The next number The Machine sends: an armored truck hopper. Tonight I’m reviewing the 20th episode of Person of Interest (Season 1), “Matsya Nyaya.”
Spoiler warning: This post contains major plot spoilers. If you haven’t watched it, please do so before reading my analysis.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Summary, Thoughts & Feelings, Conclusion
Episode Summary
Main Storyline
John Reese goes undercover as a guard of an armored transport service to follow the next number. In this episode, Detective Artie Lynch (a member of the villainous crime organization, HR) and Detective Lionel Fusco (who works undercover in HR for Reese and Harold Finch) are involved.
The Number
Tommy Clay is a hopper for Grayling Armored Services, an armored transport company. He works with the company’s long-serving driver and best friend, Murray Langston. He has a wife, Joyce, and two children.
In this episode, Tommy Clay is the perpetrator and the victim (a first since the series started).
Flashback
The flashback focuses on Reese’s CIA mission in Ordos, China, with his partner, Kara Stanton. Jessica Arndt (Reese’s love), Mark Snow, and Alicia Corwin (the liaison between the government and IFT founder Nathan Ingram) are in the flashbacks.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Summary, Thoughts & Feelings, Conclusion
Thoughts & Feelings
The Episode Title
According to Wikipedia, Matsya Nyaya is an ancient Indian philosophy referring to the Law of Fish (the stronger fish eats the weaker one).
Problem with trying to be the bad guy is there’s always someone worse.
John Reese, in this episode
If we were to determine the stronger, meaner fish in the episode, it’s the one with the brain and the gun. Ashley (the brains) planned the platinum heist with Tommy (the muscle), and her plan involved Tommy leaving his own family and killing his best friend, Murray, and their accomplices. Tommy, this episode’s perpetrator, realized that after years of protecting other people’s money, he should get what he takes. Tommy, also the episode’s victim, didn’t know he would also be killed, and Ashley tried to walk away with the spoils.
Ashley didn’t know she would get a bullet from someone worse, Detective Lynch. And as Lynch was about to kill Reese with a gun, he made the same mistake Tommy did, turning his back on his ally and potential target, Fusco. And the clever detective used Ashley’s gun so he could report the crime scene as a botched robbery.
Is Fusco worse than Lynch? He saved his ally, Reese, by killing an HR cop and lying about the crime scene. In a way, he did something bad for good, but it’s still bad nonetheless. So, you tell me if he’s worse.
“Did we actually accomplish anything here?”
If I were to sum up the reaction to the number’s fate, it would be the same reaction Finch and Reese had after Tommy died. Looking at the old, cracked glass board with Tommy’s photo, a disappointed, wondering Finch asked Reese and probably to himself:
Did we actually accomplish anything here?
Ironically, Reese tried to look on the bright side with pessimism:
We stopped Tommy from getting away with murder. That’s something.
In the entire series, there are two constants: the numbers never stop coming, and they can’t save everyone. The latter is true, no matter how accurate The Machine’s information is and how efficient and determined Team Machine is to save their irrelevant numbers. Maybe it would’ve turned out differently if The Machine were less of a black box and more of a system that can lead to a specific target. Then again, Finch made it a black box to prevent human abuse, so Team Machine has to play the cards they’re dealt and keep saving people.
The Company Burns Reese & Stanton
Mark Snow and Alicia Corwin instructed Reese and Stanton to inspect and secure a laptop in Ordos, a company town in China. Little did they know that Reese was secretly ordered to kill Stanton, and Stanton was ordered to kill Reese. Reese hesitated (probably because he cared for his partner), but Stanton didn’t, shooting him before he could even explain anything. Reese realizes that they were sent to check the laptop, only to be destroyed along with them. Stanton realized something worse was going to happen, and Reese left the facility before it was destroyed by a missile.
What an elaborate government cover-up. Wounded by Kara while carrying the worry for Jessica Arndt (his crying lover who called him earlier before the mission), Reese officially became MIA.
However…
Kara Stanton is Alive
Mark Snow and Evans, still on the hunt for Reese, found a bank transaction that led to the Royal Manhattan Hotel, where they thought Reese was hiding. The agents entered a dimmed hotel room, and someone was hiding. It’s not Reese. It turns out Stanton survived the missile launch in Ordos, and she killed Evans and shot Snow in the leg.
At this point, aside from Alicia Corwin, Stanton is the only flashback character who appeared in the main storyline. How did she survive? Who saved her? And what is she up to? Only time will tell.
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Summary, Thoughts & Feelings, Conclusion
Conclusion
In “Matsyaya Nyaya,” the story became an elaborate heist drama and ended on a depressing note. It showed that Team Machine, no matter how accurate Finch’s surveillance system is, can never really save everyone. Meanwhile, the CIA and Machine backstories converged, bringing Kara Stanton to the main storyline. The game has changed once again.
Rating: 👁️👁️👁️👁️
Navigation: Introduction, Episode Summary, Thoughts & Feelings, Conclusion
Disclaimer: This is simply an in-depth analysis from a fan. No copyright infringement is intended in any show-related media featured in this post.
