Quantico season 1, episode 21, “Right,” finally revealed the traitor that was behind the attacks on the FBI. Were you satisfied with the outcome?
Warning: This post contains major spoilers from Quantico season 1, episode 21.
So, remember last week when it was revealed that Alex’s former flame, Drew Perales, was the Voice? Surprise! Apparently, that was a lie. Drew turned out to be nothing more than another pawn in the real mastermind’s grand scheme.
Even though the traitor wasn’t Drew, they weren’t wrong about it being Alex’s former flame. No, this isn’t the glorious moment where we reveal that our prediction was correct, and that Ryan is the traitor. The real terrorist is…
…the shadiest special agent to ever grace the offices of Quantico with his presence: Liam O’Connor. This time it’s for real (probably), definitely (99%), without a doubt (maybe some doubts, but not many), the truth.
Just to be sure, let’s check with the Quantico showrunner, Josh Safran. No lying this time, Josh! In an interview with TV Guide, he had this to say, regarding the reveal:
“Yup, it’s Liam. No more twists. That’s it. Well, I take it back. [Laughs] Sorry! There isn’t a twist, but there is more to the story. That’s how I would phrase it.”
We’re going to go ahead and believe him this time, cautiously, of course. There is still the very likely possibility that someone else is involved, but for now, we know that Liam played a role in the attacks on the FBI, and the subsequent framing of Alex Parrish.
Related: Quantico season 1, episode 21 review: And the terrorist is…
Now that we finally have an answer, the next question is, was this a satisfying conclusion to the mystery that has been plaguing Quantico viewers for months? The grand reveal has been met with some mixed reviews from fans of the show, and there are some valid arguments for both camps.
Team This-Is-The-Best-Possible-Outcome-OMG
A good portion of the fandom, like the fans below, feel that they received an unpredictable, shocking conclusion that was completely worthy of the buildup!
The last 5 mins of #Quantico got me like @QuanticoTV pic.twitter.com/WlML7tumF1
— RΔZVIR RΔI (@Razvir_Rai) May 9, 2016
Did not expect that at the end!! #Quantico
— Laura Pavone (@xoLauraBoo) May 9, 2016
Me when #Quantico dropped who the terrorist was. pic.twitter.com/y6rH6CxlYg
— B-rad G (@1BradG) May 9, 2016
Mind officially blown! #Quantico #DidntSeeThatOneComing
— Jon Seeley (@DontTouchMyArm) May 9, 2016
One very positive thing that can be said for the reveal is that it makes perfect sense. There have been far too many grand television reveals that were quite obviously last minute decisions, that were squeezed in to fit with as many of the puzzle pieces as possible. This didn’t feel like that, and that’s comforting. Liam was definitely one of the most obvious candidates to be the traitor, and one of Hypable’s top predictions preceding Quantico season 1, episode 21.
It would have been easiest for Liam to get the information to frame Alex since he was in a position of power at Quantico, developed a personal relationship with her, and even had an agent working undercover to learn more about her. On top of that, Liam is an experienced agent, which means his skills are much more developed than those of the trainees. He also has potential motives to act against the FBI, given all that he’s been through in his career.
In an interview with EW, Safran elaborated on how all the pieces come together for Liam to be the terrorist.
“All I can say right now is that I knew it was Liam from the very beginning and if you look, it really was clear in every speech that he gave them. And the Omaha and the Chicago stuff might have seemed arbitrary a little bit, but it wasn’t, [and] trying to get Alex thrown out and then trying to change his tune there, that’s all dealt with next week, so you’ll see.”
Aside from the truth of it all, Liam’s involvement also delivered a decent amount of shock value, while still being manageable for fans. Liam was at times Alex’s friend, and always her teacher. He was a trusted advisor to the NATs, and even a confidante for Miranda and Ryan. His betrayal will surely come as a stinging surprise to all of them if, and when, they discover his secret.
For fans, Liam didn’t exactly rank as the number one favorite character. His identity as the traitor is meaningful, since we have known him since day one at Quantico, but protects our favorite NATs from being guilty and irredeemable. For these reasons, Liam is the perfect choice for the Quantico traitor.
Team Seriously-I-Waited-All-Season-For-This?
On the other hand, some fans were left disappointed, feeling that the reveal was both “anticlimactic” and “predictable.”
Yeah, not too surprised. We already knew he was a crooked agent. I expected a bigger twist. Kind of anticlimactic. #Quantico
— Jess (@PastelPunkDoll) May 9, 2016
Ugh WTF #Quantico, I predicted Liam weeks ago. If he really is the terrorist, then it's not much of a surprise. Lol. He's always been shady.
— Where's Wallington? (@JamesWallington) May 9, 2016
Man seriously #Quantico that is who you went with as the terrorist? Lame
— Greg (@RealistSpeaking) May 9, 2016
For me Liam being the terrorist is too predictable. There is someone else involved. My finger still points at Senator Haas. #Quantico
— Christie Wells (@ChristieLWells) May 9, 2016
Even considering everything that made Liam a great choice, the reveal still lacked something for some Quantico fans. One reason for this, is that many people were hoping that the traitor was one of the NATs that Alex met on her first day at Quantico. This is the same reason that people were disappointed when it was revealed that Drew was involved, since he joined the class at the mid-season mark.
Although it was a common assumption that the initial trainee class was the only pool of suspects, that was never true. In Quantico season 1, episode 1, Alex’s interrogator told her that a tip came in, saying that one of her fellow NATs was responsible, but that tip was almost definitely called in by Liam as a means of framing Alex.
While this adds to the fact that Liam’s involvement is canonically sound, it is true that the reveal probably would have been more shocking if the traitor had been one of Alex’s classmates. These are the people who have been learning and growing alongside Alex for months, and whom she trusts the most. As they grew closer to Alex, they also became the characters that viewers grew attached to and rooted for.
Liam was also a central character from the beginning, but throughout Quantico season 1, he has arguably been the least sympathetic character. He started off as a shady character, questioning Alex’s motives, became a shady teacher, sleeping with his student, and as we learned more about his backstory, developed into a shady agent, participating in multiple FBI cover-ups.
Even though we’ve known him for the entirety of the season, most fans haven’t grown to love him to the same extent as they love Alex and the other trainees. At the beginning, he was simply a slightly suspicious character who was still a lovable mentor to the students, but in the end, he tarnished his own reputation too many times for some fans to care about his character.
It would have been completely shocking to reveal that the terrorist was Shelby, or Ryan, or Simon, or Caleb, or any of the other NATs that called Alex their friend. It would have been devastating for fans that counted the traitor among their favorite characters, but if the pieces fit, it would have potentially been a more satisfying conclusion, and had more of an impact on the main characters of the show.
[socialpoll id=”2357728″]
We want to hear your thoughts on this topic!
Write a comment below or submit an article to Hypable.