Episode #514 "No Man's Land" ***CONTAINS SPOILERS***

Well i reviewed my recording of the ep, and yes, H has a coldsore. (Or something of the like) And now that i have time, i'll give MY review/ opinion/oversight/whatever you call it.

I LOVE THE BOOTIES! It's like Calliegh's other job! On her free nights, she puts on a patriotic leotard, a cape, those beatiful knee-highed high-heeled black boots, and she fights crime a different way; as a super heroine!

And i am loving the new way how they're cutting 3 scenes into 1 on the tv screen. And when they went in after the commercial, they did some ocean and boat shots, and how they did the quarduple screen-on-screen thing was great. A great effect.

In that one scene, when Ryan and Cal went to the scene of the shooting of the little kid, was it just me or was Cal's hair switching back and forth from being flat and having volume and slightly flipped back?

When Eric swabbed that black guys hands, and then it switched smootly to the comp saying NITROGLYCERINE was great.

Ok, fast-forward to the shooting scene. Wait, rewind a bit. I'd like to congratulate that Bank Accountant chick for staying as calm as she could. Ok, fast-forward.

SHOOTING SCENE! OH. MY. GOSH. 1st Eric gets shot in the leg, (biting on my arm to restrain my self from screaming begins) THEN he gets shot in the shoulder/neck! (blood begins to dribble off of my arm) How Eric's eyes stayed completely still, will be in my nightmares. How Horatio kept on saying 'Eric. Eric' in that soft voice of his (purrs), heart-breaking!

AND I HATE 'TO BE CONTINUED' ONES! THEY LEAVE ME ON SUCH AN UNBEARABLE EDGE!!

(And let's thank God that Alexx is ok!)

All in all, this was one of the best eps i've seen!
 
OMFG. I have to go to bed now (exhausted) but I rewarched the end like 50 zillion times. OMG. I'll come back and write more tomorrow...what an amzingtastic episode!
 
Wow what an episode! Amazing! I liked the complete episode including the kids case. Everything fitted perfectly! Ryan talking to that kid really makes me like him... He is not my fave character but with this episode he got himself worked through my everlasting speedle wall I bui;d against him... I really liked how he played this epi!

Every face H can make he made! Loveable!

Then Calleigh with the clothes! What's Can't say I like the style but she's great as always! The hasitation when she questioned the sister!

Eric. poor guy! But he's not really dead is he? He looked dead but I don't want him to leave!

The shooting scene btw was thrilling to watch to! Just how they were surprised and then Eric in the middel of the street gunned down. Than H getting him and saying he's (pretty much) ok and then gunned down totally!

I do wonder about the kidnapped lady though! If she is there at all and not already killed...

Ohw and H at the bank. Laying down his badge and stuff... I just thought it was a great scene!

ETA:

I almost forgot! H jumping on the side of the hummer... delicious!
 
Wow, almost five hours later and the adrenaline is only just starting to fade. I had all but forgotten what it was like to be in love with this show – I’m so glad this ep didn’t disappoint! I found nothing worth complaining about. Okay, one thing I’ll mention at the end. Otherwise, it could have held its own with many another good classic.

For starters: Because I don't know when else I'm going to get it in, I want to open with the courthouse scene. I never get tired of hearing “sweetheart” directed at anyone. Masterful tone of voice, the too light and casual "Alexx, sweetheart, where are you?" followed by the sudden quiet urgency, "I need you to get out of there right now." And when he came into the courthouse and saw the damage, rather than pausing to look for the nearest wounded woman to comfort or even a dead police officer to cry over, he pretty much had blinders on until he made sure Alexx was okay. I. Love. Lab-family loyalty. I particularly enjoy the friendship between these two. Rarely highlighted, but beautiful.

