Review: Human Target - Embassy Row

(S01E03) "Did the hooker just punch you in the face?" – Winston

No runaway trains or upside down planes this week. Instead, Chance crashed the Russian Embassy and teamed up with a sexy FBI agent to catch his friend's killer.

This was a great episode. It had all the elements of a taut big screen thriller, plus some excellent action and a few welcome quirky character moments. I've only seen three episodes, but I'm already hooked on Human Target. I'm ready to follow Chance to the end of the season and beyond. Here's hoping that Fox (killer of all things that make me happy) has similar plans.

It looks like Human Target is set on delivering plenty of stand-alone episodes with only hints at a greater story arc. I'm a big fan of shows that offer complicated arcs that stretch out over several seasons, but that's clearly not what's happening here.

Human Target is a throwback to a simpler time; a time when the A-Team was blowing up tanks and Magnum was racing his Ferrari all over Oahu. (Thankfully, the show isn't nearly as artless or as cheesy as those '80s action series could be.) The show is a blast, and it knows how to deliver the goods: Action, adventure, humor and mystery all wrapped up in a fun forty-minute package. It's definitely not The Wire, but its still good TV.

"Embassy Row" was a big improvement over last week's nutty sneaks-on-a-plane ep. It was a nice change of pace watching Chance do his thing on the ground instead of trapped inside of a moving vehicle. The mission had him rubbing elbows with foreign dignitaries, Russian spies and the FBI in Washington, DC. It was the perfect forum to show us how deep the agency's contacts go. Apparently, the boys have a good relationship with the U.S. Secretary of Defense, even though Chance probably blew up his boat, his house and his horse (?).

I love how things can go from bad to worse for Chance in a matter of seconds. This time, the fly in the ointment came in the form of an airborne poison. Our hero was forced to save the day while dealing with the shakes, dizziness and a high fever. But all that couldn't stop him from participating in a brilliantly choreographed fight/waltz scene with hooker... er... FBI agent Emma Barnes.

I hope Emmanuelle Vaugier shows up again. She and Mark Valley had some good chemistry going on. And more Emma Barnes probably means we'll learn more about Chance's past, since she's clearly invested in uncovering his secrets.

And speaking of guest stars, it was great to see Firefly's Sean Maher on TV again. There he was in all his wonderful Sean Maher-ness, playing a desperate guy who was out of his element again.

This ep had its share of ridiculous moments – like Chance and Emma magically making it over the Embassy wall under a rain of bullets – but it wasn't as over-the-top as last week's. What do you guys think? Is Human Target growing on you?

Other observations:

- Guerrero's "feeding the cat" moment was hilarious. So is his 'stache.

- It's pretty cool how Winston can detect when anyone runs Chance's prints. It's also cool that his name comes up as "John Doe" followed by a super long list of aliases.

- Chance relaxes by playing videogames and dozing on the couch just like the rest of us!

- That was probably one of the best motorcycle chases I've seen in a long time. I know. I'm a 12-year-old.

[Catch up with free episodes of Human Target on Slashcontrol.]