TV-Reviewed

There was really only one certainty after last season’s finale: Michael Westen WOULD survive his fall from the helicopter. Otherwise, there wouldn’t be much of a show, right? But, let’s face it, falling, at least, 150+ feet into water…Well, you might as well jump off of a building and land on concrete–even taking the fall feet first like Mike did. Then there’s whole matter about getting to shore after that, which was five miles. Perhaps, Sam gave Mike some lessons on how to swim long distance against ocean currents. I’m not going harp on this too much, though. Why? Because, we all know Michael keeps himself in shape, and probably has had some sort of training when comes to this sort of “uncomfortable” situation.

Obviously, the entire point of this episode was to reunite Michael with his friends and…family, and also to point out just how the men in suits are going to make his life hell from now on until he agrees to join them. Has somebody been “keeping them”–the law and Mike’s old enemies–”at bay”? Right off the start, it’s obvious Mike’s in trouble with the fine folks down at the Miami PD. I laughed myself silly when he grabbed up that pink t-shirt and glasses–and especially when he mussed up his hair; he looked like he was…well, I think you know. Anyway.

Jeffrey Donovan as Michael Westen

I wasn’t exactly sure what they were going to have Michael do once he got inside the hotel. However, it made perfect sense for him to try and locate the phone room: From experience–don’t as me how I know–it’s true that if you make a phone call in such a way that it would be “untraceable.” And, that phone call…I assumed the first person he’d try to make contact with would be Fiona. That just made sense. “It’s always a treat to get you out of trouble, Michael,” was, naturally, Fi’s response to his gratitude. I’ve got to say, too, that Gabrielle was looking all kinds of hot…laying there all casually on the bed…

One thing that did escape my mind, though, the first time watching this part was where Michael kept grabbing different chemicals off of the shelves. I mean, I really didn’t think about what he was doing–but, later I realized he was in the process of using his bomb making skills. Not sure how this all escaped me, but it did. In the end, really, the only thing that made sense was for him to give up. The police definitely had that building surrounded.

The thing was, though, Michael behind bars…I just couldn’t figure out what the police suspected–or, what questions they might’ve asked him. I know, I know, the whole point of this was to show Mike how powerful the people are that were behind his Burn Notice, though it sure would’ve been nice to know what lie they had told the cops. I mean, people just don’t get locked up without a reason. They have to have something on you in order to take you into custody.

I did like how Sam used the word “magic” to describe how Michael’s corporate buddies had kept him “off the radar.” In a way, normal rules and laws don’t apply. Everything involved here is like magic, some ethereal mist that Mike gets two steps close to before it evaporates and then moves into the endlessness that is this burn notice mess. Nothing like bringing in some more conflict. Without Carla and crew there needed to be something to fill the void, and Michael’s time, with.

Speaking of conflict. I wasn’t expecting Mike’s first side-job, after his stint in the city slammer, to involve an old friend–that should be jaded, old friend. We’ve all seen the story before: the one friend just does what he does best, and the other is jealous of how the other pulls things off with ease when it takes him seemingly much more effort to do the same job; this leads to said jealous friend betraying his better. That’s what we had here. I knew something wasn’t right from the beginning. For example: I knew that the door in the club was more than likely rigged with some sort of alarm. A man trained in covert operations would know this too. But, what does Harlan do? He just opens it without hesitation. I got the sense then that the guy was just feigning to be THAT thick.

However, at the start it should be noted that Michael did have some misgivings to the point of where he even questioned Harlan on it. Naturally, Harlan used a tactic he must’ve thought would work on Mike: That he was willing to do anything to profess his love for Marta–doing this job, getting Rafino, was THAT important to him. He knew Mike could relate: Michael, we all know, would drop whatever he might be doing at any given time–in a heartbeat, in fact–if Fiona were in distress and needed his help. That’s clear. Harlan just used this to his advantage–to get Michael to agree to help him.

Gabrielle Anwar as Fiona Glenanne

I thought this side-job was great, though. Michael having to outwit Rafino’s goon, Falcone, was definitely enjoyable. And that moment inside the SUV, when things almost unraveled…man that was intense! Then…came Fiona in the garbage truck. Bam! That was definitely one of the coolest moments in this show’s history. Yet, then we had to get to Harlan’s sob story. Sadly, there wasn’t much new here. This part was your typical I’m-betraying-you-because-I’m-showing-you-I’m-smarter-and-more-devious-than-you-think type of thing. Bla. Bla.

“Friends and Family,” I think, was an excellent opener into what I hope will be another solid, fun season of Burn Notice. Even though the plotline with Harlan wasn’t that original, it was still fun. But, maybe, the best bit of this episode came at the very end. The discussion involving Madeline, which led to Mike, Sam and Fi taking a swig of beer at the same time, gave a laugh but also built on some deeper meaning into the relationships between all of them. Then, there was the discussion between Sam and Mike at the very end, which, I think, gives a glimpse into some future developments. Over all, like I said before, this was a great intro into the new season.

Rating: 8.0