Emo meets martyrdom. Now with helpful hints about the preventing the apocalypse!
Greetings, TSCC fans! I am your intrepid substitute recapper, Feste. Nova is off on a well-deserved vacation, but she'll be sorry she missed Brian Austin Green's wicked hot bod this episode.
The episode begins, as usual, in medias res: Sarah and Cameron are snooping in the dark in someone's house. Over this, Sarah's voiceover tells us about her father, a vet who never spoke about the horrors he faced overseas. "Ever vigilant, ever silent," she says. "I never thought I'd follow in his footsteps." Don't let it get out that you're a daddy's girl, Sarah. Later, in the getaway vehicle driven by John, Sarah spouts awkward exposition about Dr. Boyd Sherman, child psychologist and family therapist, who was one of the names painted in blood on their garage wall by the resistance fighter (see photo). You know, the one who had about 30 seconds of screentime and one line, but who provided the key plot device for the entire season. John, who seems to have gotten up on the grouchy side of the bed, wants to know Sherman's relationship to Skynet, and whether he's someone they're supposed to protect. That is, apparently, the question.
Photoshoot at Catherine's office. She makes exact quarter-inch head adjustments at the photographer's request. On the other hand, her smile is a bit, shall we say, robotic. The photographer asks for "warmer," but the smile does not change. She's probably increasing her internal thermostat, heh. The photographer wants to include Catherine's daughter, Savannah, in a few shots, but when Catherine's assistant tries to get her to join, Savannah is unwilling. Catherine sits on the sofa and instructs Savannah, who is playing with some Legos and not looking anybody in the eye, to join her. Savannah gives Catherine a frightened look and refuses. She runs from the room, leaving a small puddle of pee on the floor where she sat. Oh, the poor boo.
I can't believe it's taken me this long to realize that when Catherine spoke of having a daughter, what that really meant was that she killed Savannah's real mother and assumed her identity. *facepalm* What am I, new? Anyway, after the photographer leaves, Catherine asks about her assistant's child and what she does with "it." The assistant says her son had some issues with her divorce, but she took him to a therapist, which worked wonders. Hmm, divorce vs. robot mom. Six, half dozen, really.
In Dr. Sherman's office, he greets his newest patients, the Baum family. We learn that he used to work at a med center for veterans, and he asks whether Pa Baum was in the military. Sarah answers that he passed away. As Sherman asks more about dad and whether they want to talk about him, we realize that Sarah is fielding all the questions while John's stony defensiveness practically screams that he really could use someone to talk to about the pressures that come with being a metaphor for Jesus Christ the savior of the human race. Sherman, a crafty fellow who was not born yesterday, picks up on this and recommends some individual sessions with each of them. While his back is turned, Cameron bugs the lamp.
Back at T-1001 headquarters, Ellison arrives in the lobby just as Catherine and one of her Lexentists -- sorry, wrong show -- one of her analysts enter an elevator. Ellison asks them to hold it, but a security guard heads him off, saying the (nearly empty) elevator is full. Dude, if you're gonna tell him he's not welcome, at least go for something subtle, like posting a sign saying "Shifty Business This Way." Some moments later, on the proverbial Level 33.1, the analyst instructs a computer to show him an image of a tree. It does. But when he asks for images of emotions, the AI spouts a series of seemingly random pictures. The analyst explains to Catherine that this has been the AI's mysterious response lately, and that performance evaluations indicate that it is taking more time to do less. Ah, it's learned the art of procrastination. Next stop, humanity.
At Dr. Sherman's office, he explains gently to little Savannah that sometimes when something is bothering you, it helps to talk about it. Aware that Catherine's presence might be inhibiting Savannah's chattiness, he offers the little girl various things to play with, including some illustrated cards depicting emotions like sad, happy, and scared. He takes Catherine into the hall to explain that his work with Savannah may take a while. Catherine offers to stand outside "if it will make things go faster." Heh. When Sherman returns to Savannah, he finds her focused on the "scared" card. She gives him a significant look, and Sherman hears her loud and clear.
At Casa Baum, Derek returns sweaty, saying he's been on a run. Cameron remarks that he's been gone six hours. "I guess I'm slow," he retorts, but we make note of this for later. He reports having doubled back on Sherman's house and finding nothing, and Sarah says they'll have to visit his office again to get a look at patient files. Just then there's a gunshot, and the three of them high-tail it in slo-mo to John's room, where...John has apparently fired his weapon accidentally while trying to clean it. There is a burn from the shell casing on his cheek, but he insists defensively that he's fine.
As Cameron eavesdrops from the bench outside Sherman's building, Sherman and Savannah play dolls. Savannah explains that the doll's mommy is at work, and the doll doesn't like how her mommy looks at her. The doll wants to tell Dr. Sherman a secret: she wants her old mommy back. Shudder.
