CrimeDrama1

I watched the FBI season 5 finale when it aired last May but haven't had a TV in months and I just got Paramount Plus on my phone. I didn't miss anything. Literally, zero improvement with this show. The biggest problem I have with this episode is the bad guy gets away ONLY because the FBI failed. Why didn't the FBI use the media to splash Hakim's photo and let people in NYC find him? According to IMDB, Agent Nina Chase transfers to the FBI Fugitive Task Force (FBI Most Wanted) during or after this episode but all we learned is she was visiting her sister. Chase debuted in the season premiere of FBI Most Wanted so that was a huge miss in this FBI episode. Sadly, CBS crime drama writers have had a lot of misses.

Ben Wilson is one of the dumbest characters I've come across in hundreds of crime drama episodes. Is he still loyal to his ex-girlfriend? I doubt it. So why does he fail to mention her? He knows she had a key to his apartment and is the person most likely to access his apartment while he is away. I don't buy this guy stonewalling the police. It is not realistic, which ruins crime dramas. Does Wilson really believe police will never find out about his ex-girlfriend? People lie to police all the time but this guy is just being a jerk. He had no reason to lie or even drag his feet. Meanwhile, Eddie volunteers for a dangerous undercover assignment and Jamie had good reason to worry about her. Eddie demonstrated almost no hand-to-hand combat skills. She is lucky she wasn't hurt worse. She never thanked Jamie either. Weird story telling.

This has always been a compelling episode but breaking it down, I see two problems with the story. First, why would a fugitive ever return to his old stomping ground, let alone allow his oldest daughter to go to college there? The only way for this bizarre murder to happen is to add the unbelievable. Second, I believe the older daughter would never forget her mother and not buy into brainwashing. Susan's reaction at the end of the trial is too much. She must know that her mother didn't do anything wrong and that they were all victims of the same man. Also, it would have been better to have one daughter hoping to reconnect with her real mother while the other clings to her dad.

It is dramatic knowing prosecutors can't prove who actually killed the victim. Today, with so many people distracted by their cellphones, it wouldn't surprise me that no one saw who pushed the woman off the subway train platform. As it is with the man, his daughter and the victim on the platform, I doubt it was a low-key conversation. I'd bet she was raising her voice and maybe the man was too. No one noticed that? I don't buy it but having no reliable witnesses is necessary to prevent prosecution of the murder. Ultimately, I'm glad McCoy and company prosecute the man for kidnapping, and win.

I am such a huge fan of this franchise, my voicemail greeting has been based off the M:I intro with the theme music for well over a decade. "M:I Dead Reckoning: Part One" had its moments but I've never been a fan of huge leaps. The biggest, by far, is Ethan Hunt's life, pre-IMF - the only way the villain, Gabriel, comes into existence. Who was Marie to Ethan anyway? The only mention of Hunt's life pre-IMF has been Margaret Hunt and Donald Hunt, who Kittridge used as pawns in the original movie. I can't say I am a fan of a new villain who Ethan apparently knew before joining the IMF. A new villain known to no one would have been better because we have no background on Marie, who Gabriel killed though Ethan was charged with the murder. Ethan had to choose between going to prison for Marie's murder or joining the IMF. I really didn't care that we had no background on Ethan and his team members in the original movie. It's especially sad that ILSA Faust is lost only because of Gabriel. The ILSA from "Rogue Nation" and "Fallout" could have easily taken Gabriel. Ethan Hunt, on top of killing the AI entity, will seek to avenge the deaths of Marie and ILSA by killing Gabriel in the next film.

