THE STALKER (Catherine A+/ Macness A+)

By Anne Taul

 

       This was another of my favorite season 3 episodes. As usual, my attachment to this particular one stems from an absolutely overwhelming performance by Catherine Bell. This installment was about Mac, dealing with the unfortunate realities of her life – and battling her demons. Other characters and situations were largely superfluous. The fact that she did get so much airtime, and in so many different emotional states. Allowed the actress to showcase a broad range of talent and adaptability. No longer relegated to playing off a leading man, she rose to the occasion and shone magnificently.

      

       Mac certainly had more to deal with than is fair for any one individual, here. First, there was the breakup of a relationship that she had put much time and energy into. Dalton Lowne may have been a creep, but she had, at least at one time, really believed in him. Then, having to think that a person she had once really cared about was stalking her – hard times! Dalton’s death was a double dose of emotional upheaval. She could vocalize that the maniac stalker had probably killed him instead of her, making her feel responsible for his death. What she couldn’t say, at least not immediately, was that him being out of the picture, meant that somebody else, somebody she couldn’t identify, was still out to get her. The emotional reaction to this, alone, might be devastating.

 

        We see the character of Mac in a whole new light – frightened and subdued. Bell’s portrayal is filled with vulnerability. Our normal view of Mac is one of being in total control. Even when we’ve previously seen someone trying to kill her (i.e. Full Engagement) she’s maintained control (not necessarily composure but certainly control). The vulnerability and sheer terror exhibited by the character in this episode negates that and leaves her open to an entirely new range of emotional pitfalls. This is apparent when she recerts to her old way of handling stress and adversity, and begins drinking again. Her attack on Harm soon  after that, the “so righteous”  scene, appears to be more a reaction to her own guilt feelings than to anything that he’s initiated. She confirms this later when she tells him, “I’m ashamed for you to see me like this.” The turmoil played out in Catherine Bell’s features conveys a whole  plethora of emotions.

 

       Mac is obligated to rely on Harm for her safety, and it seems, her sanity. No one else id there.  All the other characters are involved in other, more minor plot forms. The fact that she’s dependent on him, along with his representation of what she’s not able to control or live up to, in her present state, create a great kind of emotional tension between these characters. Yes, Mac hits rock bottom, and Catherine Bell gives us an incredible, and thoroughly convincing gamut of emotionality that brings us together with the character and her dire situation, but which also effectively invigorates our own emotional responsiveness. Bell truly comes into her own as a true performer, which is one that can touch and effect the lives of an audience. We are, no doubt, enriched by having watched her do this.

 

       David James Elliot gets to move his Harm, uncharacteristically, into the supportive role on this one. He accomplishes this well. I can believe that he’s really worried about her, and the major changes these events are making in her life as well as her stability. Of course, ultimately, he’s supposed to be the hero. He gets to save her life, and sock it to the bad guy. I would offer tough, and I think Harm would agree, that in reality, it is Mac who comes out victorious and triumphant (in true heroic form). I think the whole “she knows what’s right” thing supports this.

 

        The admiral is busy in this episode with Francesca – and who can blame him. He gets to have a more human side here, which is great. I liked seeing him as

 

‘papa.” The fact that he wants all his staff to be involved in this (the party) highlights his integration of his working and private life, something we’ve seen AJ struggle with. As much as he cares about his staff, I think part of him definitely wanted to be able to help Mac when she was in such danger, but he had to trust Harm on that one. I won’t begin to deny that there was an  element of flirtatious attraction between the two of them, but I don’t think that was necessarily what was going on in that “almost kiss” scene. Since he’d not been able t be involved in her terrible ordeal, I think he felt a strong need to comfort her. She, of course, had a strong need for comfort. Because they couldn’t act on their mutual attraction for each other, I think they were trying to connect on the level most readily available. We must remember that Mac never had a father, to speak of. Part of her attraction to the admiral stems from this, but she doesn’t know how to relate to a man in that way.

 

        The stalker himself was just creepy enough to give a lift to Mac’s emotional degradation. The fact that he also appeared as what she thought was a good guy, trying to help her, intensified the piercing facial expressions that Catherine Bell can project as a whole range of emotion.    

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