THE ENEMY WITHIN Episode 1: Pilot
“THE FBI ESTIMATES THERE ARE ONE HUNDRED THOUSAND FOREIGN SPIES WORKING WITHIN THE UNITED STATES TODAY. MORE THAN ANY TIME IN HISTORY.”
From the mind of Ken Woodruff (The Mentalist, Reverie, Gotham) comes a new drama starring Morris Chestnut and Jennifer Carpenter. Advertised as a spy drama series, the show focuses on an FBI Agent (Chestnut) who enlists the help of a former CIA operative, currently imprisoned because the government believes her to be a traitor, (Carpenter) to catch an elusive spy who has killed numerous people a second time around.
The episode starts out in what looks like our Nation’s Capital. Erica Shepherd (Carpenter) walks down a crowded street while others hidden in plain sight look on. Soon, she kneels to the ground and is taken in by the FBI. Flashes of news stories and clippings front the screen. The Deputy Director of Operations at the CIA is apparently a traitor. Our second protagonist FBI Agent Will Keaton is the one to arrest her. The news states that she is responsible for the death of four CIA operatives while conspiring against the United States government.
Three Years Later
We are in a busy Union Station in Washington DC when we pick up, following a man in a business suit. He is being pursued by a man with greasy hair. The man in the suit is aware and starts to rush toward his destination. Meanwhile, the screen cuts again and now we are in Philadelphia where a woman is leaving her baby with the nanny for the day, seemingly to attend work. She gets in her car and starts to drive. We cut to Manhattan, at a busy office building.
What is the connection?
Two motorcyclists begin to pursue the woman in Pennsylvania. They throw a black substance on the front of her car to have her crash. They then shoot her. The greasy hair man in DC is seemingly a distraction. Another man shoots the guy in the business suit. We’re up to two executions before the first cup of coffee… what is happening here? Back in Manhattan, there is a large explosion in the office.
FBI Agent Keaton is running when a SUV pulls up beside him. Another Agent Daniel Zain alerts him that there have been three attacks. He says those killed included the Treasury Deputy Officer, a US District Attorney and three CIA operatives. Keaton does not waste time. He believes it is Mikhail Vassily Tal; they get into the SUV together.
Delving into the Past
Mikhail Vassily Tal is a former Russian SVR Agent and one of America’s biggest threats, according to Agent Keaton at a meeting sometime later. He explains that Tal was responsible for the death of 21 people in 2015 when he set a bomb off on a stationary Boston plane set to take off soon. It was a trial run for a larger attack. He had twenty more bombs like it. The death toll could’ve been much larger.
He further eludes that Tal used Erica Shepherd to find and kill the four operatives behind stopping the bombings. Others at the meeting are hesitant to believe this is also Tal. Agent Zain tells the others that the four killed earlier in the morning were part of a task force that investigated Tal’s finances. Is he cleaning up loose ends?
“There has to be someone who can help you find him.”
Deputy Director of National Intelligence says someone must help Agent Keaton find Tal. The FBI Assistant Director of Counter Intelligence wants to bring in Erica Shepherd, as she knows him better than anyone and at one time was one of the biggest assets to the CIA. Keaton reminds him that she is a traitor and that she killed Lane.
Lane was Keaton’s fiancé. Things just got dicey.
Despite his disdain for the idea, Keaton travels to Colorado, the ADX Maximum Security Prison in which Shepherd is jailed. The room he meets her in is bright and white; they are surrounded by armed guards. There is a tense stare down between the two former colleagues. Keaton says he’s here to make an offer. She says she hasn’t cooperated before why should she now? For her assistance on the case, she gets extra showers and music to start.
If she agrees, she would also be moved to a federal detention center in DC. He tells her there has been chatter about a potential attack, clearly not speaking the truth. There’s a pause.
“Liar.”
Shepherd says that if he is here, there must have already been an attack. Tensions rise; Keaton is clearly getting agitated by her amusement. She says he must look for someone on the inside.
