Season 2, Episode 20:
In Extremis
"I killed people, Carter. I was a dirty cop."
— Lionel Fusco
After new evidence surfaces regarding Fusco's involvement with Detective Stills' disappearance, Fusco finds himself as the focus of an Internal Affairs investigation, and Carter is forced to face the truth about her partner's shady past.
Meanwhile, due to yet another malfunction by the Machine, Reese arrives too late to prevent the poisoning of the latest number, a prominent doctor, and instead offers to help him track down the person responsible for his imminent death.
Tropes present in this episode:
- The Atoner:
- Even though Reese killed Stills, Fusco seems willing to take the heat for his murder, because he's killed others in cooperation with Stills.
- Nelson starts to think that It's All My Fault for his mistakes in life, but finally accepts that he certainly never deserved to be poisoned.
- Call-Back:Finch: "That storm on the horizon that I mentioned, I'm afraid it's arrived."
- When Carter demands an explanation from Fusco, he points out that he already tried to tell her, but she didn't want to know.
- A Day in the Limelight: This is the first episode to focus largely on Fusco.
- Slowly Slipping Into Evil: The flashbacks reveal how he became a Dirty Cop.
- Deadly Nosebleed
- Dead Man Walking: Nelson.
- Double Meaning: A minor one from the man who ordered Nelson's death. "I trade stocks, but if I know I picked a loser, I have to dump it," refers to both Nelson and the medical stocks he shorted.
- Double-Meaning Title: "In Extremis" is Latin for "At the point of death." First the POI spends much of the episode slowly dying from radiation poisoning and doing his best to help Reese find his killer and make amends with his daughter. The second is Stanton's virus has finally done its damage and the Machine is the one who is on the edge of death.
- Dramatic Drop: Nelson drops a glass when the poison takes effect and when he finally dies.
- Enemy Mine: It's mentioned that Elias has persuaded the imprisoned Dirty Cop to recant his testimony against Fusco.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: It's revealed that Detective Stills had a wife and a couple kids.
- Everyone Has Standards: Nelson's daughter initially rejects her father's attempt to reconcile, but quickly becomes concerned when she realises he's genuinely ill.
- Face Death with Dignity: Nelson does this.
- A Friend in Need: Carter demands to know why Reese isn't helping Fusco. Reese throws it back at her; given that Fusco is a lot like Reese, why isn't she helping him?
- Freudian Threat: Nelson is encouraging the hedge fund trader to talk by firing bullets near his legs. When he balks at naming his boss, Nelson waves the gun at his groin and notes that his vision is getting blurred due to the poisoning.
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Harsher in Hindsight: Reese framing Fusco for the murder of Detective Stills in the Pilot episode is becoming this in light of the current Internal Affairs investigation. Also, him forcing Fusco to bury Stills body really becomes harsh once you learn that the two men weren't just co-workers, they were very close friends. - Heroic BSoD: Carter seemed to be suffering a minor one at the end.
- I'll Be in My Bunk: When Carter visits Azerello in prison, he suggests that he finds her attractive, and then indicates he is done talking to her by saying: "If you will excuse me, I got a date with a sock."
- Laser-Guided Karma: Nelson repays his murderer by poisoning him with the same poison the man used on him.
- Last Day to Live: Before helping Reese search for his killer, Nelson apologises to his estranged daughter for not being there for her.
- Manly Tears: Fusco's breakdown when he buries Stills, who we learn during the episode was a very close friend.
- Man of Wealth and Taste: The killer calmly sips his wine in a Big Fancy House as he listens to a dying Nelson.
- Offscreen Moment of Awesome: Carter and Bear digging up and moving Detective Stills' year-old corpse to protect Fusco.
- One Last Smoke: Reese pours a glass of high-end whiskey for Nelson to drink before he dies.
- Perp Sweating: Reese has a big grin on his face watching Nelson interrogate the hedge trader.
- Pet the Dog:
- Posthumous Character: Detective Stills has been dead since the first episode of the series but plays a prominent role here though flashbacks.
- Refuge in Audacity: The eulogy at Cal's funeral is given by the man who ordered his death.
- Sheep in Sheep's Clothing: Dr. Rossmore. After Nelson costs him and his company millions by shutting down one of their drug trials, Rossmore shows up at Nelson's a bottle of wine at his celebration, assuring him that he isn't bitter and recognizes that he didn't have the data to support his theory and understands why Nelson made that call. While the average Genre Savvy viewer might expect him to be the murderer, he is in fact completely sincere, while the real killer is the person who profited off Nelson's ruling against Rossmore via insider trading.
- Shot to the Heart: Nelson says he just wants to look his killer in the eye, but then dies. Reese pulls over and injects him with an adrenaline shot to keep him going.
- Slowly Slipping Into Evil: When Fusco confesses to Carter how he became a Dirty Cop, this is how he puts it. First it was just heisting drug money. Then it was killing drug dealers and covering it up.
- Soapbox Sadie: Nelson's daughter is a political activist who once threw red paint at him for testings drugs on lab animals and was once arrested for hitting a cop during a protest.
- To Be Lawful or Good: Carter faces this once again.
- To the Pain: Nelson spells out what happens when someone suffers polonium poisoning to the killer. Who's just taken it himself.
- Vagueness Is Coming: Averted; the storm is finally here.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: Nelson vomits Blood from the Mouth. That and his hair falling out tips him off that he's been poisoned.
- Wham Episode : Stanton's virus has finally done its damage and the Machine's primary operations are shut down.
- When You Coming Home, Dad?: Nelson's visit to his daughter implies this trope is in play.
- Whodunnit to Me?
- You Are Too Late: And Team Machine have to face up to why this keeps happening.
- You Owe Me: Stills brings up helping Fusco after his divorce, when asking him to cover for a police shooting gone wrong.
- Fatal Error
Operations Compromised
Heuristics Offline
Threat to System
Thr3at tò Sy5tem
Γhяē4t i0 5ys7éw
Primary Operations shutting down...
