Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles - Strange Things Happen at the One Two Point (Episode 210)

That sneaky Ellison!  Last week he dug Chromardi up, forked his body over to Catherine the redheaded Terminator, and then lied to John and Cameron about it.  While John bought the story, Cameron clearly did not.  ‘Cuz Ellison’s woken out of a sound sleep… to find Cam plunging a steel rod into his lawn.  Hee!  She’s testing it for buried objects.  As I ponder how funny it would be if Cam hit a water main right about now, she flatly and creepily instructs Ellison to “Go back to bed.”  Meanwhile, Sarah and Derek are also at work, breaking into a computer company called Dakara Systems.  Dakara has a logo that looks like the three dots on written in blood on the wall.  Our heroes swipe a bunch of hard drives, and back at the house, John’s analysis shows they’re designed for an AI.  But while the programming structure’s there, it’s missing a key element required to create an artificial intelligence - storage space.  Sarah’s convinced that this company is trouble ‘cuz of their logo.  “Everything on that wall has meant something,” she notes.  Y’know, she’s right.  That dead Resistance fighter was like the DaVinci of drawing on walls with blood.  John does some research on Dakara Systems and finds out they’re looking for investors, so he makes Sarah an appointment to pose as a rich MILF with plenty o’ cash.

Meanwhile, Derek goes over to Jesse’s and rifles through her stuff, because apparently he loves but does not trust her.  And with good reason.  He finds surveillance photos of himself with John.  Derek’s all, “Ya better explain this shit before I shoot your ass.”   And we finally get the (possibly) real reason why Jesse is here.  In the future John Connor has started making questionable decisions, and getting people killed.  And what’s worse… he only confides in Cameron.  “Imagine if he spends the next twenty years with her; what he’ll become,” Jesse says ominously.  She claims she was sent back to save John, not hurt him.  Derek’s pretty sure he’s going to need to think on this one for awhile.  Yeah, that makes two of us.  The problem with all these missions to the past is that these people have no way of knowing if they’re helping or harming the future.  And the more soldiers with differing missions you toss into the mix, the more altered the future’s going to become.  Who’s to say if the “current” future will even include Cameron?  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: time travel makes my brain hurt.  

Dr. Boyd Sherman, AKA Shrinky McShrinkerson (who has ties to Sarah) has been found dead following a power outage while he was working with Project Babylon, Catherine’s AI.  The AI took over systems control and reserved generator power for itself, effectively shutting down the cooling of the server room where Dr. Sherman worked.  The poor doc cooked like some sort of pot roast in the heat given off by the computers.  Ellison gets to wondering whether the AI intentionally caused Dr. Sherman’s death.  The blackout should have killed it, but it invented new rules within the system to keep itself alive.  A techie is rather taken aback by Ellison’s theories; the computer didn’t have any “feelings” about the doc or anyone else, and couldn’t have known it was killing Dr. Sherman through its actions.   

John goes to see Riley, who lives with a foster family.  She’s all Emo McMoodypants today, talking about her foster siblings as losers and rejects, and reading waaaaay too much symbolism into a poster of a bear with a fish in its mouth (“The other fish don’t even notice or care that fish is gone.  They just keep swimming.  Nothing important happened.”)  Um… okay.  John’s all, “Yeah I’m out.”  He came to explain what happened in Mexico, but now he doesn’t think he can.  Riley’s obviously disappointed to see him go, and decides to treat herself to some retail therapy.  And suddenly… Jesse’s right behind her!  Is she there to hurt Riley?  Guess again, my friends.  “You wanted to talk?” Jesse asks.  Say… WHAT?  Riley is working with Jesse??!!  And she’s from the future, too??  Maaajor download.  Suddenly a lot of things are making sense.  I think it’s an interesting development, but I’m also a smidge disappointed that John can’t even have one person in his life who isn’t part of the massive Savior of Mankind Conspiracy. Jesse and Riley hole up in a dressing room to talk.  Riley thought John was going to tell her everything, but he left, instead.  Something’s wrong.  “Steady him,” Jesse replies.   She can tell that Jesse is starting to lose it, and she knows it’s not an easy “mission.”   “Maybe you even have feelings for him.  You’re a woman, and he’s John Connor.”  Now that’s cold.  I wonder if their plan is to make John fall for Riley instead of Cam?  Whatever it is, apparently there’s no way out.  “You can do this. You have to do this or your ass is grass,” says Jesse.  

Meanwhile, Sarah and Cameron get gussied up in pencil skirts and lipstick to talk to the President of Dakara systems.  Mr. Dakara’s son Zander is the genius behind the project, which has the Air Force interested.  Supershy Zander manages to stutter some syllables in Cameron’s general direction while Sarah grabs coffee with dad.  They bond over the challenges of childrearing.  Sarah asks what Mr. Dakara needs to get his project rolling, and he says that since “someone” stole their hard drives last night, they need approximately $89,652,345,691.  And also a miracle.  Back at the house, Cameron doesn’t think Dakara is worth their time – it’s not related to the Turk.  But Sarah’s still convinced it’s important because of the logo and its resemblance to the writing on the wall.  Snerk.  Dude, speaking of the three dot thing, it’s starting to drive everybody crazy.  Even Derek is seeing dots everywhere.  He’s worried that if they start chasing every tiny possible clue, soon they’ll lose sight of the big picture.  And he especially needs to know that John’s thinking clearly (read: not headed down the path Jesse predicted).  John gives him a look like he’s completely off his nut.  Hee!  

