Burn Notice Season 5 Episode 3

Season 5 got off to a pretty slow start. Company Man was slow and dull, Bloodlines was just annoying, as with any episode in which Madeline gets more than a few speaking lines.





This was a good and interesting episode. Michael isn't crazy, I actually think he's suffering some kind of withdrawal. He's uncomfortable now that he actually does have (to a degree) the answers he was so desperately and constantly searching for about 4 intense years. But there's that little bit left that needs to be answered, he's so close. That's why he's obsessing.





The main plot was cool too, although we've seen this general story many times on Burn Notice. I don't recall the show ever introducing an undercover situation quite like this one, though.

"Mind Games" was another solid Season 5 episode of Burn Notice. The show has a little bit of a different tone this year, and while that change is welcome, it is going to take a bit of getting used too. The way Fiona and Michael were bickering as the episode faded to black, it felt like something to close out an hour of Melrose Place, not Burn Notice. The obligatory annual Nate appearance disappointed me a bit. Michael had some good lines, and the story worked, even if the action was a little bit forced tonight. While it was a good episode I am beginning to question how much longer the show can keep things up. It can run for another three or four years, but do they want to go out on a high note or just make new episodes to make money in syndication and dilute the quality?

Season 5 has been off to a good start, but there hasn't been any advances in the main plot since the Opener. This episode does a lot for the show, not just because it was awesome, but because it teases the return of "The Machine" storyline, while bringing back Nate and having an awesome client case.





The usual BN client formula is that Michael goes in, makes friends with a bad guy, and then gets him to turn on his own crew resulting in his death or getting his bosses to believe he turned on him, also resulting in his death. This episode was looking to be simmilar to that, with a loan shark organization beating up people that owed them money. The plan was simple: make the boss think one of his guys was an undercover cop to get them to back down. The plan quickly turns against them however, because it so happened that he actually was an undercover cop. This twist was so unexpected, I actually found myself at the edge of my seat for a client case, which wasn't something that I usually find myself doing. It was very well written and thought out, and the way they resolved the twist was almost just as good.





The B Story of this episode was Michael's paranoia. Everywhere he turns he thinks the people that burned him are still out there, and at the end of the episode he finds that there may be some evidence that they still are out there. It's not a huge advance in the plot, but it teases what's to come. And I really, really think that next episode will get the ball rolling again.





Summary:


+Nate is back and hopefully here to stay.


+Great client case with clever and exciting twist.


+Michael's paranoia was well-played.


-Very little of Madeline and Jesse. 9.5/10 (A)