Person of Interest

Season 2 Episode 13

Dead Reckoning

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Dead Reckoning
8.4
out of 10
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213 votes
11

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Episode Summary

Reese's former partner Kara abducts him as part of her scheme to unleash a wave of cyber-terrorism across the world and get revenge on the people she believes wronged her.

FAN RECAP

TV.com Episode Review

  • Person of Interest "Dead Reckoning" Review: End of an Issue 179

    Person of Interest "Dead Reckoning" Review: End of an Issue

    A thorn in John's was neatly extracted as the series wrapped up another fantastic arc.

    By Tim Surette, Feb 01, 2013

    • Fan Episode Reviews (11)

    SUBMIT REVIEW

    • If You Don't Think This Episode Is Awesome, So I Sorry For You, Because I Think Is Excellent.

      10
      By JooPaulo3, Feb 07, 2013
      I know is your opinion @ KateSwede, but you need to try to catch more details of this show, because is amazing. Dead Reckoning is definitely one of the best episode of the all series, you claim this season don't have magic, but you are wrong, they expand the universe of the show after season 1 and season 2 is more consistent, have great plot, more answers and great characters. If you not like the show anymore, please stop watching.





      moreless

    • Vile disappointment

      2.0
      By KateSwede, Feb 06, 2013
      Season 1 this was the best show on tv. Season 2 sucks. THis whole thing with Kara Stanton and the horrific acting of Annie Parisse is awful. Really disappointed with this show. Need to go back to the magic of season 1 or risk being cancelled.

    • After thoughts

      10
      By Seascape1900, Feb 05, 2013
      Assumptions en masse. Our PoI was apparently Kara Stanton (KS) as Harold had three books out and was entering (all we saw were nine asterisks) into the machine when initially talking to a very groggy Carter disentangling herself from the car wreck. Carter identifies Kara as the main culprit of the wreck/Reese's abduction/FBI man killing and on Harold's computer Kara Stanton's picture shows up. So KS can thus be both victim and perpetrator.



      We also know that Harold's numbers are the "non-relevant/non-terrorism" numbers and yet Kara's actions can clearly be defined as terrorist-ish in nature aka cyber warfare. So why the 'cross-over'?



      A couple of possibilities: 1) the machine "detoured" KS's number to Harold & Co. to give an early alert to "Daddy" about what is brewing in the background as otherwise the government entities in charge would have kept a lid on it . malware infiltration of the centralized US network) and precious time might have been lost when/if Harold had ever learned of it PRIOR to doomsday in five months;

      2) as KS's motives for her deeds were essentially PERSONAL, aka revenge for China op betrayal, she was thus correctly 'filed' under the "non-relevant" list;

      Might there be yet another possibility around the twisted corner?



      Well, do we believe the machine to be cognizant (Root hinted at it)? If so, is it truly "neutral"= machine-like or as one can posits is it capable of making value-based decisions (remember how it "learns behaviour"? If the latter, than a clear threat to Harold Finch (aka 'Daddy') was identified and the missing few seconds/flicker showing the blow-up of the car might also have shown for example how the car door locks engaged, closing KS and Snow in (or some such thing-aka direct machine interference).



      Remember when Reese learned from Fusco a little about Harold's background (S1 E14 final scene), the machine opened a box with three response levels (called "course of action" assessment) under the heading of SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR SECURITY BREACHED and settled on the lowest " monitor" re Reese. Noteworthy is the fact that the machine's other response levels read as: mid-level "subvert" and highest level "mitigate".



      If correct, the machine will not interfere in Harold's personal risk choices (phone-bomb), but will SUBVERT and MITIGATE outside threats, if not covered by Admin's "ground rules" (S2E1).moreless

    • The end of an era, and a new beginning

      10
      By Lyta_499, Feb 05, 2013
      I'm starting to sound repetitive by now but omg, what an amazing episode!! I had begun to get serious PoI withdrawal symptoms after the (way too long) hiatus, but PoI is back with a vengeance! Let's hope that was the last hiatus in season 2, because this is the best show on TV right now and nothing else can remotely compare to it, imo. End hiatus rant.



