What I’m Watching: Nikita (Season Premiere)

Nikita: Season 2, Episode 1 “Game Change” (B-)

It’s strange to have this show back knowing that we won’t get that opening narration anymore since things have changed dramatically on all levels. It’s going to be tough to keep the structure of this show going as is, since everything is currently in shambles and not likely to return back to normal anytime soon. As is often the case with this show, there’s a decent balance of good and bad to create an overall uneven and somewhat less than entirely credible hour. Michael’s quip about only being to afford ammo or groceries this month is amusing, but the truth of the matter is that no one seems to be taking the current situation seriously enough. Seeing Birkhoff again and having Nikita hug him and refer to him as a lonely nerd who missed them is one such instance, and his foolhardy decision to pop his face up on screen to brag to his former colleagues that they’ll never catch him is another. Alex seems much more confident these days as she works directly for new boss Amanda and interrogates Percy since he’ll only talk to her. I’m glad Percy is still around, and having him trapped in a clear cell, kept alive for his great memory and life insurance plan, is a fantastic way to continue to keep him involved before he inevitably figures out a way to take control again. I’m not as impressed with Alex’s new in-house nemesis, and I take issue with the hierarchy of events that caused Alex to follow Nikita, Oversight to come in and get them, and the planes to shoot the Oversight agents, all at the behest of Birkhoff. What was much better, however, was Nikita’s reaction to the revelation that Alex was lying to her, prompting her to break her arm and shoot her in the leg, allegedly because she cares about her. I’m interested to see how this show does in season two after this decent start.