I wasn't sure what to make of Grace's character but disguised as White Widow, she declined $100M USD from Kittridge, and it was epic. Grace and Ethan should make for an exciting "Part Two" next year. Finally, for a film over 2.5 hours in length, I expected more explanation of how the two keys were retrieved from the dead sailors yet nobody retrieved their sunken submarine, which houses the AI entity. Part Two will likely be a race to retrieve the submarine and the AI entity. I have a feeling Ethan will welcome another new member in Part Two otherwise he is the only frontline fighter on his team. I don't see Hayley Atwell/Grace, training to become a fighter after a many years of being a thief. It could be Paris, who still had a pulse at the end of Part One. If she survives, she should be loyal to the Americans for saving her life, especially after Ethan had spared her.

Poor directing at the beginning of this episode. The writers may also be responsible because there was no sign of a problem at the department store. None. When the girl vanishes at the store, her nanny doesn't really freak out like I expected so maybe she was just acting since it was planned by the girl's mom. When the girl's father arrives at the store, the nanny hugs him - like everything is normal. The biggest thing is the girl couldn't be more normal before being taken. Children who are abused change their behavior in some way - they are anything but normal - until they receive therapy/counseling. The nanny would notice even the slightest change in the girl.

Nothing truly surprising in the series finale except the final scenes in...Morocco. However, I can't find any "upcoming projects" with any of the actors in the final scenes. There is nothing else that leads me to believe a new series is in the works.

Not a big fan of CBS crime dramas anyway so I am not holding my breath for NCIS: Morocco or whatever CBS calls it. My guess is it will be offered through Paramount Plus and not on cable or satellite TV, which is one of the dumbest business decisions ever. "SEAL Team" is a great example. I stopped watching that show as soon as the switch happened. I am over it.

CBS writers have reached a new low. The premise of a Swedish soccer fan killing an American man who is Latino but is wrongly suspected to be Syrian, is preposterous. The opening scene with the actors/agents discussing the case shows they don't buy it either. If the Swede was angry about immigrants, he wouldn't target an American. I also believe setting up the American victim to look stupid was a mistake. The man surely knew how serious Swedish soccer can be and wouldn't wear a rivals shirt (blue) out on the town, which was dominated by people wearing red - to support their club. I only continued to watch because I wanted to see the killer apprehended. Disbanding the terror group and involving one of Agent Forrester's old special ops buddies (Agent Powell - now a FBI agent working undercover) wasn't enough to save this episode. It appears that CBS only cares about putting out shows to earn advertising revenue but they will lose viewers with poor quality content like this episode, which will hurt the bottom line eventually. Apparently, Agent Powell will become the newest member of the FBI fly team but this was a bizarre way to introduce a new core character. The other FBI shows on CBS aren't much better, especially the stupid slang that is part of Agent Remy Scott's character. For example, he used the word "hombres" while discussing likely-white suspects in Wyoming. It's stupid!

As a hardcore fan of crime dramas, I believe in realism. That's why I like most True Crime shows. The unresolved ones bother me because we don't know that ahead of time. Unfortunately, crime drama writers for TV and film often sell out for maximum conflict and drama. Emily Blunt's character serves that purpose in this film. I am a huge fan of hers. Her character didn't seem to have any interest in bringing the fight to the drug cartels but yet she alone causes so much drama. A great example was the scene at the end of the tunnel when Blunt's character points her handgun at Benecio del Toro's character after he confronts a local Mexican police officer who just delivered drugs for the cartel - the same one the Department of Defense wants to bring down. It's ridiculous that Blunt's character intervenes (in Mexico!) and I wasn't surprised she was shot twice in her vest. She volunteered to work with the DOD. The most I could reasonably see her do is ask what del Toro's character is doing. He clearly was forcing the crooked cop to help him take out the cartel boss. During the dramatic traffic stop, it was sobering to see that the cop realized he would never see his family again. I believe Blunt's character had tactical experience but she seemed to be a fish out of water in the confrontation at the border crossing. She must know how violent cartels are and what the United States will do to stop them. A crooked Mexican Federal Agent took a shot at her. The FBI has no jurisdiction in Mexico and her character must know that but she cannot accept the DOD's mission. Fortunately, she couldn't ruin the objective of the mission. It seems reasonable to me that an FBI agent with no prior experience working with the DOD (or CIA) would take a back seat - observe and learn.

