Burn Notice

Jimmy: Oh-- I think I sprained my body!

Michael: (voice-over) Once the cops pick up a call on a flagged cell, they triangulate its location. From there they organize and deploy units. A process that can take ten minutes, give or take.

Michael: (voice-over) In intelligence gathering too little information is obviously a problem; but too much information is just as bad in some ways.

Michael: (voice-over) Getting into a secure facility is as simple as giving yourself a good reason to be there.

Michael: (voice-over) Badly done surveillance, that is surveillance you notice, can mean a lot of things; some organizations need intelligence but can't afford to pay for training. Some organizations just want you to know they're watching.

Michael: (voice-over) It takes some practice but counting your steps can be extremely useful if you need to reproduce a floor plan from memory. Once you've memorized a floor plan you wanna get it down on paper as quickly as you can. Combine that with the technical specs of the security devices in the room and you'll know where the holes in the security are; then it's just a matter of slipping through one of those holes.

Michael: (voice-over) A great way to get people talking about their security is to put them on the defensive. Accuse a guy of having bad locks and before you know it he's telling you where his motion detectors are.

Michael: (voice-over) Every thief knows that the best way to scout a place you want to rob is as a customer. Who gets to see the vault at the local bank? The rich guy with something to protect. Who gets to see the security at a private military company? A guy who wants to start his own little war.

Michael: (voice-over) It takes a good marksmen to shoot you at 50 feet from a moving car, but it takes a great marksmen to miss... while making it look like they are trying to hit you... or markswoman as the case may be.

Michael: (voice-over) When you're claiming to be someone you're not, the key is commitment. You've got to sell it like your life depends on it. Because sometimes it does. One reason to work with the same people is you know each other's moves; so if you shoot at your team in the middle of an operation, they know to go with it.

Michael: (voice-over) Private military companies are best known for their bodyguard work. It's a big part of their business but it's not the only part. For a big enough cheque they'll rain hot lead down wherever you want. It's not work that attracts service with a smile types...

Michael: (voice-over) Security measures can sometimes seem a little cruel. Just like parents sometimes twist their kid's arm, yanking them out of a busy street, sometimes the safest thing isn't the most comfortable.

Michael: (voice-over) Airbags are great for surviving crashes but they make some evasive maneuvers tough. Gone are the days when you could run through a stand of trees without a face full of nylon. Of course anything you used to do head-on you can still do… but it's a little hard on anyone who's stuffed in your trunk.

Michael: (voice-over) As a spy you get to spend a lot of time alone. Whether you're in an Indonesian prison, a cave in the Afghan mountains or the back of a cargo truck; it comes with the job. You're trained to make the most of it, plan your next move, go over your intel, review your training... but when you've cleaned your gun 30 times and reviewed the past tense of every verb in five languages, you start itching to make a move.

Michael: Making yourself comfortable I see. Sam: Err, comfortable? I wouldn't go that far. Mike, how do you fit into these little shirts? They're like doll clothes.

Michael: (standing over Jimmy, who's in the boot) Can you be good? (Jimmy nods) We have a long drive back to Miami. If you can be good you get to ride up front.

Michael: Seems the people who burned me want me for a job. For now, that's all I got. Sam: A job? Does it pay? Michael: More of a "we'll kill you if you don't do it" type of thing. Sam: Ah. Never liked those.

Michael: (voice-over) When you work as a spy, it's easy to think of people as assets. Resources to accomplish a goal. Because you don't have a personal relationship with an asset. You don't care about an asset. You don't miss the scent of an asset when she leaves the room.

(Fiona is rigging the boat with C-4) Fiona: You want this big, right? Michael: Just enough for the boat, Fi. Try not to break all the windows in South Beach.

Madeline: All these years, and finally I see what you do. You tell me I have to leave town in- in a minute's notice, I can't talk on the phone, we're being chased by men with guns, how am I supposed to deal with this? Michael: All these years you wondered why I didn't come home, why I didn't call. This is why, Mom. I never wanted this for you. I'm sorry. (long pause) Madeline: Well it still doesn't explain why you didn't write.