Russell A. Smith looks back over a busy year for Robyn McCall

The Equalizer firmly established itself in the first season in terms of team and family dynamics for our lead protagonist, Robyn McCall, and also episode expectations. Broadly speaking, viewers could be sure of a client with the odds against them who needed to call The Equalizer, an episode centring around problems with or against the law, a matter adjacent to McCall’s former role in the CIA, or perhaps something a little more community-focused. ‘Team Equalizer’ as such followed this path, in that spy missions invariably involved her friend and contact Bishop, involvement of law enforcement would almost certainly see the presence of Detective Dante, and covering both of these and everything else would often see friends and adorable couple Harry and Melody, bringing a world-class computer hacker and another tradecraft hand with a sniper expertise respectively to the party. For audience B-plot needs, we generally needed to look no further than McCall’s daughter, Delilah, and the ever-reliable voice of reason and conscience, Aunt Vi.

Season 2 continues to develop relationships and storylines to each of the above; with most characters experiencing a crisis of faith or a crossroads to the path upon which we have left them. Given Delilah has now discovered her mother’s true calling, there is no going back from that, and yet there remain many secrets left to uncover, and to keep. And the season starts with a bang.

With a fast start in Episode.1: Aftermath, McCall manages a crisis of faith in her work and its effects on her home life with the help of Dante who requires her particular talents and freedom of operation to solve a case. With Bishop and the CIA identifying their opposition as rogue agents, a little hint at the background of an old and powerful nemesis in the form of Mason Quinn begins here. Dante fully establishes himself in a position in Team Equalizer the following episode, although a life-threatening encounter in Episode 13 sees him step away from his police connection for a time.

By Episode 4, McCall has won over another prominent figure in District Attorney Grafton who recognises the same qualities as Dante, though not before setting a bloodhound of an officer in Detective Mallory loose upon her.

The show continues to address tough themes the US in particular faces head-on, with inspiration from real-world events. Episode 5 sees an incident in a store push Aunt Vi to breaking point, though with Delilah’s aid, they prevail. Delilah herself has an ongoing struggle with PTSD throughout the season. Immigration is a discussion Episode 8 opens once more, and in the following episode, even rap artists and gang disputes are tackled. The battle against racism comes up for Black lives on several occasions, particularly cleverly in Episode 16: Vox Populi. Asian hate (Episode 11) and LGBTQ issues are also covered both past and present in Aunt Vi’s backstory (first in Episode 7) and the diplomat’s son Ali Shah of Episode 2.

Highlights

The wonderful fairy-tale quality of Episode 12 – Somewhere Over the Hudson is somewhat surprising given the involvement of a mafia boss and his escaped accountant, and yet the episode manages to be remarkably light-hearted for much of the airtime, only in places interrupted by violence and tension. Its happy ending was a much-needed calm before the storm the following week – the standout episode this season: D.W.B. The impact it had on watch was one thing. That there was still so much to talk about after the episode too is an important matter to note. Most of the reason is just how worryingly topical the subject matter remains, and even though Dante manages to escape his predicament, the after-effects of his ordeal create a crisis of faith for him and significant consequences which go beyond this episode to the excellent Episode 16 – Vox Populi, when he finds himself at a crossroads in his career. He has to ask himself what defines him before he can find his answer, and manages to do so in good time.

The development of family story arcs has been excellent throughout; not too quickly for the show to distract from main plots, but with enough consistency to allow us time to invest further in already strong relationships. Delilah has been through hell since the death of her friend Jason in the previous season and the series does not shy away from the post-traumatic stress which Delilah has already been enduring. Over several episodes, we see additional burdens imposed upon her, not least keeping knowledge of McCall’s job away from her father. Delilah finally admits to needing additional help, which it is clear to the audience even before she finally accepts her need for it.

Challenges

This season has had to deal with off-screen issues, including COVID interruptions and more unexpectedly, allegations against Chris Noth who played McCall’s Agency ally Bishop, a recurring character who connected McCall’s CIA operative past to her Equalizer present. The show had to manage this off-screen situation with minimal disruption to their own setup, and did so with considerable sensitivity, even replacing Bishop’s position with that of Carter Griffin, an operative whom McCall encounters mid-investigation but soon becomes a valuable contact. The characters are very different and Griffin does not have anything like the personal relationship with McCall Bishop did, meaning the audience find themselves having to warily form a bond with the new operative without the link which had previously existed. A difficult situation navigated as well as could be reasonably expected.

In Episode 10: Legacy, with the promise of special guest star Jada Pinkett-Smith as master thief Jessie Cook, and a plot which involves a family heirloom from the Tulsa Massacre of 1921, the tools are all there for a powerful story with a very familiar pairing shining on screen. In practice, this one somewhat struggles tonally to balance the gravity of tackling the incredibly important and topical history behind the premise whilst additionally providing antagonists who do not do the story justice The guest character of Cook provides considerable comic relief, though it does not feel as natural as it might and is particularly noticeable as a clash against the rest of the episode.

Possibilities for Season 3

Despite previous comments, I would like Jessie Cook to return, perhaps in an episode which suits her and McCall better than her debut appearance.

I would like to see further development in Carter Griffin’s backstory, that there is a more solidified place in the show. There was a good reason we have not thus far in that the show did not have a great deal of time to manage the Noth/Bishop situation and Griffin’s appearances thus far have left him perfectly likeable as a recurring show character, but as stated earlier, he does not have that back history with McCall which means different work to both ensure he fits in and that he continues to be a presence viewers care about. It is a tricky task, but the showrunners have stepped up to every challenge admirably to date, and I have little doubt they will here also. That said, the possibility exists that Griffin may operate as a placeholder or an apprentice-type for someone else to come in and fill that role. Either way, it will be interesting to see.

Expect to see much more of Mason Quinn. Season 2 did an excellent job of keeping him in audience minds, a full reveal in as dramatic a way possible whilst solidly reinforcing his threat. That Bishop was killed at his hands makes the matter of neutralizing his threat even more personal than it already was.

Given how increasingly part of McCall’s professional world Delilah has been over the existing seasons, it is certainly possible that she ends up with increased responsibility for missions of her own. Certainly given how the season has ended, and with all the psychological baggage that she is already carrying, I can see her getting a lot more edge as the show progresses.

Season Verdict

The Equalizer has really grown comfortably into itself, in a season which has provided us with some of the best episodes that show has produced to date. Season 3 brings the promise of an even faster paced start and is in a good place to consider storylines over multiple episodes. Quinn’s continued presence is inevitable and will end badly for someone – again. Team Equalizer are going strong overall, with each of the support roles giving each character a chance to shine in at least one episode. Further development seems possible in the coming season there, though they must first discover what has happened to McCall, as must we all.

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