The Positively Positive

After accidentally burning a spy himself in last week’s episode, this week Michael takes on said burned spy as a client. Jesse has been let loose by the FBI but now he’s got more bad guys on his tail, looking for money that they think he stole.

So Michael’s team gets one more member and everyone has to learn how to play nice. Jesse is good at what he does, but plays by his own rules and gets himself in trouble. Michael, Fi and Sam rescue him of course, and in the end Jesse moves in to Michael’s mother’s garage. Our threesome is becoming a foursome and I for one am pretty excited by the prospect. Michael hasn’t told Jesse he was the one who burned him, giving us future fuel for lots of drama. I say bring it on.

My favorite bits…

Sam continuously saying that “Vaugh is a good name for a vampire”. Makes me wonder, what’s he got against the name Vaugh?

Vaugh calling Michael ‘Boss’ once he decided to let Michael find Jesse

Fi writing “Outsource This!!” in spray paint on the wall. Oh man, I’m sure there’re quite a few people out there who would find that amusing.

The fact that Fi can not only create a bomb in less than 90 seconds, but can do it only using items found in a few office desks. That’s a rare talent right there.

Maddie sending a text “NEED HELP NOW” to both Michael and Sam, causing them both to break into her place with guns. Talk about bad text etiquette.

Finding out that in addition to their weapons, explosives and various other spy skills, apparently Michael and Sam can also do construction. The boys have got some skills too.

Fi referring to Sam as a “wash-up old booze hound” and maybe (or maybe not) realizing she was on speaker when she did it.

This Jesse guy taking on a truck full of bad guys with only minimal help from Michael and his team. Not too bad for a rookie.

Michael comparing spies to wedding planners because both like attention to details. LOL.

It’s not like we all didn’t see it coming but it was still a bit exciting when Jesse became Michael’s new client. Of course it’s extra tricky since Michael’s helping the guy that he burned and he can’t tell him.

The look Michael gives Fi when he’s trying to convince her to let Jesse stay in the condo next door. Who knew Michael could pull off a puppy-dog look?

Michael’s new undercover persona for this ep. He didn’t have to do an accent, per se, but that gravelly voice was awesome, especially when he asked if he could take the Mongolian beef with him.

Not being at all surprised when Jesse did his own version of the plan. He’s gonna be trouble, I can feel it…..though that’s not necessarily a bad thing.

Jesse having the balls to shoot at Michael to keep up his act and Michael shooting right back. Really shows how good they both are that they both did it on the fly…and survived.

Sam telling Jesse that they were gonna “dance” if he didn’t behave and Jesse replying that he would beat Sam’s “old ass”. All of that totally cracked me up.

Maddie’s renter’s cat finding Michael’s detonators and subsequently moving out. Man, I really hate it when that happens.

Fi deciding she liked Jesse once he told her that he was put on desk duty because he had a tendency to beat up all bad guys, including thugs in bars who beat up their girlfriends. Okay, I’m with her, I’m starting to like Jesse too.

Michael speeding past the bad guys in his tricked-out truck. Nice!

Seeing how badly it affected Michael when he heard Jesse being tortured over the phone. Yikes, poor Michael.

Barry not being able to stay mad at Fi for losing him a client because the way she did it was “smoking hot”. LOL!

Jesse being able to roll with Michael’s story, picking up on all of the clues he needed to in order to help Michael get him out of there.

Loving this exchange between Jesse and Sam:
Jesse: “Oh, you go through all that trouble to save my ass and leave the old guy in charge of the getaway?”
Sam: “Buckle up rookie, and try not to bleed on the upholstery”

Maddie sharing with Jesse her “very best gun cleaner”. LOL!

Jesse telling Michael that when he finds the person who burned him, he’s going to kill them. And this guy is living in his mother’s garage? Obviously they’re gonna start working together? Oh yeah, this is gonna be VERY interesting.

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More Burn Notice Reviews….
Burn Notice, season 3, episode 10 “A Dark Road”
Burn Notice, season 3, episode 11 “Friendly Fire”
Burn Notice, season 4, episode 1 “Friends and Enemies”

Anyone who knows me knows that I’m not a huge fan of summer. Never have been and probably never will be. I mean summer’s okay and all, but as far as seasons go, fall and winter are definitely my favorites.