“You have no idea what people are capable of.”
Keaton is thoroughly angry now. He yells, “I know what you’re capable of.” He flips a chair, repeats the statement. The door opens, the Assistant Director comes in, the guards surround them. They are about to take Keaton out of the room when Shepherd shouts “Wait!” She repeats that it must be someone on the inside. She agrees to help and asks when she can leave.
Once fitted with a GSP tracker that is attached to her artery (so if she takes it out she bleeds to death), she is moved.
Our next scene is a flashback between Shepherd and her daughter. They are playful, lots of banter and teasing while getting ready for the day. It is just her daughter in the room. It is a different Shepherd.
Came in like a Wrecking Ball…
Back in DC at FBI headquarters, we meet other members of Agent Keaton’s team. With Agent Zain is FBI Cyber Division Special Agent Kate Ryan. They discuss Agent Keaton’s whereabouts. Its all very secretive. We also meet Special Agent Jason Bragg (Noah Mills). There is general chatter for a minute or two then…
Shepherd enters the room with Keaton. There is a stare down. Shepherd’s stare is on Agent Bragg. Keaton states, “Rangers.” At the comment, she stares at him. He explains that Agent Bragg is a former Army Ranger.
The team is shocked regarding her arrival. None of them are happy. Agent Ryan asks, “What about Lane?”
Keaton says, “If I have to work with the devil to catch Tal, I will.”
It has been sixteen hours since the attacks and they have no leads. Shepherd says if you want to catch Tal, you must pull on threads you would never have before. She explains that Tal likes to hack into phones to keep track of his victims. They can track the confirmed hacked phones to a man named Victor Nemec. He hired a woman to hack the phone of one of the victims; they interrogate the woman who says the Nemec. The team are able to confirm from the hired hacker that there was a survivor of the Manhattan bombing. They find out it is a Financial Analyst, Ana Cruz. We cut to a scene of her tied up somewhere, seemingly disoriented, but alive.
While the team tries to gather more information, Shepherd is left alone with Agent Ryan. She asks how long Ryan has been with the FBI. She says six years. Shepherd asks how long she has been in love with Agent Keaton. Ryan does not deny, but they share a look.
Shepherd explains the way to find Victor Nemec is a location cutout. They were common during the Cold War, because operatives couldn’t use the maps of their actual location. So, they used ones that looked like the city they were in. They can use the map to track him to an apartment building on Roosevelt Island. Keaton believes they have Nemec.
Empire State of Mind
They plan to go to New York as a team but lock up Shepherd as she cannot come. It is because of an obvious trust issue. Keaton says there is no redemption for people like her. They argue, Shepherd reminds him that she hasn’t forgotten who she got killed. Keaton tells her that his fiancé, Lane looked up to Shepherd and wanted to be like her.
In New York, they get to the apartment complex. Meanwhile, in DC Shepherd slams a metal dinner tray into her mouth. Before we see anymore, we cut back to New York.
Inside the apartment building is a man hiding with a gun. Agents Zain and Bragg pursue him and Bragg takes a hit on his vest from another unknown. Keaton chases the original person to the roof where the man says, “All great empires die from within.” He pulls the gun on Keaton and Keaton kills him. There is no Nemec or Analyst Cruz at the apartments.
Toothy
Meanwhile, in DC, Shepherd is in the Dentist office. She uses it to escape, including stealing a lead apron so they cannot track her using her GPS device. She changes clothes on the way. We learn she has an ex-husband who now has custody of her daughter. This is where she is heads.
In New York, Agent Zain tells them that Nemec is going to Boston. The team also learns that Shepherd has escaped; it is Keaton who tells them that she’ll go see her daughter. We cut to where Shepherd is outside of the daughter’s school. They make eye contact briefly as the school lets out, but police pull up and grab her before she can talk to her daughter.
