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Standoff Season 1 Episode 7

Man of Steele

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AIRED: 11/14/06

A man becomes enraged when he learns a surrogate mother for his child in an illegal adoption was a fraud. After he shoots the social worker who arranged the adoption, he takes the baby and the babysitter hostage at the surrogate mother's home. Matt and Emily are called to negotiate when the man calls radio personality, Avery Steele, to defend himself, and the standoff goes live on the air in Los Angeles.moreless

Fan Episode Reviews (5)

Little silly but had a point..

7.5

By Parricida, Jan 27, 2009

Ok.. First I did not liked this episode at all. It all sounded so weird and it looked so silly.. and.. oh doing a radio show and having a talk via it.. sounds like a crazy and stupid idea but what surprised me turning the episode was that in the end, it did worked - they managed to get Emily there and made her talk and communicate and when the got the other woman there who has been fallen into the same trap, and she speaking her story.. and Emily trying to avoid the suicide, then this episode got it's beauty.moreless
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good episode...

8.4

By Fwirrel, Sep 12, 2008

Well, this was a pretty unique. Matt and Emily had to use the radio personality to talk a man with a gun down. Interesting. Anyways, a man shot a social worker than took a nanny and child hostage. In the end, he was talked down by Emily everyone was ok. I thought it was an interesting concept, and I loved watching the captain FBI lady get pissed off at the radio guy. However, the radio personality was really annoying and I thought the crowd was annoying also. The story was good, but there was not as much characterization for the main characters. Overall, good episode with a good story, but annoying guest characters.moreless
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Another impressive episode… spoilers

9.0

By D-LinkUK, Nov 19, 2006

Whilst watching a car chase on TV the CNU team quickly become involved when the man being chased breaks into a house and takes a baby and the sitter hostage, what unfolds is a cry for help by the HT as he calls a local radio presenter to plead his case as to why he is there, the mans story is that he was involved in an illegal adoption but was duped out of his money by the women who’s house he is in.

The CNU team need to find the women who has taken the mans money, get to the radio station to talk to the HT, try and stop the radio presenter of causing a riot and rescue the hostages, they have one problem, the siege is being conducted live over the air in LA and the radio presenter is a shock jock type who is inciting people to go down to the hostage scene and show there support for the HT, Matt eventually tracks down the women who’s taken the money and we find out it’s not the first time she’s done this, Emily has to go down to the radio station and battle against the radio presenter and people calling in while at the same time keep her cool to quell the hostage situation.

The story went as expected, no one was hurt, the con women was arrested, the HT let his hostage’s go and was also arrested, the radio presenter was also arrested for inciting a riot and the CNU team saved the day, well it was mainly Emily who saved the day, she is coming across as the better negotiator and is growing on me as a character as the show go’s on.moreless
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I left last nights episode with the verification that I was looking for.......-hang on folks, I think Lehman is the better negotiator. BEWARE-HUGE SPOILERS

9.0

By 4realFed, Nov 17, 2006

1. "You're in charge.........happy?"

Everybody wants to be in charge, not everyone has a clue. Avery Steele is the epitome of just that. Clueless in society, Emily summed him up perfectly, to much to quote here, but bottom line, he is a BS artist of the worst kind. With in one minute of listening to this character I had a strong dislike for him, kinda like what I would feel if I saw pond scum floating on top of my latte in the morning. He uses other people's misfortune, grief and pain as his tools for entertainment. These guys exists in the real world, my dislike for him was instantly legitimate, I almost let it ruin the show for me. Add a baby and expose people's desperate plight to wanting to have one, call it entertainment, and I am in heavy dislike for Steele. (Read on - I'm ok with it, I get talked down by the end of the show.) I like it when people who are in charge know how to get the most out of what they have to deal with. The counter action to Steele for me was Matt being put in charge, Emily's negotiations and Cheryl's District Attorney background seeping through. I think we get a glimpse into the fact that Flannery might just make a good supervisor. More on that in a minute.

2. "Are you done?" ........"No, you are."