I first watched this movie years before the pandemic but it became an important reference for me early in 2020 because I had no idea what Covid-19 or coronavirus was. I first stopped driving for Lyft on March 18, 2020 but April 3, 2020 was my last day driving until the summer of 2021 due to a long scheduled trip request that morning. Aside from my health, I was mostly concerned about passengers refusing to wear a face mask and giving me a horrible rating because of Lyft's rules (CDC rules, in fact). Rideshare is public transportation, just like airplanes and buses.

This is a great movie and I think a lot of people had tunnel vision during the pandemic but there are a lot of parallels between the two.

It would have been interesting to gain perspective from those involved with this movie during the pandemic, especially during the vaccine rollout. I got my shots in March and April 2021 and I was shocked to learn my younger brother - a federal employee - got his shots after I did.

I don't believe it was mentioned in this movie but I believe Kate Winslet's character gets infected while speaking with Matt Damon's character the second time. He may have been immune but he could still pass it to others. She had her mask off while talking to him. So many parallels.

This was a sequel but there will likely be another sequel? That makes the writers look silly. After being introduced to this bizarre cult in "Monster" in season 9, most hardcore crime drama fans wanted resolution when the sequel comes around. However, when FBI Agent Collins, the apparent leader of the cult says, "...lay low for a very long time...", I shook my head knowing the case would not be resolved. So, a sequel after the sequel, really? All that's left is the manhunt. I thought Jeffries hopping in the backseat with a small cooler containing a "gift" (body part from his mother) for Collins (aka Vincent) was stupid since Collins admitted they will not be active for a long time. I am already dreading the next sequel.

This is one of the dumbest ideas ever by CBS writers. Why in the world would a 19-year-old surrogate betray the biological parents of the baby she is carrying when that was never her idea? Why would a British couple think they could persuade her to give up an American couple's baby let alone want to ruin that couple's life? It is preposterous!

The writers should have just had a young pregnant woman (Romanian or otherwise) who was willing to give up her baby for adoption, which can lead to manipulation, coercion and competition. The writers chose the story they did because they like to place a character in a negative light to add conflict and drama. CBS has done it a lot. I remember a Law & Order episode where a young woman coerced four sets of parents into giving her lots of money as they hoped they would be adopting her baby. That is a lot more realistic than this story.

OK, so January Jones is the reason I like this episode but I hate thinking that the story is so confusing so it's no wonder it was largely unresolved. Why can't ANYONE find out Kim Brody's real identity?!?! It seems to me that even if the NYPD can't hold Brody until her real identity is confirmed, the FBI sure can. However, I definitely don't believe she has credible information for the feds but I know she will try to use her beauty and charm again.

I know this series was designed around stand-alone episodes but this one is begging for a sequel. I don't believe anyone could become untraceable like Brody and avoid state murder charges. It just feels like law enforcement missed something huge between the prison break she allegedly helped with and the current scam she allegedly is the mastermind of. So many questions!

I don't believe the creator of the series had a great idea on how to free Allison from Kevin, let alone make her happy. A lot of effort seemed to go into the sit-com scenes and the transitions to and from Allison's dark reality. A prequel might help because very little dialogue was spent on describing Allison's feelings about Kevin. Hopefully they handle it better than those behind "Better Call Saul".

From the start, I felt that I wouldn't even give a guy like Kevin the time of day. With his level of narcissism, I don't know why Allison waited so long. We truly see the extent of that when Allison returns and informs Kevin she wants a divorce. I was really surprised by that because why wasn't that a valid option from the beginning?

The garbage can fire on top of the coffee table leading to Kevin's death was strange. The fire scene wasn't really believable because the ceiling would have caught fire before the walls, curtains and furniture and then the living room would have been overwhelmed by fire and smoke. The scene was eerie for me because I lost a cousin named Kevin to alcoholism and he was found dead on his couch. No fire though. Allison mentions that the self-inflicted arson wasn't how she wanted to remove Kevin from her life, but...good riddance. I honestly felt a fresh start in a new city was the best thing for Allison. Prequel or sequel but not both at the same time (BCS)! Quite disappointing for a series finale.

