- As Marcus (Andre Braugher) and Sam (Scott Speedman) negotiate with the Secretary of Defense, Grace (Daisy Betts) leads the Colorado on a risky mission to repair the island's damaged sonar defenses.
- "Last Resort" - "Skeleton Crew" - Oct. 25, 2012
Just about everybody on Ste. Marie and back in Washington proves how hardcore they are and it makes for a damn fine episode.
Washington -- in the form of Defense Secretary Curry and White House adviser Amanda Strong-- shows up on the island to offer Chaplin and Kendal a "deal." The crew of the Colorado mulls Chaplin's offer about staying or leaving. And the Colorado, led by Grace, goes on a dangerous mission and, surprisingly, James offers to help. And back in Washington Christine makes a new friend in Kylie.
We open with Marcus and Kendal prepping for negotiations with Defense Secretary Curry by doing a mock debate. Kendal is screaming at Marcuse about treason, terrorism, and sedition. They go back and forth. Marcus warns Sam not to get too emotional or the negotiators will prey on this. (This is hilarious given what happens later.)
Afterwards Sam hits the roof of the NATO Station for some deep breaths. Sophie joins him and gives the approval to his snazzy dress whites. No time to linger though as some bad news has come in. A portion of the system that guards the island's perimeter has gone down, many anyone could sneak through. They believe it's just that the batteries are dead not that anyone has disabled it, but hey need to recharge pronto if they want to keep protecting themselves.
It is decided that while Sam and Marcus are negotiating Grace will lead the Colorado on a mission to change the battery. She goes to find the Navy SEALs at the Buzzard's Nest to enlist one of them to do the dive. James, shockingly, volunteers, without giving away that his buddies have abandoned the island.
Sam, Marcus, and a group of the sailors wait on the beach to meet the Washington contingency. Marcus warns them that the most important thing is to stand together. The Feds show up and in addition to Curry, Grace's father Admiral Shepard and White House adviser Amanda Strong are in the party. Marcus thinks they've brought an old friend to talk him out of his crazy.
Defense Secretary immediately tells the sailors that any of them that doesn't want to be a part of this treasonous act can step forward now and be granted amnesty. There are no takers. He says "very well, so shall you hang." Sam tells the Admiral that Grace is fine and currently in command of the sub.
Back on the sub Grace is in control and of course the COB is being a pain in the ass instead of helping. He tells her that with their skeleton crew they can run or fight but they can't do both. He says she can act the part of captain until the rapture comes but he'll never recognize her as captain.
Curry, Strong, and Shepard begin their negotiations with Kendal and Chaplin with Chaplin budging on nothing. Even when offered amnesty for his men and a relatively short prison sentence for himself, Kendal, and Grace. Chaplin is adamant about a public trial at which Curry scoffs. Kendal is getting nervous but Chaplin says this is how negotiations work. That is until Curry brings up Chaplin's dead son and Chaplin going ballistic, upending the table, and grabbing Curry by his lapels and screaming at him. Strong tries to appeal to Sam's family man side saying he shouldn't tie his fate to Chaplin since he is a man with nothing to lose. Kendal pulls him aside and is all "um, what happened to not getting emotional?" Chaplin says "he pissed me off." They fight about what negotiations mean. Sam says he could do what is necessary in prison to get back home. He says it's not about what he wants but what he can get and Chaplin taught him that. Chaplin reminds him what he taught him about honor. Sam says he would follow Chaplin all the way down but the apology the captain wants isn't coming, "that is the United States of America in there and they do not apologize!"
Back on the sub they're about to let James go do his thing when they realize in order to change the batteries in the array he has to use a power tool to unscrew the plates to put it in. Ruh-roh. This will make a noise so loud it will probably be heard from at least 15 miles away by the other subs. But they really don't have a choice so Grace basically tells James to hurry. The COB is incredulous and says this is more proof of Grace being unfit to lead. She points out she got the leadership job on this mission about a half hour ago so, basically, he can bite her. Sophie explains to James that the tether to the boat is their only means of communication to be careful and that they have a limited amount of air to give him, 40 minutes, so to be careful. James points out that this is not his first rodeo.
Back on the beach Strong goes to the Admiral and tells him to talk sense into Marcus. She points out that the Illinois has just informed her that they have found the break in the sonar array line and that soon the Illinois will be able to shoot on the Colorado and that she will make that call if need be, just like he would.
James heads out to the array and starts to work and of course the power tool alerts the ships in the area and they come after the Colorado. At a certain point they have to decide to run or fight and since Grace knows they can't outrun them she decides to fight. Unfortunately, in making this choice they have to move and this pulls James along for sometime before he cuts the tether, meaning he can no longer communicate with the boat.
Back on the beach Marcus keeps pushing for his terms and then points out that after he gets those terms met only then will he be willing to talk about the 6 Navy SEALs he picked up off the coast of Pakistan. At that Curry decides it's lunchtime. Strong informs Curry that the Illinois is inside the perimeter and Curry says to hunt them down. Strong again appeals to Kendal asking if his cause is still the same as Chaplin's. She says Chaplin doesn't want a deal he wants martyrdom.
