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Shark Season 1 Episode 4

Russo

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8.7

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 10/12/06

A couple is shot to death in a Malibu beach house, which they rented from a private investigator who knows dirty secrets about almost everyone in Hollywood - including Stark. The PI is under investigation by a grand jury and Stark uses that threat to squeeze information from him. Back at home, Julie helps a guy on whom she has a crush research a term paper while she lets her own studies fall behind.moreless

Fan Episode Reviews (5)

Shark outwits an old employee

8.9

By AvatarBlue, Mar 30, 2008

Thought this was a very good episode. The real conflict is between Shark and Russo who has Shark over a barrel, in that he did some dodgy things for him when he was a defence attoney. The pivotal scene is when Shark devises his honey trap to trick Russo into revealing what he needs to convict the guy that Russo is helping. V. cleverly done, well acted. The use of proportional misdirection works very well as both proganists pause and ponder if they are being fed a load of bull or are indeed being given the chance to get what they want.

Good stuff.moreless
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Signs of who Stark was, and who he has become...

9.0

By jamoon2006, Oct 22, 2007

I like when Stark's "old" and "new" worlds collide, and they slam head-on into each other in "Russo." The case itself is nothing spectacular, and it may be the most cut-and-dried of the first four episodes, but the presence of Russo, the P.I. to the stars played by William Forsythe, elevates the proceedings and gives James Woods a slow-burn nemesis to play against.

Russo is the personification of what Stark was before he became a prosecutor. The difference is that Stark still had that line, that moral sense, that Russo lacks. Stark lies, cajoles, cons...but he doesn't kill. Russo does, or at least helps. It's that discord that lingers from their past. I liked that the show didn't spell out exactly what happened in the case where Russo worked for Stark. I was expecting one of the assistants to spell it out in an "Irving the Explainer" scene to the audience, but it was kept ambiguous, even in the final scene between Woods and Forsythe. The less we know, the better...because we can draw our own conclusions and interpretations. Unlike the usual CBS dreck, "Shark" doesn't attempt to wrap everything up with a bow. That's not who Sebastian Stark is.

I still don't like the junior prosecutors (like so many other characters on CBS procedural shows, they are totally interchangable). The sideplot with the golden boy refusing to report to Jessica might have meant something if I cared about him as a character.

The strength of the show (now that I am one disc of Season 1 into it) is James Woods. Whether he's in court or at home, he's riveting and glues your eyes to the screen. Of course, he can't be in every minute of every episode, and that is where "Shark" still sinks.moreless
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not a good episode for me

8.5

By raimondo, Mar 05, 2007

this episode has to much tv on it. I do not think that this age the DA and privste attorneys used this way of PI in their cases. I think this episode is good only for tv and does not give a good rep to the men a nd women that fight the crime in the court rooms. Here we see how the past os a big shot attorney catchs up with him and conflicvts with a grand jury investigation.moreless
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The story is just not there yet. Will it ever be?

7.5

By doarpr, Oct 17, 2006

Apart from James Woods' great performance, the show is just not there yet. And in the 4th episode, it better be. It doesn't make any sense that the lawyers are there to do the detectives work and the explantion for that is so lame it's pathetic. As for the team - they are only different on paper: yes, the writers had all the minorities and male/female in the right pc ratio - is just funny - yet none of them have any real character/personality differences and they are just boring. Or maybe just bad actors. Or both.

On the bright side, at least this time around there aren't too many orphaned kids at the background like in the last 2 episodes - that was begining to be too much - yes, we all want to know Shark has a soft side, but not THAT often, thank yo uvery much!

Stakrs' kid is just annoying! I know kid has been through so much and she has so many problems... breask onés' heart. Pretty sad on the whole. I'll give it one more try just because I love James Woods.moreless
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Gritty detective mystery

8.0

By cybernaut_ev, Oct 15, 2006

Well, they talked much slower than last episode, great improvement. Also, the story wasn't so convoluted as last week.

The casting was great for the crooked detective. William Forsythe comes across like a seedy character right out of paperback mystery.

I thought Madeline's reaction to Casey and his date was right on. It's interesting to see Julie wrapped around a boy's finger as opposed to the other way around. The kid did come across as a gigilo type who used girls.

This story was clever with the bluffing, and the look of relief Stark had when Russo fell for his bluff. However, I would like to see a more compelling storyline on this series, something bazzare perhaps. The stories are sort of run-of-the-mill.

Anyway, acting top notch as always.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Alexis Cruz	Martin Allende
Danielle Panabaker	Julie Stark
James Woods	Sebastian Stark
Jeri Ryan	Jessica Devlin
Sam Page	Casey Woodland
Sarah Carter	Madeline Poe

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Matt Lanter	Eddie Linden	Guest Star
Aaron D. Spears	Detective	Guest Star
William Forsythe	Harry Russo	Guest Star

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (1)
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- During the first meeting between Stark and Russo, there is a scene with a bus passing the D.A.'s office. On this bus is a sign that reads "Studio 60" and can be seen if it is freeze-framed.
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QUOTES (7)
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- Stark and Russo having a drink at a bar
  Stark: You're willing to take a needle for a client? You're carrying loyalty to a whole new level.
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- Julie: Dad? What are you doing down here?
  Stark: I saw a car on the monitor and thought there might be a problem, which clearly there is. So, Eddie, what are you studying besides the inside of my daughter's mouth.
  Eddie Linden: I should be going.
  Stark: Yeah.
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- Stark: (to Russo) Knowing someone's bluffing, and calling that bluff… two very different things.
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- Stark: How do you miss the Pacific Ocean?
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- Harry Russo: (to Stark) You might be wearing a badge now, but we both know what you really are.
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- Madeleine: What are you doing?
  Raina: Hopefully calling a dead person.
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- Stark: Bring me the ass of Taylor Garrett.
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NOTES (1)
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- International Air Dates:
  Australia December 4, 2007 on Network 7
  Czech Republic January 27, 2008 on Prima
  Croatia July 10, 2009 on HTV 2
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ALLUSIONS (2)
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- Julie: That's predicted, the Bat Signal.
  
  In the various fictional worlds of Batman, the Bat Signal is a specially modified searchlight with a stylized symbol of a bat placed on it so that it projects a large bat emblem on the sky or buildings of Gotham City. The origin of the signal varies between timeline and media. In the 1989 Batman film, Batman gave the signal to the police. The Bat Signal is used as much to enhance the terror effect of Batman on criminal elements as a signal.
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- Stark: You and Inspector Clouseau here...
  
  Inspector Jacques Clouseau (later chief inspector) is a fictional character in Blake Edwards's Pink Panther series. In most of the films, he was played by Peter Sellers, with one film in which he was played by Alan Arkin and one in which he was played by an uncredited Roger Moore. In the most recent Pink Panther film, he was played by Steve Martin.
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