Valor – Espirit de Corps

By: Paige Zinaman

When the episode begins we see a US fighter jet heading towards the location of POWs. They are alerted that the airspace they are traveling into is closed and that if they cross over they will be shot down. Haskins (Nigel Thatch), Ian (Charlie Barnett) and Thea (Melissa Roxburgh) are watching and listening to everything unfold when Thea tells Haskins they can not risk an all-out conflict for him passing through. With just seconds to spare, Haskins tells the pilot to abort the mission and return to base. The next morning Gallo (Matt Barr) meets up with Madani (Christina Ochoa) telling her that they called a briefing with just the Perseus crew. Gallo explains that his friend can get him the manifest that will show them who was on his team and what really happened.  Before going into the briefing, Gallo tells Madani that they should talk about what happened the night they kissed at the house. She tells him that It’s not the place and walks into the briefing room. Ian comes over and asks Madani how she’s doing when they point out that Ian looks worried, but before he could say anything Gallo starts talking about which superhero they would be. As they start the briefing Thea tells them that they have new members to welcome telling everyone to welcome their Delta Force partners. Thea and Haskins tell the group that Jimmy and Hendrix are officially MIA, but their POW status will not be made public yet. They tell them group that Somalia is not happy with their attempts to enter their airspace and that their rescue mission just got a lot more complicated. Adam Coogan (Bryan Craig) asks Thea if she could tell them who the prisoner is to which she responds that it is a highclass Somalian insurgent who’s name is classified. After the briefing, Madani tells Gallo to spill on why he and Coogan do not like each other. He explains to her that they served together and that he got the promotion that Coogan wanted and his girl. They agree that relationships are hard when Gallo points out that Ian was pretty tense with her that morning. She tells him that Ian knows she is hiding something.

Madani goes to see Jess (Corbin Reid) where she is met with Mrs. Darzi (Morganna Bridgers) and Mrs. Leigh (Jessica Perez) who are quick to leave telling Jess and Madani that they will see them at the ball on Friday. Once they are gone, Jess tells her that they should cancel the ball with everything going on. Madani tells her that they need the ball now more than ever then proceeds to ask Jess how she’s holding up. Jess tells her she’s fine, something Madani doesn’t believe so Jess tells her she’s a mess and the “Real Housewives of Fort Dabney” wants her to go to a support group. Madani tells her that it might be a good idea, but Jess denies it telling her that she doesn’t know what those women are like. It seems everything you say turns to gossip that hits the whole base in just a matter of hours and that you are judged also telling her that she doesn’t want them to see her looking weak. Madani tells her that she’s anything but weak and Jess asks her what the point in talking is when she can’t even tell anyone wants going on. Madani tells her she wants to help and asks her what she can do. Jess tells her that she can keep her promise she made to her and that she will get on that team that goes in and she will do everything it takes to bring Jimmy home. Madani goes to the rec center where she overhears Gallo and Coogan disagreeing on the plans and tells them that they are a team now and that they have to work together to figure it out. Coogan explains that Hendrix is one of his friends and the reason he’s over there is because of them which causes Madani to get upset and get in Coogan’s face. Madani is going through the file and tells him that there’s a problem with the weight and two extra people on board will make it hard to fly. Gallo tells her that he got the mission manifest and one name on the list is Owen Dalton. They make a plan to go talk to him the following morning.

In Somalia, Jimmy (W. Tre Davis) and Hendrix (Mac Brandt) are sitting in the holding shelter, Jimmy questions how long it’s been since they got their hands free to which Hendrix says he doesn’t know and that it’s hard to keep track of time down there. Hendrix tells Jimmy that as soon as they come through that door they need to be ready to move so he needs to be “squared away.” Jimmy tells Hendrix that he’s good to go. In a flashback, Gallo and Madani try to revive CIA Officer Richard (Brian Stapf) when their efforts fail Madani tells Gallo they need to bury him. Gallo tells her they need to move and get ahold of Jimmy and the others to which Madani tells him again they need to bury Richard because he knows what they will do to Americans if they find them. Gallo suggests dumping him into a lake, which Madani protests to at first until they hear people coming and he tells her they have no choice. Madani wakes up in Ian’s arms after clearly dreaming about what happened. Ian wakes up and they start to continue what they were doing the night before her phone goes off and she tells Ian she’s got to go.

