The NATs are back from break and ready to go! The return of Quantico was as exciting as it was surprising.
We knew a little about what to expect this week, but a time jump was not mentioned, nor was the idea that Alex might be out in the cold again.
Three months later
Poor Parrish just can’t catch a break. “Alex” opens with her solo drinking in a bar, as we learn she is the only FBI member to believe Elias’s story from “Inside.” She insists his fear and confession about being manipulated were genuine, but Liam tells the judge in the testimony he considers her “broken” from being a suspect. Booth pays her a visit, trying to reason with her, but seems to just implode with his own sexual frustration and takes off. Seriously, it was a bit random. Sure, he just went through some torture and near death emergency time, but you’re a special agent, Booth. Have some sort of poker face.
Alex, moved by Booth, tries to recant her statement at the testimony the next day, telling the judge she was wrong about there being another terrorist. This completely backfires, and everyone seems even angrier, including Booth. We leave Alex as an army of one once again, mirroring the first half of the season. It makes sense; Alex seems to do her best work as a lone wolf. What better way to start a new arc?
Color Wars
Back at Quantico, the NATs start a new semester. Liam and Miranda inform them their first assignment is a competition with the upper class, and the punishment for losing is getting classmates cut. Because that went so well last time, right?
The upper class is ferocious, containing swaggering ex-NFL player Drew Perales, dirty-fighting entrepreneur Iris Chang, and socially awkward rocket scientist Will Olsen. After a tie comes of the basic tests, the teams are pitted against one another in a hostage scenario. Obviously, the exercise doesn’t go as expected. We get to see Alex’s gang playing to their strengths, though, which is fun. Caleb uses his technical know-how to keep tabs on the other team on CCTV cameras, while we see the glorious return of Shelby’s sharpshooting skills. Shelby really deserves more shining moments — she’s gotten a lot of plot but little time to show off her amazing shooting.
Unfortunately, the upper group manages to trick Alex and the rest. As promised, classmates are cut, but Miranda concedes that Lenny and the upper team fought dirty and cuts two of their team as well. To add insult to injury, she then moves both groups into each other’s living space.
It’s clear the writers are playing with the idea of the upper NATs “replacing” the originals. Muscular, leading man type Lenny takes Booth’s old room, and hands the special agent’s old tags to Alex with a meaningful look. The slightly awkward Simon is gone, right as very awkward Will sidles in. And watching Iris snake her way into Caleb’s room to flirt as Shelby watched was pretty painful. There are no doubt differences between the old and new, but there were holes to fill.
Sister, sister
Back to Shelby’s plot: even though she and Caleb left off badly last time we saw them, there was still the matter of her fake sister to resolve. She doesn’t seem willing to give up on Samar, but when Shelby requests a visit, Caleb accompanies her. Not very smoothly; the man who turns up in Samar’s place calls him out immediately in probably the funniest moment of the episode. Caleb tries halfheartedly to play it off, but the three get serious as the man explains he is Samar’s husband Khaled, and Samar is actually a young woman named Haifa. He then proceeds to tell them that she has gone missing, likely because of Caleb catching her in the con.
It doesn’t seem wise to get involved, but I suppose if you’ve cared for someone for years you can still care for them even if you realize they weren’t who you thought they were. Besides, maybe this will give us more Shelby Sniper time.
Cooperation
That ending, though. Just as Alex discredited herself in front of the nation, the one person who had been semi-decent to her all episode, Natalie, ends up strapped to a bomb. And instead of picking a new drone to do his/her bidding, the terrorist delegates Alex to do whatever is planned next. Like was mentioned earlier, she works best alone… but will her smarts and resources be enough this time?