lotekguy-1

It's a good action role for Angie Harmon. The script isn't bad for most of the running time. There's more violence than one might expect from a Lifetime Network movie... in a good way.

It's always fun to see character actor Bruce McGill, whose range always impresses from good guys to bad; from comedy to drama. A couple of his best roles were as a comic relief buddy in the original MacGyver, and as a more serious cop partner for Harmon in Rizzoli & Isles.

BUT BUYER BEWARE!!

This thing ends on a cliffhanger of MAJOR significance. It aired in 2022. Three years later, there's no indication on the IMDb pages for the movie or Ms. Harmon that the wrap-up the story and audience deserve is even in development.

A pox upon their houses for this betrayal.

This was the most exciting episode of the series... for most of its running time. A major domestic terrorism threat of releasing a biological weapon leads to its most elaborate action sequences with lots of bullets flying in many directions. And more.

Meanwhile, there's a swirl of intense personal story arcs involving most of the regular cast. Heavy stakes all around - medical crises and familial upheaval - all of which blend organically.

Then comes the ending - or, rather, the lack of them. I've always chafed at cliffhangers. Moreso in this era of sudden surprise cancellations. This one leaves fans hanging on TWO biggies. Not the way the faithful deserve to be treated. That dropped this 9 rating to a 6.

On the plus side, action scenes are plentiful, well-choreographed and varied; from one-on-one fights, to heroes against bunches of baddies; to knives, clubs and guns, with a few big explosions in the mix, and all while the clock is ticking on the threat they face.

The trio of agents first handle a bomb that is intended to kill a bunch of rich people at an elegant high-rise party. Before they can catch their breath, they're back in the saddle for a terrorist plot to wipe out most of Tokyo with a superdeadly engineered bioweapon. Add to that some intrigue about double agents and double crosses, and all the pieces are in place for a spy thriller.

But the protagonists aren't up to snuff for our admiration. They're constantly outgunned or otherwise overmatched. They're given special weapons akin to the goodies Q whips up for Bond, but use them rarely, if at all. They go into a gunfight without even a knife. With a better script giving the three more smarts, this rating could have easily been a couple of stars higher.