Burn Notice 2.1 - Breaking and Entering

Plot: The season opens with Michael and Sam's Caddy still inside that trailer. Then the gunfire, shouts, and explosions start, and Michael gets a call from the smokey-voiced woman who introduces herself as Carla. The trailer opens, and Michael finds himself in the midst of a small battle. There's a burning plane, two corpses, and a man bound and gagged on the ground. That's Jimmy. He was supposed to steal some data for Carla, but tried to flee the country with his family instead. Now Carla has his family, and Jimmy's going to be connected to a double homicide. Guess whose job it is to help Jimmy evade arrest and get that data?

The data is stored in the computers of a company called Security Associates. They're mercs, essentially. Jimmy once worked for them to upgrade the defenses on their computer systems. Michael has to pose as a prospective client to scope out their security measures, then break in and steal the data. Which he does, but not without the head of Security Associates figuring out who did it. On the upside, this presents Michael with an opportunity to put a dent in S.A.'s operations, get the police off Jimmy's trail about the homicides, and make being under Carla's thumb work for him.

We do get to actually meet Carla at the end of the episode, and Fiona also tells Michael she doesn't believe they can be together, because he will always put his work first. Which she did very maturely, not violence or histrionics, and she even promised to continue to help him when he needs it, but it was still undercut by Michael's quiet "I told you so". No, he doesn't actually say that. He says, 'I've been saying that for years', which is essentially the same thing.

The Players: Jimmy (The Client), Ryder Stahl (Mercenary)

Quote of the Episode: Michael - 'What are you doing, Mom? Put the shotgun down.' Madeline - 'There are people with guns out there looking for me, Michael!' Michael - 'They're after me, Mom.' Madeline - 'Well you're here, so maybe I should have the gun.'

Does Fiona blow anything up? Yes, a rickety old boat. She also takes a swing at Michael.

Sam Axe's Drink Count: 4. It's a new season, so we're starting over.

Sam Getting Hit Count: 0. What, the half dozen punches while he was tied to a chair last week weren't enough? Sadists.

Michael's Fake Laugh Count: 0.

Other: Michael's cover identity for this week is "Terry Miller", an Aussie with interest in diamond mining in Kenya.

It had been 48 hours (roughly) from when Michael and Fiona said their goodbyes in "Loose Ends" to their abrupt reunion in this episode. I'm inclined to agree with Fiona that Michael could have found a better way to let Fiona know he was OK than by calling and asking her to come over and help. Then again, he hadn't told Maddy at all, had been planning to leave her hiding in Fort Lauderdale, except she called Fi wanting to know if she knew anything about Michael. So Michael did call her and tell her she could come home. Which is more than Nate got, though if Maddy's so worried about him hiding up there, why not call him herself?

Michael tries to tell Madeline that it's things like this that explain why he never came home all these years, but I have my doubts. That sounds suspiciously like one of those "It's for your own good" lies people tell.

When Fi leaves Michael's apartment after their relationship chat, she left his front door open. I guess being there to help him doesn't extend to common courtesy. It was sad, in a way, this sense that Fiona had some hope she and Michael had been connecting during this time in Miami, but she's realized nothing's changed. Also, I know I said she handled it in a mature manner, but perhaps that's because she vented her frustrations earlier by swinging at him, and shooting at the ground between his feet. I did like her evil smile when she did that, though. That, and Michael's reaction were priceless.

OK, on the lighter side, we do get several funny moments with Sam. He didn't want to visit Veronica looking a tenderized slab of beef, so he was using Michael's loft, and wearing his 'tiny shirts'. We also found out Sam has exactly one friend he could count on to stage an armed assault to rescue him, and exactly one friend with ovaries. How sad is it he has to consider Fiona a friend, when all she ever does is bust his chops?

The one arc within the episode I really enjoyed was Jimmy's. He starts off terrified and confused, understandable with the shooting, the killing, the abduction of his family. Then he gets sort of depressed, responding in a cranky manner to just about everything. But when it comes time, he gets determined to go in. He's realized this is what has to be done to save his family, and he can't leave the most important part in other people's hands. Michael might be an expert at breaking into buildings (and I did love the whole caper flick aspect of this episode), but Jimmy's the one who knows how to get the files out of the database.

Of course, he nearly blows the whole thing by letting his exuberance get the best of him, but it was understandable. That heightens the tension, and he gets angry and confused again, but when it really counts, he comes through and helps get Ryder busted.

So, the season's hardly started and we have a face to go with Michael's new problem, and there's little doubt he and Fiona are going to have some awkward moments going forward. Does it seem like he has the greatest difficulty with women? Fi, Carla, Madeline, Evelyn from last season's "False Flag".