Numb3rs

Scorched

Season 2, Episode 11, Aired 12/16/05

Episode Summary

An arsonist sets a fire at a car dealership that kills a sales person. The name of an extremist environmental group is spray-painted on the scene, but the group denies involvement. It becomes Don's task to determine whether the group or someone else is responsible. Charlie is called in to help figure out if there is a pattern to the fires that would help provide a profile of the arsonist.''moreless

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Cast & Crew

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Navi Rawat

Amita Ramanujan
Judd Hirsch

Alan Eppes
Dylan Bruno

Colby Granger

Fan Episode Reviews (6)

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A good companion episode to the first season episode "Sacrifice."

9.7

"Superb"

By kateyvic, May 23, 2010 Report Abuse

Like the first season's Sacrifice, we are presented in this episode with a sort of "alterna-Charlie." What Charlie might have been if he had tried to impress someone other than his big brother.

However, this was not done to show Charlie growing, but rather show the growth Charlie has already accomplished. Megan brings Charlie along because he will be helpful in talking to the boy and because Charlie would understand (but not necessarily over-sympathize with) his plight.

The bad-guy with a stutter was a little much. A little silly, really. But the inclusion of Bill Nye the Science Guy nulls any negatives in that regard. Seriously, it is funny to think that he was probably one of the few people ever in the history of Numb3rs stars and guest stars who actually understood his dialog without an explanation. Too bad there was no bow-tie.moreless

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8.9

"Great"

By cavanagh15, May 23, 2010 Report Abuse

I thought this episode dragged a little at the begining but the ending made it worth it. The fact that it had been the guy we thought was trying to solve the fires all along was a huge shock and one that no one could see coming from a mile away. I did think that the early parts of the episode did get a little too much involved the the fire fingerprint and its importance in solving the case. I dont mind when Charlie goes off on random 2 minutes spouts, but it seemed like he was repeating the same thing for the first half of the episode. Im not such a big fan of the writers slowly but surely writing Amita out of the plot. Shes not appearing as much as she used to in season 1, where she was a big influence in almost every episode.moreless

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It was great

9.7

"Superb"

By ferriswheel01, Mar 18, 2008 Report Abuse

I really enjoyed this episode. I thought that it was quite funny in some places which is nice. I think the FBI are glad that they have Charlie consulting for them because in this episode it was actually him that got the accused Ethan to partly tell the truth about what really happened. We can't give Charlie full credit for the real confession though. After finding out that it wasn't Ethan I turned to my mum and said my moneys on that fire department guy that wanted Charlie to look at some equations. Ha I was right and not ashamed to brag quietly to myself.moreless

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8.9

"Great"

By cavanagh15, Mar 01, 2007 Report Abuse

I thought this episode dragged a little at the begining but the ending made it worth it. The fact that it had been the guy we thought was trying to solve the fires all along was a huge shock and one that no one could see coming from a mile away. I did think that the early parts of the episode did get a little too much involved the the fire fingerprint and its importance in solving the case. I dont mind when Charlie goes off on random 2 minutes spouts, but it seemed like he was repeating the same thing for the first half of the episode. Im not such a big fan of the writers slowly but surely writing Amita out of the plot. Shes not appearing as much as she used to in season 1, where she was a big influence in almost every episode.moreless

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Review

8.9

"Great"

By cavanagh15, Mar 01, 2007 Report Abuse

I thought this episode dragged a little at the begining but the ending made it worth it. The fact that it had been the guy we thought was trying to solve the fires all along was a huge shock and one that no one could see coming from a mile away. I did think that the early parts of the episode did get a little too much involved the the fire fingerprint and its importance in solving the case. I dont mind when Charlie goes off on random 2 minutes spouts, but it seemed like he was repeating the same thing for the first half of the episode. Im not such a big fan of the writers slowly but surely writing Amita out of the plot. Shes not appearing as much as she used to in season 1, where she was a big influence in almost every episode.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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Trivia
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- This episode also uses another real life incident. In Glendale, CA, Fire Captain John Leonard Orr, former fire investigator, got a life sentence in 1998 for a fatal arson that killed four people in a South Pasadena hardware store. He also was found responsible for a string of arsons in California from 1984 to 1991, when he was arrested. This events were dramatized in 2002 HBO's Point of Origin (starring Ray Liotta)- also the title of the book John Orr was writing before his arrest, describing a firefighter-become-arsonist. Edit
- The ELM is an actual environmentalist group based in Massachusetts. Edit
- Opening numbers: 6.013 Fires 30,000 BTU 700 Arson deaths 1 Match Edit
Notes
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- International Episode Titles: Czech Republic: Spáleniště (Burnt Place) Edit
- International Airdates: Czech Republic: June 1, 2009 on TV Nova Slovakia: November 11, 2009 on JOJ Edit
- Alimi Ballard (David Sinclair) did not appear in this episode. Edit
Quotes
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- Charlie: Where did you get a cigarette? Larry: I know a guy. Edit
- Larry: There was another fire, and apparently a signed confession does not satisfy Professor Eppes' standard of guilt. Edit
- Megan:(To Colby) Why don't we try to only break one law a day. Edit
Allusions
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- The arson plot in this episode closely resembles a true-life case. In March 2004, a California Institute of Technology student named William Cottrell was arrested for a string of arsons at four different SUV dealerships. Though the actual methods of arson most likely differed between this episode and Cottrell's case, there are some striking commonalities. Cottrell allegedly torched 125 SUVs at those four dealerships. What makes this especially similar to this episode's plotline is that, when boasting about his actions to the Los Angeles Times, Cottrell falsely claimed himself to be member of the Earth Liberation Front. Given the parallels between Caltech and "CalSci" and the actual ties between the show and Caltech, this is all certainly more than just coincidental. Edit
- Professor Waldie: " way cool." "Way Cool" was commonly used to describe the sciences in the Public Television series "Bill Nye the Science Guy," hosted by Bill Nye. It was no coincidence Professor Waldie, played by Bill Nye, used the same phrase to describe a backdraft. Edit
- Later in this episode, Megan says that about 300 years ago, London was burned to the ground. The guy who confessed to it wasn't even in London at the time and they didn't even know it until two days after he was hanged for the crime. Wikipedia reveals that the fire started on September 2, 1666, and that it was Robert "Lucky" Hubert, a French watch-maker, who confessed to the crime, possibly after being tortured. His confession was accepted and he was convicted even though there was overwhelming evidence he did not commit the crime. Edit