Quantico season 1, episode 21’s title, “Right” couldn’t be more appropriate. While there’s still a terrorist to stop, some wrongs (and a few potential wrongs) are righted in this episode.

We knew we would finally learn the terrorist’s identity, but we had no idea that the episode would be chock full of drama on both the present day and Quantico storylines that could rival the importance of the big reveal.

Check out our thoughts on ‘Quantico’ season 1, episode 21 and let us know what you think in the comments!

Present Day

Alex Parrish

So, when we left Alex last episode, she was leaving the FBI parking garage in Ryan’s blue truck with a nuclear bomb on the floor of the passenger seat. This episode picks up right where we left off as Alex continues driving this bomb where she is instructed to go by The Voice, previously revealed to be Drew Perales (more on that later). She is told that if she strays off course or does anything, including opening a door or window or signaling for help, that the bomb will explode. Alex skillfully adds Shelby to the call so that she can inform the FBI that Alex is being manipulated by the terrorist.

Alex’s part in this episode can pretty much be boiled down to one scene. All the time on the phone driving the truck adds drama, but the moments she spends debating with Simon Asher are the defining ones of the episode. We’ll go into more detail in his section, but these two are the closest bond we’ve seen on this show yet.

Simon Asher

There are numerous bits and pieces to this episode that separately don’t feel like much, but add up to be an incredibly significant event. Simon’s involvement is key to connecting the dots. Through his character, we learn that Drew is no more guilty than Alex, but that the terrorist, whomever he or she may be, is using his or her voice to throw the FBI off the scent. Simon and Drew are tied back to back with their hands secured, in an apartment with a bomb rigged to the door waiting to explode. Simon escapes out a window seconds before Booth and the FBI come crashing through the door, triggering the explosion, killing Drew.

The other pivotal moment in this episode for Simon was the scene he shared with Alex. He tries to convince her that she is in no danger of setting the nuclear bomb off by opening the door of Ryan’s truck. She is terrified after everything ‘Drew’ told her, especially considering that the last time they were in this situation, a bomb at temporary FBI headquarters killed large numbers of their colleagues. He convinces her that she has trusted him before, and that she should trust him now. She opens the door and we learn that Simon was right. The bomb wasn’t hard-wired to the car at all. The WMD division takes care of the very real bomb, and Alex is returned to FBI HQ.

Ryan Booth

Ryan goes from implicated to implicate-r in Quantico season 1, episode 21. The episode begins with Miranda seeing the bomb blueprints on his computer. That, coupled with the fact that the bomb is currently residing in his truck, forces Miranda to send him to holding until she can rule out his involvement. It’s just too much potential evidence to ignore, and she’s a good agent.

Shelby stomps into headquarters right behind Senator Haas with all the proof they need that Alex, nor any other agent present, is guilty of treason. She lets Miranda hear what appears to be Drew’s voice instructing Alex, and the game shifts yet again, letting Ryan and the others off the hook.

Back at Quantico

Reyna Amin

Nimah and Reyna are given notice to wrap up their personal affairs because they could be called within 24 hours to begin their first assignment and infiltrate a known terror cell. Nimah takes this in stride as she was pretty much born to be an agent, but Reyna has trouble dealing with the implications of leaving her life behind. She goes to Ryan for advice on how to make peace with things before she goes undercover. He advises her to find an anchor, someone that ties her to reality. She calls Simon and meets up with him at a diner outside Quantico. This is the first time we’ve seen Simon in the Quantico storyline since he walked off the base.

He tries to entice her away from the FBI with a chance to live out her life and make good money working for him, but ultimately, she decides that she has to see this through. She returns to Quantico and she and her sister make the preparations necessary to go undercover.

Shelby Wyatt

Shelby is so determined to make her parents pay for their sins that she is willing to break the law to do it. She and Alex trade assignments in order to exorcise some personal demons, but Shelby goes off the deep end. She forges an immunity offer for her mother that she intends to give her in exchange for information about 9/11. Alex cannot believe what she is seeing when she catches Shelby in the act. Shelby is performing textbook entrapment, and it will end her career when she gets caught.

Shelby’s rage has given her blinders to all the warning signs that people are throwing up for her. She is so desperate to bring her parents down for their crimes that she is willing to throw away everything to do it. Thank goodness Alex, Liam, Ryan, Iris, and Caleb are looking out for her, or she could have made the worst mistake of her life. She tries to go find her mother anyway, but thanks to Caleb’s trip to the hotel, no one is there when she arrives. Shelby takes her anger out on Alex and accuses her of taking away her agency, rather than protecting her from herself.

Alex Parrish

Alex learned a lot in this episode about living honestly as an agent. She’s heard all about the cover ups and lies that Ryan and Liam have committed for the sake of their careers and her father’s legacy. She wants desperately to be above all of that, and learns more and more about the darker side of working for the FBI. While ingesting all of that, she also learns about what Shelby is up to regarding her parents.

Alex is unwilling to stand by and let Shelby ruin her own life, so she goes to Liam and Ryan to help talk some sense into Shelby. Liam delivers a not-so-eloquent, but incredibly poignant line to Shelby when he says, “Sometimes its better to let the bad guys get away with it than be the one to get away with it.” If she goes through with her plan and manages to get away with her lies and law-breaking, it will chip away at her soul and turn her into the kind of person that can cut a corner here or there without her conscience getting in the way. Alex has seen firsthand what kind of damage cutting corners can do.

And the terrorist is…

Liam! Can you believe it? After all this time the man behind all the terror and bombings and subterfuge and lies has been the man whose job it was to prepare them for life as agents. We’re sure that we will get all of his plans and motivations in next week’s season finale, but it was good to finally learn who is responsible for all the chaos that has been reigning over Alex and all her friends in the present day storyline.

His identity was revealed in the final moments of the episode as we learn that Miranda ran out of FBI headquarters due to her suspicions when the security footage was leaked. We were moments from assigning her the blame, but Liam waltzes in and proves that Miranda is a good agent that was just following a hunch.

How do you feel about Liam being the terrorist on ‘Quantico’?

Let us know if you think there’s more to it than just Liam being a traitor, or if you just need to vent about the crazy revelation!