So, Clavo! (whom I'll bet you a Benjamin is not long for this world) Before tonight, I never realized just how much Clavo Cruz gets under Horatio’s skin; thus he is now my new favorite nemesis. I mean, you see H bristle at Stetler, but it’s a shallow vendetta. And it’s easy to hate the Mala Noche or Walter Resden. But Clavo transcends the stereotype of cold-blooded killer. He literally laughs at Horatio’s ideals, devaluing human life. Clavo seems to view this all a game, not so much a “I’m a brilliant mastermind you’ll never catch meeeee!” game, but more of a “Even I can outsmart you without even trying, how’s that feel?” attitude. The stare doesn’t work on him. He calls every bluff, taking pleasure in the fact that as much as he makes Horatio’s blood boil, the lieutenant can't take any action against him other than to order him out of his sight.

The “fetch me a million dollars” conversation? I about curled up in a ball of glee seeing him order Horatio around. Along with hurting the people he cares about, the way to cut to the quick with Horatio is to take away his authority. He's used to being in charge; more than that he *needs* to be in control. There is nothing he hates more than being puppeteered (see: general disgust with federal authority). You take that away from him, take away his pride, you're one step closer to winning. You also sign your death warrant, but I'm sure it's fun while it lasts. And Clavo is clearly getting off on bending Horatio to his will.

Bank scene: I loved that you could see him the whole time in the bank trying to think of a way to buck that control, only to realize he'd have to play along, at least up to a certain point. Because innocents always come first, so if there's a chance to save that woman, he'll take the risk on letting Clavo escape in the wind and hope he can catch up later. (It's not a total risk, anyway. The teller wasn’t stupid; she added tracers or whatever else they do in hold-up situations) I am just...generally in love with his expression when he nods at the uncertain teller, keeping everything calm and under control despite the fact that something is clearly not right.

They never did get around to finding the missing woman, despite the taunt that "she's only got five minutes’ worth of air left." Of course, we've seen what Horatio can do in five minutes - "burn, baby, burn" and rescuing a bound hostage from an imploding building come to mind - but I'm inclined to believe that she's nowhere near that parking lot. Considering the gun battle that went down, I'm guessing revealing her location was only a ploy to get them into firing range - and frankly, it worked frighteningly well. He called Eric but otherwise they came without backup, never expecting an ambush. Of course, neither was I (despite the fact that there were less than 10 minutes left in the ep before Eric was due to be shot), but I think it speaks to Horatio's single-mindedness that he was focused on nothing but rescuing the hostage. Seeing the aftermath, I don't know if that was a good or a bad thing.

And the shoot-out. Very well orchestrated, loved Horatio darting out into the open and dragging him to (relative) safety. And then...then it's all a blur. Until the last word.

"Eric?" His voice & his expression kill me every time. They remind me very much of the bit in Lost Son, which no doubt means I’ll end up watching that scene a few thousand times. (Though I could swear he moved a whole lot faster to Speed's side, whereas with Eric he just looks paralyzed. I can somewhat understand the difference, since Speed was lying there choking and convulsing while Eric was in pain but still conscious and aware until suddenly he was...very, very dead-looking...but a little part of me still wanted to yell "HEY! Get out your phone already and call an ambulance! Check for pulse! Do something!")

Anyone else think Eric's parents might have a few issues to take up with Lieutenant Caine after this? :D

Other good things: yes, there was a B-plot, and yes it was definitely in secondary plot land. But unlike the POS that was the B-plot in Rio, this one moved along quickly without taking up too much time, and for the first time in a while I cared about the crime, felt bad for everyone involved. As for specific goodies, there was Calleigh's Voice of Steel Fury when she was dealing with the dad who walked away from his son's dead body ("What else could I do?" "Be a human being, for starters."), and Ryan showing off some seriously prizewinning Looks of Compassion. I could feel the empathy flowing through my screen. Lots of points for that.

Plus, for 2/3 of the ep, Boa was confined to the lab where she belonged. I was hoping it would stay that way and make the episode perfect. Alas, t'was not to be; however even when she slithered into the field she got extremely minimal screentime, which definitely worked for me.

Lone complaint time: Horatio jumping onto the side of the Hummer and riding it like damn fire truck. Show, you almost lost me there. I dropped my face into my hands, moaning, "Oh, oh, you were so CLOSE to going one episode without campiness..."

