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Episode Recap: "Pay to Play"
This was a very solid episode of Numb3rs, for all that it does take for granted a number of things that one might question, such as the gangster-wannabe nature of many rappers going as far as to spray bullets into a rival's house, or the quantifiability of pop-music success, either theoretically or via payola.
At a rap-label's promotion party, it's two most successful artists are highlighted, when a self-recording/promoting rapper who resents the label-owner, at least, crashes and demands to be heard. He's rushed offstage, but the most popular artist on the label seems less than thrilled with how things are happening around him...he steps out, gets in his car, and is cut down by gunfire in front of a number of witnesses. Since the FBI was already working a case against the record label for drug distribution, Liz Warner is on-scene, and invites Don's unit in to poke around as well (albeit they seem to have left the corpse in his car an improbably long time at that point).
The disgruntled crasher seems the likely suspect, so Warner and Sinclair go to question him...and find the aggrieved widow of the murdered rapper also visiting. It turns out that the murdered man and the crasher were old friends, and that the dead man had something that was troubling him about his label's business. Which seems to dovetail with what was on two iPods found in the murdered man's car, which turn out to be programs to analyze the likely popularity of any given pop song or rap. While the agents are at the crasher's house, bullets spray in through the front window; one seriously wounds the crasher.
The second-most popular rapper at the label, a Caucasian who affects the look and sound of his colleagues, had bragged of his intentions to revenge his labelmate's death the previous day, so he now becomes the primary suspect in both shootings. When the agents come to arrest him, he begs, in a whisper, for protective custody, while still bragging of his essential Badness; after being brought in, he admits to repsonsibility for the shooting at the independent rapper's house. But when the widow of his labelmate is killed with car bomb, he denies any responsibility, as well as for the death of her husband, despite having military explosives training...he suggests that the label's owner's primary assistant, a mountain of a man who follows orders to the letter, is responsible. Meanwhile, while Liz Warner blames herself for not gaining the trust of the widow before her own murder, the agents are able to gather from her husband's laptop, which the widow had with her at the time of her death, just what the label-owner's scam was...he was skimming profits from his biggest star to help promote, via payola, his Great White Hope and No. 2 artist, and meanwhile muddying the waters of his use of company funds in dope dealing.
The independent rapper, having learned of the murder of the widow as well, takes matters into his own hands and takes the label-owner hostage at gunpoint...which turns out to be a ploy to get the label-owner to incriminate himself on tape, via the microcassette reocorder the rapper carries with him at all times.
Aside from some funny, if a bit overdone, by-play between Charlie and Larry and the rap-label engineers and other staff, the notable side issues in this episode were the apparent sudden and mysterious absence of Megan, of which Larry is sworn to say little other than she asked to take a few days off to go to New York, and the budding cameraderie, at least, between Liz and Colby, encouraged by Don. And, most tellingly, the long-delayed meeting of Charlie with Amita's parents...which goes very badly, particularly for Charlie and his father Alan, when Amita's parents also invite a childhood friend of Amita's, now a successful international businessman, along to the dinner, clearly in hopes of luring Amita away from Charlie. The mathematician is thoroughly depressed, by Amita's apparent inability to tell her parents about the seriousness of their relation, and by her parents blatant rejection of him thus. Amita eventually explains and apologizes, noting that her childhood friend is gay, and that no one her parents could come up with could pull her away; happily, Amita's parents also apologize, and note that they hadn't realized till meeting Charlie how well Amita had chosen for herself.
Thus, one crisis is averted, the potential tearing of Amita between family and lover/life-partner...while another, the departure of Megan, is (however abruptly) set up.
(And further delay apologies...happily, the problems I've been having have been now fixed, just in time for the season finale next week....)
For more on Numb3rs, please see our Online Video Guide.
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May 12, 2008 12:56 AM
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Just an OK episode. Makes me wonder if there is really something like that song compare program out there. That would explain a few things about the music I hear....
Anyway's, I thought Amita's moms comment about how Charlie would make some girl lucky someday during the dinner was particularly stinging. I think I would have preferred that she 'had it out' with her parents before their acceptance and resolution. But then I'm not rusty after being on strike for several months.
And the widow. Sure hard to feel sympathy for someone who seems un-interested in finding out who killed her husband, and compounds it by not showing evidence to the people who could actually do something about it.
