Last time on Quantico, we left off with Shelby and Alex working together to locate “the voice,” as Shelby was only working with the mysterious terrorist to keep her friends out of jeopardy. Alex and Shelby finally traced the caller to an abandoned church in East Harlem. The most shocking moment was still to come when Will told them that he built a nuke with his bare hands before collapsing. That’s not good–not good at all.
In this episode of Quantico, “Drive,” Ryan and Alex spend time working together when the trainees check out different FBI offices. (I wonder if these two will end up back together again romantically.)
Real World Experience
The NATS are introduced to “the box” which will help them develop their close-quarters fighting skills. The trainees will be paired with an instructor, and guess who Alex gets? Ryan, of course! After their match-up, a flirty Alex suggests to Ryan that they go to dinner once she is no longer a trainee. Raina and Nimah tell their handler, Susan Coombs, that they want to go after the terror cell that attacked Quantico. Coombs worries about putting them into such a dangerous assignment, but states that she will speak to her boss. Iris questions Shelby about why she has changed her field assignment request form. She says that she wants to be closer to the Canadian border so she can see her parents more often.
Liam tells the NATS that they will visit a field office and shadow a real agent as that agent works a case. To add to the anxiety of this assignment, the trainees will be evaluated by the agent on their readiness to work. Ryan is taking Alex, Shelby, Caleb, Iris, Brandon, and the Amin sisters to the Richmond office. Iris pulls Caleb aside and lets him know that Shelby is changing her office request form. Iris questions the motive. She thinks it is so Shelby can be close to Caleb. Iris threatens to bring Caleb down for beating up Will.
The Amin sisters are going to be tested again on their ability to match and swap back and forth. One agent at the field office will pose as their contact, and the Amin sisters must contact that agent without blowing their undercover status. If they fail this test, they may never work undercover again. (No pressure at all, right?)
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No one Likes Filing
At the field office, the NATS get their assignments from Agent Kent. Raina/Nimah will work with counter-terrorism Agent Garnett. Caleb and Shelby will work in property crime. Shelby asks to work with a different partner, and Iris volunteers. This doesn’t matter a bit to the agent who assigned them, and their assignments stay the same. Brandon, Iris, and Alex are on the case of a break-in at a post office where nothing was stolen. The three trainees settle in for the soul-crushing task of cold-calling the neighborhood for witnesses. Shelby and Caleb are ushered to a room where they will handle the most dangerous task of all: alphabetizing files.
Alex gets an actual lead and gets ready to pay the witness a visit. Ryan is skulking around looking worried. Alex teased him that she was going to use her time at the office to find out all about him, and he certainly appears concerned.
Find the Contact
Nimah is sitting with the counter-terrorism agent. He just finished a case, so there is nothing for Nimah to do. He suggests making something up. Nimah gets a text from Raina saying that they will switch in ten minutes. Nimah sees a list of the names of all 25 agents in the office, and asks the agent if he will introduce her to each one so that she can put a name with a face. The agent is happy to oblige. Nimah and Raina meet for the swap. Nimah has eliminated some agents who are not their contact, and she suggests that her sister flirt with Garnett.
Raina goes to Garnett’s office and he suggests that they go to lunch or grab a drink later. Poor Raina looks so embarrassed! She meets up with Nimah in a stair well, and the news is not good. They have eliminated all 25 agents on the list, so who is their contact? Raina believes that it is Garnett.
Chicago Blues
Alex and Agent Kent hop in the car to visit the witness. Alex asks for information about Ryan since this agent was also in Chicago with Liam and Ryan. Much to her surprise, Kent warns her to be careful around Ryan. Kent has an injury that he incurred during the blown sting in Chicago. Kent maintains that Ryan left his post the night that the cell planned their big attack, and it was no coincidence. Kent and Alex’s visit with the witness, Mr. Walker, is over a few minutes after it began. It seems really strange.
Alex returns and fills Iris and Brandon in on how odd the witness seemed, and how Kent ended the interview. Brandon decides to sit on the house, while Iris offers to get some background information on Walker.
Secret Pen Pal
Caleb grabs Iris and explains that the only reason Shelby’s parents wanted to meet with her was to get more money from her. Caleb pleads with Iris to convince Shelby to keep her original placement request and not to mention her parents. Later, Shelby reads Iris a letter from her parents and Iris tells Shelby that she is sorry that she had doubts. Caleb admits to Iris that he has been writing the letters because he loves Shelby.
Alex discovers that Walker was investigated for child pornography ten years earlier, but charges were never filed. Meanwhile, Ryan confronts Kent about what he has been telling Alex. Kent thinks that Ryan wanted the militia group to succeed. Ryan puts his hands on Kent after the other agent questioned Ryan’s patriotism. Alex arrives to see Kent and sees the end of the encounter. (Awkward!)
Up in Smoke
Kent explains that they knew about Walker, and that he was at the center of the child porn ring until he lost his job at that post office. In order to keep the ring going, Walker broke into the post office, but didn’t steal anything. The FBI has been waiting for Walker to make contact with the rest of the ring before arresting him. A horrified Alex tells Kent that she sent Brandon to keep an eye on Walker’s house. Kent and Alex race to get Brandon out of there before he jeopardizes everything.
