What I’m Watching: Nikita

Nikita: Season 3, Episode 5 “The Sword’s Edge” (C+)

This episode was all about going over-the-top, with former Division agent Markoff assuming the presidency of Uzbekistan and Michael planning to put on a mask and pose as him. That’s hardly the grandest of the assumptions, such as Ryan’s direct tunnel passage into the White House for a spur-of-the-moment face-to-face conference with the President. It’s astounding that the new Division has made it this far with the commander-in-chief so eager to pull the plug and take everyone out, and I can’t imagine things will stay tranquil long enough for Division to avoid an all-out war with its country. It’s fortunate that Markoff didn’t assassinate the president, as he conveniently alluded to in his pre-recorded video, and the entire scandal was avoided much more easily than it had initially seemed. Things within Division, on the other hand, aren’t going so well. When Nikita agreed to have Ryan take charge of Division, she should have realized that she would surrender some control to him, but she’s not acting as if that’s the case. Investigating the mole seems like it should be a priority right now, and, conveniently, both Alex and Owen have nothing better to do at the moment. A low-level Division employee with a vendetta against Owen seems inconveniently timed and too much of a distraction, and it doesn’t appear that there’s a specific direction in which this show is headed now that Percy is out of the picture. Catching the Dirty Thirty should definitely be a priority, and hopefully Amanda won’t take too long to make her comeback.