Burn Notice

Michael: (voice-over) Clandestine meetings are never fun to arrange. It's a big part of the job for a covert operative but it's never pleasant. It's not so much the fear of death that bothers you, it's driving to the meeting with a bag over your head… sometimes they wash the bag… sometimes they don't.

Michael: (voice-over) A good cover identity is a team effort. If you want to meet someone, it's a good idea to play a little hard to get. Put people between yourself and the target, make them come to you.

Michael: (voice-over) When you're giving five inches and 100 pounds to a well-trained opponent, it helps to know the terrain better than he does.

Barry: You buying lunch? Sam: Hey, you're the money launderer for Christ's sake, why do I have to buy lunch?

Michael: Next time Lawrence go limp. It's really hard to drag a human shield.

Sam: Ok, ok. But I just have to go on record, I think this whole thing with Fiona is unhealthy. You got to go through all of this crap, just to get some guy she picked up out of your place.

(Ray is choking Michael) Ray: Where did they go? Michael: I can't tell you if you keep choking me! Fiona: (hits Ray over the head with a snow globe) Italy was one of my favorites.

Barry: Name's Cristo. Like Madonna, the whole one name thing. Sam: Like Charo. Barry: Sting. Sam: Fergie. Barry: Pélé. Sam: Spider-man. Barry: Liberacchi. Sam: Crap, I can't think of any more.

Michael: Come on, Fi. It's not everyday you get to read a fictional account of your whole life. Apparently, I sold secrets in Lebanon, code breaking technology in Jordan. Who knew?

Tom: So what now? Can we go to the cops with that guy Cristo? Michael: What do we tell them? I broke into his house and extorted information from him. Meanwhile, Lawrence ditches the broach, Cristo denies everything. And the only guys that go to jail are you and me.

Anwar: All right. What do you want? Michael: I'm trying to reach out to the man who burned me, NSA officer Phillip Cowan. I just need you to mention him as a friend of yours, when you know the Americans are listening. Anwar: A friend. And say what. Michael: I don't know. Have the head of your secret police send him a fruit basket. Get creative. He'll try to figure out what the hell is going on, and in no time he'll figure out it's me.

Sam: (talking about his girlfriend) She actually asked if bullets come in different sizes, isn't that the cutest thing you ever heard?

Michael: (voice-over) Even the most careful spy leaves a trail that can get them burned. A patriot, making a list of deals for his government, looks a lot like a traitor, making black market sales for his wallet. Someone upstairs gets the wrong idea, and suddenly you're burned and out of the job.

Michael: (voice-over) Selling stolen goods is all about discretion, you've got to be the kind of person who can keep their mouth shut. The kind of person who never ever shares the numbers in their little black book.

Michael: (voice over) Covert operatives have a hard time dating, even if you found someone who doesn't mind you won't talk about your past or that you carry a concealed weapon. They usually want more than you're able to give.

Michael: (voice-over) The thing about security is that the very things that protect you can be turned against you by someone who knows what he's doing. It's tough to compromise a well thought out security system, but making someone think you can compromise it, well, that's much easier. Take surveillance cameras for example, you can disable one by shooting a laser at it and overloading the light sensitive chip. Cheap, easy and exactly the sort of thing a sophisticated criminal gang with lots of resources would do. Leave around some tell-tale signs of surveillance like cigarette butts, a forgotten camera lens cap, and the more security there is, the more likely they are to think they've got a very serious problem. Even the security team itself can be an opportunity. The more employees you have, the more you have to worry about them. (Pause) Deliver some vague threats and a few hundred bucks to a security guard, if he's honest he'll tell his boss, who then wonders who wasn't so honest. For the cost of a nice dinner you can get a whole security team canned.

Michael: (voice-over) One of the dangers of any kind of psychological warfare is: it could be too effective and send the target in a paranoid tailspin. That paranoia can be useful or deadly.

Fiona: I know a few Iranians who are coming into town. Michael: Ooo, let's avoid people who use "Michael Westen" and "jihad" in the same sentence.

Michael: My name is Michael Westen. I heard you were in town, just wanted to say hi. Anwar: You're Westen? I thought you would be taller.