Tonight, let me take a deep dive into Season 1’s fifth episode of Person of Interest, “Judgment,” where a tough, by-the-book judge is the next number John Reese and Harold Finch have to protect, and Detective Joss Carter has suspicions about her new partner, Detective Lionel Fusco.
Spoiler warning: This post contains major plot spoilers of the fourth episode of Person of Interest (Season 1), “Judgment.” If you haven’t watched it, please do so first before reading my analysis.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Breakdown, Thoughts & Feelings, Standouts, Conclusion
Episode Breakdown
The Number
Judge Samuel Gates Sr. (played by David Costabile) is a tough, by-the-book criminal court judge who threw himself into work after his wife passed a year before Finch and Reese received his number. He has a son, Samuel Jr., and a nanny named Christina Rojas who takes care of his son while he is at work.
Victim or Perpetrator?
Samuel Gates Sr. and Jr. are the victims.
SP-9, an Eastern European criminal gang, kidnapped Samuel Jr. to convince Judge Gates to let Angela Markhan, their partner in money laundering, win her court case. At first, Reese thought The Machine had given bad information and that they were following the wrong Sam Gates, and Finch assumed the kidnapping was part of a larger plan that would lead to Judge Gates’ death.
Did They Stop The Crime In Time?
After Reese and Finch found the business connection between SP-9 and Angela Markham, Reese located one of the properties where the gang held Samuel Jr., only to discover he was not there. Meanwhile, Judge Gates successfully stalled Angela Markhan’s case, which led to her being found not guilty.
Jared Koska called Judge Gates to meet at a park, while Reese held Angela at gunpoint after she left the courthouse. Koska was about to shoot Samuel Jr. in the back of his head, but Reese reached the park in time, revealing his knowledge of Koska’s name, bank account number, and all of his criminal clients. Reese also revealed that all of their dirty money was transferred to an offshore account. Knowing that their operation was compromised, Koska commanded his gang to shoot Reese and the Gates, but Reese quickly shot them one by one.
So, yes, Reese stopped Samuel Sr. and Jr. from getting killed by Koska and his gang.
Other Threads
In the first scene, Reese met Finch at a restaurant; he asked his boss for his usual order. Finch, being the paranoid man that he is, called his employee’s simple question an “interrogation technique.” The Man in the Suit calmly doubled down on his innocent question, then Finch grabbed the menu and said, “Enjoy your meal, Mr. Reese.”
Reese opened the menu and saw a photo of their next number: Samuel Gates Sr.
To be updated soon.
In the last scene, Reese and Finch are back at the same restaurant as in the first scene. Reese assured Finch that they didn’t need to worry about Judge Gates, and he might help them someday. Finch doubted that, especially since he listened to their conversation, and Reese quipped that he was reading between the lines.
Before Finch left with his book, Reese said thanks for giving him a job. Finch was silent yet visibly moved, then he moved the menu to him and recommended the Eggs Benedict. Reese checked the menu, and there were no photos or any information on the next number, which made him smile.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Breakdown, Thoughts & Feelings, Standouts, Conclusion
Thoughts & Feelings
The Episode Title
According to Collins Dictionary, the word judgment means “an opinion that you have or express after thinking carefully about something.” “Judgment” is a perfect title for the episode, not just because the number Finch and Reese received is a criminal court judge, but because the main characters made their own judgments based on the information they have on certain people.
On Judging and Trusting Others
In the previous episode, “Cura Te Ipsum,” Fusco and Carter were socially pleasant with one another. In “Judgment”, Carter heard rumors about Fusco, then her new partner shrugged it off and offered to buy coffee. In the first scene, Finch called Reese’s innocent question about his regular order at a restaurant an “interrogation technique.” Carter and Finch having doubts about their partners is normal, especially since they are armed with alarming information. Personally, in recent years, I have accepted that I’m truly an introvert, and a smaller, trusted social circle is better.