Brandon sees smoke coming from Walker’s house, and he enters. Brandon sees photos being burned in a sink, and Walker hits him over the head with a bottle. Ryan and Alex enter the house with Kent. Walker is holding a knife to Brandon’s throat, but the agents diffuse the situation quickly. Alex asks Ryan what really happened that night in Chicago. Ryan explains that he had the cell house under surveillance, when Liam called and told him to leave and spend some time with Hannah. Liam said he would cover the rest of his shift, but Liam never showed up. Ryan took the blame since Liam’s career was in a delicate spot because of his drinking.
The Truth Hurts
Raina is waiting in the stairwell when she is approached by an agent. He is actually their contact, not Garnett. When Nimah tells Garnett that she knows that he is their contact, he is furious. He is about to call Agent Combs when Nimah persuades him to take her to dinner anyway. If he still wants to call Coombs after dinner, then that is his decision.
Shelby tells Iris that she is quitting Quantico to go and be with her parents in Europe. Iris breaks down and explains that Caleb has been writing the letters pretending to be her parents. Shelby confronts Caleb and she wants to be with a man who will always be honest with her. She then calls Caleb’s father, Assistant Director Haas, to bring her parents to justice.
Ryan has a chat with Liam. Liam is finally being moved to the D.C field office, and he wants Ryan to go with him. Ryan is done covering for Liam’s mistakes. Liam promises that he won’t have to ever again, so Ryan decides to think about the offer.
Find Alex Now
In the present day, Miranda wants Alex found since Ryan and Nimah uncovered evidence that Alex smuggled Natalie through security at the FBI building on the last day that Natalie was seen. Ryan and his team burst into Alex’s apartment and interrupt Caleb watching television. (How rude!) Miranda tells Ryan to bring Caleb in so she can question him. Caleb tells Ryan that Alex hasn’t been home since she left the apartment yesterday.
Alex is watching the church where they found Will. Will said that he had assembled the nuclear bomb in the church’s catacombs. Shelby and Alex phoned in an anonymous tip six hours ago, but nothing has been found. Alex hopes that Will can give them more information, but Shelby reminds her that Will is in the ICU. Shelby runs a search to find out if anyone else has been treated with radiation sickness. A man that matches Simon’s description is in the ICU at St. Luke’s Hospital.
A Shock to the System
Alex and Shelby go to St. Luke’s, but the patient isn’t Simon. It is Drew Perales. He asks Alex if she caught Ryan. Drew was working for a private security firm in New York when he received a call from “the voice.” Drew was told to rent a van and park it in the Bronx. He initially refused until his sister and her children were threatened. Drew also had to get information on train routes to Grand Central and Penn Station. Shelby wonders if this was the van that transported Alex to Grand Central the day of the initial bombing.
Alex is angry that Drew is accusing Ryan of being involved. Drew counters with the information that, two nights earlier, he delivered a nuclear fuel core to a warehouse in Yonkers. Drew watched the building, and he claims that Ryan arrived with Will in handcuffs. Drew didn’t see Simon. Alex is furious and demands to know why Drew didn’t contact the authorities earlier.
Reasonable Doubts
Drew shows Alex some really nasty burns on his chest and he begs her to look into Ryan. He suggests that Alex check Ryan’s computer for the software program that is able to blend the voices together. Drew also stole a flash drive from his job that should be able to break Ryan’s computer passwords. Alex’s former lover adds that he was trying to bring her the flash drive when he fainted.
This seems a bit too convenient. Could Drew be setting Ryan up to take the fall? Alex wants to believe Drew, but she just can’t. Shelby echoes one of Drew’s comments. From the day they first met on the plane, Ryan has lied to Alex. Shelby thinks that they will only know the truth once they get inside Ryan’s computer.
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A Close Fight
Miranda and Ryan talk to Caleb in the New York field office. He points out that his mother won’t be pleased that her son, and his addiction problem, are an issue less than 24 hours before the presidential election. Caleb notices that a computer in the next room is on fire, and everyone is evacuated. The fire is actually started by Shelby through the McGregor-Wyatt security system.
Alex sneaks into Ryan’s office and starts to open his computer. Ryan appears and pulls his gun on her. He knows that she is behind the evacuation, and he sneers “I’ve always known it was you.” (Yikes!) Ryan demands to know what is on the flash drive, and she responds that she needs to know what is on his computer. He asks where Natalie is, and Alex can’t believe it. If Ryan doesn’t know that Natalie is dead, then he couldn’t be working for the cell. Ryan asks for her gun again, and as she hands it over, they get to practice their combat in close quarters training. It is violent and hard to watch. In the end, Alex kicks him in the head and he passes out. (Ouch!)
And the Voice is…
The building initiates long-down and Alex asks Drew what was on the flash drive that she plugged in to Ryan’s computer. It is a manifesto that indicates that Ryan is the terrorist. Drew thinks that Alex should support the version of events where Ryan is the terrorist. He also has a car waiting downstairs for her.
Alex goes down and listens to instructions from Drew. He isn’t even bothering to disguise his voice anymore. He sends Alex to Ryan’s truck, and she sees the bomb in the passenger side. Alex is ordered to drive or Drew will kill Simon and set off the nuke.
I liked this episode of Quantico. It is still a bit confusing with the time jumps, but I am glad that we are finally getting some answers.
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.