This is a very compelling episode, at first glance. I have seen it several times over the years. Unfortunately, most of the conflict is forced by the writers. Lt. Van Buren's college friend, whose oldest daughter (Emily) commits suicide at the beginning of the episode, who all but sabotages the criminal case against the man who disfigured Emily months before her suicide. It seems to me that if I had a friend who was a high ranking police supervisor, I would ask THEM for help in that situation. Instead, we are supposed to believe Lt. Van Buren has to beg her friend multiple times to let her help? I don't understand why Callie's character didn't have more lines in this episode. It would have been very intriguing if Callie had approached Lt. Van Buren on her own. As much as I enjoyed seeing Callie dish out some medicine to the pompous jerk who is responsible for her sister's death, it's not entirely believable. How does Callie or anyone get to the suspect's front door completely unnoticed by police? My guess, police avoided the elevator(s) and had no surveillance in them. Anyway, I always enjoy seeing the jerk get what he deserves.

Just when I thought the NCIS writers were better than any of the writers involved with the three FBI series, this one fell flat on its face.

Since when would an experienced soldier and federal agent, not clear a space before tending to a victim or at least call for backup? Sure, Torres takes out one bad guy but then there is another one and Torres and Dr. Grace are kidnapped. Torres has the instincts to not put himself in a vulnerable position. We expect to see that. Once again, CBS has writers who set up a key character to look bad just to create conflict and drama. In reality, Torres would have assessed the situation and called for backup before tending to Dr. Grace. He should have positioned himself between the wall and Dr. Grace but only after clearing the office.

It took a long time for me to buy Wilmer Valderrama as a federal agent let alone a tough guy and now the writers set him up? I am well aware that every significant character in a crime drama will be placed in a life or death situation but there are ways to create conflict and drama while making the scenes believable.

Now, in terms of a story about the ancient legend related to rocks found in Afghanistan, I am not buying it. It is all too far fetched. When I looked up the next episode on here, there was no description and no cast members were listed. The staff at IMDb has been falling further and further behind. It is truly bizarre.

Julian McMahon is the main reason this show has fallen apart. Compare this cast with that in season one. Barnes and Gibson remain but McMahon and Crosby are gone. Ortiz replaced Crosby and he's gone too. Crosby would've been THE rising star in the FBI. I had a bad feeling when Kellen Lutz (Crosby) left the show very early in season 3. McMahon decided to depart for selfish reasons before the halfway point of season 3. His decision led other actors to lose their jobs as well. I thought CBS might cancel it. Maybe they should have.

In this episode, several cartel members are dead and Kristin decides to meet Lucia, her contact from her undercover work in Miami (fighting the cartel) years earlier. Remy Scott suggests meeting at a specific bar in Brooklyn and the two women meet outside - not inside - the bar. A sniper took out the patriarch of a cartel family (surrounded by federal agents) but not even Kristin is worried about their safety. The sniper takes a shot. It is ridiculous. Why are there no agents on rooftops looking for the sniper? One could easily make a case that Scott set this up to the detriment of Kristin. Apparently, crime drama writers allow no outside feedback because they keep doing the same thing. If it's not believable, it will ruin a show like the FBI series. Shows like "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" and "Elementary" almost never had this problem because the writers and producers understood this.

