In Quantico “Stescalade” Alex is “behind enemy lines” and has infiltrated the terrorist’s ranks after conveniently finding a terrorist outfit, complete with a suicide caplet. The tension as she moved closer to finding out what Miranda tasked her with was palpable. Then, suddenly, Alex turned into John McClane – “2 Down.”
(I don’t know about anyone else but it was a tad disappointing not to get a note saying, “Now I have a machine gun,” or “Yippee Ki Yay motherf**ker.” All snarky attitude aside, the note was way too Die Hard chaps…just saying.)
For anyone who has not Googled “Stescalade,” it stands for “The bugging or attempted bugging of the New China News Agency in Havana.” which brings us to one storyline in this episode.
Alex and Ryan have to plant a bug to in someone’s room. They are told that they can only place one as two will cause interference and make them noticeable. Later, the bug is put in Leon’s room and when Miranda and the two handlers listen there is interference.
This means that there is another bug in place but it is a safe bet that Miranda knew this already. Everything is pointing to Shaw being a baddy this time around. Last week, she called someone on a satellite phone and told them Alex was in the building.
This week, Miranda sabotages Shelby’s “white paper” report that listed al the possible groups who might be terrorists, specifically ones who could have decapitated the President’s first lady. The second Miranda plugs in the flash drive with the information on it, a virus is spotted by other agents.
Later, after Shaw manages to kill Shelby’s personal laptop from home, the agent reveals that she had a hard copy in her safe. Wyatt tells Miranda that she has already dropped it off and it will be shared to all the right offices. Miranda’s look does not match her words of praise.
In the big room where all the hostages are being kept, Ryan picks a fight with Harry Doyle, who is, it turns out, a CIA washout. The idea is to get one of the terrorist’s masks off.
Incredibly, the control happy terrorists allow Booth and Doyle to punch one another a couple of times. Ryan stumbles into the smallest terrorist in the room and, surprise of all surprises, it is Alex. He does not remove her mask as she gasps his name in the nick of time.
Alex is taken from the room and marched through a hallway by another terrorist who tells Parrish that she wishes this had not happened. Parrish grabs her guard’s gun and they fight.
The guard’s mask is pulled off and it appears that she is the trainer from The Farm. They fight a while longer and Alex forces the suicide pill into the other woman’s mouth. Cue one foamy death.
Raina is brought back into the hostage holding room and she asks where Ryan is. Suddenly, a body comes crashing down through the skylight. The terrorists start firing at the falling body.
When the black clad corpse hits the floor, it has a piece of paper attached with “2 Down” written on it. “Yippee Ki Yay…”
There is a lot going on here. Lydia obviously volunteered for something after the fight with her father back on the farm and Doyle hunts down Will Olsen, not seen since last season.
The last we see of Alex Parrish, she is pulling down that faceplate and moving forcefully toward the camera. Despite feeling like a variation of Die Hard this episode was pretty tense and having Alex kick terrorist butt was not too far from this strong woman’s capabilities.
Quantico airs Sundays on ABC. Tune in and see if Alex leaves any more notes for the terrorists. Ho-ho-ho.
Cast:
- Priyanka Chopra – Alex Parrish
- Jake McLaughlin – Ryan Booth
- Johanna Braddy – Shelby Wyatt
- Tracy Ifeachor – Lydia Bates
- Blair Underwood – Owen Hall
- Aunjanue Ellis – Miranda Shaw
- Russell Tovey – Harry Doyle
- Aarón Díaz – Léon Velez
- Yasmine Al Massri – Raina/Nimah
- Pearl Thus – Dayana Mampasi
- Jay Armstrong Johnson – Will Olsen
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