The saving grace for most episodes of Countdown Season 1 is their ability to balance stories in multiple timelines and locations. Otherwise, the show would feel like watching paint dry.
Countdown Season 1, Episode 5, is the epitome of this balance, as we finally make some headway into Volcheck. This paints a clearer picture of who he is and what he intends to do.
Thus far, he has felt like a mystery, and his intentions with the fissile material did not feel concerning.
The cold open is heavy on Volcheck, and many more scenes peel back the layers.
Most of what we learn about him is not new, as we are already aware that he is bad news and will do anything to achieve his goals.
But how much? Well, anything. Blackmailing a competitor, stealing from a company, blowing up a girlfriend, the list is endless.
He begins to feel like a proper antagonist, not just some individual with fissile material that he may or may not use to commit a mass casualty event.
These Volcheck-centric scenes are a welcome reprieve from the constant running battles the team is involved in.
As I’ve said before, the constant trips and detours in their attempts to find Volcheck do not feel like an investigation. They feel like levels in a video game whose ending does not involve real-world consequences.
What’s Going On With Mark and Amber?
And even with the focus on Volcheck, we get a glimpse into some of the characters, Meachum and Oliveras.
I was not a fan of their first meeting, but they are slowly growing on me.
They feel like the gender-swapped version of each other, which makes them exciting to watch interact. They can can smell each other’s bullshit from afar and this game of dominance is quite the affair.
Typically, shows go the romance route with characters like Meachum and Oliveras, but I hope Countdown does not do that.
I’ll admit that Oliveras is my favorite character, thanks in no small part to Jessica Camancho’s portrayal of the character.
However, the significant duration between one personal arc and the next is not doing the characters any favors. We know that Oliveras struggles with addiction, but we’re yet to get answers on what she intends to do with the brick she took from the cartel’s drugs.
Even the conversation between her and Meachum amounts to nothing as she deflects and pivots.
We’re slowly losing contact with them, especially after the events of Countdown Season 1 Episode 4.
The consequence of this is that their actions might feel abrupt and out of place because we rarely know what’s going on in their lives.
And for the Feature Presentation: Taking Out Feds
Significant progress is made in this episode regarding the overall arc.
There are some side quests, like visiting the hosting company, because employees were killed. This is not a proper lead because they know Volcheck is evil, and killing people to hide his tracks is not surprising.
However, one of the side quests pans out and breaks the case open when they learn the identity of the mystery that is Volcheck.
My feelings about Countdown’s investigative method are mixed. On the one hand, they offer the opportunity for some action and thrill, but on the other hand, there must be a better way to do this that doesn’t make everything feel so trivial and mundane.
Without those scenes, we wouldn’t have some good interactions like those in the Belarusian embassy.
The show employed all the cliches in such situations, and it worked. A team of police officers infiltrates enemy territory and attempts to blend in. What couldn’t go wrong?
Most characters in the show are action-ready, but Meachum shone in this one. Speaking of whom, is he ever going to tell his team leader that he has a disease that could kill him at any point?
When working as a team, it goes a long way to know that the person next to you can be counted on and that they won’t pass out in the middle of a fight, compromising everyone.
He didn’t pass out during one, but who knows what will happen the next time it happens?
While some foundational issues in the show remain, “Blurred Edges” works because it strikes a sweet balance in exploring the entire narrative.
The show also makes some headway as we finally learn that Volcheck plans to take out the federal building and “bring this country to its knees.”
To play devil’s advocate, is that it?
He suffers from the inability to think bigger because if I were an evil East European freak, I could come up with a million ways to bring a country to its knees.
However, his plan might work; we’ll have to see. On second thought, I hope not.
What did you think of the episode? Are you still along for the ride or waiting until significant progress is made?
Let’s keep the conversation going — it’s the only way the good stuff survives.
Say something in the comments, share if you’re moved to, and keep reading. Independent voices need readers like you.
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