You see, I was born in the city where Burn Notice is set – beautiful, sun kissed, white sand beaches, Miami. Only I never really liked the beach. The beach to me meant uncomfortable heat, burning sunburns (I ALWAYS got burned, every single time, no matter how much sunblock my mom slathered on me), sand everywhere, etc. When I was a kid growing up in Miami, I used to dream of living in a place where I could actually wear a coat in the winter. Strange, but true.

Okay so why do I bring all this up? Because now I’ve finally found a reason to look forward to summer. And no, the irony of it being shot in my old town of Miami is not lost on me.

At the end of last season, Michael Westen took down the crazed ex-spy Simon. In doing so, he got himself back on the good side of Management (I love that “Management” is actually just one guy). He may have also gotten arrested in the process (being found holding a gun to a guy’s head will do that), but he was out within minutes and taken to some faraway place to be imprisoned…..um, in a really fancy room?

This season starts right where we left off, with Michael in that room. When his “captors” come, it turns out they actually need his help. They’re trying to find someone big, who’s been behind some major stuff all over the world and so far they’ve all been coming up with bupkis.

Michael agrees to help and, in the meantime, returns home to find that everyone has had different reactions to him going missing for a month. His mother is wondering about the stories the FBI told her of her son being a killer. Sam and Fi have started doing jobs together, acting like nothing has happened but still affected by his long absence.

The trio end up solving a case, just like old times, and it brings them together again. Michael also starts on his other “job”, creating a chain reaction that causes something which made my jaw drop.

Michael has burned a spy and now we have to wait until next week to see what happens next.

My favorite bits….

Trying very hard not to be scared to see that Michael’s captor is Uriel from Supernatural. I know, I know, it’s a different show but hey, I can’t help the fact that I kept waiting for the guy to snap his fingers and kill everyone. It was a gut reaction, okay?

Seeing that Michael actually really was in a prison when they moved him to an actual cell. Kinda surprised me as I thought the pretty room meant he was in a mansion somewhere.

Michael going into the jungle all decked out in combat gear. Very different than his normal linen suits and I like it.

The way Michael asked “so now it’s my turn?” when Vaughn told him that every other agent who gets close to finding the person they’re looking for gets, well, dead.

Madeline offering Michael a tuna fish sandwich when he got home. So sweet.

Sam and Fi seemingly barely to acknowledge Michael’s return and seeing that the two of them have apparently been working together as a team (however poorly) for a while.

Michael screaming: “Guys! Guys! I have a loaded pistol machine gun in my hand and I have no idea what I’m doing!” – Yeah, I hear ya Michael. I really hate it when that happens too.

Badass Michael going up against a group of bikers with a MAC-10 in each hand. Nice!

The way Fi peeked around the trunk to ask Michael if he was pouting. Such a cute little moment.

Fi finally dropping the act of not missing Michael, smacking him first, kissing him second and finally getting mad that he was getting involved with the people who burned him. Yep, things are back to normal.

The way Sam said “The boss is a guy named Big Ed…..apparently he’s quite large.” – LOL!!

Another visit from everyone’s money launderer, Barry. Yay! I love Barry.

Being shocked that Fiona was small enough to fit through that tiny ventilation hole. Holy cow. If I’d been in that room I would’ve been screwed.

Vaughn calling Michael “Robin Hood”. So true.

This line – “Remember, we want to have a nice polite conversation with him….AFTER we kidnap him.” – Yep, always works for me.

Michael ducking just in time when he saw Sam and the biker chick wrestling over the shotgun…and also the look on his face when he saw how close they came to blowing his head off. LOL.

The way Sam’s hair looked after his fight with the biker chick. Hilarious!

The freaking awesome car chase (or would it a motorcycle chase?).

Michael coming completely clean with Madeline and telling her exactly what he did and why sometimes he has to break the law and work with bad people to help good people. Then breaking down when he told her about what Simon said to him, voicing out loud the fear he’s been carrying about turning into a monster like Simon did.

Finding out that Michael once again has done something bad in order to do something good, except this time it’s the worst thing possible – he’s burned a spy. Whoa.

Overall an exciting season premiere that puts Michael back where he belongs, but with a whole agenda.

Don’t miss out on my next review! Be sure to subscribe to The Positively Positive and get updates straight to your email!

