The Equalizer Season 5 Episode 13 Review: A Few Good Women

The Equalizer Season 5 Episode 13, “A Few Good Women,” reinforces the fact that the show focuses on uplifting and empowering women while telling their stories. By working on a case that involves a missing soldier, Robyn and Melody help this woman find her voice again and receive the justice she deserves.

Not only does the episode voice the challenges survivors of sexual assault go through, but also the challenges faced by women in the military on a daily basis. Mel and Robyn make these challenges evident when they list them after discovering Cass has gone missing.

Because the military is a field mostly filled with men, the women who choose this path must overcome certain hurdles that the men will never understand. That’s why they take Cass’s case seriously. It becomes even more serious when they discover her CO raped her.

Cass’s rape is treated with respect, and her experience (and those of the other women) is handled very carefully on this episode. Mel opening up and sharing her own experience fits the storyline perfectly.

Often, women who survive sexual assault are empowered to share their stories because other women did so. By Mel sharing what happened to her, Cass can trust her and tell her exactly what her CO did to her. That is the same that happened between Cass and Sloane before she was killed.

As empowering and uplifting as this moment is, it’s not surprising that, at first, the women are met with resistance. When Robyn comes to her old CO to tell him Strickland raped those women, he refuses to believe her and puts the blame on Cass. Once more, the show portrays what happens when women come forward to report men in positions of power.

Luckily, Robyn’s old CO changes his mind, and Strickland is arrested. However, this doesn’t take away everything Cass had to do to stay alive and be able to speak her truth. But it makes sense that she chooses to stay in the army even after all that.

As Mel puts it, Cass chooses to bring a change from within.

The presence of Robyn’s old CO on The Equalizer Season 5 Episode 13, “A Few Good Women,” is very important. A big part of Robyn’s character is determined by her father’s murder and the fact that she had to grow up without him.

Oftentimes, we see male characters who are fatherly figures in Robyn’s life. Bishop was one of them, but he was also murdered. Once more, Robyn lost a man who mattered to her.

This time, she tells Mel and Harry that her old CO was a father to her. He took her under his wing when she joined the army and helped build her career. Sadly, that’s another fatherly figure she is losing.

While her CO doesn’t die, he might as well be dead to her because of how he disappointed her. Instead of believing Robyn and Cass, he chooses to side with a rapist to protect the army. Even though he changes his mind, it’s too late for Robyn.

Robyn is a strong, independent character who doesn’t need any of these men, but because her father’s loss left such a big mark on her, the loss of these men does so too. She is looking for someone to replace the dad she lost but continues to lose everyone who comes remotely close to that.

To end the episode, Dante returns to working with his old captain. She makes the rules very clear: he must obey the rules and work within the law.

While he tells her he doesn’t believe the system always works, he will still have to follow her rules if he wants to keep his job at the NYPD. What will this mean for his collaborations with McCall? And what will it mean for their personal relationship?

Things will get very interesting on what’s left of The Equalizer Season 5.

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The Equalizer airs Sundays at 10/9c on CBS.

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