Last time on Quantico, Alex testified before a congressional hearing about the bombings. She later lied under oath when she changed her statement to indicate that she thought Elias did act alone. Alex received a mysterious phone call and went to a meeting place to find Nathalie strapped with a bomb around her waist and “the mastermind” ordering Alex to now act as the terrorist to save Nathalie. The caller also dropped a clue that he saw Alex on the first day at the academy.
This episode of Quantico, “Clear,” has the NATS learning about confidential informants before practicing their new skills. This definitely sounds interesting.
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Listening In
The two classes have become one big, unhappy family at Quantico. Drew gives Alex attitude for wearing Ryan’s dog tags around her neck. Shelby also has news about the woman, Haiffa, who pretended to be her sister. Haiffa’s husband, Khaled, lets Shelby know that the kidnapper is demanding $5 million for her return. The demand is from Croatia, so Caleb offers to get his father involved. Shelby is relieved and agrees.
Of course, Iris Chang overhears the entire conversation. Iris lets Shelby know that she heard about the Croatia Project and flaunts all of her government tech contacts. Iris also has her eye on Caleb. Nathalie has concerns of her own because her ex is suing her for custody of their daughter, Renata, and she confides in Brandon.
As soon as Shelby transferred the funds, Caleb’s father followed the money and discovered that Haiffa wasn’t kidnapped but is hiding out. Shelby’s cash will let Haiffa’s bosses buy new faces to continue the con. Shelby is determined to get her money back.
Sisterhood
There is also trouble between sisters Nimah and Raina. Nimah calls out Raina for lying to everyone about going home for the holiday break. Raina admits that she went to see a friend instead, and it is obvious that there are some secrets that are threatening their relationship.
Secrets are also the theme in this part of the NATS’ training, or at least how to approach a source and gather human intelligence. Agents must know the weaknesses of their potential sources so that they can be exploited if necessary.
Turning a Source
The trainees learn to assess a person’s personality traits from surveillance. They will take their knowledge to the streets and convince a potential source to call a phone number on a business card. The NATS will go to a bar that is popular with corrupt politicians and sleazy aids. They have to be snappy about it, as they only have one hour. The trainees head to the bar.
Have a Drink on Me
Alex points out that Miranda never said they couldn’t pair up. Alex suggests to Drew that they join forces to turn a waiter. They also engage in some heavy flirting. That is, until Nathalie’s mark gestures to Drew. Drew abandons Alex’s plan and heads over to greet a fan.
The only problem is that this man is not a fan. Alex comes over and tells Drew to get lost, and accepts an offer from the disgruntled congressman’s aid to buy her a drink. Alex agrees to get rid of his DUI if he calls the number on the card. She fails, as does Iris, as all of the marks are actually FBI agents.
Alex goes to see Drew and wonders why he would leave the NFL and join the FBI. Drew’s girlfriend was killed in the crossfire between cops and two armed gunmen. He decided that he could make the FBI less corrupt and a better organization by joining.
More Secrets
Iris, who is clearly hooked on eavesdropping on Shelby and Caleb, finds a comfy location to listen in as Shelby asks Caleb for more help getting her money back. Later, Iris gives Shelby the contact information for the head of the main Internet provider in Croatia. No doubt that Iris will want a favor later.
Nathalie also has a visitor when she is summoned to see Miranda. Brandon spilled the beans about Nathalie’s custody fight, and Miranda grants her a leave of absence until it is sorted out.
Alex goes in to see Liam. He had given her a ride home on New Year’s Eve, but apparently the couple slept together. Alex agrees that it was a mistake. Miranda had warned Liam about the penalties of becoming involved with a trainee, and Liam denied any improper conduct with Alex. Yikes!
Will Olsen has, under his carefully folded and arranged socks, a photo collage of all the trainees, and he crosses Nimah off. Nimah follows her sister, Raina, and sees her exit a house with a man.That’s not creepy, right?
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The Terrorist Makes Contact
Alex and Nathalie are instructed to return to work in the morning and wait for further directions. Isn’t having a bomb strapped to your body a good reason to take a sick day? Nathalie thinks she was drugged because she has no memory of anyone strapping a bomb to her. I must say that Nathalie is amazingly calm for someone with a bomb strapped to her. Nathalie tells Alex that she was right all along — it has to be someone from their FBI class or someone who works at Quantico. But who is it?
Alex reports for her first day back at work and finds out that she has been moved to the operations department. Hannah Wyland, who has a grudge against Alex and is also Ryan’s ex-wife, is in charge of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (JTTF), since her superiors died in the explosion at the FBI Emergency Command Center. She basically makes Alex a glorified receptionist and stomps off to get Alex a new FBI phone since she isn’t supposed to use her cell in the building. It is the terrorist on the phone, who orders Alex and Nathalie to get the contents of JTTF server room 33, and they only have two hours to get them. If not, Nathalie will die. This is not going to end well.
Working the System
Nathalie and Alex need a master thumbprint and access key card to gain access to the server room. Only one JTTF agent in New York has a high enough clearance to have a master thumbprint — Hannah Wyland. Nathalie concentrates on getting a key card. She talks to Ryan and informs him that she is taking Alex to lunch, but on Ryan’s dime because of all the trouble that Ryan has caused her. He hands over his wallet, and she snags some cash and the key card.
Alex goes to have a chat with Hannah. She gives Hannah the new phone that tech support left at her desk but claims that she can’t mobile access the FBI database. Hannah takes the phone before lecturing Alex about how she doesn’t have clearance for that anymore. What a sneaky way to obtain Hannah’s thumbprint. Nathalie has a plan to call in a bomb threat so they can enter the server room without being seen.
A Risky Plan
As everyone leaves, Ryan notices that his key card is missing. Meanwhile, Alex and Nathalie access the schedules of all presidential candidates for the next week. Nathalie doesn’t want to turn over the information. Alex argues that they can safely turn it over if they can figure out who the terrorist is and stop them before they act. Nathalie comes up with a risky plan. They will embed a worm in the attachment so that when it is opened, it will ping a location.
Ryan confronts Alex about why she and Nathalie aren’t outside during the bomb threat. He bluntly tells her that she needs psychiatric help, but he cannot help her unless she asks him to. After the women transfer the information, the bomb around Nathalie’s waist unclasps and she is free. The worm has also done its job and reveals that the terrorist is at Ward’s Island by the treatment plant.
The Ultimate Price
Nathalie and Alex go to the location and check an abandoned building. They don’t find anyone, but instead find a computer with the information that they sent. Alex gets a cell phone call, but it drops. She exits the building to answer it, and the terrorist tells her that she did not listen. Nathalie screams at Alex to run just before the building explodes.
A hysterical Alex goes to Ryan’s door. She is incoherent, and he asks if she needs to be checked in somewhere. Alex agrees, until her cell rings and it is a picture of Ryan hugging her at his door. She runs out of his apartment and begs the terrorist not to kill anyone else. That will all depend on Alex because the terrorist has another job for her.
I thought that this episode of Quantico was okay. I think that Nathalie being killed off was pretty obvious from the start.
Quantico airs Sundays at 10pm on ABC.
(Image courtesy of ABC)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Kim has been covering television entertainment since 2013. She is addicted to Real Housewives, Pump Rules, Dancing with the Stars, and many more shows.