Outside, John gives Cameron a dirty look as he enters the building for his appointment with Sherman. Inside, Sherman's assistant remarks to Catherine on Savannah's beauty, and says she looks "just like her mommy." Catherine cocks her head: "Yes, she does." OMG CREEPY. Sherman brings Savannah out to meet Catherine in the waiting room, and Catherine tells her to wait there while she has a word with the doctor. Seconds after she leaves, John enters the room. Eek, that was close.
Sherman asks Catherine her strongest memory from childhood. She dodges the question by asking why, and Sherman explains that Savannah's most vivid memory is of her father's death, and she hasn't been able to get distance from it. Catherine wonders if there's a way to make her grow faster. Sherman chooses to interpret this odd (shall we say, inhumane?) question as an indication that Catherine is in pain too, but Savannah needs reassurance that she hasn't lost her mother as well as her father.
Back in the waiting room, Savannah tries unsuccessfully to tie her shoe. John asks if she knows about the squirrel and the tree. That would sound vaguely creepy if he weren't so sincere. He kneels in front of her and demonstrates the "squirrel and the tree" method of learning to tie one's shoe. I always thought it was a rabbit, but whatever. Either way, it's kind of heartwarming to think that Sarah -- hard, militant Sarah -- taught John how to tie his shoes this way. Savannah smiles at him, and holy shit, Catherine passes by just then! But she merely calls to Savannah and keeps going, as John's back is to her.
At a park, Derek gets his "usual" at a hot dog stand and goes to eat it on a bench. It's so touching and heartbreaking to watch him take such pleasure in the things we take for granted. Today, however, a woman catches his eye, and she sprints away as soon as he sees her. He chases her for what feels like miles, into her hotel, where he catches her at her room door and spins her around. "Jessie," he breathes. "Hey baby," she pants back, and pulls him in for a kiss. I would like permission to greet Brian Austin Green that way the next time we run into each other.
Inside the room, Derek wants to know why "Connor" sent Jessie back. She parries by asking Derek the same thing. She's undressing from her jog during all this, by the way. Derek explains that his orders were to set up a safehouse and wait -- for what, he doesn't know. Good boy, Derek. Jessie admits that Connor didn't send her back. It's so surreal to listen to Derek fall so easily into calling John simply "Connor" -- a reminder that the John he knows is someone entirely different. Derek notices a fresh wound in Jessie's side, and she tells him that "metal" is everywhere now: Connor has a reprogrammed terminator in every major base, and one of them recently "flipped" and took out half the bunker. Derek guesses that Jessie is actually AWOL, that she used a "bubble tech" to help her run away. She says she needed a place to rest, and when the world ends, she wants to be with Derek. He pulls away from her and says he doesn't want the world to end -- not again. Sniff.
At Sherman's office, Sherman notes that John "assessed all the exits" as soon as he walked in -- much like vets do. Like his father was, perhaps? John shrugs. "Vets are the ones who come back, right?" Sherman asks about the burn on John's cheek, and John lies rather unconvincingly that he was boiling water for pasta. Sherman asks if being the cook is John's role in the family. John insists defensively that his role is to be a kid, but Sherman notes that some kids feel the need to take the place of the absent parent. Does John ever feel like escaping? John flashes back briefly to the throw-down with Sarkissian in the season premiere. "All the time," he says. Sherman assures him that this is a safe place to be honest, but John, glancing toward the bug, disagrees.
Sarah enters the waiting room to find Cameron reading therapy brochures. Cameron promptly informs her that 65% of teen suicides are committed with a gun. Sarah snaps that it was an accident, that John thought he had cleared the chamber. Cameron replies that "some first attempts may appear to be accidents." Part of me wants to laugh at the almost-witty way Cameron debates the point, except, you know, we're talking about suicide. Just then John and Dr. Sherman come out, and Sherman asks to speak with Sarah. He tells her that her daughter exhibits symptoms of Asperger's -- snerk -- though it's too early to diagnose. John, on the other hand, reminds him of a Vietnam vet. He asks whether there's been any violence in John's past. Sarah flashes back to the fight with Sarkissian as well. Sherman gently suggests that John needs someone to talk to. "We talk," she says.
In her office, Catherine watches a home video of the real Catherine and her husband giving some sort of interview. The real Catherine is ginormously pregnant, and her husband has an affectionate arm around her, and they both stroke her tummy as they talk. Hubby teases that for such a techie, Catherine is "practically a Luddite." He urges her to tell the interviewer how she works at home. Catherine reveals that her father was a butcher, and they didn't have much money for school supplies, so she wrote on butcher paper. Her husband teases that she still does. She likes the smell, she says.
