delga | { Numb3rs, 3x24, The Janus List. }

Fuck. FUCK.

If this was to make room for Aya Sumika, I don't know that I want to know that.

Just when things were going so well, too, like that scene on the balcony between Megan and Colby, and the way that things were turning there. Granger came across so noble at times, which I guess was the point, but I feel cheated as a viewer. I feel cheated on Megan's part, on David's, but mostly on Granger's himself. And I love this show, even when it's awful, even when it siphons out the characters I love for strings of episodes. But I feel cheated*. I'm not saying this finale wasn't any good - in terms of plot and teleplay, it was magnificent (I have never been so pleased to see Diane Farr) - I'm just saying that when you sign onto a show, you come with certain expectations. The show promises you something. Playing with that promise is part of the relationship between viewer and show-maker, but breaking that promise is something else entirely. Numb3rs promised solidarity of family, and I don't just mean the Eppes, I mean the team as a whole. And that promise got broken. In terms of plot, it's a good move. In terms of relationship with your audience, it isn't. When characters leave, or are killed off, we expect something from the plot that ennobles them. We expect it because it ratifies our love of that character. Colby's send off didn't do that. And my question is: why did we bother with him for two years? You invest so much in a show like this, you invest so much in the characters. Numb3rs is sold as a procedural, but the real win is the characterisation. Anybody in this fandom can tell you that. So I do feel cheated, on behalf of myself, and on behalf of David (who is always being let down by people around him, or so I feel) and on behalf of Megan (who deserves a post of her own).

edit: My worry is two-fold: Dylan Bruno may not be coming back. On the other hand, if they do bring him back, how exactly is that going to work? Also, there are cries of 'character assassination' that I sort of want to endorse but overall, I can't, because if he was spying then the secrecy and his apparent normalcy are all justified. Our horror has to mirror Megan & David's. And if you're wondering why I don't include other names, it's because Don didn't trust Colby anyway, and there was no real resolution to the reveal at the end of the episode.

edit 2: Don visualising was possibly the second-best thing about this episode. Know why? Because, yes, he was an agent before his brother showed up. (The best thing was Megan. Obviously. Angsty, broken Megan.)

*) I loved the episode, yo.

I have another fandom post due: the above episode, CSI (and my Sara post), Criminal Minds, Bones. Just waiting for NCIS now.