Fantastic tidings, everyone! Joe persists in our midst, and more than merely enduring. At a moment when it seemed our brave soul was confronted by an eternal twilight, she hasspring back to life, literally lashing out at the hospital staff in a fury so blinding it takes one's breath away. It transpires that the shrapnel embedded in her side was a fragment of her cell phone, having sliced through an artery, a wound capable of reclaiming her swiftly if she doesn't proceed with caution for at least the forthcoming week. "All I'll utter is that the devil is holding aces," the doctor warns her. "Ponder deeply before you play your hand." How delightful it is when Sheridan slips in a hint of cowboy poetry through a minor character destined for obscurity. Regardless, Joe's response to this forewarning is as cautious as one might anticipate, casting a dark shadow over the remainder of the Lioness crew, who find themselves entangled in a menacing game of high-speed international poker, with no alternative but to wager the cards they hold against the devil's aces.
The season's second-to-last episode unfolds with a dense, rich stew of a monologue delivered by Mullins, who arrives at Byron's abode for a swift recap of the pressing situation; perhaps a bit too overt for the audience's benefit, yet it undoubtedly aids in the season's climactic stretch. The present circumstances suggest that the suicide bomber at the border was a proxy acting on behalf of Chinese intelligence, serving dual purposes: firstly, to persist in destabilizing the border to sway the election, and secondly, to redirect U.S. intelligence focus domestically, thereby obscuring the presence of two Chinese nuclear scientists stationed in Turkey, with intentions to transport them into Tehran soon.
Mullins clears the deck for his monologue with the timeless inquiry, "Where were you on 9/11?" He then proceeds with a blend of spitting out unadulterated truths and spewing the mundane garbage that any viewer of this show would expect, irrespective of political affiliation. According to Mullins, the 43rd president, whom he alludes to without naming (a subtle reference to George W. Bush, often perceived as having controversially secured his victory), responded to America's call to rise as a genuine leader in the aftermath of 9/11, irrespective of "one's opinion of his subsequent actions." This disclaimer performs a significant amount of subtle yet powerful work, but the core message is, "We yearned for a leader, and a leader emerged. We entrusted him to ascend." So, what disintegrated that trust? Mullins contends that the divergence between individuals uniting in the wake of 9/11 and those driven further apart amid the COVID pandemic hinges on strong leadership. This may hold true to a certain extent, though 9/11 also furnished a tangible adversary upon which America could hitch all its xenophobic imperial instincts for the next two decades and beyond. Regardless, Mullins speaks with conviction when he asserts that none in the political arena is innocent of the erosion of trust in American institutions during the intervening years. "Not a single president, not a solitary member of Congress, not the press, no one." Yet, Pandora's box stands wide open, and America, amidst her excesses, corruption, and institutional malpractices, has left herself no option but to attempt to slam it shut.
This marks the green light for the Lioness team, albeit with the word "systems" bearing a hint of uncertainty. For the systems are as unstable as the rest of the operation's surroundings. Back at the sanctuary, Kyle and his companions grill Gutierrez on the polygraph, while in a hushed corner, his insider at the Carrillo residence, the maid, engages in a tranquil conversation with Kaitlyn. The maid confirms to Kaitlyn what Kyle has uncovered in the adjacent room: our clandestine agent Gutierrez is a "Boy Scout," performing his duties in utmost secrecy to thwart any possibility of Los Tigres intercepting the intel through their myriad of moles embedded throughout the U.S. government. Gutierrez also terminated a fellow DEA agent who offered him a chance to switch sides, a fact corroborated by official records. Now, they're stuck with a DEA agent whose tail they've already "Guantanamo-ed," and who hasn't made contact with his office or home for over 24 hours.
Kyle and Kaitlyn whisper their options for disposing of him (a conversation that, once held, drastically narrows one's survival chances under the watchful eye of the CIA). However, a firm exchange between Kaitlyn and Gutierrez keeps him breathing and, for the moment, on their side. This isn't Kaitlyn's first dance at the rodeo—the "rodeo" being a gentle yet swift maneuver to assert control over the situation—and Gutierrez seems to accept her proposal to complete the mission with minimal reservations.
With Pablo Carrillo securely detained and en route to San Jose, Cruz and Josie arrive at the new safe house in Fort Liberty, ahead of the rest of the crew, just in time to pose the question, "Do these two want to get some action?" Not that they actually engage in the act, but the door to that possibility has officially been ajarred. One might think Cruz could have kept her libido in check for another Lioness mission, considering the gravity and personal toll of past romantic entanglements during ops. Yet again, spies seize moments of physical and emotional intimacy wherever they can, often with others who also know how to compartmentalize their feelings amidst the chaos of their duties. "It'd be nice to feel something beyond shame and fear," Josie admits. "Just to forget, for a fleeting moment." This soldier is already demonstrating a keen aptitude for the spy's lifestyle.
The sunk costs of these specialized operations are sufficient to churn one's stomach as the Lioness crew steps onto the plane bound for Iran. Joe remarks, with a hint of mischief that ignites the bloodlust of her comrades, "This one's shaping up to be a fiery affair." Before hanging up on a devastating final call to Neal, the atmosphere is thick with anticipation. The mission's final leg has diverged so vastly from its inception that the possibility of any redemption, even if victory is achieved, is but a remote glimmer. The outlook for Joe's family's future is grim, and so too is the prospect for any spy seeking order as the ultimate solution to the pervasive chaos.
