TV Review: Warehouse 13 1.07 – Implosion

Review: Warehouse 13 1.07 – “Implosion”
Original Airdate: August 18, 2009
Rating: TV-14 (Recommended for people 14 or older)

Screencaps from Forgotten Secrets.

“Super intense and somewhat confusing” is how I sum up this week’s Warehouse 13 episode, “Implosion.” I was really digging all of the action, and the Warehouse history and mysteries, but I feel like so much was teased to us without explanation that now the loose ends are just everywhere. Spoilers up ahead as I try to sort this one out.

On a surface level, I liked the acting this week. The characters of Pete and Myka were a nice mix of subtle and funny; I think they’ve developed some great chemistry. I was bummed to not have any Claudia appearance though. Mrs. Frederic got more screen time than usual, and that probably has to do with my lack of understanding; I think her screen time and general confusion are directly related. Pete’s opening scene was silly and made me smile; my favorite line of the episode was Artie’s crass instructions to “snag it, bag it, and tag it.”

So we start out with this sword, a fake replica of a very powerful original that’s being gifted to the United States by Japan. This week’s mission is to have Pete and Myka go to Washington D.C. and exchange this replica with the authentic artifact, because the real deal belongs safely stored in the Warehouse. So far, I’m following. Of course, once in D.C., a mix-up of sorts happens, and the agents are unable to pull off the switcheroo. This mix-up involves a special grenade that causes an implosion, and during the chaos the real sword goes missing. After the implosion, other Secret Service agents are involved in the case (Pete and Myka’s old boss, for one), and the shadiness of the Warehouse is not helping our team have much street credit. The rest of the SS doesn’t understand this implosion phenomenon, or who Pete and Myka are (and what they do). Artie is the only one who seems to know about this bomb that can suck things in; he supposedly thought he’d collected them all years ago. Thus, given this secret info, only a person with inside knowledge of the Warehouse could know about these implosion devices and have access to steal one.

I understand that we’re looking for a former Warehouse member, who’s gone renegade, crazy, or just rotten. I think I give the “team” of Artie and Mrs. Frederic too much all-powerful repute, and I just assume that no one could or would leave the Warehouse without being closely watched or caught up to eventually. But we know that there are former agents out there, and maybe not all of them left the Warehouse on good terms, and some may do so without surveillance or being found.

Artie is trying to follow his hunch on the identity of the former agent gone bad, and as part of this search he goes out to dinner with a lady named Carol. I can only assume that Carol is a lover scorned, and she does not seem too keen on helping out our man. Meanwhile, the secrecy of Warehouse 13 is really putting Pete and Myka in a bind, and they’re being detained by other non-Warehouse-knowledgeable Secret Service agents. I get frustrated when Pete and Myka can’t throw any weight around or defend themselves with other Secret Service members, even though they know what they’re doing and they’re in the midst of an important mission.

Once the treason case against Artie is brought to light, I start to get confused. He sold secrets to the Russians, and somehow Mrs. Frederic got it expunged? I’m wondering how legit this is: did he really do it, and Mrs. Frederic is just that powerful, or is this all a mix-up? Artie tells Pete and Myka that it’s part of the former agent’s power play to discredit him and slow down the chase (this seems believable, and smart). I wish I knew more about Mrs. Frederic so I had a better understanding of her pull and limitations, but I suppose the mystery aspect of her character really lends itself to the plot nicely. So many things can be explained away with a Mrs. Frederic intervention.

Artie’s hunch plays out to be correct, and the man responsible for the implosions is James MacPherson, a former Warehouse member. He and Artie have a showdown, in which James can turn himself invisible (with the one-of-a-kind sword). Artie alludes to an old love triangle with Carol, clearly ruffling some feathers. When James stabs Artie, our man holds onto the blade inside himself in order to get the sword back from his disgruntled former colleague. Pete and Myka show up just in the nick of time, and all’s well that ends well.

This treason plot has opened up a can of worms for me. After the past two episodes, I’m wondering how many other former agents will surface. I want to know more about Mrs. Frederic, and I don’t want her to always swoop in as the easy way out of a pickle.

All in all, I liked the episode. Whenever there’s a lot of action and cool gadgets involved, I am entertained. I hope we get some concrete answers this season, and I hope the next episode features Claudia. I really like the more subdued interaction between Pete and Myka, and I’m hoping that continues. I’m really over the constant bickering that defined the beginning of the series.