Person of Interest “C.O.D” 

This has been one big week of ironies.  Each writer on our site is going to be doing a series of articles on “Characters of the Year of 2012”, and I had just decided that one of mine was going to be Lionel Fusco (Kevin Chapman) of Person of Interest.  Little did I know that tonight’s episode was going to be the Fusco show.

Before getting to the fantastic Fusco storyline, like always there was a real number-of-the-week, and this time it belonged to a seemingly innocent cabbie and Cuban immigrant, Fermin Ordonez (Michael Irby), who was also on his way to being a baseball star until he was injured.  Instead of the riches he was promised, he’s spent the last five years saving up the money to get his wife and son out of Cuba, and when he comes up short and is double-crossed, that is the least of his worries.  A Russian national who has stolen a laptop containing highly classified U.S. government information leaves the goods in Ordonez’s cab for safe-keeping, and the Estonian mob is ready to take out anyone, including Ordonez, who gets in their way of obtaining that laptop.  As in every episode of Person of Interest, Reese (Jim Caviezel) and Finch (Michael Emerson), even with the help of Bear, neutralize the situation, and the episode ends with a nice holiday message. Due to Ordonez’s critical help in getting the stolen classified information back, the government is able to get his family out of Cuba.  At last, Ordonez’s family is reunited, and while he may have gotten rich by being the star baseball player he had dreamed about, I bet he felt like the richest man on earth during that scene in the park when he finally gets to hug his wife and son again.   That’s the true meaning of the holiday season, folks.

But, honestly, this case was only a sideshow, and the big storyline arc is centered all on Fusco.  In the season one finale, a good majority of HR is caught and sent to prison, but a few bad seeds like Simmons (Robert John Burke) escape detection, and so, we get the hint that this isn’t the last we’re going to see of this rotten organization.  I had the pleasure to interview Kevin Chapman at New York Comic-Con, and specifically asked him if his troubles with HR were going to continue in season 2 or if Fusco was going to encounter other challenges.  Without a moment’s hesitation, Chapman said the trouble with HR was far from over, and tonight’s episode clearly demonstrated that.

The remaining members of HR don’t have many cards to play, and their only ace-in-the-hole is the remaining mobster, Don Grifoni (Ed Setrakian), that Elias (Enrico Colantoni) was not able to take out before being sent to prison.   So, Simmons attempts to trade Grifoni’s whereabouts for Elias’ continued support for HR.  Sounds like a good plan, right?  Fusco and one of Simmons’ lieutenants are sent in to do the dirty work, but surprisingly enough, Grifoni knew they were coming, kills the lieutenant, but for some reason, spares Fusco.  Oops.

Sh*t falls straight downhill from this point on.  Of course, Simmons blames Fusco for the whole thing, and believes he’s the one who tipped off Grifoni.  For those who have been faithful viewers of Person of Interest, we should remember the episode “Blue Code” from season one.  Fusco is caught by a dirty Detective Davidson trying to save an undercover cop’s life, and in the process, Davidson is killed.  Reese convinces Fusco to take the fall for Davidson’s murder to get in deep with HR, and now, it’s coming back to haunt him.  Simmons is now using this knowledge as leverage to manipulate Fusco like some puppet, and the unfortunate part is it’s working.

Detective Fusco is a very interesting character and while he has grown by leaps and bounds since the pathetic weasel we saw him as in the Pilot, he still has a way to go.  Fusco’s big issue still is trust.  Who has helped him get out of every bad situation?  Who has made him actually proud of whom he is?  It’s Reese and Finch – not Simmons and HR.  Fusco is still driven by fear, and unless he lets that go, that’s going to be his downfall.  Fusco needs to tell Carter (Taraji P. Henson), Reese, and Finch exactly what is going on so that they can help.  Hell, Finch is the computer guru – he can make that video footage of Lionel with Davidson disappear in a heartbeat.  And, even as powerful as HR, Simmons, and even Elias and his goons may appear to be, they are no match for the Reese and Finch team.  So, if Fusco is worried about his own safety and the safety of his son, again, he needs to trust the people who have proven to have his back.

I am very interested in seeing where this HR and Elias storyline is going to go.  Elias has consistently been an ally of HR, but with Finch’s little visit with Elias in prison, I detect a certain respect Elias has for Finch and his little organization.  Will Elias eventually go back to his old ways and support HR, or will he become a strong supporter of Finch and Reese?  And, what about poor Fusco?  Is the guy ever going to be able to come clean and lead a normal life?  I sure love his character, and so, my hope is that he’s heading in that direction.

Person of Interest airs on Thursday nights at 9 p.m. EST on CBS.

Our feature articles for “Characters of the Year” and “Episodes of the Year” will be beginning soon, and so, be sure to continue checking back at the site for the Kevin Chapman (“Lionel Fusco”) piece.