Then, of course, then there was shooting and bleeding and such, so I forgave and overlooked that stupid moment. Solid piece of storytelling. I love February sweeps.
 
Painted_Shadow said:
Wow, almost five hours later and the adrenaline is only just starting to fade. I had...


...so I forgave and overlooked that stupid moment. Solid piece of storytelling. I love February sweeps.
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Amen to that!
 
Painted_Shadow said:
I particularly enjoy the friendship between these two. Rarely highlighted, but beautiful.
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First of all, I would like to say hello...haven't seen you on here before. And nice analysis...I hope to read more of these in the future :)
I agree. Alexx and Horatio have always had this special yet highly underrated bond that rivals that of any he's had with any character he's been particularly close with on the show. When he bursts into the courtroom searching for Alexx, the fear in his eyes mixed with concern for Alexx' wellbeing was so touching. He was human again (I stated earlier that I was tiring of his superhuman 'Supercop' attitude) for those few seconds in silent slow motion.

So, Clavo! (whom I'll bet you a Benjamin is not long for this world) Before tonight, I never realized just how much Clavo Cruz gets under Horatio’s skin; thus he is now my new favorite nemesis. I mean, you see H bristle at Stetler, but it’s a shallow vendetta. And it’s easy to hate the Mala Noche or Walter Resden. But Clavo transcends the stereotype of cold-blooded killer. He literally laughs at Horatio’s ideals, devaluing human life. Clavo seems to view this all a game, not so much a “I’m a brilliant mastermind you’ll never catch meeeee!” game, but more of a “Even I can outsmart you without even trying, how’s that feel?” attitude. The stare doesn’t work on him. He calls every bluff, taking pleasure in the fact that as much as he makes Horatio’s blood boil, the lieutenant can't take any action against him other than to order him out of his sight.
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Clavo is an excellent antagonist when plotted against H. I used to believe that Stetler was H's biggest threat, but after tonight's episode, I could see the contempt in Clavo's eyes when H pays him a visit in prison. Clavo is truly bitter that H got the better of him, and he's going to fight out a hard one until the end.

The “fetch me a million dollars” conversation? I about curled up in a ball of glee seeing him order Horatio around. Along with hurting the people he cares about, the way to cut to the quick with Horatio is to take away his authority. He's used to being in charge; more than that he *needs* to be in control. There is nothing he hates more than being puppeteered (see: general disgust with federal authority). You take that away from him, take away his pride, you're one step closer to winning. You also sign your death warrant, but I'm sure it's fun while it lasts. And Clavo is clearly getting off on bending Horatio to his will.
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Great scene. I just knew that H was going to be brought back down to earth in this ep, but I didn't expect it was going to happen this way. The way H was carrying out Clavo's orders and the manner in which he composed himself was testament to my belief that H would have a humbling experience. Mind you, the end scene would have been more humbling, but this particular scene was fantastic...a nice refresher from what I was expecting.


"Eric?" His voice & his expression kill me every time. They remind me very much of the bit in Lost Son, which no doubt means I’ll end up watching that scene a few thousand times. (Though I could swear he moved a whole lot faster to Speed's side, whereas with Eric he just looks paralyzed. I can somewhat understand the difference, since Speed was lying there choking and convulsing while Eric was in pain but still conscious and aware until suddenly he was...very, very dead-looking...but a little part of me still wanted to yell "HEY! Get out your phone already and call an ambulance! Check for pulse! Do something!")
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Yeah, it reminded me of Lost Son as well. I was a little shocked to see that H didn't immediately call for assistance but instead stood there. What if the bullet hit a critical artery in his leg? Precious minutes lost.

Anyone else think Eric's parents might have a few issues to take up with Lieutenant Caine after this? :D
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Hahaha...that and the whole hasty marriage to Marisol ordeal.