      The scene with Finch and Reese on the roof was so wonderful! Their relationship has progressed so far since they first began working together, that at this point one would sacrifice his life for the other. They both realize that but none of them makes it apparent in his behaviour, which makes it so much more significant. Reese was reminded of his past by the return of Kara, who was his nemesis like Tim pointed out very correctly. So in a way his eagerness to self-sacrifice was perhaps an attempt to atone himself for his past, a bi-product of his guilt. It was very evident from his scenes with Snow, how far he has come and how much he has changed. Finch was luckily there to save the day and didn't leave him to wallow in his guilt and get killed.



      Kara is definitely dead, they found both bodies in the car and there's no way she would've had time to escape and plant another body there in a matter of seconds - because the place was swarming with police, and that's how long it would've taken them to get to the site of the explosion. That was a very exciting arc but I didn't like Kara, so I'm glad she's dead! I liked Snow a little more, but I still can't forgive him for framing Carter to get John killed in the previous season, so in a way he also got what he deserved.



      I think the British guy's speech about the Titans not only has to do with his own plan to infiltrate government electronic systems, but also with the reasons behind Finch's action to sell the laptop to the Chinese. Because he did give it as an answer to Kara's related questions, and the show generally never strays from its pattern of linking the past to the present. So perhaps Finch was trying also to destroy something from the inside, whether that was the government, the people behind Nathan's death who operated as a black branch of the government, or the Chinese who were trying to compromise the machine? I somehow believe there is a darker story behind this, that has to do with Nathan's death and Finch's role in it. A crazy theory of mine is that Nathan didn't die, and he is the super-wealthy, super-secret person behind Kara's employer, trying to regain control of the machine. It was clear he disagreed with the way it was used, and perhaps Finch played a part in his death that might have been a little more dubious. Finch is very secretive and we don't know what happened with Nathan. So in my theory he might be the mastermind puling the strings on the opposite site - there might come a time when the myth of their brotherhood will also be torn down.



      As it is John has no clue about Harold's involvement in the Ordos mission, or Jessica's death that ensued. If he finds out he might not actually be able to forgive Harold.



      Carter and Fusco were kind of on the backseat on this episode, so there isn't really much to comment on that front, except how the scene with Fusco trying to pull Carter away from John was very moving. But with so many CIA agents running around it's kind of understandable that they would get less screen time.



      I'm sorry Donnelly is after all dead, I was kinda hoping he might have survived and we would see him again, he was a cool actor and a cool character.



      Overall another great episode, with tons of excitement, plot reversals, big reveals, dramatic moments, amazing acting and a tremendous amount of hints and background to start a whole new arc in the rest of the season. I love how unpredictable this show is, and how it never allows us to rest on our assumptions but always manages to surprise the hell out of us!moreless

    • An Outstanding Episode, overall great show

      10
      By Jackprong, Feb 04, 2013
      This episode cemented the Finch and Reese relationship for what they may face five months from now. The "machine tech" has been an actual government project to look for terrorists conducted by over a dozen federal agencies before and after 9/11. Any individual obtaining the power of "the machine" could amass wealth, power, knowledge of future events. Of course, the "machine" could have the characteristics of Larry Niven's time machine (if a time machine were invented in a given universe and individuals in that universe could send messages back in time telling past individuals what to look for, a time machine would never be invented in that universe). The question to ask, in five months will there be a paradox set up by the machine that may show Finch to be perceived in a negative light by the government or will this be like a Foreign Power vs. Finch/Reese. I'm also struck by the similarities between "Person of Interest" and the 1960s "Wild, Wild Finch as Artie, Reese as Jim West. This is the best show on TV -- finally!moreless
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    Cast & Crew: STARS

    James Caviezel

    James Caviezel

    John Reese
    Taraji Henson

    Taraji Henson

    Detective Carter
    Kevin Chapman

    Kevin Chapman

    Detective Lionel Fusco
    Michael Emerson

    Michael Emerson

    Harold Finch
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    Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

    John Nolan (I)

    John Nolan (I)

    Greer

    Guest Star

    Brian Hutchison

    Brian Hutchison

    SAIC Brian Moss

    Guest Star

    Cameron Scoggins

    Cameron Scoggins

    Kevin

    Guest Star

    Brennan Brown

    Brennan Brown

    Special Agent Donnelly

    Recurring Role

    Michael Kelly

    Michael Kelly

    Mark Snow

    Recurring Role

    Annie Parisse

    Annie Parisse

    Kara Stanton

    Recurring Role

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    Season 2 Episodes

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