I am constantly reminded by CBS that they cancelled the season 4 finale without warning and never apologized or explained. The only thing I learned was the episode storyline involved youth violence - set to air the same day as the school massacre in Uvalde, TX. CBS couldn't have handled it worse. It appears the people who masterminded that finale also wrote this episode. An Ivy League dropout resorts to violent robberies after his girlfriend is kidnapped by drug dealers. Why? Because the dropout, who was a drug runner, flushed a bunch of drugs to avoid being arrested with them. It's not original and begs the question - is this the best CBS can do? The romance or whatever it is between Agents Chase and Scola is ridiculous. What's not to like about Chase? However, Scola knows how to be professional. I don't buy that he didn't get it when Chase told him the morning-after that she wanted to keep it private - which means nothing happens at work! Even character development needs to be believable in a crime drama. The writers are taking liberties that are actually hurting them. If I worked on a CBS show I would feel so much pressure to help improve the networks image. However, it's hard to tell if anyone cares about it.

I finally finished watching the season premiere. I took a break before the halfway point of this episode because it was pretty ridiculous. Why was there only one officer in the room while Dyer (convicted serial killer) changes clothes? Who is supposed to cover the officer while she removes the handcuffs and shackles? I am over the Chen and Bradford awkward crush. He's her superior anyway. It's especially stupid given that a serial killer has escaped and they have taken their eyes off the ball after their undercover assignment ends. Debrief and get after Dyer. This isn't a soap opera, it is a crime drama. The one interesting part of the premiere was Nolan earning a "Golden Ticket" to pick any job within the LAPD. He picked Training Officer. Not surprised but it was a letdown. There will be plenty of drama with rookies but "Rookie Feds" looks better. However, not everyone has streaming capabilities. The network is airing the show but promoting the streaming option. I will never be OK with taking shows off broadcast TV and making them streaming (subscription) only. It's bad business. I already boycotted "SEAL Team" and DWTS.

I've always liked Detective Mike Logan. That City Councilman deserved to be punched in the face. Bringing Logan back into the franchise after roughly 10 calendar years was a brilliant move. I loved Capt. Deakins "putting in a call" to Lt. Van Buren of the 27th Precinct and finding out she tried three times to bring Logan back from his Staten Island exile. There is one issue I have with the whole premise of the federal prison conspiracy and the nurse being worried about what she knows and what might happen. The crooked guard(s) who killed one of their own would have to be pretty stupid to harm the nurse and leave Logan to hunt them down. After all, I don't see them killing Logan! Not to mention Goren and Eames. The crooked guards should be taking good care of the nurse, not intimidating her. She has insurance in spades. During the tense lockdown, Gina tells the truth and Goren makes most of the crooked guards understand they are all but in checkmate.

I liked the idea of combining all three Law & Order season premieres but it gets off to a rocky start. I must say that Christopher Meloni and Jeffrey Donovan are on opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of my favorite detective character actors in the franchise. The "Organized Crime" spinoff hasn't held my interest the way I thought it would. I already knew the season premiere crossover dealt with foreign criminals but Cosgrove leaving the injured girl laying on the street only to be shot and killed was silly. The girl told Cosgrove that a man was after her. I wouldn't have left her. Aside from automatically having Cosgrove on the case, why not just have her killed on the yacht or while running away? Crime dramas should not be theatrical, they need to be realistic and believable. I should have guessed Pasha D. Lychnikoff would guest star as the mastermind behind everything. It's a sad statement about the lack of Russian-speaking actors, if not actually Russian-born actors, to portray bad guys. If it is "Ripped From The Headlines" then Russia (and Ukraine) will likely be involved in the story.

The bright spot is Mehcad Brooks. I like his portrayal of Detective Jalen Shaw. I like Anthony Anderson and I didn't hear anything about him leaving Law & Order. I thought Anderson and Jeremy Sisto were great. I loved "Burn Notice" and I thought Donovan was great at playing a burned spy but something is missing with Detective Frank Cosgrove. Fingers crossed that Shaw and Cosgrove will become solid partners. Overall, I was disappointed with the triple crossover season premiere.

