Robothas slowly been morphing into an expertly paced paranoid thriller, eps2.8_h1dden-pr0cess.axx announces that shift loud and clear.
Its a relentless hour of television, one that wreaks havoc on your senses.
If eps2.8_h1dden-pr0cess.axx teaches us anything, its that were never alone.
Credit: Michael Parmelee/USA Network
Theres always someone, orsomeones, lurking.
First, lets start with a little noise.
Price seems to be a man in control, but that doesnt mean hes above asking for favors.
So heres Terry Colby sitting before him.
But Terry isnt here to promote his book.
Hes here because Price needs a favor.
You see, Price wants China to be able to operate within the Congo with impunity.
What wedoknow is that Price is interested in power.
So, yeah, I think it’s possible for you to draw your own connections there.
Tension and release, tension and release, as ever onMr.
Meanwhile, Elliot wants to know if Joanna is trying to get inside his head.
Hey, Elliot: whoisnttrying to get inside or isalreadyinside your head?
But seriously, she wants to know where Tyrell is.
He gets her things that she wants when its necessary.
A creepy story about seducing a woman for her cheap earrings lets us know that Joanna isnt kidding.
Heres the thing though: Elliot wouldnt mind knowing where Tyrell is either.
He assumes hes dead.
Well, he refuses to help her initially but then is forced to do so anyway.
A trip to pick up some computer supplies is all thats needed.
And what did you say your name was?
Im Ollie, he replies.
Anyone expecting something HUGE might be disappointed.
Something suspicious might be the least of their worries though; things are about to getreal.
The FBI is closing in on them.
Theyre at Susan Jacobs house combing through evidence after some guys were spotted in the area.
Its all tied in with the Capitol Hill job.
The guys escaped but were found in Maryland.
Sure enough, as soon as Tyrell calls, Mr. Is he hiding something from Elliot?
Hes a link of some sort.
So, tracking him down, if hes still alive, is of the utmost importance.
Tyrellhasto be alive, but the question is, whats he been doing this whole time?
NEXT: What do you see?
I mentioned above that eps2.8_h1dden-pr0cess.axx is relentless, and that becomes most evident in the episodes final sequences.
I says sequences, plural, because there are a lot of them all kind of tied in together.
Robot, and its delightful.
First, theres the scene where Elliot tries to track the location of Tyrells phone.
He finds what hes looking for: a US Mobile Exigent Circumstance Form.
Yeah, I didnt know what that was either.
Basically, it allows for the NYPD to unblock a blocked number because theres an emergency situation underway.
So, Elliot falsifies the form and calls it in.
Just like that, hes in.
He has an address, and he brings it up on the screen.
Sutherland is blown away, and he also seems to know the address?
He focuses on us.
He tells us to help him understand why Mr.
Robot is absent right now.
More than that, he wants to know why Mr.
Robot was so eager to get back to this apartment.
There must be something important here.
If only Elliot could figure out what it is.
Its a shot that turns us into active viewers, and once again implicates us in Elliots actions.
Were part of the story.
Our eyes are scanning over everything, looking for clues as to what Mr.
Robot might want from the apartment.
Nothing, from what I see.
But what did you see?
What did Elliot see?
Another bit of neat storytelling comes in the form of how Esmail cuts the scene.
She does, but it isnt long before the cops show up and bring her back home.
Its a story spurred by Ciscos insistence that shes let fsociety and its mission get out of control.
Shes reckoning with that now.
She knows Elliot is the special one.
As her story suggests, hes always been the special one.
NEXT: Drive by dining
Then, theres the final stretch.
Its pure, glorious paranoia followed by violent catharsis.
First, Elliot meets Angela on the subway after she texts him with an urgent need to meet up.
This is no ordinary meet though.
So, shes going to turn herself in to the FBI.
She wont rat on Elliot or anyone else, but shes done running.
Elliot doesnt want to lose her though.
He tells us that.
Then, he hugs her.
Then, he kisses her.
When have we ever seen this side of Elliot?
Never is the answer.
We only see them from the back.Who are these people?Cops?
Then, the final breathtaking scene.
Its not even that its particularly flashy, but rather that it serves a purpose.
We scan the frame for impending doom, and sure enough, we find it.
DiPierro is hot on the trail of Cisco.
The FBI busted down the door to his apartment and found his workplace badge.
What else did they find?
Wasnt Darlene keeping a bunch of her fsociety materials there?
This could be bad news.
Cisco must have leftbeforethe BOLO was on the TV, meaning theyre probably still nearby.
The long, completely still take begins.
Esmail frames Lupes, the diner where Darlene and Cisco are eating, from across the street.
He establishes a distance.
We can barely see Darlene and Cisco from this far, but we know where they are.
We wait for something to happen.
Then, DiPierro comes into the frame.
Shes frantic and out of breath, having just traveled five blocks to get here.
She spots Cisco and Darlene.
She calls for backup and heads into the restaurant.
Things clearly get heated, from what we can see.
Then, it happens.
We see a motorcycle with two riders slide into the frame.
They pull up in front of the camera, again, across the street from Lupes.
The rider on the back dismounts, machine gun in hand.
He walks across the street and up to the window.
DiPierro seems tojustcatch a glimpse of him (I guess?)
before he fires; she ducks and then pops up to fire back.
The cops show up seconds later.
The one biker leaves the other one to die; hes already been shot, their position compromised.
DiPierro comes into the frame again, blood spattered on her face.
The blood of Darlene or Cisco?
Well have to wait and see.
Sirens are all we get as the credits take us to next week.
