McCall aids in the search for a missing firefighter.

Trauma and McCall are rarely far apart from one another, and the cause and effect of this affects families, both tied by blood and by career bond, govern the narrative direction of the episode. Links of past to present also play a significant role in the week’s events.

The episode recap presents a timely reminder of the ordeals we have seen Delilah survive, and it is she who provides a focal point for this particular theme.

McCall’s sleep is disturbed, a reminder of all she has been carrying over the years herself even with her experience at least giving others the impression that she is far better equipped to cope with it. Even Aunt Vi falls into this belief, and it is immediately interesting that McCall makes no attempt to dispel this, yet it is evident to the viewer that she too is struggling. It simply manifests differently for everyone affected.

If anything, Delilah seems to be handling her collective ordeals better than any of the others, despite placing some distance between herself and her mother. That avoidance does increase McCall’s concern however, and she takes time to be certain of her safety. Questions are raised as to whom is in the most need as a result of this, but the resolution at the end of the episode is both perhaps a surprise and at the same time a relatively logical step, given the numerous encounters Delilah has now had.

It is perhaps Vi who has the most dramatic reaction however, with her vocalising that she has a sense of duty to protect both Delilah and Robyn, despite all she knows of McCall, her training and the very same resilience she believes to be ingrained in her. That duty manifests in an urge for self-defence, or perhaps escalation depending on viewpoint, and she demonstrates a perhaps concerning firearms aptitude. Whilst a logical progression, this sets up the possibility of a darker path Vi may end up walking before the season is out, and certainly a potential future concern for McCall.

McCall’s family story takes a clear path in some contrast to the mystery behind the client’s case. Yet the latter remains engaging, and unravels at a well-balanced and intriguing pace. Sam, the young daughter of a firefighter introduced by way of an altercation during a blaze, reports her father Jeff missing and initially leaves us wondering whether his disappearance is linked to the potential return of a drinking problem he developed on the job. The story points the reader in the direction of corruption by some of his colleagues, but the truth of the matter is considerably more complicated than that. When the audience are left to consider the bond between the firefighters, and in particular their bond with their station commander, Captain Sanders, the motivations make a great deal of sense. Even without the full context of the plight of veteran firefighters in the US, Sanders has the universal respect of every one of his subordinates, even where their relationship with one another has proven fractious. His place as a veteran of 9/11 centres him as a figure involved with perhaps the greatest national trauma experienced by the US as a whole in recent decades, and although Sanders survived the day, he did not do so without significant cost. And it is this which provides the catalyst for the events of the episode.

Ultimately, there is a direct villain of the episode, yet even a relatively late appearance which limits their presence and allows little time for any development is not the issue this could have presented. A precise threat is carried and an exact role in the plot is well fulfilled in the context of the complete story.

Verdict: An intriguing and finely plotted investigation weaved neatly into its central themes leads to a great deal of sympathy and understanding of the motivations of all of the players. 8/10

Russell A. Smith