Michael takes on a drug cartel for his former mentor to gain access to Fiona, who must befriend a fellow prisoner to fend off a gang leader.
- Actually Pretty Funny: For his cover, Jesse plays a dirty DEA agent that killed his boss for finding out about his dealings. He describes it to Montero as "accidentally" shooting the guy four times, which prompts quite a laugh from Montero.
- Bittersweet Ending: Jesse is safe and the CIA operation is a huge success, but Fiona learns someone on the outside wants her dead.
- Blackmail: After being a friend for most of the episode, Nicole tries to kill Fiona in the kitchen. When overpowered, Nicole says she was following the orders of someone on a cellphone, someone that threatened to kill her sister.
- Call-Back: About to go in, Michael sees Bruce Gellman next to Montero and immediately backs out of the mission. When Jesse asks for details, Mike says he cost Gellman a pricey client and would no doubt be remembered. Jesse has to go it alone, as a result.
- Despair Event Horizon: Based on the letter, Michael thinks Fiona is this close to crossing it, so he's desperate to find a way to visit and reassure her.
- Didn't See That Coming:
- Montero takes the group by surprise by taking Jesse not to a stash house but to the home of an actual dirty DEA agent.
- To sell Jesse's story, the group has to fake a DEA team being poised to perform a raid at Black Rock Cove. They succeed, but Montero reveals he was ordered by the boss to keep DEA agents busy, so he gets ready to fire some guns and kill everyone in sight.
- Foreshadowing: Michael immediately notices that Nate is in town without Ruth and their child. It turns out he's been having problems of his own, as Ruth has left him.
- Framing the Guilty Party: To everyone's surprise, Montero already has a dirty DEA agent on the payroll supplying him with information. To maintain his cover, Jesse argues that Kemp is actually a deep cover agent that provided him with useless information. What cinches it is how the others are in the van waiting to see how it plays out. With Jesse openly suggesting an extraction team is poised to strike, the others take that as their cue to start talking on the radio about that supposed mission and head outside with gear.
- Friendship Moment: Jesse goes in alone so that Michael can have the chance to see Fiona and keep her from losing all hope.
- He Knows Too Much: Montero is prepared to kill Jesse and serve time in prison, saying he's been unquestionably loyal to Ramiro for years. Jesse points out that means he knows all sorts of details about their operation, which makes it very unlikely the big boss will take any chances once he's locked up.
- Indy Ploy:
- In the face of Montero confronting the actual dirty DEA agent on his payroll, Jesse quickly scans his surroundings and sees the guy's mail. Using the guy's name, Jesse spins a lie about how he was obviously going to betray Montero and that an extraction team is prepared to rescue him.
- Learning Montero was ordered to keep the supposed DEA agents at Black Rock Cove busy, Jesse takes a gun and starts firing at the back of the van. This buys Michael time to escape the driver's seat, with Jesse claiming the supposed team in the back is outfitted with explosive weaponry.
- It's Personal: Michael deduces that Card was willing to let him in on this because he really needs a win of some kind for the sake of his career. This gets amplified upon learning of Kemp, the corrupt DEA agent that fed Montero all sorts of info about undercover agents and informants.Card: That son of a bitch is mine.
- Jerkass Has a Point: Card berates Michael for leaving Jesse on his own, saying proper protocol was for them both to bail out and that they could've regrouped from there. (That was actually what Michael was going to do, but Jesse opted to go in alone.) Card also points out that Michael's better judgment is clouded by Fiona being in prison.
- Let Me Get This Straight...: Card's frustrated reaction to Michael leaving Jesse on his own.
- Multitasked Conversation: With Jesse's cover at risk of being blown, the others in the van suit up and prepare to extract him. While trying to talk Montero out of shooting him, Jesse does this to get them to stop, insisting to everyone that there's no need to rush into anything. Sam picks up on it and says to see where he's going with this.
- No Sympathy: Since Kemp is a dirty agent on Montero's payroll, Jesse has no problem accusing him of being a deep cover agent out to get him arrested. He is visibly surprised to see Kemp shot dead but doesn't dwell on it, nor do any of the others.
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: With her makeshift weapons, Fiona delivers one against D.B. and her two underlings.
- Nothing Personal: As with others in the CIA, Card didn't return Michael's phone calls while the burn notice was in effect. He says it was nothing personal, just the nature of their business.
- Pragmatic Villainy: By the time the real DEA raid occurs, Jesse is alone in a car with Montero. Upon learning what happened and how he'll be blamed for all this, Montero is prepared to shoot Jesse dead out of spite. Jesse gets out of this by pointing out the only way Montero can truly save himself is by becoming a government asset; doing anything else will result in Ramiro having him killed (either for getting played or to shut him up).
- Race Against the Clock: To maintain Jesse's cover and the overall mission, Michael and the others have limited time and even more limited resources to pull off what looks like a big DEA raid at Black Rock Cove.Sam: Oh great, five minutes until the guys with guns show up.
- Rewatch Bonus: Fiona is paranoid that D.B.'s crew will attack her in the yard, so she nearly clobbers Nicole when spooked. What Nicole says has new meaning when she later attacks Fiona in the kitchen.Nicole: Remind me to never sneak up on you again.
- This Cannot Be!: Montero in response to Ramiro telling him the DEA just raided their operation in a big way.
- We Need a Distraction: With word spreading of D.B. and her crew plotting to gang up on her in the laundry room, Fiona opts to attack them first. All she needs for an opening is a fire that distracts the guards and other prisoners.
- "You!" Exclamation: Montero upon realizing that Jesse was playing him the entire time.
- You Owe Me: When looking for some help from the CIA, Michael reminds Card that he's responsible for his current status in the organization.
