Following the Following: ‘Welcome Home’

luke kalamar goes home…

Plot: Joe Carroll (James Purefoy) has returned to lead his much larger group of followers and reunite with his old friend Roderick (Warren Kole). Their main objective is to take Claire Matthews (Natalie Zea) away from the FBI. Meanwhile, leadership on the case changes in response to the FBI’s failure to keep Carroll locked up, much to the distaste of Ryan Hardy (Kevin Bacon), Debra Parker (Annie Parisse), and Mike Weston (Shawn Ashmore).

Finally, we get to see the man behind the curtain. Roderick, the individual responsible to making sure Carroll’s plans were successful, has made his long awaited appearance. There have been a lot of theories thrown around about him, some even suggesting it might be a codename for Agent Parker, but no one could have predicted who he really was. I mean, a normal sheriff in a small town doesn’t exactly raise any alarms. Then again, that’s the exact person Carroll would want on his side. The majority of the episode put Roderick in the spotlight, which allowed “Welcome Home” to become a very strong episode full of tension.

First and foremost, I’m really happy that Roderick didn’t turn out to be anyone we’ve already seen. Everyone in the show plays their own special role and to have that changed with a main character as a double agent could become very cumbersome. The revelation that Roderick is actually a sheriff was very well done too and provides at least some explanation to how he’s been able to be such a major thorn in the FBI’s side. It doesn’t give him advanced tactical skills like in the army but the general idea is there. It’s safe to assume that he used his identity as a sheriff to get closer to people and convince them to follow Carroll. Who’s more trustworthy than a man of the law? It’s clear that Roderick is a sort of second-in-command for Carroll’s growing group and how he’s the man of action while Carroll is the domineering force in control. Bottom line, I’m really glad that Roderick is officially in focus now and we’re starting to deviate from that “here’s a new follower let’s hunt this one down for an episode” formula that this show had for several episodes.

The fight scene between Agent Weston and Roderick’s little task force was incredible with tension constantly growing as everything unfolded. From the get go you know the situation is bad when Weston is completely outnumbered and clearly at a massive disadvantage. It only gets worse for him when he has to fight the military trained Charlie (Tom Lipinski) every time he doesn’t reveal where Claire is. The initial fight scene was fun to watch as it did a great job showcasing Weston and Charlie’s fighting skills, but then it just got ridiculous. I cringed when steel poles were dropped in, but then lost it when giant freaking knives were used. Roderick’s team obviously means business, and if this is the start of things to come, the FBI has a lot of trouble coming.

I’m also very happy that Weston didn’t kick the bucket. I know that he’s a main character and that almost guarantee’s survival, but for a moment there I actually didn’t think he was going to make it. It almost became too much, especially when he got smashed and stabbed. Why wasn’t he stabbed in the heart? Who knows, but I’m glad he’s still around. There’s a lot of potential for this character and I want him here for the long haul.

I couldn’t help but find myself yelling at the FBI yet again this week though. In such intense times, with a crazy serial killer on the loose and his followers everywhere, why would you send a high profile FBI agent back to a random hotel on his own?! Seriously, come on. You couldn’t spare some backup to make sure Weston didn’t get jumped? That was a huge red flag for trouble from the beginning and Weston getting picked up was almost too predictable. Considering that the new agent in charge, Nick Donovan (Mike Colter), is the one who released Weston without supervision, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s someone in on Carroll’s plans. That would be a big twist, and the turmoil the FBI is in is the perfect opportunity for Carroll to place a man on the inside.

The final scene between Carroll and Charlie was incredibly bizarre as well. I know Charlie is definitely insane and has let Carroll down a lot, but I did not expect a ritualistic execution to take place. It added just a whole new level of disturbing mystery to this already disturbing group. Are all self-assisted suicides because of failure done in such a manner with Carroll and his crew? Why does that even happen? These are questions I hope are answered at some point in the future.

Lastly, why does there have to be a romance between Emma (Valorie Curry) and Carroll? It’s almost as unnecessary to the story as the Trio love affair we saw earlier. I’m reasonably certain now that every person in Carroll’s group just loves sleeping together on the side. So much for loving your wife who doesn’t love you back!

“Welcome Home” saw Carroll and his Followers take a much more dominant stance against the FBI. Roderick also showed himself to be a definite force the FBI needs to look out for and is a massive brick wall in their way of getting Carroll. It looks like the tension is going to keep growing next week as the battle between Carroll and the FBI goes into full force. Let’s just hope the FBI can learn from their mistakes or else risk losing another talented agent.

Rating: 8/10