last several weeks in a different light. Now I think I’ve written “Poor hostage taker” nearly every week, but it was new to hear it coming from the negotiation end. I suppose it’s a necessity for negotiators to keep some amount of emotion distance from the HTs, though. They can’t sympathize to the levels that Angela did; of course they have to choose the safety of the innocent bystander first. That said, maybe it is important to understand both the bad and the good in a criminal. Angela seemed to have a special talent for that. Even Matt and Emily pointed that out.And while her ability to empathize was touching, my jaw hit the floor at the audacity of her call to bring in an armored truck. Now I’ve been told once or twice that I’m a ...
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Yes! I think this is the episode that Standoff fans have been waiting for. It was compelling from start to finish, hands down. I think that maybe what made it so intriguing was that it hit close to home. Of course, this situation isn’t something that most viewers have experienced personally (at least I hope not), but the pains of adolescence and school violence have become a very real possibility for kids today. Coincidentally, I was just having a conversation this afternoon about whether I would consider searching my child’s room when I have kids. While I know it’s a very serious invasion of privacy and breach of trust, it’s a tricky call to make when your child’s life could literally be at stake. I’m sure this was what Cary’s father was thinking as well when he decided to go to the FBI. How scary it must have been for him to find all those drawings and rants in his son’s room.His surprise over Cary’s plans, however, was not unique. I th...
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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 m...
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Tonight’s episode was most notable for its surprising portrayal of the guest stars. Few acted or spoke exactly as one might expect based on their physical appearances.First we had Doug, who looked like he just stepped out of a Harley convention. He was splattered with blood and appeared to be one of the most brutal hostage takers we’d seen yet. But then we found out that all of this — the shooting, the car chase, the standoff — was because he wanted to adopt a baby. And the actual image of his struggle was even more interesting. When Doug held the baby with such tenderness, it was a striking juxtaposition of large and small, world-weary and innocent.Then there was Avery Steele. At first glance, I wrote him off as another “shock jock” hoping to out-outrageous Howard Stern. But wait, there was a catch! This guy actually had a social conscience. He wasn’t using his antics to exploit beautiful women or the mentally impaired. No, his ultimat...
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Now, I don’t want to alarm anyone, but my psychopathic-killer instincts are frighteningly good. At the start of the episode, I had a hunch that this new string of shootings was not coming from the real G.L.A. If I were a detective and I started off the case summary by saying the suspect was breaking from a pattern he’s followed for decades, I might spy a red flag. The shootings had “copycat” written all over them. I also knew that Captain Bayless was a goner. His suave attitude and eagerness to appear the hero pretty much signed his death certificate. And while I didn’t find his death all that surprising, seeing it happen was still a pretty raw experience. And, man, so was Cheryl’s reaction to it. It’s understandable that she’d feel responsible, since she let him continue with the ill-advised press conference. But I found myself laughing incredulously when she suggested killing Donald to satisfy the demands of the real G.L.A. The lady has ...
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This episode started with a situation we’re used to seeing in great hospital shows like Scrubs and Grey’s Anatomy — the eccentric surgeon and his unique pre-op routine. But Dr. Wayne’s approach certainly added a new twist. Now, I doubt this is the first time we’ve ever seen doctors listen to rock music in the operating room, but there was something so disturbing about the way he gleefully tossed that pitcher of ice on the poor heart-bypass patient. Don't get me wrong, I definitely understand how "Dr. Feelgood” can make one lose one’s head, but maybe that’s why it should be reserved for cleaning the apartment on a Sunday afternoon — not for the O.R.Of course, in this episode nothing was as it should be in the hospital. Poor M.J. was fighting for the life of his dying sister. Matt was losing his cool and letting his childhood trauma affect his work. There was a strange naked man lying on a stretcher who nearly caused the hostage rescue tea...
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Stay tuned for my Standoff blog...
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