Dealing with two idiots making really, really bad decisions. Emily takes on two Hostage Takers. Fromer is understandable, he's a man at the end of his rope- Emily can deal with this guy in a methodical way- Fromer is what she is trained for. How is Steele a HT you ask? Easy, he preys on weak minded people and holds their emotions that they are not even sure of, hostage. I like how Emily fights Matt a bit about going into the studio to deal with both of these guys at once. She is human in this one, she is not sure she can go toe -to-toe with a shock jock, I mean there is no way he can quote Hemingway or Shakespeare and she sure can't pretend to spout his crap. So how is the connection going to happen? I like how the writers hang Avery Steele, good homework. The US Attorneys are contacted, draw up a complaint and Steele digs a really deep hole, then crawls in. Classic obstruction of justice. I personnally enjoyed watching Emily dismantle Steele on every level. This interaction was the beauty of this show. (Really, rewind- back the DVRs up and watch DeWitt shine in this episode.) Lehman is at her best, if you listen and really watch her expressions, she is totally believable in this one, DeWitt sells Lehman and at no time did I think, "well she has degrees in psychodynamics", I thought hey, "she's a hell of a negotiator."

3. "Ok, you get on the roof and we'll keep talking."

Everybody gets a piece of this pie. I was happy to see everyone involved in the investigation. Matt commands a scene as I would suspect, he is pretty sure he wants to talk them out, but he doesn't mind having a sniper with a shot ready. He is a decison maker. That respect thing that I posted about this week between him and Frank appears here I think. They work well together. Even Lia is drawn into the action, and is believable as she is knowledgable with what is going on and the infromation needed. She was the right one to send to the hospital. Emily's classes are paying off with that pupil.

4. "I have what you have."

Was our need for a Matt and Emily fix satisfied? I can just hear the collective sigh across the time zones by now. I know some has to be disappointed with the lack of some Matt and Emily personal relationship time. But- I walk away happy from this one, here's why. On a very basic level I liked that they did not go at each others throats on the job in this one, Matt shows some legitimate confidence in Emily's abilities and pushes her to become the pivital player in this crisis. Nice to see him back her. The most powerful two minutes of Standoff yet this year was the writers ability to capture Emily working and telling a "Matt and Emily truth" at the same time. This topic deserves a thread all it's own, and I will make one, but here is a preview. I LOVED the Emily /Doug dialog at the end, there is no double speak going on. She looks at Matt and tells the truth. If you felt non-connected til the very end of this episode then you can at least agree with me that there is something terribly disturbing about watching a man jot a suicide note and point a gun at his own head. I was caught up in this last two minutes, I know I put my hand on my forehead, put the recliner down, sat my feet on the floor infront of the big screen and audibly said, "oh sh_t,... No". DeWitt owns Lehman and Lehman owns those last two minutes, the knowing glance and the grin, the one on one way that she brings Doug's focus back onto what is really important- having someone there for you. This ending is why I will be watching next week.

The music choice was great, again. I will be checking out the soon to be posted question about who that was, you just know that is coming!!! Another good installment of our favorite new show. This is one I can honestly say may take a few viewings or rechecking the highlights for you to find what makes this episode work for you, but do not gloss over DeWitt's performance here-she was a heck of a find for this show.moreless
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An interesting episode!(Review contains spoilers)

8.7

By SnailQueen, Nov 17, 2006

I enjoyed this episode - it had me on the edge of my seat from beginning to end. The plotline was fast-paced, and I love the characters and their relationship (Matt's comments to Emily while pretending to be a caller to the Avery Steele show were clever in the sense of the case and very sweet in the sense of dating). I was worried about the turnout - has an HT ever come that close to comitting suicide before in an episode? Would this be the case where Matt and Emily save the hostages but do not save the HT? I was a little disappointed with the ending, but Emily's little analogy to her relationship with Matt was very nice. And, as usual, the CNU saved the hostages and the HT. I commend those who work on "Standoff" for a job well done, and I look forward to next week's episode.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

EDIT

Gina Torres	Cheryl Carrera
Jose Pablo Cantillo	Duff Gonzalez
Michael Cudlitz	Frank Rogers
Raquel Alessi	Lia Mathers
Ron Livingston	Matt Flannery
Rosemarie DeWitt	Emily Lehman

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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Brent Sexton	Avery Steele	Guest Star
Brigid Brannagh	Caryn Frohmer	Guest Star
W. Earl Brown	Doug Frohmer	Guest Star

