The Last Ship Season 5 Episode 5 Review: Warriors
Dale McGarrigle
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Finally, they're acting instead of reacting.
A U.S. military mission worked somewhat as planned on The Last Ship Season 5 Episode 5.
As expected, the action jumped ahead three months this episode. Or rather the inaction.
First off, Alisha Granderson was indeed murdered, as somehow that stick figure she lived with got the jump on a fully trained Naval officer. I figured killing off Doc Rios and Captain Garnett on The Last Ship Season 5 Episode 1 would be enough bloodletting for this season, but apparently not.
Kelsey is somewhat on the Navy's radar right now, as a guilt-plagued Clayton is trying to track her, but with everything else going on, I can't imagine she's much of a priority. Nor can I imagine she would have much intel to offer, even if she got caught.
The war against Tavo's force was basically in a holding pattern at the Tropic of Cancer line. But military intelligence cracked those battle plans that Vulture Team hauled back from Panama, which helped them get a little ahead of Tavo.
Also, they now have a target, Dr. Montano, who oh so coincidentally Tom once met a conference. How convenient!
Related: The Last Ship Season 5 Episode 4 Review: Tropic of Cancer
I felt the episode alternated expertly between the action of the mission to extract Montano and the scenes on the homefront, which showed how uncomfortable many of the seamen felt to be there.
Tom, Danny, Burk, Miller, and Wolf were oh so at home in the middle of a firefight, mowing down Tavo's forces while trapped in a Jamaican rum cellar. I kept expecting a spark to set off all that alcohol, leading to a big explosion.
It was thought-provoking to watch the two old war horses, Tom and Montano, discuss philosophy while hiding out.
Montano echoed the prevailing wisdom that Tom had changed, that he was haunted or hunted. It may not be PTSD, but all that combat is definitely having an effect on him.
But I'd be more worried about Miller, adopting Rhubarb the Mouse in the midst of a secret-ops mission. Hopefully, his budding relationship with Courtney will bring him back to reality.
I was fuzzy about what was going on strategically on Jamaica. Were Tavo's troops there in pursuit of Montano or just to take over the island? Was running in the U.S. raid just dumb luck?
It didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things. Tavo got Jamaica, and the U.S. got the intel it was after from Montano.
Related: Watch The Last Ship Online: Season 5 Episode 4
It was at home that the James crew was struggling the most. I don't know who was worse, Tom or Danny.
I'm going with Tom. While he's been off saving the world and becoming a national hero, he's been losing his family.
Sam had changed his last name to escape Tom's shadow. And Ashley unleashed all that pent-up anger, which hit Tom harder than anything from the battlefield.
At least Ashley and Tom made up, as she and Sam headed back to St. Louis. Still, it didn't seem like any of the underlying problems had been addressed.
Tom and Sasha have rekindled their relationship post-Plague, but it appears that Kara and Danny must have gotten divorced during the hiatus before The Last Ship Season 5.
Seeing how tightly wound Danny has been both in combat and at home, that's not too surprising.
The Last Ship's Bridget Regan Q & A
He seemed a stranger to his son and reacted too sharply when Frankie went for his knife. (What was he carrying that around for anyway?) They did seem to connect near the end when Danny carved that wooden toy soldier for Frankie.
Like many military personnel, he'll need some professional help once the battle is won.
Then there was the bizarre war-bonds fundraiser that Jeter, the Burk brothers, and Miller attended.
Did anyone else see the irony of three black naval officers being honored by a Southern women's group in an old plantation house? I guess the message was to forget the past, let's unite to win the present battle and look toward the future.
It was good to see Cameron Burk again, with his artificial leg. I'm sure many viewers were wondering what happened to him after his near-fatal injury on The Last Ship Season 4 Episode 1.
There was a poignant moment when Carlton Burk commiserated with the two veterans about their shared experiences of war.
Miller's flipping through the coffee-table book about the Nathan James reminded him of all that he had been through. Courtney put things in perspective for him, reminding him that everyone had suffered losses through the nation's recent travails.
President Reiss's speech framed the atmosphere well when he said that the country was as united as it's been since World War II.
The 1942 Harry James song "I've Heard That Song Before" reinforced that concept, playing over some of the James crew lightheartedly ribbing Miller about Rhubarb.
The intel that Tom recovered from Montano had given them hope again, a much better conclusion that the smoking hulk that was the James near the end of The Last Ship Season 5 Episode 4.
To review the war against Tavo, watch The Last Ship online.
Will you miss Alisha? Will the James crew hold it together long enough to win the war? Wasn't it nice to have no Tavo or his witchy woman this episode?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