Just then an assistant pages Catherine to the lab. The analyst reports that the AI now refuses to run any tests or diagnostics, and only keeps replaying nonsense pictures. He suggests scrapping it and starting over. She retorts that maybe she should scrap the team instead. Catherine returns to her office to find Savannah watching the video. Savannah notes that her daddy keeps touching Mommy's tummy. "Is he trying to hug me?" she wonders. Catherine observes Mr. Weaver caressing his wife's arm. She reaches down and tries the same on Savannah. The little girl smiles up at her. Ah, a successful experiment. Shudder. The Terminator theme music agrees with me.
John comes home to find Sarah boxing in the garage. He asks when they're going back to Sherman, but Sarah says the patient files have been encoded for privacy, and the tapes have been useless so far. John insists that Sherman is on the wall for a reason, but Sarah argues that whatever it is could be six months from now -- there's no timeline. Ironic, in a story all about timelines, isn't it? Cameron appears and suggests that maybe Sherman is on the list because he helps John.
Sarah, defensively: "What makes you think John needs help?"
John, calmly: "What makes you think I don't?"
I have to say, word. The Great and Terrible John Connor is gonna need some serious coping skills if he's gonna make it past Judgment Day and become the leader of the whole fuckin' human race, is all I'm sayin'. Sarah, humbled, assures him he can talk to her if he needs to. John struggles for a moment before telling her he's fine. He walks out.
Elsewhere in LA, a bus driver snoozes in his parked bus. The wind blows leaves and trash around it. Raise your hand if you know what's coming. Sure enough, a small electrical storm deposits a frizzy-haired redhead in the bus, and she approaches the awakened driver and divests him of his clothes. Also his life.
Back in the Connor garage, Derek finds Sarah sitting morosely by the boxing bag. After a moment he tells her of a friend of his, one of the strongest he knew, who went outside to take a leak one day and decided to shoot himself in the head. "He fought and fought and fought for his life, and then he just couldn't anymore." Fuck. Sarah snaps that John is not suicidal. Derek agrees, but though he's not a man yet, he's also not a boy. Seeing his mother kill a man changed him. Sarah briefly flashes back to Sarkissian strangling her.
A woman walks out to her parked car and gets in. It's...Sherman's assistant? Okay. Unfortunately for her, Little Orphan Terminator is in the backseat. She makes quick work of the assistant and takes the wheel herself.
At Zeira Corp, Ellison joins Catherine's analyst in an elevator going down. When it reaches the ground floor, the doors open and the analyst nervously requests that Ellison get off on this floor. Ever courteous, Ellison complies, but throws the analyst an "I see what you did there" kind of look as the analyst scans his keycard and the doors close again.
Catherine has invited Dr. Sherman to her office. She explains that they're developing a human-interactive AI that, like a child, must be trained to recognize images. However, mid-training, the AI stopped running its tests and now only shows a series of images. She plays them for Sherman, who watches for a few moments and then begins to laugh. The images represent the riddle, "Why is a math book so sad?" Sherman notes that while most children begin to ask questions at age three or four, this AI has actually begun to recognize humor. Some people, by contrast, never seem to. Catherine merely stares at him. Heh. Sherman posits that if this were one of his patients, he would surmise it was a gifted child who had grown bored and was amusing itself. Oh, how delightful -- Judgment Day is for FUN!
Sarah sits on her front porch, listening to the tape of John's therapy session. When John says that nowhere is safe, Sherman remarks that John's mother seems very strong -- doesn't John feel safe around her? John replies that "safe" is the last thing his mother wants him to feel, and that she's right. "Fear can be a good thing," John says. "On a bad day it can keep you alive." Sherman asks whether John has bad days like that. John does not answer. Sarah's face, y'all.
Derek shows up at Jessie's door. He's been thinking about how they met, and she recalls that she found him outside the bunker, having gone for a whizz and almost eating his gun instead. Damn. Derek says he never thanked her for what she said to him. Jessie: "I believe the exact words were, 'Your fly's open.'" They stare at each other, and she glances pointedly at his crotch. He swoops into the room, and they can't get their out of their clothes fast enough -- tops come off, gun goes down, belts are wrestled away. It doesn't escape notice that they're both covered in scars.
Later, in the afterglow, their fingers entwined, Jessie asks if there's a word for what they just did. "I can think of a few," Derek smirks. Jessie raises and eyebrow at him, and he asks if she wants to hear them. YES, PLEASE. Jessie: "No. I want a new one." Fine, but can I hear the old ones first? Please, FOX, with a cherry on top? Jessie muses that she has a new life, and she wants new words to go with it. She asks him to get her a drink, and when he goes, she leans over the her side of the bed and shoves surveillance photos underneath -- photos of Derek and John and Cameron, etc. Hey Jessie, I have some old words for you, you FILTHY SPYING WHORE. Ahem. But you're pretty!
