Burn Notice 6.10 - Desperate Times

Plot: Since the end of the last episode, Michael has turned over all the information he has on Tyler Gray to the CIA, something Fiona was none too pleased about. But it's produced results, Tom Card has located Gray in Panama, and told everyone that this is actually about a weapons theft (since Gray broke into a weapons depot), since this investigation is supposed to be closed. Which means keeping the group sent to capture him small, meaning Mike, Fi, Sam, and Jesse, plus one Brady Pressman. He was in charge of the op to capture Anson, so yeah, he kind of wants to make up for that foul-up.

Before Mike leaves the country, he visits his mother, who is still angry about Nate's death, and blames Michael and herself. Mike has no answers for her, and capturing the killer certainly isn't going to make up for it, so he tries to reassure her that he will stay in contact, and to drive the point home, he gives her Card's number, so she can contact him if she doesn't hear from Mike. Maddy then turns around and uses that to go visit Card. She wants answers, but more about why her sons turned out as differently as they did.

Mike is not having a good time in Panama, because Gray has an army of mercs at his disposal, and someone tipped him off that there were people coming to get him. Mike's group quickly loses most of their equipment, their headquarters, and Jesse's shoes. So they do what they do best, improvise, and manage to fairly quickly dispatch Gray's security. Gray himself proves somewhat more resourceful, but Fi and Jesse play decoy, and Mike rappels in through the window to kick Gray in the face. Victory! One problem, Gray says he's working for Card, that he was meant to kill Michael, and having failed, Card's going to send in an air strike to finish the job. Brady - who Gray had wounded earlier - sacrifices himself to cover their escape.

The Players: Tyler Gray (The Man Who Murdered Nate), Brady Pressman (Running This Op)

Quote of the Episode: Michael - 'Fi, I'm not going to let the man who murdered my brother get away, I don't care who I have to work with.'

Does Fiona blow anything up? Not really. She helped make some flashbangs, but Mike had to hog all the fun throwing them.

Sam Axe Drink Count: 2 (19 overall).

Sam Getting Hit Count: 1 (6 overall).

Michael's Fake Laugh Count: 0 (1 overall).

Other: No aliases for Mike this week.

Jesse's lack of shoes was an amusing subplot, though it felt a little out of place in this episode. But the fact he couldn't find a merc with big enough feet was nice, and also proof that Jesse Porter is smarter than John McClane. You can find ways to make shoes fit.

Hey, it's Kenny Johnson, who played Lem on The Shield! I really liked Lem, and now he's playing a remorseless sniper. He does it well, though. I didn't really feel too bad for him when Michael hit him unnecessarily after shouting "Don't move!" That line, 'Did he say he was proud of you? Yeah, he said you'd like that. Right before he told me to go for the head shot.' There was such a cruel edge to that voice. He enjoyed twisting that knife.

While we're at it, Michael seems to be losing all control this year. He just keeps flipping out and hurting people excessively. Anson (which I was cool with, but still), Ayn's brother-in-law (that Maddy tried to get that pendant from), Tyler, Grayson (Fi's Weapons Dealer). Not managing his anger well.

With Brady's death, I might as well mention something I've been thinking about for a few weeks. How many people's lives has Michael wrecked over the course of this series? Nate died, Brady died, Max died, Diego died, Pearce's career is wrecked. That's not counting the random people Mike encounters along the way. I keep thinking of this nice lady who worked at an airport. Mike needed info on some government flight, and he sweet talked access to the files out of her. The last we saw, she was getting chewed out by her supervisor. That lady almost certainly got fired, and hell, may have been placed on some watchlist for leaking classified information. All so Michael could continue his pursuit of the people who burned him. He's left a Hulk-like trail of wreckage behind him.

I feel like I should say something about that whole thing between Maddy and Card, but I don't have much. Card's broken glass analogy seemed silly, and it's hard to take anything he said at face value since he was in the midst of a plot to kill Michael even as he talked to Madeline about how many lives Michael had saved.