Burn Notice 4.13 - Eyes Open

Plot: So Michael's not dead, just recuperating in the hospital after being shot by Jesse and inducing a car crash. Also, Vaughn's people leaked info about John Barrett to other intelligence agencies, so now there's a big Senate investigation into the blinding incompetence of their intelligence agencies. Which would be great if Barrett weren't dead. In the meantime, Vaughn's decided to leave Miami, but not before apologizing to Michael about screwing everything up. As Michael recuperates, victims of an explosion outside a restaurant are rushed to the hospital. Not everyone was lucky enough to survive, and one of the deceased just happens to be Dale Lawson from last week. Hmm, wonder if sleazy attorney Adam Scott knows anything?

Well, if he does he ain't talking, but Sam comes through, tracking down an old client of Scott's, one Dennis Barfield. Barfield is some delusional, narcissistic asswipe who believes the world is polluted by filth, and wants to remove it. When Michael's attempt to snoop gets him caught, he plays the role of devotee, appealing to Dennis' ego in the hopes he'll learn about more targets. That accomplished, he leans on Scott a little more forcefully, but Dennis is past dissuading, and now he knows the names of the people after him, if not their faces. Which doesn't end any better for him than you'd expect. And Jesse gets the slow badass walk.

Yes, Jesse's working with them. Not on entirely friendly terms, but they are working together. Primarily to try and track the man who took off with Barrett's shiny briefcase. Which leads to one of his former bodyguards, a Mark Sweeney, who is trying to decode the NOC list that goes with the book code. He tried a kid at the college, who directed him to a man at SXG known as John Walsh. Who was able to decode the list enough to realize what he had. At which point he killed Sweeney and bailed with the list and the book. Thus ends the Ballad of Mark Sweeney.

The Players: Alicia (The Client), Adam Scott (Vengeful Former Client), Vaughn (Persona Non Grata), Dennis Wayne Barfield (Serial Killer)

Quote of the Episode: Michael - 'Go be with your daughter. Enjoy your time. Prison visits are hard on kids.'

Does Fiona blow anything up? No. Doesn't even get to be the first one to bring explosives in her new place. Which is now destroyed, thanks to Jesse.

Sam Axe Drink Count: 0 (31 overall).

Sam Getting Hit Count: 0 (8 overall).

Michael Fake Laugh Count: 0 (2 overall).

Other: Michael goes by Gordon Lutz this week.

I was thinking about last week's episode, and when Jesse said he wasn't like Fi, he may have meant he doesn't forgive and forget so easily, as opposed to meaning he doesn't betray friends like they do.

Not sorry to see Adam Scott gone. He's the character he's supposed to be: an unscrupulous attorney who exploits every loophole he can, but all that means is I kind of wish we got to see him die. Don't really care for Barfield as a villain, either. His rambling about "rot" is so tedious. Really wanted him to barge into Fi's place and get his ass kicked, but nooooo, we still need to know where the bombs are. Fooey.

I did like the tension between Fiona and Jesse. He felt the most for her, so her betrayal cuts the deepest. And Fi does care for him, so it hurt her to do it. Also the whole bit about him being Artest and her being "Shannon Brown", oh nerds, you just don't know sports. Also, we once again see that Fi never takes part in foot chases. She either waits, or uses a car.

I thought it was interesting that on his second visit to see Scott, Michael disarmed and decked his guard, when in the scene immediately before, it hurt him just to put his phone back in his pocket.

I still don't understand why Michael tried to sneak into Barfield's place, instead of sending Sam - who hadn't been recently shot - and keeping watch himself. It did lead to the amusing bit where he tried to act like becoming Barfield's acolyte was his plan all along.

We'll see how long Vaughn stays out of the picture. So far, he's been a mixture of Carla and Management. Hanging back more than Carla, but still more visible than Management was. He's demanding, but he doesn't make threats like Carla did, presumably because he's seen how well that works. Also, because he's trying to act like he's Mike's buddy, but we all know that's a crock. I've always wondered how much of what Michael does they're aware of. It was easy to believe he took precautions with Carla, since she was such a constant presence, always cracking the whip. It was harder to say with Management in Season 3, since he was allegedly staying away, removing all protection until Michael came crawling back. Still, you had to figure he was keeping watch, just in case it looked like Michael might be killed.

With Vaughn, who knows. He always knows how to get in touch with Michael, or where to find him. But Michael doesn't seem overly concerned with hiding things, not like the way he hid the key card in Season 2. He simply lies to Vaughn, and that seems to be enough. He doesn't trust him, and I doubt Vaughn believes Mike's being completely upfront, but he also doesn't seem as concerned about hiding things.