After the way CBS handled the season 4 finale of "FBI", I considered boycotting the show but I wanted to see Agent Maggie Bell's return. I also wanted to see if there was any explanation, apology or reference to the Uvalde, Texas massacre. There was nothing and Bell was not back at the start of the episode. However, because she was featured in promos leading up to the season premiere I thought she would make a cameo. The actress never appeared even though she was listed in the opening credits. What gives? It makes me wonder if the bomb disposal scene with Omar (previously done by Bell) was a tip-of-the-hat to her. I found the suspect's continued elusiveness to be ridiculous. Even after the bomb explodes and danger is averted, the FBI cannot find and apprehend the suspect, Nathan. He is able to flee, with gun in hand, separate a man from his son and carjack them with the boy still in the car. The FBI are made to look weak in this episode. It's hard to believe that wasn't CBS's intention. A political statement? A bomb tech who gives up over something unconfirmed? That is downright absurd. I should have boycotted the show.

I love this series. Just like with "Law & Order: Criminal Intent," I don't have a lot to be critical of. The acting is superb and the writing and producing are nearly perfect. What stands out in this episode is the killer is only shown with a mask and never appears again, even when the case is solved and he reportedly was arrested and confessed. We briefly see a photo of the killer with his dog, the only man the dog liked. The killer's character and the actor who portrayed him is not listed among the cast members on IMDb. This is really odd. The killer's ex-wife was an accomplice and she gets all of the screen time. If not for her greed, the two murders would not have happened. I would have loved to see the killer confess and see the woman's reaction. Even though Captain Gregson's marriage does not survive, the final scene was great.

Aside from "Aftershock", this is the most ridiculous episode in this series. It is so easy to leave a baby at a fire station or a church OR give it up for adoption. If the mother really did starve her baby to death, that should be her punishment. Why didn't the grandparents intervene? Everyone failed that baby. There should have been NO opposition to a plea bargain.

The writers and producers, once again, sold out to make this episode as shocking and dramatic as possible but crime dramas require realism. Obviously real babies have died due to abuse and negligence but I doubt starvation? I find it interesting that the actress who portrayed the baby's mother didn't last long in the industry. The actor who portrays the father is not recognizable to me but has had some success since 1999.

What a confusing episode. We had a partial resolution but that went away and later there may be evidence that the woman in a coma (Cecelia) actually killed her sister (Julie) and took numerous steps to frame the man (Taylor) her sister broke up with, including the unbelievable staged assault that left her in a coma. The big question I am left with is if Julie broke up with Taylor, why would Cecelia kill her and frame him twice? It seems A LOT more reasonable that Taylor killed Julie and that's why Cecelia wanted to frame him. The mistrial? It seems too easy with McCoy's emotional tendencies and judges being far from perfect, leading to mistrials and threats of contempt of court (McCoy has been jailed for it before). I will never be OK with unresolved crimes on this show. A complicated case makes sense but not coming close to the truth does not. Fans of "The X-Files" know that a show can have stand alone episodes and work in overlapping stories or mythology into the other episodes. I am left asking, "What really happened to Julie?" I don't like it.

As much as I like Lennie Briscoe's character, this episode had a lot of forced conflict. There was so much made about Briscoe hearing a confession from the prime suspect (Sabo) but it happened so fast and no one else heard it, so there are going to be corroboration issues. What bothers me is why did Sabo say the victim got what she deserved? There was never any evidence she knew him. When Sabo confirms his confession to McCoy at the end, there is a lot of hostility in his voice. It just doesn't make any sense. What did the victim ever do to him? Not enough time was spent on explaining the motive. I don't like calling murders like this, "a robbery gone wrong." Sabo made it sound personal. He killed her just because she wouldn't let go of her purse? Think about expectations. Why would you expect a woman to instantly let go of her purse, which she has held tight every day for decades? The title of the episode is goofy. It was only a 'marathon' because of the writers creating forced conflict every chance they got. Briscoe and Green knew who the killer was but getting enough evidence was the problem. I miss Joe Friday's approach to police work, "Just the facts, ma'am." These writers could have learned from the classics.