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A farmer drives up and parks his tractor with a trailer in tow outside the Treasury building, demanding to speak to the president. Cal (Tim Roth) has a group of school children at the Institute and gives them a talk on lying, in an attempt to determine who stole the class turtle. He wants the culprit to own up instead pointing the finger cos he can do that anyway. He introduces Ben (Mekhi Phifer) as an FBI agent but he needs Cal and Gillian (Kelli Williams) urgently. Eli (Brendan Hines) is left in charge of the children.
No one can leave the building since it's safer inside but everyone needs to be kept away from the glass. Cal examines Harold's (Sean Bridgers) face closely by use of the cameras and doesn't believe he shows signs of bomber anxiety. Ben's boss, Steele (Miguel Ferrer) arrives and suspects there is a bomb on the tractor as ammonia readings have been picked up. Cal wants to be in charge since it's his call. Harold has a wife, Mary (Jennifer Irvin) back at the farm and his son. Ria (Monica Raymund) and Agent Irving (Sean Blackmore) are sent there. Mary doesn't believe Harold could set off a bomb and Ria picks up on her fear.
Eli can't seem to keep the children entertained or focused so Cal suggests he should get out his guitar. Steele wants snipers placed and Cal has to distract Harold, who tells Cal the bomb will explode of anything happens to him. Harold isn't lying but he too shows signs of fear as if someone else is pulling the strings, or is holding a gun to his head and Cal knows what that's like (re his past.) Ben notices the explosives on the seat which weren't visible before.
Ben also finds the 911 caller who called in the threat is Ron Jackson (Ronnie Steadman) and he too has a farm, which Ria and Irving check out.. In the barn, blasting caps used for explosives are found. Gillian listens to the end of the call and and posits there was joy in the caller's voice since when you smile, this is visible in your speech. Ben wants to use a water disruptor on the tractor which will help to limit the effects when they detonate.
Harold admits Mary is being held and he was forced to do this. Ria is warned about Dave Miller, (Sam Littlefield) the man also at the farm and she stalls him long enough for Irving to arrest him, after Ben calls him. Oscar overhears Steele talk about the bomb and Cal admits there is a bomb but he has to keep this secret from his friends. Oscar later acts strangely and Eli tells him a about story about being in love with a girl from the sixth grade. He wrote his feelings down in a song and gets Oscar to do the same. He smiles. Their teacher, Miss Angela (Felicia Day) admits she's afraid and Eli does too.
Jackson's phone is located to a downtown hotel and Cal tells Ben what to look for since he'll be disguised, but ends up accompanying Ben. They spot the white van with the bomb and search the crowd. Cal spots Jackson and asks him about Harold and he opens up his phone. Cal gives the signal and Jackson is shot. Eli and the children sing about white lies, which Gillian listens in on.
Jackson was going to tell Harold how to disarm the bomb and he's willing to sacrifice his life to save others. Harold says goodbye to Mary and Ria plays the video of Dave being questioned and Cal sees he's lying about the bomb. Cal agrees to go out alone and rescue Harold, which he does and opening up the trailer he finds it full of corn. Cal is actually pleased with Eli's actions and their teacher plants a kiss on Eli. The turtle thief confesses and Cal tells her he'll have a job for her here.
Plenty of character dynamic in this ep with Ria out of the office, even if it appeared convenient for the purposes of the storyline. Eli entertaining the 'troops' and Cal had to venture out too and take risks with his life, as well as Harold's. Cal not being certain again at times if there really was a bomb or not but he did put himself in the firing line to rescue Harold. Luckily Emily wasn't around to see this since he promised her in Secret Santa he wouldn't put himself in that position again. More reference to Cal's 'secret' past when he says he knows what it's like to have a gun held to his head. In the Secret Santa episode he mentioned his stint working for MI6 in Bosnia and also suspect he may have found himself in a similar position in Ireland. Gillian took a back seat in the ep as she was relegated to the background.
Guess Eli had to get a song in since he sings and writes his own songs under The Brendan Hines. This one wasn't written by him. He released an album of his own songs in 2008, entitled, Good For You Know Who. "...everybody does it because it feels all right and it's more polite, but a lie's still a lie even when it's white..."
Like Cal's arguments with Steele for saving Harold. Even Ben ended up arguing with him since Steele was so hasty and so establishment in his eagerness to react. Don't know what was going on with Jackson and the 911 call, since he could have exploded the bomb and gotten away with it instead of using Harold as a distraction. What was the point of focusing that much attention on Harold? Also it appears Eli has forever been enamoured with girls, going back to sixth grade! Though he does get a kiss out of this scenario. Who was jealous?
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