Timeless Review: Public Enemy No. 1 (Season 1 Episode 15)

There’s so much to unpack on Timeless Season 1 Episode 15, but let’s start with the big elephant in the room.

Spoiler alert: Rufus gets shot. Plot wise, it has always been absolutely insane that Rufus (and potentially Jiya) is the only one who knows how to pilot The Lifeboat.

Each member of the team brings something to the table: Lucy’s history knowledge, Wyatt’s military experience, and Rufus’ incredible computer brain.

But while a combination of skill-sharing has gone on amongst the others — most notably Rufus, who enters Wyatt’s world more than anyone else — neither Wyatt nor Lucy have taken a second to ask if they should try to learn even the basics of The Lifeboat in case of emergency.

It makes sense to keep Rufus’ skills as his own, but considering the team has been stranded more than once, you’d think someone would have thought of a backup plan for, well, this exact instance.

The instance, of course, being the shooting of a black man in an age where medical assistance is not only segregated, but extremely unreliable. Sigh.

Elsewhere, Jiya the Super Hacker schools Mason on his final confirmation as the true villain of the show. It’s sad to see Mason weaken against the forces of Rittenhouse, actually, for I had a perhaps far-flung hope that he would rebel alongside the team.

Instead, we’re treated to a truly kick-ass moment for Jiya, where she finally sees Mason for who he is: smaller than her.

Mason make talk a big talk, but Jiya is smart, resourceful, and quite frankly the female MacGyver the world deserves. If Jiya doesn’t officially join the team next season, I will riot. Loudly. On Twitter.

Speaking of Mason: his quest to be in God Mode finally makes itself known.

I don’t know about you, but giving unlimited and unfiltered access of nationwide surveillance to a private citizen seems like a bad idea to me. I guess Lucy’s dad isn’t as bright as he thinks he is.

There’s a lot to cheer about in this episode, but perhaps the most thrilling one is the team’s theft of The Lifeboat. They’re not only on the run now, they’re officially vigilantes.

Looking forward to what may happen next week proves especially difficult. The season finale will surely leave us on a cliffhanger (#RenewTimeless), but so many questions still remain: will Rufus live? Will Lucy ever get the chance to find her sister? Is Jiya okay? How does Lucy’s journey play into this, and at what point does Flynn get it from her?

And will Flynn succeed in crashing the Rittenhouse meeting?

That’s going to be one packed hour of television.

Stray Thoughts:

• Lucy and Rufus teaming up to incapacitate the assassin on board The Lifeboat was charmingly badass. For two people who aren’t overly comfortable with violence, they managed just fine.
• Flynn is a hard character to hate. His motives are clear, but his execution is unjustifiable. It makes him fascinating to watch, but hard to pin down.
• Lucy didn’t get kidnapped in this episode! Score!
• Okay, guys, seriously: is Rufus okay?

What did you think of this episode of  Timeless? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

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 Timeless airs Mondays at 10/9c on CBS.

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