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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TRIVIA (1)
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- According to a billboard shown in the opening scene, Avery Steele's talk radio show was broadcast on KTLH 98.6 FM.
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QUOTES (16)
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- (after Cheryl leaves the radio station and Matt is in charge)
  Frank: (grinning to Matt) You, uh, wanna hear my tactical plan?
  Matt: (as situation escalates) Okay, now I wanna hear your plan.
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- (after speaking to the crowd and receiving a poor response)
  Matt: What do you think?
  Frank: Backup's on the way.
  Matt: Yeah, good call. All right.
  (later when the crowd is nearly out of control)
  Frank: Where the hell's my backup?
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- Frank: Please tell me you are not thinking of going into that crowd.
  Matt: (changing from his FBI gear to street clothes) I'm not thinking about going into that crowd. Just gonna do it.
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- (after Avery has encouraged his listeners to go to Doug's street)
  Cheryl: (on the phone to Frank) Rogers, expand your perimeter. Expect company.
  Frank: (at scene) Copy. (to his men) Seal it up!
  Duff: Circus is coming to town.
  Frank: I hate it when people try to crash my party.
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- Emily: Doug, I need you to listen to me. You're... you're focusing on the wrong thing. You need to think about Caryn. Your wife still loves you. That hasn't changed. (pauses and struggles for words, then looks at Matt) You know what, Doug? Avery asked me what qualification I have to talk to you. Well it's this: I have what you have. (Matt turns to her and smiles) I have someone who's there for me - just like Caryn is there for you. She's waiting for you outside, Doug. Right now. I know we all get so hung up on the things that we don't have that we forget to look at the things that are right there in front of us. Yeah, we don't know how long it's gonna last, or if we're going to have it tomorrow, but it's there today. And you know that's something that most people will never get the chance to know.
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- Avery Steele: You have a name, or can you not reveal that information at this time?
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- Cheryl: Tell me you brought me something I can use.
  Emily: Something. But I don't think you're gonna like it...
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- Matt: (In funny accent) Hey Steele, you should have this Emily on more often. She sounds real cute, ya know?
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- Avery Steele: Hey guys, guess who's back! It's FBI Emily!
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- Matt: So you think he's in there trying to get his manhood back?
  Emily: I think that's one of the reasons he called "Avery Steele." Big alpha male, take his side, pump him up.
  Matt: Then let's hook him back up to the pump.
  Emily: You wanna put Doug back on the air with Steele?
  Matt: Yeah. This time with a sexy young cohost.
  Emily: (disbelievingly) Me?
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- Emily: Look, I can handle Doug, but with Steele in the room it'll be like trying to diffuse a bomb with a little gremlin on my shoulder pulling my hair.
  Matt: Why is the gremlin pulling your hair?
  Emily: Look, I could come up with a better metaphor.
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- Matt: ...People love to listen to him.
  Emily: They love to listen to themselves. It is an FM, Jerry-Springer freak show dressed up as free-speech advocacy and shoveled to the lowest common denominator.
  (Matt and Cheryl stare at her)
  Emily: What? I've accidentally tuned in a couple times.
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- (as everybody is watching TV)
  Emily: I'll just be doing that work stuff that we do.
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- Steele: The FBI is in my studio, Doug. I think this is the same lady I hung up on, and she's tall and she's black and she's not happy.
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- Steele: I'll be out on bail and back on the air within an hour. My fans will know exactly what went on here.
  Cheryl: All your fans will know is that you helped the FBI save three lives. Now if you feel the need to tell 'em any different, well, you're dumber than your shirt makes you look.
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- Matt: Hey, everybody, how ya doing? Hot enough for ya?
  Crowd Member: You're hot!
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NOTES (1)
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- Music featured in this episode was "1000 Seconds" by The Secret Machines.
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ALLUSIONS (1)
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- Avery Steele: (to Emily) Those are my fans you're talking about, Clarice.
  
  Steele is referring to fictional FBI agent Clarice Starling who also studied Behavioral Sciences. Clarice is from the novels Silence of the Lambs and Hannibal, by Thomas Harris. In Silence of the Lambs she was assigned to interview Doctor Hannibal Lecter, a brilliant psychiatrist, cannibal and sociopath. While many others had tried and failed to interview him, she formed a connection with him and was able to gain valuable information about a high-profile case. Like Emily, Clarice is also very strong, independent, and skilled at her job (despite the fact that she is working in a male-driven profession).
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