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Episode Recap: "Atomic No. 33"
An episode that was more of a straightforward mystery than usual, with multiple suspects in the murders of various members of a Christian-offshoot sect that could very easily be called a cult, and indeed is classified that way by state and Federal authorities. Also, an episode which gave a little space for Don and Robin to be playful with each other, and for Larry to begin to articulate the discontent which is starting to color his life. The title refers to the place in the chemist's Periodic Table of arsenic.
In the compound of the sect, which like Christian Science and some other faiths prefers to avoid standard allopathic medicine, a social event is disrupted by what turns out to be poisoned coffee, laced with enough arsenic to sicken the assembled...and just a little too much more. It turns out that the recently installed minister and his son have ulterior motives in their involvement with the church--they are con men, playing, as Megan notes, a "life con" to exploit the congregation for their money, and to move the church closer to the mainstream so as to get it off government radar and to get it tax exemption...and therefore more money to play with. But this is not immediately clear, for the minister's son was one of the arsenic victims, though not one of the two fatalities...shortly thereafter, the minister is killed in a suspicious explosion. The obvious suspects are the church's founding minister's wife, who had been shunted from power through the new minister's stratagems, and her daughter, who is in a semi-secret affair with the son.
However, while the mother and widow (a good turn by Jill Eikenberry, whom we don't see often enough these years) makes an excellent suspect, it soon becomes clear that the explosion was the work of the son, in part as payback for the excessive poisoning (which was supposed to be just enough to get the congregation to accept medical help) and in part so as to cash in, since the fake minister was trying to break up the kids' affair.
While helping with the investigation, Larry completely loses his cool when facing Eikenberry's Susan Doran, who tends to equate science with Satan and Nazism. Larry, himself a spiritual seeker as well as a significant scientist, can't stomach her resentment at all, and gives her back as much hostility as she presents, leading Megan and Charlie to pull him aside. Discussing the matter later with Alan, he realizes just how thoroughly he fell into a knee-jerk response, driven in part by his own spiritual doubts and lack of joy in the material world of late. When Alan teases him, pretending to take Doran's view that all scientists want to take over the world, Larry delivers the episode's best line, noting that if he was to conquer the world, "all I'd have to show for it would be...the world."
When not focusing on the case, Don and Robin seek to dig out facts about each other, and give each other playful surprises. It turns out, to everyone's surprise, that Don's favorite film isn't Heat, but Sullivan's Travels...and that Robin loves watermelon candy.
And by episode's end, the successful demonstration of how one can run across water with just enough starch in it seems to help lift Larry's spirits.
Another nugget...I wasn't aware that arsenic dust was explosive. But I'll buy it.
And many apologies to anyone who's been missing this entry...tiresome ISP and computer problems, then the crush of work, delayed the post till now.
For more on Numb3rs, please see our Online Video Guide.
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May 6, 2008 10:37 PM
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Good post, and couldn't understand when I saw it today WHY there weren't any comments posted since Numb3rs is a must see show for so many, but reading your explanation about the late date and computer problems, they probably haven't yet realized you're back.
Enjoyed the show as I always do and it surprised me with the Minister being a fake and the son not being legit or that BOTH were cons. Good surprise twist. Wound up wondering HOW the two got together - I mean they showed how his parents were killed but never explained what happened to the kid nor how the two of them got together.
Jill WAS fantastic and seeing her and "Larry" at it was marvelous. He does seem to be awfully discontent lately and I'm hoping it's NOT going to lead to a writeout since I know his love interest will be leaving shortly. They've been a strange but fun pairing. But speaking of "strange" pairings I just don't get Robin with Don, though how the story has the two of them exploring each other is just perfect, but I don't see the fit. Except there we go again, maybe not the best fits make the best of pairings.
Looking forward to next week's blog (how many shows are left before summer?) and will check back to see whether other viewers have caught up with your blog.
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May 7, 2008 12:06 PM
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There are two more episodes scheduled for the season, Dorjean...and thanks for the kind words. At least one poster has put a comment on this episode on the previous entry...I still haven't found out if we can expect Kathy Najimy to return, but I'll see what I can do.
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May 7, 2008 3:39 PM
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Thanks for your review, when I didn't see a post on Monday I was afraid this episode would be skipped, but better late than never!
I enjoyed this episode a lot as each character was involved, even if it was only a small part. I was also a little surprised when they revealed the minister and his son were the culprits, that was an interesting twist.
I found Larry's reaction to the character of Susan Doren to be pretty interesting, definitely developing his feelings of discontent as you noted. Had me wondering about the future of Larry on this show, I enjoy the pairing of Megan and Larry but would be sad if they both left.
This was also the first episode I've seen where I found Don and Robin together to be somewhat believable. Previously, I've agreed with Dorjean and never quite "got them", but as they flirted throughout and learned some surprising tidbits about one another, I started to warm up to their pairing.
I've watched this show since the beginning and found that it rarely disappoints, but I've developed a new appreciation for it since the writers strike. I realized there weren't too many shows I missed watching during the strike, but this was one of them.
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May 8, 2008 11:36 AM
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