What I’m Watching: Person of Interest (Season Premiere)

Person of Interest: Season 2, Episode 1 “The Contingency” (B+)

This show is an interesting case since it’s proven itself to be a competent thriller despite generally broad and underdeveloped supporting police characters and a purposefully unenthusiastic lead actor in Jim Caviezel. Starting this season with Finch still being held hostage by Amy Acker’s Root is a great way to frame things, since it gives us some insight, via flashback, into Finch’s first experiences with the machine and also allows Reese to make new connections with it in Finch’s absence. It’s both curious and fantastic to watch Reese pause at a surveillance camera and speak directly to it, demanding answers, and I like that he’s opened himself up to the notion of communicating directly with the machine. The blackjack scene, followed by Finch’s near run-in with a compromised driver, was extremely fascinating in detailing just how Finch meant for the machine to work and how it took on a life of its own. I’d prefer to see some more teamwork between Fusco and Carter now that they’re both aware of their allegiances to Reese and Finch, and Fusco really doesn’t deserve the bad rap he gets and all of the humiliation he endures. Ken Leung, most memorable as Miles in the latter seasons of “Lost,” was thoroughly obnoxious and recklessly careless as the featured person of interest, and with Finch out of the picture for the moment, Reese is much more blunt about his intentions, creating a definite lack of proper bedside manner, for lack of a more accurate and fitting term.