Person of Interest – Get Carter review!

This ninth episode of Person of interest is entitled ‘Get Carter’ and refers as a pun to both the Michael Cain movie and the fact that all the villains in this story are gunning for Detective Carter (Taraji Henson).

Person of Interest meanwhile seems to continue its run of good ratings and such is almost guaranteed to get a second season, the only gripe I have with the series is that the sci-fi elements have almost completely disappeared. After the pilot and the second episode we have seen no background information on ‘The Machine’ and it is in fact rarely mentioned. I know that in time the issue will take center stage and that at first this series needs to develop itself and not alienate the audience but slowly it is becoming an issue.

Now as for this weeks episode. It is clear from the title that it centers around Detective Carter. Early on in the episode we learn that she has a job as army interrogator in Iraq around 2004 and that she has a teen son who is on college. Despite being a homicide detective she also takes an interest in a woman who is repeatedly being physically abused by her husband Kovach. Carter is on the trail of hispanic arms smuggler called Hector after the latter murders an eye-witness. Quickly Finch (michael Emerson) learns that Carter is to become a victim and sets Reese (James Caviezel) and Fusco after her to learn who is the perpetrator.

Fusco begins to think there might be a cop who also holds a grudge against her and asks around. It would seem all the dirty cops in the police force know that Carter is by Elias, this complicates matters for Reese who now has to look for suspects in every corner. One of Carters informants tells her that Hector was near the site of the murder of the eye-witness and thus Carter tries to wheel him, but not before Reese takes the opportunity to steal a car from Hector. Hector however has disappeared and Reese thinks he is an unlikely suspect to murder Carter. Elias meanwhile alludes to Carter’s impending death by sending her flowers with a small obituary. Carter learns that Hector is hold up in a warehouse and that the business he is in is selling guns. Reese and Fusco go along with her (Reese uses the cover of a SWAT from being recognised) to make sure she doesn’t come in harm’s way.

After Hector is placed under arrest Carter thinks she is safe, but Reese calls her and convinces her otherwise. After her informant tries to kill her on Elias’s orders Reese manages to intervene and kill the informant. Reese later on ambushes a captain in the police force who is high up in the ‘dirty cop chain of command’ and Reese gives him an ultimatum, either let go of Carter or Reese will bury everybody.

The episode ends with Carter and her son Taylor sitting in a diner while Reese observes. As Reese drives off Carter knows she is watched but doesn’t seem to mind.

Conclusion…

This episode of Person of Interest was very good, but not great. There was no doubt in the way the plot would develop and though there were tense moments there also plenty of dull scenes. This episode suffered like the previous one from an ambitious set-up that the shows writers simply couldn’t fulfill.

The fact that detective Carter is now very much part of the team is one problem that is fixed. Detective Fusco’s cover seems to work well as I feared he might only be capable of interfering in a limited way. The dirty cop angle that shows the NYPD in less than positive way is ice-cold, it got even me to breathe twice…

Person of Interest now seems slowly march towards the season finale and as such the storyline surrounding its mythology should become more important.

Score; 8 / 10.

Viewer Rating; 12.66 million. This number is just brilliant. It’s the highest yet since the series pilot.

The way Person of Interest seems to avoid its sci-fi elements does have me a little worried about Alcatraz, the upcoming series involving