More Burn Notice….
Burn Notice, season 3, episode 10 “A Dark Road”
Burn Notice, season 3, episode 11 “Friendly Fire”

If someone had told me three years ago that our friendly, geeky, lovable Nerd Herder would be a super-spy, I wouldn’t have believed it. In fact, if I’d been told about any of the huge changes to these characters and the show, I wouldn’t have believed that either. Sarah and Chuck in love, a somewhat kinder Casey also a loving father, Morgan a part of the spy team, Devon and Ellie not only aware that Chuck is a spy, but helping Chuck to defeat the Ring??

Nope, no way, never would have believed any of it.

But that’s exactly where we are and as surprised as I am by all of it, I gotta say that I’m also loving it. I mean really, how long could Chuck stick with being just the lovable geek? This new and improved Chuck is much better, and quite a bit hotter, I might add. All of the characters are moving on and having their own adventures, making for a much more interesting show these days.

None of which more so than the last episode of this season. Wow. I mean really, wow. What a ride. I was laughing, I was cheering, I was crying – it was fantastic. Chuck, with the help of pretty much everyone he knows, finally defeats the Ring and in the process, decides to give up the spy game.

Yeah right, like any of us were buying the old “I quit once this assignment is over” line.

Much as I suspected, in the end Chuck discovers something so big that I’m sure he’ll be forced to get back into the spy game. His mother appears to be alive!! Whoa.

Overall a really fun roller coaster ride for the final two episodes of this season that has me eagerly awaiting the next.

Want to know every time I add a new review? Be sure to subscribe to The Positively Positive!

More Chuck…
Chuck, season 3, episode 4 “Chuck Versus Operation Awesome”
Chuck, season 3, episode 5 “Chuck Versus First Class”

Jeffrey Donovan in Burn Notice, season 3, episode 11 “Friendly Fire”.

Just when I think Michael Westen can’t get any cooler, he does. Showing up in an impeccable black suit with a red shirt and tie, he invades a gang’s territory to get their help in capturing a fugitive. The locals give him the moniker “The Devil” which seems very appropriate. He talks with a voice I’ve never heard before (and I thought we’d heard all the accents he had under his hat) and shows the gang that he’s not one to be messed with by a simple snap of his fingers.

The first time Michael snapped his fingers he made a random car explode and himself disappear, an awesome trick.

The second time Michael snapped his fingers and made the warehouse door come crashing down, was even better. The shot was done beautifully, giving us the image in slow motion with the gang leader reacting and Michael standing there like it was the most normal thing in the world.

The final time he snapped his fingers, I nearly jumped and cheered. The scumbag child molester tells Michael to go to Hell. He replies “join me” and snaps his fingers to rain Hell down upon them. I loved it.

I also liked Michael’s little smile in the end, walking away from the gang leader as the other man snapped his own fingers like a little boy pretending to be his hero. It was such a great closing shot.

Overall another exciting episode of this show that made me love Michael Westen even more than I did before.

More Burn Notice….
Burn Notice, season 3, episode 10 “A Dark Road”

Kristin Kreuk and Zach Levi in Chuck, season 3, episode 5 “Chuck Versus First Class”. Image from www.daemonstv.com

Some of the best scenes to me in this episode were the ones between Casey and Morgan. We don’t usually get to see these two interact together all that much, and I found the combo of Casey’s big, brawny tough-guy to Morgan’s little, scrawny weakling absolutely hilarious. Morgan asks Casey to help him with the subordinates in the store that are making his life hell – in other words “insurgents”. Casey’s methods are nothing less than over the top, and completely expected from a former Marine and current spy.

I also really liked seeing Chuck out on a mission on his own. His character is growing but I like that underneath it all we still get the same old Chuck. He doesn’t like guns so he brings nunchucks, and then is disappointed when he never gets to use them. He’s been trained to handle dangerous situations and yet still manages to get himself into all kinds of trouble, calling on both Casey and Sarah to get him out of it. He may be a trained spy but he’s still the bumbling geek we all love.

The other part of the episode I liked was Chuck meeting a lovely new stranger on the plane, Hannah (played by Kristin Kreuk from Smallville). I have to admit that I totally suspected her of being a spy at first so it was a nice surprise to find out that she was just who she said she was. Perhaps I’ll be proven wrong in future episodes, but for now I’m eager to see where this bit of storyline goes.

Overall another fun episode that let Chuck stretch his legs as a spy and introduced us to an intriguing new character.

More Chuck…
Chuck, season 3, episode 5 “Chuck Versus First Class”