They believe that Nemec is heading to Boston’s Pier 19, but it is Shepherd that tells them it’s more than likely a trap, as it has happened previously in Belgium. There was explosives last time. Meanwhile, on the Pier the team has found Nemec. There is a chase but Agent Zain crashes due to an IED. He is okay, but it sets them back momentarily. Keaton then pursues Nemec as well and they also crash. He chases him on foot and takes him down and punches him. They find Ana Cruz in the backseat of the car, alive.
Safe and Sound?
Once back in DC, Agent Keaton goes to see Shepherd. He wants to know why she warned them. He asks to know the real reason why Shepherd betrayed her country. A flashback shows us the real reason. She got a phone call from Tal years ago telling her if she did not tell him the names of those pursuing him, he’d kill her daughter. There was a live feed of her daughter’s whereabouts and the daughter was seemingly unaware. She had seconds to decide.
She explains she would do anything to keep her daughter, Hannah, safe but she wants to catch Tal. Then, she explains that the number of rogue spies in America has skyrocketed in the last few years or so. Keaton wants to know why; what do they want to do? She does not know but knows that they must work together to stop whatever is being planned.
Our final scene of the episode is Ana Cruz in the hospital talking to Tal; she says she is in. We, the audience see she is working from the inside, but our team does not. The episode fades to black.
Thoughts:
- I was very excited when I saw that Chris Ord and Matt Corman were working on this show with Ken Woodruff. I’m a big fan of their work (The Brave, Covert Affairs), so I was hoping for three shows in a row that I adored. But, I’m not so sure this show hits that mark yet. I’m a firm believer in giving a show more than one or two episodes before deciding if I like it, so I’m not casting it away yet. There are several positives.
- First and foremost, for a show that is based on a spy narrative, it is very easy to follow. Sometimes shows which have this arc can be confusing or a bit wordy. I found the flow of the episode simple enough. It was a bit slow in the beginning, but it shaped up to a more thrilling second half.
- I personally am a huge fan of Noah Mills, so it was very exciting to see him back on my TV screen. Even more exciting is to see his character has a military background in that of an Army Ranger. I wonder how that will come into play in future episodes.
- Our cast is diverse. I enjoy a show that has a diverse cast in any shape or form. It isn’t so often in a show like this that your two main characters are a black man and a woman. That is exciting, as is the diversity within Agent Keaton’s team. It should pose for an interesting set up later.
Other thoughts:
- That said, I’m not thrilled with the cast choices if I’m honest. I don’t see a lot of chemistry between Agent Keaton and Shepherd. I don’t really feel Keaton’s hatred. The only time I feel it was remotely real was when he flipped the chair in the detention center and physical acts of anger only go so far in my opinion. If you can’t sell me on your character without that, you’ve already lost of me as viewer.
- I think Jennifer Carpenter is doing well in her role. Her expressions are a bit more detailed and I feel as if she speaks well without speaking. That is something I enjoy as a fan of any show.
- Some of the show aspects seem repetitive, like it’s been done before. See: chase scene, mole in the office. I’m hoping over time these flesh out a bit and are less cliché, but only time will tell.
My one major WTF:
- I don’t know if I’ve seen too many shows, or read too many books, or what – but I called Ana Cruz being the mole from the moment she popped up alive. It was by far the most predictable part of the episode and as a viewer, I’m even annoyed that the showrunners told us so early on. One of my favorite parts of television is talking with fellow fans about theories and ideas. Sure, the rest of the characters on the show have no idea she’s a traitor, but we as the viewer have to now watch and lose that element of surprise ourselves. It would’ve been more fun and less cliché if the fans were also in the dark on who it was.
Overall:
- I think its fair to give the show a chance. I am a fan of several people on the show and in the background, so I’m hoping that it picks up. There are some glaring areas of improvement, but off the pilot, I would say give it a few more episodes. Sometimes shows get off to a rocky start. Hopefully the Enemy Within does not become the enemy within itself.
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