FBI – Season 5 Episode 16 ” Family First ” Recap & Review

Family First

Episode 16  of FBI season 5 starts with a woman being shot in cold blood on a casual morning. The killer shouts, “ Now, it is your turn! “ before firing two times into her chest.  As the woman falls, we are led to believe that she is a cop because of the badge she is wearing.

Elsewhere, Tiffany meets with her brother and sister for their mom’s anniversary. She has a surprise to honour their mom and her favourite spot in the city. Of course, this makes all three of them emotional.

Tiffany checks in on her brother, Bryan and asks him about an altercation he had with his manager. Bryan walks away as Tiffany asks him to go back and apologize to his boss. Tiffany is surprised by his outburst but his other sister, Erika is used to it. She tells Tiffany that Bryan might be having mental health issues like their uncle. Tiffany insists Bryan needs to grow up and quickly leaves after getting a case alert.

At the crime scene, she meets Schola and they start inspecting the scene. Meanwhile, OA and Maggie get witness statements and learn the victim was targeted. Jubal wonders why but the suspect pool is large given that  Mia (the dead cop) was a federal correctional officer.  She had been working for seven years and at this point, the team can’t tell who might have had a grudge against her.

A background check on Mia turns up short. They reach out to her mom in hopes they can find out more. Mia’s mom, Carmen is still in shock but is sure she has seen the shooter outside their apartment before. She never saw his face and assumed he was a homeless guy. She starts blaming herself for not saying anything but the fault likely doesn’t lie with her.

The FBI realize that Mia was being watched and her murder was premeditated. The lab gets a hit from the partial print from the shell casing they found at the crime scene. The print leads them to a man named Kennedy who has a slew of priors and is a member of a biker gang. He most certainly crossed paths with Mia when in prison. Kennedy works at a sports bar with a rough clientele so they plan to carefully bring him in.

The stint is successful and they arrest Kennedy after finding a nine-millimetre gun on him.  Kennedy denies knowing Mia and insists the gun has never been fired. He also has an alibi but they suspect that he loaded the weapon. Kennedy explains his prints are on the casing for a specific reason but wants immunity before he spills his guts.  Maggie gives him her word and Kennedy sings like a canary.

It turns out he sold the gun to some young guy at the bar the previous day.  The guy didn’t give him a name but Kennedy is aware that he is an ex-military. Analyst Kelly Moran checks the bar’s surveillance footage and gets the killer’s car license.  A deeper investigation leads them to the current car’s location.

Tiffany and Schola go to check the place out but Tiffany gets a call from Erika. Bryan acted out again and is not answering his phone. Tiffany says she is in the middle of a case and can’t get in the middle of it. Schola asks if everything is okay and Tiffany explains that her brother is acting out and Erika wants him to be mentally evaluated. Schola thinks it is a good idea and talks of his experience with his therapist but Tiffany ignores his point.

The real owner of the truck informs the agents that the car was being driven by a certain Michael Landry. The owner says that Michael is good at holding grudges and tells them that Michael lives with his mom. They visit the home and meet Mrs Landry who is not exactly surprised that Michael is in trouble. Mrs Landry refuses to cooperate and blames the government for what happened to her son. She believes his time in the military changed him.

On their way back to the office, Erika calls Tiffany and tells her Bryan is causing trouble at the restaurant he used to work at. Schola suggests they go to Bryan as they are close by and promises to cover for Tiffany. They get to the restaurant and find Bryan smashing bottles and threatening the manager.

The NYPD is on the scene and  Schola tries to talk them down while Tiffany tries to de-escalate the situation. After a while, Bryan calms down and luckily no charges are brought against him.  Erika arrives to take him home but Tiffany is still not sold on getting him professional help. Schola reminds her that mental illness is a real thing and they should get him help.

Jubal orders the analysts to keep a watch on Mrs Landry’s phone and notify them when Michael calls his mom. Traffic cams around the area also show that Michael took his mom’s car. They trace the car outside the courthouse and arrive to hear gunshots.  Two women have been shot and Michael is once again on the run. Schola chases after him but Michael steals a car and drives off. Another problem arises as the car he stole had a child in it. They use GPS to trace the car and find the young girl safe and alive but Michael is long gone.

The media starts looking into the case but the FBI have no answers yet. They believe the judge was the target so they try to find a link to the judge and Mia.  Analyst Kelly Moran discovers that Michael’s sister died in federal police custody during a social justice protest.  Officially, she died from a ruptured aneurysm but the family believes that she died from a brain injury sustained while in custody.  The family sued and lost the case two weeks ago and according to the court files, Mia was among those involved.

The FBI move to quickly protect everyone involved in the case. They are however late as Michael gets to another cop and shoots him. Luckily, the cop survives but Michael runs away. They set up a containment and surveil all surrounding areas. They get a hit and see that Michael called his mom while in a taxi. They are chasing him in real time but by the time they get there, the taxi driver is shot and Michael is in the winds.

Tiffany and Schola visit Mrs Landry again but she still doesn’t want to help or believe Michael is dangerous.  Schola’s words to Mrs Landry to face the truth hits a nerve with Tiffany as well. Mrs Landry breaks down and gives them a lead to help them trace him. Her only request is that they take him in alive.  It seems that Michael’s next target is the doctor who concluded Michael’s sister suffered no brain injury.

OA and Maggie get to the doctor but it is too late, the doctor has been shot dead. Landry calls his mom and the FBI ping his phone. This time they get to him before he can flee. He makes his way to a rooftop and realizes he is cornered.  Tiffany tries to talk him off the edge, but Michael’s gun fails and malfunctions. Tiffany sees that this could happen to her brother and after the arrest, she heads directly home.

She and Erika assure Bryan that he needs help and that they will help him. At first, Bryan is against the idea but Tiffany threatens to have him arrested if he refuses help.  They assure Bryan that they love him and everything will be okay. Bryan finally admits that he is scared and agrees to get help.


Episode Review

This episode focused heavily on mental health and this is something that we need to discuss more.  Tiffany’s early attitude toward Bryan’s problems shows just how much mental illnesses are seen as something one needs to simply get over with.

She thought Bryan just needed to grow up and refused to see that he was struggling even though she had seen her uncle go through the same thing. Denial is part of the reason why mental health is still being heavily ignored in society. Nonetheless, I am glad she had a turnaround and got her brother the help he needed.

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  • Episode Rating
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3.5

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