Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Continuum Season One, Episode Nine: Family Time

Once again this episode begins with a flashback to Kierra blowing up a building in which Kellog is in.   His sister is seriously injured and she gives Kellog something to get to Kagame and begs him to leave but she refuses.

In the present, Kiera goes into the country to talk to Roland and she is excited to be in the country.  Once again we are given a reminder that in the future, wildlife like this does not exist. Kiera wants to know about the purchase of sodium nitrate and Roland points out that he is a farmer and needs it for fertilizer. When Alec sees Kiera,, he is shocked and forgets to pretend that they don't have a relationship. Roland wants to know his connection to Kiera, and Alec quickly covers by saying that he recognizes Carlos from the paper.

Alone, Kiera tells Alec that she is there to check out the shipment of fertilizer and Alec takes her out back to show her his set up in the back.  When Kiera finds a gun, she wants to know if he has a license.  Kiera then pushes the envelop to ask about Roland's involvement and then scans Alec.  When Alec realises that he is being scanned he asks where the trust is.  He is right to ask, considering how Kiera is treating him. Alec has done nothing but support her in everything that she has asked, respected her boundaries and tried to help her acclimate but yet Kiera treats him like a common suspect. 

When Carlos sees the paperwork, it shows that Roland only ordered 400 kilos and not 1500. When Carlos asks to see the fertilizer, Roland is not impressed. In the meantime, Julian is listening to a broadcast by Kagame on his computer.  Then Roland asks if either Alec or Julian know about extra fertilizer,  but Julian counters asking if Carlos has a warrant.  It turns out that there is a new lock on the barn and no one knows how it got there.  Inside the barn is a van with a bomb and armed teens, who come out barn demanding that Carlos drop his weapon.  Roland asks them to think about what they are doing.

Kiera targets one of the boys and takes away his gun. The boys drop to the ground but Julian pulls a gun out of his back pocket and shoots Carlos. He threatens to kill Caros if Kiera does not immediately comply. 

They hold Carlos and Kiera in the kitchen and Alec comes in and knocks over one of the boys with the medical aid kit.  Kiera asks how he is doing and Alec says that he is fine and that he is not leaving his mother.  The boys tells Roland that this is the next logical step and believe that what they need is revolution.  Roland assures them that if they continue down this path, they are going to be stopped before they can start. Alec runs interference as Kiera sneaks Carlos out of the house, but before they can get to the car, the boys realise what is going on and corner them again.  In the kitchen, Alec's mom grabs her phone, dials 911 and stuffs it in her pocket.


At the station Betty informs the chief that there is a hostage situation in Surrey.  Julian's big plan is to tie everyone up and then leave quietly.  When Kiera says that Carlos is not going to make it, Julian states that their fight is with the corporations.  Before they can leave, sirens head towards the house and Kiera promises to say that they didn't mean to shoot Carlos. 

Julian decides that they are not going to escape and that they are going to make their stand right there.  Kiera says that she has seen thousands of heroes die for a cause and because they use violence they get called terrorists. Outside, the police have completely surrounded the farm and inside Julian suggests setting off the propane and then escaping into the forest.

Alec takes one of them to the shop to retrieve a gun and then allows him to experience an electric shock on the equipment. Alec contacts Kiera and Alec patches her through to the inspector.  Kiera tells the inspectore about the plan and when they tell her to stand down, she says no, because otherwise Carlos will die.  They are cut off when the guy comes to and Alec is forced to end contact. It seems that the cops think that Roland is to blame because he lost his land to a corporation, and are loathe to believe that kids could potentially be behind this.

Outside, the cops arm themselves, while in the building Kiera scans Carlos and sees that his vital signs are failing.  When she tells him that he is going to be okay, he responds that he trusts her in spite of all of her lies.  Kiera tells him that her name is Kiera Cameron and that she has a little boy and a husbnd that who may never exist.  She even apologies for lying to Carlos; it's just too bad that it takes a life or death situation for Kiera to show a little humanity.

When Alec returns to the house, he gives Kiera a bag filled with towels and her suit saying that she can use these.  When the phone rings, Julian pretends to be Roland while in the pantry, Kiera puts on her suit and says that she is going to lead them all outside, and one by one will pick them off.  Before she leaves, Kiera covers Carlos with potato sacks. Kiera uses the magnet on her suit to flip the lock as they argue on the phone with the cops.

The police decide to move in after one of the kids shoots the phone, when they cannot find the one that Kiera took out. The kids run outside and start shooting at the cops.   Alec sends a message to the cops that the house is clear.  On television, Kagame is watching the shoot out. When Julian sets off the bomb, Kiera is blown back and suddenly becomes visible again.  It looks like her suit might be broken once again.  When Kiera comes to, she sees Julian running away and decides to follow.

Inside the house, Alec frees his parents and then Julian doubles back to get Alec. This ends in a showdown with Alec and Julian pointing guns at each other. Outside, one of the boys shoots Kiera and when she does not fall to the ground, he puts the gun down and runs away.  Outside, the sniper has a positive I.D. of Randall.  Randall tells Julian that it's over and asks him to hand over his gun and apologies to him saying it is all his fault, as Julian cries and hands over the gun. The sniper shoots Randall through the window, covering Julian in his father's blood. When the cops burst in, they announce target terminated but when they ask about Julian, it turns out that he has fled.

Outside, Kiera tells Alec that she is sorry about his father and that he can go in and talk to his mother. Carlos has been air lifted to the nearest hospital and is in critical condition. Later that night at the station, Kiera learns that Carlos is out of surgery and that his prognosis is good. 

Kiera goes to see Kellogg and the flirting begins again.  She tells him that she is present for all of his significant loses - his grandmother and his sister.  She apologizes and Kellog says that she was doing her job and that he forgives her.  Kiera wants to know why, and Kellog says that they are able to relate to each other in a way that no one else can. As he moves closer to her, she tells him that she is married and he responds, "there you are married and here you are alone. Tomorrow is not promised Kiera and maybe its best to stop living for a future that might not even happen".  They have been dancing around this attraction since the beginning of the season but I don't know if I buy Kellog and Kiera together - even for a one night stand.  I do think the two have good chemistry together though. I think this scene was the best part of this episode and I would have rather seen it extended than to spend so much time at the farm.

Julian is on the street when a phone starts ringing and its Kagame, who offers him clothes, food shelter and a chance to meet. How exactly did Julian and Kagame contact each other and when are television shows going to acknowledge that you cannot call a pay phone because they are for outgoing calls only.