Prophets (Person of Interest)
The team confronts Samaritan's manipulation of a political pollster.
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"Prophets" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American television drama series Person of Interest, airing on October 21, 2014. The episode was written by Lucas O'Connor and directed by Kenneth Fink. It follows the team as they attempt to save a political pollster while facing threats from the Samaritan program.
Plot
On October 13, 2001, the Machine's first day, Finch begins teaching it about a survival scenario. Nathan Ingram arrives and they find an additional code on the Machine's data; the Machine claims Finch added it, but Finch is certain the Machine did and shuts it down. On November 29, 2001, the Machine's new first day, Ingram is denied access despite being Admin. Finch realizes the Machine is hacking Ingram's computer and ignores reprogramming commands, forcing Finch to unplug it.
On December 31, 2001, another first day, the Machine burns a server after being refused to go out, planning to kill Finch by removing oxygen. Finch extinguishes the fires and tells Ingram he wants to show the Machine how to care. After shooting a scam artist who attempted suicide by cop, Reese is forced by Internal Affairs to attend therapy with Dr. Iris Campbell. Finch assigns Shaw to investigate their new number, Simon Lee, a political pollster for Governor James Murray's reelection campaign.
Simon predicts a 52–48 victory, but the results are inverted and Michelle Perez is elected. Murray's campaign manager punches Simon, and Finch sees anyone on the campaign team could attack him. Simon believes the election was rigged. Reese begins therapy sessions with Dr. Campbell, who soon discovers his attempts to build trust and fake interest and asks for more cooperation.
Reception
When "Prophets" first aired on CBS, Nielsen estimated that 9.40 million households tuned in. Among adults aged 18 to 49, it earned a 1.5 rating and a 5 share, meaning 1.5 percent of all TV-equipped homes watched it, and 5 percent of homes with televisions on at that moment were watching. That was a 4 percent drop from the prior episode, which had 9.72 million viewers and the same 1.5/5 in the key demographic.
For the night, Person of Interest ranked as CBS's third most-watched show, behind NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS. It placed second in its timeslot and eighth overall in the 18-49 demographic, trailing Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marry Me, Chicago Fire, NCIS: New Orleans, NCIS, The Voice, and the first game of the 2014 World Series. When DVR playback within seven days was included, total viewership rose to 13.27 million, with a 2.4 rating among adults 18-49.
Critics praised the episode heavily. Matt Fowler of IGN gave it a 9.2 out of 10, calling it "amazing." He described it as dangerous and thrilling, adding that it could have been even better if Root had died, but still appreciated how it showed Samaritan's moves toward total control, including manipulating politicians. Alexa Planje of The A.V. Club awarded an "A," noting that the episode balanced character work, philosophy, and action at a high level. Sean McKenna of TV Fanatic gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars, writing that the hour packed in suspense, mystery, humor, drama, and character focus while weaving together large and small storylines, leaving him eager for what came next.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Prophets (Person of Interest) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
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