Catherine and Ellison chat in her office over a towering Lego structure she's made for Savannah. As she puts on the finishing touches, she asks how Ellison's "robot hunt" is going. "Absurd, when you put it like that," he says. Heh. Actually, I couldn't agree more, no matter how you put it. He asks about the basement, and its apparent need for such high security. She tells him they're building something, and leaves it at that. Well, that whole storyline is just clear as mud.
Sherman ushers John into his office, apologizing for the confusion -- his assistant is out today, and the temp agency is sending someone over. Yeah, that'll be the temporariest temp of all time. John asks if he really can say anything here, and discreetly disables the bug. Outside, Cameron's feed cuts out, and she heads inside. Little Orphan Terminator, now all gussied up for her temp job, matches Cameron's stride into the lobby and then the elevator. As they both press the same floor, they notice their, uh, common movement style.
Inside, John tells Sherman about the time someone broke into their house, wanting computer equipment. He flashes back to Sarkissian tying up himself and his mother, but when Sherman asks what happened next, John says the man got what he wanted and let them go. Sherman explains that sometimes kids feel the urge to protect their parents. "But that's not your job," he says. "You get to be a kid."
Out in the hall, Cameron and Little Orphan Terminator are having the catfight of the millenium. I'm going to go out on a limb and say that somewhere in the casting call for this chick, the word "contortionist" appeared somewhere. Their fight makes its way back into the elevator, and then the door opens and a little boy and his parents get on. Cameron and LOT cease fire immediately and adjust their clothes and hair to mask the tussle. Um, what? I get why Cameron would stop, but LOT hasn't shown concern about the slaughter of innocents so far. Why should she start now? Anyway, only the boy notices that they look like escapees from a demilitarized zone. The parents drag him off a few floors later, chastising him about it being rude to stare, and the ladies resume battle. Cameron ultimately gets the upper hand, twisting LOT into a preztel, and finally LOT shuts down.
Cameron plops LOT on the floor at home, and the Connors gather around it like cops at a crime scene. They note that it was there for Sherman, either to kill or protect him. Derek muses that whatever Sherman is or isn't supposed to do, he'll live to do it now. "For now," Cameron adds, turning LOT's chip over in her hand. It seems that when she accessed the CPU, the chip destroyed itself: this model has been designed to self-destruct rather than risk reprogramming. With a significant look at Cameron, John realizes that Skynet wants to prevent him from doing that to any more of its soldiers.
Catherine comes in at the end of one of Savannah's sessions with Dr. Sherman and asks to speak with him. She's impressed with his work, but he gives her credit as well, for working to show Savannah the mother she knew before her daddy died. Yes, but Catherine meant his insight into the AI, and she invites him to act as a consultant to help "raise" the AI. Ah, so I guess LOT's position wouldn't have been so temporary after all -- it seems it was indeed there to protect him, and by extension, Skynet's "psychological" growth. CREEPY. Though, wait -- why can't Catherine protect him? I mean, surely she will, now that she knows what he has to offer; but it's interesting that Skynet apparently already knew his value, and she did not. Hmm.
Anyway, as though it has just occurred to her, Catherine answers his earlier question about her most vivid childhood memory: doing her sums on the butcher paper her father brought home from work. She remembers liking the smell. Sherman: "What did it smell like?" Catherine, cheerfully: "Cow's blood." Heh. Also, ew. Also also, have I mentioned creepy?
As Sarah watches John examine LOT, her voiceover begins the episode closeout. She tells us that in 1678, doctors diagnosed soldiers with nostalgia -- homesickness, a longing to return to the past. As Sarah muses that the very nature of war means never returning to home or to innocence, we watch Savannah climb into Catherine's lap. As Sarah contemplates that war's wounds bled her dry, Derek sits alone on his park bench, and Jessie gazes at her fresh wound in the mirror. "No words of comfort, no words of forgiveness": Cameron reads a Suicide Prevention brochure, fingering LOT's self-destructed chip. John stares at the bullet hole in his mirror: "No words at all."
Later, Sarah sits in Sherman's office. He's surprised she called, and wonders why. She flashes back once more to the struggle with Sarkissian, except this time she fights to escape her bonds while John grapples with him. John has him in a choke hold, and after a few moments of breathless anticipation, there is a slashing/creaking sound, and Sarkissian is dead. Sarah pulls herself free and yanks Sarkissian away from her son, who has just killed a man for the first time.
It's so interesting to me that Derek is under the impression that Sarah is the one who killed Sarkissian. It's true that we didn't see the mechanics of the scene when it happened, and the writers have been deliberately vague about the details ever since, and because of that, it's been my prediction all along that John was the one to kill him. But I can't imagine why John and Sarah would lie to Derek about it, which means he must simply have assumed Sarah did the killing -- even though Derek guessed correctly earlier that very day, over ice cream, that Sarah had never killed before.
But her son has. So, you know, that could be emotionally trying. Here's to therapy.
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