Shepard goes to Marcus and basically tells him that the Joint Chiefs want to forcibly remove the president and they're counting on Chaplin to hold fast until the time is right to help them as a living, breathing symbol of the lie. Marcus says he doesn't want to be a symbol. Shepard says we don't get to choose our fates. Marcus says if he has a chance to bring home his crew today, he will. Shepard says he wants to bring his daughter home too but he doesn't know what that home is becoming.
Chaplin goes to Curry on the beach and again appeals for a public trial. Curry essentially calls him a fool because the "truth" is going to be whatever "they" say it is, and that Chaplin and the Colorado will be a footnote in a tale about a nation that asserted itself in a cause of freedom and became a great empire once again. Chaplin asks if he ever wonders how history will judge Curry for what he did to Pakistan.
Chaplin zens out. Kendal paces. Curry returns with an offer and Chaplin and Sam walk away. Chaplin tells Sam not to react and informs him of the subs moving in on the Colorado.
With 8 minutes left on James' tanks he replaces the batteries on the sonar array.
Back on the beach the negotiations continue.Chaplin bluffs that he has hard evidence on the whole sordid affair -- meaning the president's firing on Pakistan unprovoked, which has touched off worldwide tensions and potentially WWIII-- from his new Navy SEAL friends. Curry doesn't believe him. Chaplin says he should've killed the SEALS when he had a chance. Curry offers one more deal incuding amnesty for the crew and only Sam and Marcus going to jail for two years of protective custody. Marcus again turns it down in desiring a public trial and Sam snaps. Curry offers Sam a new deal: he and Grace never see the inside of a prison and guaranteed safety in the country of their choice, just give up Chaplin and the sub. Sam says they have a deal.
Later, Sam tells Marcus he knows that he provoked him. Marcus agrees saying he wanted him to react in order to get the best deal for Grace and himself. Sam says, again, that he thought that they trusted each other. Marcus said he couldn't tell him because he needed his reaction to be real. Sam says it was. Marcus says he knows.
Curry returns to the table with a top secret order for Sam: go wherever you want but keep your mouth shut and you're home free. Marcus is getting the shaft but he will be able to address his crew. At the same time though Strong is getting word from one of the soldiers. She grabs the order, rips it up and says the offer is expired. They are all aghast. She walks away from the table and tells them that the Illinois has the Colorado on the run and they're going to sink her. As Strong is about to give the fire order Shepard freaks out and shoots Strong dead and Curry in the leg. Curry calls for the radio so he can finish the fire order.
The lag in the fire order to the Illinois buys the Colorado some time and Grace essentially kicks ass, makes all the right moves, and ends up bringing the Colorado into a position of power and is able to fire on the other subs, she moves the Colorado into the debris field and effectively loses the boats chasing them and the torpedoes they were allowed to fire when Curry finally gave the order. She opens the missile doors and opens up lines of communication: She points out that her nuclear missiles are ready and waiting and aimed at D.C. for anybody else that wants to mess with them. Even the COB is duly impressed with her. Sophie, however, is mourning the loss of James, who his now clinging to the side of the sonar array he fixed, out of air.
Luckily, of course, James is a SEAL and he's hanging on, weakly tapping Morse Code on the array to guide the Colorado to him. They bring him on board and he is grateful and admiring. The COB leads the crew in saluting Grace.
James heads back to the Buzzard's Nest and he and Tani finally make out.
On the beach Kendal wonders what the fallout of this all will be. Chaplin says there won't be any. Washington will explain away Strong's death and Curry's injury and that this never happened so the Colorado isn't going to "do" anything about the Illinois going over the perimeter and trying to sink them. Kendal wonders what Marcus will tell Grace about her dad, saying he'd want it straight up and quick.
Marcus heads back to the boat. The crew is watching news that China has invaded Taiwan. Marcus pulls Grace aside and gives her the news about her dad.
Back in Washington Kylie is learning that her power has waned. She can't get her table at the best restaurant anymore. Her ex-FWB is FWB-ing with someone new and tells her he stole the hard drive for her dad because, well, basically to save his own ass and that she has gone from being one of "us" to being one of "them."
Sam's "friend" Paul is still trying to worm his way into Christine's good graces in the wake of her meltdown in front of the cameras. But he makes the mistake of showing her some fake paperwork that purports to show that Sam and Chaplin cooked up a plan to sell the Colorado to the Chinese and defect. She refuses, wisely, to believe this. Paul says "Sam was different when he came home from North Korea wasn't he?" She nods. Later, he "confides" in her about his ex-wife with a story that is supposed to sound like Sam's. She essentially continues to play along but when he offers to spend the night she sends him away. She says she'll be fine.
In the night, she hears a noise in the house and grabs her gun. She confronts Kylie in her kitchen. Kylie says she believes the administration set up Sam and if Christine is willing to help she can prove it. Christine is totally on board. Kylie explains about the Perseus and how it can help them. She says she needs Christine to make some noise to make it happen, pointing towards the news people. Christine says she'll do it but she wants something too, to prove that Sam is a partriot because she knows he is.
Sophie and Sam enjoy a cup of coffee on the roof of the station.
In his quarters Chaplin opens his bag and looks at pictures of his late wife and son.
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