I’m glad the writers decided to bring back Owen. He brings another element of intrigue into Nikita and I especially love his dynamic with our protagonist. He wants to make amends for what he’s done to her and she’s hesitant to let him in. Interestingly enough, there’s a nice dose of offbeat humor between the two which is always welcome. It definitely stops things from getting too serious which could be detrimental to the show sometimes.
This episode also saw the introduction of Ryan Fletcher. Unfortunately in this episode at least, the writers don’t do much to differentiate him from the archetype of a do-gooder investigator. Nevertheless, Noah Bean does an adequate enough job with a relatively unexciting character.
Weirdly enough, this episode had a lot of heavy-handed dialogue which was a bizarre occurrence. Lines like “you’re right I didn’t consider the consequences” are much too cliche for a show as masterful as this. Sadly Owen got saddled with most of these horrid lines but thankfully, I don’t think this flaw ever really presents itself again on the show.
This hour was also notable for introducing a compelling little nugget into our ongoing mythology: If Percy dies, the contents of the black boxes would be released. It creates quite the riveting predicament for our heroine so I enjoyed this little reveal. Furthermore, I’m glad the writers wasted no time in having Nikki destroy her first black box at the end of the episode. It creates some forward momentum and proves that Nikita isn’t a show that intends to drag things out for no apparent reason.
Bits & Bullets
– Hauntingly eerie opening with Nikki swimming with that creepy orchestral music. I liked it.
– Nikki is lethal in a swimsuit with a towel. Who would have known?
– This is the second time we hear references to “Oversight” and an organization behind Division.
– The look on Owen’s face when he realizes Nikita like to plan her attacks? Priceless.
– I think I enjoy Nikki & Owen even more than Nikki & Michael. Particularly as they stab and strangle their way through a military base. The double fight scenes were insanely top-notch (as always).
– Michael taking out Owen’s escape truck with a rocket launcher was pretty darn incredible.
– The Birkhoff – Engineer scenes bored me. That is, until Percy snapped the latter’s neck.
– Jayden trapping Alex was annoying, in a good way. At least she’s doing something to back up her empty threats and ghetto-speak.
– Loved Nikki & Owen escaping the plane in midair. And using Ryan to do so of course.
Nikki Notables
Nikita: This engineer. What does he look like?
Owen: He’s like 40-45, weird, glasses, kind of eccentric… weird.
Nikita: I got it.
Ryan: Division? Just Division?
Nikita: Pretentious I know.
Conclusion
Not the greatest of episodes, but an exciting and enjoyable hour of Nikita nonetheless.
Nad Rating
B-
Great review, I especially like what you said about the writers not really differentiating Ryan from a standard man-of-his-word type. He gets better though, at least I think so. =)
I'm really enjoying all these Nikita reviews. Do you think you'll get them finished before the third season starts?
Thanks Panda. Yes I definitely will get them all done before the third season starts. And I agree, Ryan improves quite a bit and I'm interested to see what they do with his character next. (Don't want to spoil anything for those who aren't up to date).
I keep getting Dark Angel vibes! The fact that our heroine wants to take down Division keeps reminding me of Max saying “Manticore” (and that one time when she said she hates the word 'manicure' BECAUSE it reminds her of that hahaa). God, I miss that show.
I definitely love Nikita and Owen more than her and Michael. There's a lot of offbeat humor that's just so fun to watch between these two. But I don't like Birkhoff. Seems EXACTLY like Topher from Dollhouse. I can hardly tell them apart.
A little detail I enjoyed: Birkhoff and the engineer playing Mortal Combat! So nostalgic to hear the phrase “FINISH HIM” again.
And yes, Jayden is horrible. I almost feel bad for Alex for having to share the screen with this horrendous character. Can't wait to see where this goes, though! I'm really intrigued to see if I ever actually find an episode boring. So far, doesn't look like that's happening anytime soon 😀