Madani and Gallo meet with the man on the manifest under the impression that they are doing an investigation for benefits claim making sure his family is getting paid what they are due. Owen tells them that they were doing a Halo Jump in heavy cloud cover and that he was the first to jump but a few seconds later he radioed telling them his parachute wasn’t working and then they lost contact. He told them that there was a CIA group on the ground that went looking for him and got a visual of his body and identified Richard who helped him fake his death. Gallo apologizes to Madani for crossing the line as her CO to which Madani says they both crossed a line and to just forget about it. Ian goes to Thea who asks him what one would wear to a Military Ball, which takes him by surprised and he explains to her it’s semi-formal. Thea then asks what Ian wanted to talk to her about and he informs her that he did some research and that the Puntland government runs a refugee camp outside of Bosaso that was hit meningitis outbreak but can’t get antibiotics because it’s too dangerous. He tells him that their team could fly in a shipment of antibiotics as a gesture of goodwill in exchange for the government reopening their airspace.

Gallo and Madani along with Coogan and the rest of the crew do a practice run with all of the supplies that Coogan wants they soon take off to do their drills. Coogan who can’t make is shots lined up tells them that he needs them to do it his way. They point out that they can’t because of the supplies he insisted on bringing to which Coogan calls them the “Taxi Drivers” while he’s the customer and he expects to get what he wants and if they can’t do that they’ll have a problem. Gallo takes controls back causing Coogan to dangle from the side of the chopper proving a point while also having a little bit of fun. Ian confronts Madani about what happened that morning when she makes it clear that she is not discussing this with him. He tells her that she’s going to have to at some point furthering upsetting Madani and causing Ian to give her an ultimatum either she starts trusting him or they are done. Another flashback occurs, showing Gallo helping Madani through the woods telling her to trust him. Madani tells him that it was her first kill to which he tells her it was to save him and if they find out then they are both going to be locked away. Gallo tells her there is another way and that the prisoner bailed so they don’t know where he went. They look for proof that the mission they just undertook was an illegal one. He goes on to say if they find that proof then they come clean and they stay out of prison. Madani tells him that lying goes against everything they are trained to do, which he points out that pulling the trigger does too.

The following morning Jess meets Madani on the track so Madani can show her how they deal with stuff and start running the bleachers up and down. In Somalia, Jimmy and Hendrix hear voices outside the door and prepare to make a break for it. They fight two guard and manage to get out when they are stopped by more guards and Khalid Samatar (Jaiden Kaine). Khalid tells Jimmy and Hendrix that they are worth more alive then dead and to give up fighting.

Haskins introduces the group to the three people who will be watching their drills one of which is Simone Porter (Valarie Pettiford), Ian’s mom. When the drills start Gallo questions Madani about why she’s so tense asking if it has to do with Ian’s mother watching the drills. Simone gets onboard with them wanting to see what they can do. Gallo takes the chopper below fifty allowing Coogan and the rest of the crew to take their shots when Dixon (Kenneth Israel) tells Gallo that Haskins looks like he’s going to kill someone.

Everyone is getting ready for the Military Ball, which results in a clean-shaven Gallo. Thea approaches Madani who tells her that she’s impressed and that she wants to know what happened to Richard who was a mentor of hers. Jess tells them that she understands who they deal with things a little more after Madani made her do the run. Madani asks how the talk with Haskins went and he informs her he got a reprimand, but they did get on the rescue mission. He tells Madani about the girl he and Coogan fought over that he really fell for and that she died on a mission. Anna (Heighlen Boyd) tells Madani and Gallo that two suits came by her office wanting the records he’s been asking for and that she made something up yet she doesn’t think they bought it and that she thinks they are CIA. Gallo wants to know how the agency knew they went to Anna to which Madani tells him that they are watching them. Another flashback shows him helping Madani with her leg. He shows her what the prisoner dropped, a thousand US dollars and inside was a domino. Back at the ball, Madani tells Ian that he’s right and deserves to know the truth and tells him she’s been visiting Gallo outside of work because they’ve been struggling with what they went through and helping each other through it. Ian tells her she is the one she should be talking to which she agrees that from now on she will. They go back inside to dance and have a good time. Gallo goes to get a drink, clearly bothered. Phones start going off signaling something big is happening. Thea and Haskins receive a video from Kahlid wanting the release of fifty ISIS soldiers in exchange for Jimmy and Hendrix. Gallo and Madani notice the domino that Khalid is flipping between his fingers.