Numb3rs Season 5 Episode 4

Great episode! Charlie gets his clearance back! The FBI catches the bad guy, but I had this feeling throughout the whole episode. I finally came to grips with it when they found out that the "Jack of all Trades" is a teenager. Now does that totally remind anyone about "Catch me if you can" or what? I'm watching the episode as I am writing this review and it seems like there's a intriguing finale to it, but I still can't get over the fact how "plagiarismic" the plot is. And what's the deal with agent giving heat to Don & Charlie? Did anyone actually felt bad for him after his god bye speech? He is a typical despised Bureaucrat kind of a character.


P.S. And I am glad the obsessed grandpa agent got what he deserved.


P.P.S. Respect to Don for letting the kid finally meet his mom.

I will start of with the obvious by saying that it's great that Charlie is back on the team because he is a vital part of the show and I'm glad things are back to normal. However, this episode left me rather flat. I just saw too many formula plot devices (The scene of Kevin Oliver in the interrogation room is one such device) and I was unimpressed with Henry Winkler's performance. I have always been a fan of his and think he is a very good actor, but I don't think casting him was the right thing to do.

Lovin it!!! I've said it before and its becoming more true every week; season five is taking the show somewhere else and i like it.


Charlie is back (woopdidiwoopwoop!) Don is sad but we all love him because he's messed up dont we?


Alan did something epic (or at least i think so)


Liz is back, surprisingly i liked that and didnt find her annoying or just a character brought back for the sake of it.


i thought the lil bit of slow vs fast motion worked awesomely especially where Don is at his desk and everything moves around him (did no-one else think of the video to linkin park numb?)

I thought the case overall was a pretty interesting one. Bloom played by Henry Winkler I thought did a good job as the very obsessed and driven agent. I was intrigued by the concept of Bloom chasing a con man, that no one had seen. The didn't have any phyical features to go on in efforts of capturing him. Then to find out the con man they were chasing was only 18 years old was a great twist. I like the aspect Alan being upset because his park was being plowed over and redone. I also loved the fact that Don questioned why McGowan's recommendations weren't followed and him and Charlie could returned to their jobs. He may think through his choices a little bit more in the future. We'll have to see.

Numb3rs brings about another classic case. Nothing really stood out in this episode, except for the unexpected welcoming back of Charlie to the FBI. Obviously, the show couldn't go the direction of not letting him return to the role he's been on for 4 seasons. Finally, that part is closed; it was starting to become tedious to watch them mull over it. There should have been a better explanation for it though, a call and return hardly justifies its hype from the past 4 episodes.





The case was well-written with its twists, and I definitely was shocked to see the kid's motivation all along was to look for his mother. The scenes with Hirsch are starting to get boring; they need better fillers. Not too bad overall.

What an episode! Whoo, a fine fine example of how great numb3rs is. First the whole plot of this episode was excellent, and so was the characterization, all was perfect. The case was intreging, a strong simpathy was created for the "criminal". The side story of Alan's park was very sweet, as was the clearance issue. Even though I was sure he'd get it back they wrote it so well I was afraid he wouldn't. Another fine ending, a little sad, a bittersweet feeling, but it was good to see Don being real about how he felt not trying to be a tuffy. Characters were again excellent, thankfully Colby redeemed himself. ;) Don, Charlie, Colby, and David were all great as usual, and I was actually happy to see Liz. I didn't realise how much I disliked Nikki till she was gone. ;) This season has really been good, the crimes are good, the story is good, and the characters and their problems are so real and rich. I hope they continue like this!

It is no secret that Charlie gets his security clearance back in this episode. Carl McGowan was brought in to be the villain, the man we loved to hate. Keith Carradine did a great job portraying the old guard FBI big wig. I hope he gets considered for an Emmy for a guest role.





There is a chameleon stealing money, over 10 million dollars. Henry Winkler plays Agent Bloom, a man who had been hunting the perp for two years. The mystery man has no name, no photo, no fingerprints. It is up to Don and his team to find the man before he disappears to steal again.





In the meantime, LA is redeveloping a park that Alan designed after the Watts riots. He wants to fight city hall to preserve his legacy to the city. What ensures is a win win situation and a happy ending.





There are unexpected twists to the plot. I was shocked and pleased by the ending. It was a big surprise to me. A job well done by all.