After all I’ve been through, I honestly believe that, while sociability is a great trait, judging people before trusting them is beneficial. In a world full of wolves in sheep’s clothing, we shouldn’t trust people easily, and trust must be earned first.
On Kindness
And then there’s the last scene where Reese kindly said thanks to his boss for giving him a job, and Finch gave something kind in return: a simple answer to a personal question.
I still stand by my thoughts on sociability and trust, but a world with many wolves in sheep’s clothing could use a lot more kindness, too. Personally, I’ve been through many changes, and in recent years, I’ve been doing my very best to be kind to people. When a close friend feels down, I’m there for him/her with a piece of advice or a joke ready to hand over if he/she wants to. When an acquaintance asks me a personal question, I politely refuse, but I’m still willing to buy him/her a drink. When I’m in my home cafe, I make sure to bring back the dishes after I use them so the baristas won’t have to. My point is we should be kind to loved ones and strangers alike, and we don’t need to be an open book to do that.
To quote The Twelfth Doctor from the longest-running sci-fi show Doctor Who:
Always try to be nice, but never fail to be kind.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Breakdown, Thoughts & Feelings, Standouts, Conclusion
Standouts
Judge Gates Having a Snack
I’ve seen a few scenes from previous episodes that made me chuckle a little. For example, in “Ghosts”, when Reese walked out of Finch’s cubicle, his co-worker asked, “So… who’s your friend, Harold?” I know, I know. Reese is a silver fox, so that’s worthy of a light laugh. But in this episode, when Finch asked Reese for signs of a threat, and Reese was watching Judge Gates having a snack from afar, he said three words with a straight face:
Does cholesterol count?
That was the first scene from Person of Interest that made me pause the video and laugh out loud, and it still has the same effect on me in my rewatches.
Reese Saving the Gates
I love how this scene was wonderfully done, from the environment (pouring rain, grey skies, gritty parking lot) down to the Reese’s arrival right before Koska was about to kill Samuel Jr. in front of his father, and how Reese shot every SP-9 gangster before they could kill the Gates. The grounded, realistic fight scenes are some of the many reasons I love the show. It was also badass of Reese when he revealed that all of the gang’s money is gone, then he quipped while still holding Markham at gunpoint, “…I won’t have to kill you. Your clients will do it for me.”
Also, I’d like to say that Koska looks like a particular rapper.
Reese Says Thanks to Finch
In the pilot episode, Finch told a broken, homeless Reese:
You need a purpose. More specifically, you need a job.
In the last scene (one of my favorites from Season 1), for the first time, Reese gently thanked Finch for giving him a job (and, subtly, a new purpose). Saying thanks to someone who offers a job and a purpose is no small thing, and it’s even grander for someone who almost lost the will to live, like Reese.
And for the first time, Finch answered a personal question from Reese. Knowing that Finch doesn’t easily trust people, not even a reformed assassin like Reese, his Eggs Benedict recommendation is also no small thing. Reese’s genuine, warm smile in the end was the icing on the cake, and he rarely smiles like that on this show.
For the first time, a personal bond started to form between two broken people, even if it looks like a thin, vulnerable thread. A shape of things to come.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Breakdown, Thoughts & Feelings, Standouts, Conclusion
Conclusion
In “Judgment”, Reese and Finch saved not just their number, Judge Gates, but also the one dearest to him. Carter has suspicions about Fusco, but she set them aside when they worked their first case together. And in the end, Finch and Reese’s partnership deepened, even if it was in the form of an answer to a personal question. This episode may not be as compelling as the previous one, but it did make the main characters’ relationships more solid and human, like ours.
Rating: 👁️👁️👁️👁️
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Summary, Thoughts & Feelings, Standouts, Conclusion
Header image: Person of Interest: Judgment (Season 1, Episode 5).
Disclaimer: This is simply an in-depth analysis from a fan. No copyright infringement intended on any of the show-related media featured on this post.
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