Motive's Brendan Penny: Viewers Will "Really Sympathize" with This Week's Killer

ABC's Motive returns from a brief hiatus on Thursday, and star Brendan Penny says the episode, titled "Against All Odds," may present a moral quandary for viewers.

"I think in all of our episodes, you can kind of relate to the decisions of the killers at times," Penny, who plays young Det. Brian Lucas, tells TVGuide.com. "I like this one a lot because this is one of the stories where you really, really, really do sympathize with the killer. I know that's a weird thing to say, but there's a few episodes where ... [the killer's] back's to the wall, and you just kind of wish that they didn't make the choice that they did."

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"Against All Odds" revolves around a high-powered lawyer who's murdered in his home during an apparent robbery gone bad. Angie (Kristin Lehman) and Vega (Louis Ferreira) initially focus on the victim's wife, but their attention is soon drawn to a grocery store clerk who's going through a messy divorce and custody battle.

"Often, it's almost regular people that just kind of get caught up in really tough situations and they make a really bad decision," Penny says.

Check out a clip from "Against All Odds" below: 

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Motive airs Thursdays at 9/8c on ABC.