Timeless Review: The Day Reagan Was Shot (Season 2 Episode 8)

A young Agent Christopher comes under threat from Rittenhouse as the Time Team travels back to 1981 on Timeless Season 2 Episode 8, “The Day Reagan Was Shot.”

This episode is Timeless at it’s best. A great historical setting (those 80’s fashions!) with character-driven stories that advance the season’s overall arc and, most importantly, builds on the existing relationships between the team members.

In this case, the present and past of Denise Christopher receives most of the focus as viewers learn more about her background and how she’s been keeping the truth of her home-life a secret from her mother for years.

This type of storyline is certainly nothing new in television, lots of shows feature LGBTQ+ characters navigating difficult relationships with their families. However, exploring this through the eyes of a woman of color, especially on a prime-time show, is still all too rare.

Timeless often chooses to highlight under-represented events and figures from the past and it is great to see the show use this approach to create a moving storyline for one of its main characters in the present.

This works thanks to strong performances from Sakina Jaffrey and Karen David. It’s always interesting when characters are put into situations that bring out their vulnerability. Viewers get to see that here, as past Denise must decide to accept herself as she really is and present Denise confronts the possibility of losing her family.

While these struggles are partly internal, it helps that both versions of Denise are interacting with others to propel them into making the right choices. And a big reason the emotional core of this storyline works so well is because these interactions are built on well-established character relationships.

In particular, Lucy and Young Denise’s scenes are effective because the show took the time in Season 1 to introduce Lucy to Denise’s family. This really pays off in this episode, both as a plot point and because viewers are now invested in the friendship between the two women.

Flynn’s appeal to present day Denise allows both characters to connect over their experience as parents. Viewers are able to feel Flynn’s pain over missing his daughter and then understand why Denise immediately realizes where she needs to be – at home with her family.

The resolution to her storyline is also very poignant. All season the Time Team has been struggling to stop and/or minimize the damage Rittenhouse is doing to the timeline. While the team is successful overall, they have not always been able to stop smaller details from being altered.

The show often presents these changes as negative, but necessary, side-effects. For example, Lucy deals with one of her heroes essentially disappearing from the historical record. However, Denise’s story resolves with the character’s life changing for the better as her mother is no longer estranged and is now an active part of her family’s life.

The knowledge the Time Team’s efforts in the past can cause positive repercussions in the present gives me hope the team will be able to save Rufus despite Jiya’s premonition. Although, Rufus’ struggle over what this means for him and his relationship with Jiya is a little hard to watch at times.

I really want to reach through the TV screen and knock Rufus on the head for being such a doofus with Jiya at the beginning of this episode. Luckily, both characters decide to do what’s necessary to change Rufus’ fate in a lovely scene reminding viewers what a great couple (and team) they are.

While the character stuff is the highlight of, “The Day Reagan Was Shot,” there are also a few important plot points that (finally!) move this Rittenhouse storyline forward as the end of Season 2 approaches.

First, Rufus and Wyatt seeing first-hand how some of the Rittenhouse agents are struggling with their ‘sleeper’ roles seems like it may play into the finale. Emma and Nicholas Keynes may be Rittenhouse die-hards, but some of the lesser members do not appear to be as loyal . . .

Lucy also confronts Garcia Flynn about how her journal ended up with him and learns that in the future she is able to travel into her own past. Not sure if Flynn is being totally truthful here, but this feels like a pretty big revelation that opens up a lot of story possibilities.

Finally, at the end of a fantastic episode full of wonderful character moments and fun 1980s references (Cagney and Lacy!), Timeless whiffs it a little by reminding viewers Jessica exists before hinting that she is working for Rittenhouse AND revealing she is pregnant.

To be honest, it feels like this Wyatt and Jessica stuff is part of some other show. After all, it shares a lot of story similarities with night-time soap operas.

Dead wife/husband returns? Check!
Love triangle? Check!
Spouse is secretly evil? Possible check.
Surprise pregnancy? Check!

There is certainly nothing wrong with soap operas, but the tone of this storyline doesn’t seem to fit in with the rest of Timeless. I certainly hope this all comes to a conclusion soon, so the show and the characters can move on for good.

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

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Timeless airs Sundays at 10/9c on NBC.

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