Having gotten back into the swing of this show last week, where it re-appeared after a multi-week hiatus, this episode packed a punch – sometimes, quite literally.
(Spoilers after the jump)
Recap:
One of the through-lines for this episode was Banks’ emotional breakdown, causing him to lock himself into his apartment because that was where he felt he was the safest. Refusing to leave his apartment, he begins to be curious about the woman in the apartment across the way (a person he calls “yoga girl” until he learns her real name) and a shady looking man who is seen in her apartment with her. He suspects foul play and calls police officers to check in on the woman, yet they think he’s crazy, and as such, do not investigate. Banks’ partner, Delahoy, thinks he’s crazy too, and keeps insisting that Banks go see a psychiatrist. But when Banks phones Delahoy and asks him to run a couple of names in the police database, Delahoy realizes that Banks isn’t crazy, and that the man that Banks saw through his window could potentially be a serial killer!
Banks attracts the attention of the supposed serial killer, but begins to doubt his sanity as he reflects on what various characters have told him up until now. A tense moment occurs when he asks himself if he truly is crazy, and then the camera focuses and the serial killer is standing right behind him!
Delahoy, fearing for his partner’s safety, runs over to the apartment, and has tremendous difficulty getting the door to Banks’ apartment open. Once the door is finally open, he finds a bloodied Banks stepping away from his attacker, who he has knocked down cold upon the floor.
Meanwhile, at the precinct…
Beaumont is nervous about having to testify in court. She’s made even more nervous by the evidence being stolen out from under their noses by a renegade federal agent and a dumb criminal. When things look their bleakest, Walsh steps up to the plate and organizes the group to find the evidence and get it back in time for the trial the next morning. However, it is Eddie Alvarez who really steps up to the plate and gets the evidence back, just in the nick of time.
Review:
One recurring character that I was delighted to see appear in this episode was Marvin. He first appeared in Episode 4, “Crime Slut,” and despite the fact that he’s a criminal, he is very endearing as a character. He gets mixed up in the robbery by giving the robbers information on how the precinct was laid out and how it operated, being that Marvin has been in the precinct in jail so many times. When I found out that Marvin was involved in the robbery, I had the same reaction as Walsh: I was saddened that he got himself into trouble yet again, and hoped that he wouldn’t continue to do so. This is a great example of the practice The Unusuals employs in making the audience side with people they wouldn’t normally side with.
I thought this was an equally good episode as compared to last week’s “The Tape Delay.” There were some nice tender moments with Alvarez, making him even more sympathetic of a character. I cheered when Banks took down the supposed serial killer and returned back to work. In the moments where Banks was flashing back to previous scenes in the show, I had one prevailing thought: there is no other show like this. It is a shame that it has been canceled by ABC – they don’t know what they’re letting go of.