'Found' Season 2 Episode 17 "Missing While Manipulated" Review

What was that?! Talk about adrenaline rushing, edge of your seat tv. Were you right about Sir’s accomplice? Did you guess the reveal a few episodes ago? Episode 17 was a high-velocity, full throttle cascade of storylines that kept you locked in from scene to scene. Directed by Mark-Paul Gosselaar, the audience was taken on an intense journey filled with anxiety, fear, reveals, and hugs. Lots of hugs! I admit, I was worried for Gabi and Margaret. I didn’t know how the episode would unfold, but it continues to confirm FOUND is one of the leaders in primetime television.

[SPOILERS] 

After a brief hiatus, the show continues with the search for Jamie. As Gabi and Dhan search for clues in her basement, Margaret reaches out to Trent who tells her Jamie went to see Sir. As we know, Sir is only interested in one particular visitor, but we can see he enjoys poking the mama bear. At the prison, Margaret wants details about his conversation with Jamie but Sir likes to be in control during patient assessments. “You’re becoming unhinged aren’t you,” Sir says.  “...you were able to turn your back on Gabrielle without batting an eye…good and bad can coexist”. Frustrated, Margaret wants answers but Sir is tight-lipped until he gets what he wants. “I will tell you what you want to know if you bring Gabrielle to see me.”

As Margaret and Trent leave the prison, they cross paths with Heather who still wants to repair their relationship. Trent tells her, “It’s not too late…just stop representing Sir”. Before Margaret leaves, her superpower kicks in and she notices something about Heather which many of us have been wondering about for a while - who is she? Margaret believes she is Sir’s sister, Lina. She has all the traits that fit and it explains why she would take his case. Gold star to everyone who guessed correctly.

The case of the week was a feast filled with beautiful POV camera angles that drew you into the room. Monty Clark, a father who was released from prison, held Gabi and Margaret hostage at the M&A office. Furious for being separated from his family by Gabi, Monty requests her help by gunpoint to find his son. After having Gabi and Margaret chain the doors and turn off security cameras, he replays all the events that led to him being separated from his family. 

With every wave of the gun, you can feel the anticipation and fear in the room. Mark-Paul’s eye for tight POV shots was a tone I was not expecting. The high-low pivots gave you a sense of what each character was seeing and feeling in those moments.  An energy current flowed between the performers in the conference room that allowed each person to showcase their strengths. There was also a nice parallel between Monty's desperation to find his son and Margaret running to Jamie when she hears him calling her name from outside. She has to go to him. She can’t fail him again, especially if he is calling for her. As Monty holds the gun towards Margaret to stop, Gabi steps in front of him. She is standing IN HIS space, trying to reason with him face-to-face. Extremely powerful scene.

Outside of M&A, watching Jamie push past Dhan and Trent to get to Margaret pulled on all my heart strings. The fear and urgency to reach her caught me by surprise.  It’s during this moment we see that Jamie loves his mom! It was the reassurance the team and the audience needed to help confirm his identity. A glimmer of hope for their relationship seems brighter after that warm embrace between them. 

With Gabi alone with Monty, she slowly builds his trust and they begin to work the case with the M&A team gathered at Zeke’s. After doing interviews with Monty’s ex-wife's family and friends, they were able to surmise Dahlia went to a clinic for help and had her friend watch Jalen. Monty was worried for Jalen’s safety because Dahlia needed postpartum care. To break away from her parents' manipulation, Dahlia sought help with the plan to eventually reconcile with Monty. The love of a father has been a constant story theme this season. Monty was desperate to protect his family, even though he didn’t go about it in the best way.  This case also showed how much Gabi has grown as an investigator and that her trauma is not everyone’s same journey. 

As the episode comes to a close, Margaret visits Sir and lets her know she is not the one to mess with, especially when it comes to Gabi. “You know what my superpower is and from now on, it's trained on you,” Margaret said. “…I will make sure you never hurt Gabi again”.

Throwing a card down before Margaret leaves, Sir said, “Don’t worry Margaret. The clouds will part eventually. Just give it a min”.   

“Where did you hear that?” she asked.  Sir says it’s something Jamie’s mother always said. “I assumed it was from you….”  Sir is messy but what clue did he give Margaret? Does she know who took Jamie? Have we seen or met this person on screen?

Let's see what unravels next week.

Found airs Thursday night, stream next day on Peacock.

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