The exchanges between Charlie/Larry and the guys at the Rap studio were amusing. Not being a fan of rap, I really didn't care for that aspect of the show. The sad thing is that the portrayal of rap culture seems to be fairly accurate from what I have seen. When they were lamenting at the end that the self-promoted rapper would have to serve time, I just though that that would help enhance his image (sadly). The funniest part was when tough talking white rapper whispered that he wanted to be taken in for his protection.
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May 12, 2008 11:18 AM
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How could Amita have been so clueless when her childhood friend came for dessert at a dinner supposedly for Charlie? Is she that clueless that only Charlie would recognize it?
The widow just seemed to me as a stereotypical angry black woman. That said, someone who grows up in the "mean" streets really doesn't feel that the police have her best interests at heart. So, perhaps her attitude would've been warranted in this situation.
I just kept laughing at the white boy rapper. He was too funny and not in a comedic kind of way. All I kept picturing was The Jamie Kennedy Experiment. It just seemed like one of his gags.
I like this show, but it's way procedural and is getting too predictable. Who didn't figure out within the first gunshot that the producer was going to be behind the murder?
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May 12, 2008 11:36 AM
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Well I thought that you would have caught the "ripped from the headlines" aspect of it. This was obviously a rip off of Tupac (Hunter). The record label
Death Row (Center Mass) Records and the owner Suge Knight (Blanchard). Even the widow (faith evans) and the rival (Biggie Smalls) were thrown in just switched up (2Pac, Biggie and Faith were friends but Faith married Biggie not 2Pac). Pac was shot in a drive by in Vegas instead of in front of a club. Supposedly it was all because of the rights to Pac's music and covering up Knights drug dealing and skimming off the profits.
And the widow. Sure hard to feel sympathy for someone who seems un-interested in finding out who killed her husband, and compounds it by not showing evidence to the people who could actually do something about it.
You have to remember that in their neighborhood you don't trust the police. You can't. So her reaction was understandable. It makes us mad because we know the team is there to help but she doesn't know that.
All in all it was an ok episode. I liked the subplot with Amita and Charlie. That comment would have sent me over the edge. I think I would have said something to my parents at that point.
Does anyone see the eventual pairing of Colby and Liz? Hopefully this will keep Liz around a bit longer. I wish she could be the replacement for Megan. That would flow seamlessly. Oh well wishful thinking....
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May 12, 2008 11:52 AM
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Though a country fan like Colby the rapper senario wasn't too bad and the music itself was fairly brief. The meeting of the parents was of course awkward for all. But turned out well in the end although Alan's comment at the end about marrige did send Charlie running for the cookies--comfort food perhaps. As far as the set up for Megan's leaving I think that actually began with the last episode in season 3 after her return from a 'special assignment' and Colby's arrest where she stated-I can't do this anymore. Then in season four there is another conversation with Larry where she is struggling and Larry suggests a different assignment or perhaps a different career choice. The abruptness is only on the teams part. Don has become aware that something is going on and he is, I think afraid of what is to come. The others seem totally unaware that Megan is having serious job doubts and wants a change. I believe they will all be surprised when she makes the announcement. All that is except Larry who knows how Megan is struggling. The Colby-Liz connection it might work out. Colby did express an interest in Liz before he found out that she was hooked up with Don. Now that Don is back with Robin, Colby is free to pursue Liz. I see Colby taking it slow and not hopping into bed with Liz at the first opportunity. It would be nice if Liz could stay as Megan's replacement even though she is not a profiler.
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May 12, 2008 1:07 PM
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I was a bit bothered by what seemed like stereotyping of the rapper lifestyle. It did seem that way, but then a) stereotypes do come from somewhere, and b) if it is "mirroring" the 2pac thing, then I guess it's just factual. But it might not have done any favors for those in the industry. (I know, like they care, right?) But I do find it interesting how the show's writers are working to get that young demographic, with storylines about video games, computer hackers, rappers, actors, etc.
I too think Amita should have seen through her parents' motive in bring the childhood friend on their dinner. It was pretty darn rude, not to mention very blatant. Also, I thought it was a bit surprising that Alan was invited to join their party. To what end? As for Megan, yes, it's been obvious to us viewers that something's been bothering her and change is in the wind, but it's all pretty new to Don & the team, so it's natural that they're confused.
I like the idea of Colby & Liz, I think they make a good couple, probably with more staying power than Don & Liz.
I was watching an episode from the first season over the weekend, and there seemed to be a lot more FBI people who worked on these cases. Don would have them all in a room while they ran over the facts and handed out assignments. I know they probably can't keep up these things forever (all those actors on the payroll) but it seemed a little more authentic to have a "task force" on these big cases.
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May 12, 2008 10:33 PM
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