As for specific goodies, there was Calleigh's Voice of Steel Fury when she was dealing with the dad who walked away from his son's dead body ("What else could I do?" "Be a human being, for starters."), and Ryan showing off some seriously prizewinning Looks of Compassion. I could feel the empathy flowing through my screen. Lots of points for that.
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Calleigh had it going on in this ep. If she ever does get angry, she only changes her tone of voice maybe once if ever, but in this ep she had an angry tone twice. I was of the 'oh no she didn't' mindset whenever she was talking to the fresh-from-jail father.
In regards to Ryan, that one particular instance where he nearly chokes up when he sees the boy was almost heartbreaking. Ryan was showing hints of the Alexx from early seasons in that he was truly sympathising with the dead body in front of him. I almost expected him to start rubbing the boy's hair saying 'You left this earth too soon, baby.'

I love February sweeps.
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Naturally...it's when they pull out all the stops, and in this instance they did so and did so perfectly. I'm going to be talking about this ep with my radio show co-host for the next week!!! :lol:
 
**Spoiler space**






















EyeHeartH said:
I don't know what to think after watching the preview for Part 2. I swear I saw hand-holding.
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*looks confuzzled*
I saw a promo for next weeks ep and I didn't see any hand-holding. From whom, may I ask?
edited to add spoiler code

I still haven't actually seen the ep yet though. :( I'm really not sure that I want to. You guys will probably hear me all the way from London yelling 'Not the face! Not the beautiful face!'. I'll bet I get busted for breach of the peace. Meh, I always wanted to spend a night in the slammer anyway. :lol:
 
man i love this epi. the best one so far in S5 . cool!!! most love Clavo character. ..wow and omg is all i can say ... love the way he play with H hehhe... hi call H cowboy, right ?! :lol:.... why Clavo can`t come regular character on the tv show. *sigh*. for me it was the right time someone to come and put H on his place :D coool !! also love the scene when H come in the court and start scream Alex name. ohhh boy this is my Real H for just some sek. ;) but poor Delko shoot two times :rolleyes: why it`s look like Deja vu with dr. House shoot in the neck or i watch too many tv these days :confused:...honestly like a lot the way DC and AR play this moment. :) ehhh but can`t deny that still have some ridiculous spots which keep going in TPTB plot line. most strange thing was H bank account 1 021,325,36 $ :eek: (did this money are from 'dirty' Ray Sn. savings?!) did i say that H was so helpless in front the bank when almost beg Clavo for 'understanding'. so so out of character, but after S4 for me he deserve this hehe :devil:
 
Pusher said:
most strange thing was H bank account 1 021,325,36 $ :eek: (did this money are from 'dirty' Ray Sn. savings?!)
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The $1 million was what Clavo wire-transferred from his own account into Horatio's so that he could get the cash from a U.S. bank...H isn't quite that rich. Although, assuming that other 21k was already in there, that's still a decent amount. Guess those years on the bomb squad paid off?

And EyeHeart, I've been in the new-eps threads all season with long posts, though admittedly this is the most coherent one. Thanks for the welcome, though. And I'm glad to see someone besides me understood my ramblings!
 
Good ep, really good ep. I can excuse the kid shooting his brother-just filler, but necessary. Clavo is EVIL.

QUESTIONS:
-How did Clavo get H's bank account # (which I'm guessing he needed to transfer the $1 million)?
-So did Delko get shot in the leg AND the neck/head?
-Um, what about the hostage in the back of the Mercedes? Did H just forget about her after Eric got shot? And for that matter, how did he figure out which car she was in?
-How did that guy know the rocket launcher would be in that truck?
 
I think the hand holding scene was Calleigh putting a rosary in Eric's hand.
edited to add spoiler code
 
Guys, remember if discussing events that happen in next week's episode, please keep the information contained in Spoiler codes/space or place the information in the Spoiler Lab. Thanks. :)
 
I loved this ep....I totally wasn't disappointed. My only complaint is I felt like they dragged the episode out, ya know had filler then got to the final scene. Maybe it was just b/c I was so anxious for the scene it felt like it dragged on. On the whole the ep was awesome and it nice to finally get back to the stuff that made this show so great in the first place!

The music at the end was so eerie...it totally added to the drama. I can't wait til next week!!
 
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