Dakara’s been approached by the Japanese winners of a design-a-smart-computer-that-can-play-chess contest.   They have a supercomputer chip they want Dakara Inc. to test, which could make them rich.  But they apparently also want a half-million dollar deposit first.  Next thing you know, Sarah’s counting out their entire diamond stash, ready to throw all of her cookies in one basket over this venture.  Cameron’s still dubious about Dakara leading to Skynet, but Sarah’s insistent.  That night She and Dakara wine-n-dine Matimoto, the dude with the chip, and we find out that Cameron… speaks Japanese.  Nifty!  Zander’s all pumped up about the chip they’re about to receive – apparently it could run an entire personality program for the AI he’s planning.  That’s good enough for Sarah, who’s all, “How’s about we stop screwin’ around and get the chip now?” They trade it for the diamonds, and say Domo Arigato to Mr. Roboto Matimoto.  

At Riley’s (if that’s her real name), she continues her cuckoopants meltdown, screaming at her foster family that they’re crazy for sitting in their comfortable house, as if it all matters.  “It doesn’t matter, it’s all going to burn and you’ll be nothing but bleached skulls!” She screeches.  Wowza.  Apparently Foster Mom figures it’s just the teenage hormones causing Riley’s nutty googly eyes.  Meanwhile, Sarah and Dakara get the chip back to the lab.  Zander hooks it up like a kid in a candy store and starts downloading his AI.  Then suddenly his face falls.  His data should fit on the chip like a postage stamp on a pool table – plenty of room.  Except the chip is already full, and he’s hardly downloaded anything.  Cameron discovers that the chip’s an older design, disguised to seem more advanced.  Dude… they’ve been had.  Poor Dakara resembles a balloon with all the air let out.  He tells a story about how his immigrant grandfather was taken advantage of, and had his property stolen.  Guess it runs in the family, eh?  Sarah’s all, “I’ll take of this.” She wants to “talk” to Matimoto, even though Dakara says it’s not a good idea.  He works for a Japanese gang, and if she goes after him he’ll chop her into tiny pieces and mail them to John.  Riiight.  Something tells me Sarah ain’t scared.  

Ellison thinks Doc Sherman was murdered by the AI, so Catherine suggests he talk to it… er… him?  Apparently the AI’s name is John Henry.  Innnnteresting.  It has the same first name as its nemesis, John Connor.  It can understand language, but communicates back through images, because to make it talk would be “too creepy” (says a techie).  Ellison introduces himself, and John Henry seems to recognize him.   He also knew Dr. Sherman, and on cue shows video surveillance of the night he died.  By the time the regular power came back on, the doctor was dead, but John Henry autodialed the paramedics for medical attention.  “John Henry… am I alive?  Am I dead?” Ellison asks.  The AI does not have an answer for that question.  “John Henry, how did you feel about Dr. Sherman?”  Once again, no response.  The AI not only finds life and death indistinguishable, it also doesn’t have any feelings about either one.  It has no opinions about its own actions, which lead to Dr. Sherman’s demise.  In effect, John Henry doesn’t value life – he’s a sociopath.  “You taught it procedures and rules, but not ethics or morals,” comments Ellison to Catherine.  “What would you teach it?” asks Catherine, more intrigued than disturbed.  “If you want to teach it commands, start with the first ten,” Ellison suggests.  Aaand… we’re back to religion.  

Sarah finds Matimoto and uses him as a punching bag for awhile, demanding their money back.  All of a sudden “Matimoto’s” English is v.v. good.  And he’s also really not behaving like a gangster.  “I don’t have your money,” he sobs.  “I’m an actor!”  Apparently he was paid to hand over the chip and pretend to be in the Japanese mob.  Sarah thinks there’s more to this than meets the eye, and she wants to dig deeper.  But Cameron, Derek, and John all disagree – they think the dots in the logo are just a coincidence.  “You got played,” snaps Derek.  “Welcome to the human race.”  But of course, being that she’s Sarah Connor and therefore extraordinarily stubborn (and also because she wants her 906789 diamonds back), Sarah isn’t quite ready to let this one go.  She heads back over to Dakara Systems, and starts in with the punching again.  Wow.  Sarah sure can change her mind quickly.  Just a few minutes ago she was bestest pals with Mr. Dakara, and now she’s kicking the crap out of him.  Do not piss this woman off.  Sarah demands to know who Dakara’s working for, and about the three dots.  Dakara just cries and apologizes about the money and says this whole thing is about his son.  Sarah drags him in to face Zander, who’s being held by Cameron.  It’s truth time.  “Tell your son what you’ve done, or he’ll get thrown through the window,” Sarah says flatly.  Dakara, the lower half of his face all bloody, sobs that he hired the actor and set up the whole chip purchase to get Sarah’s money.   He just wanted to be sure his son was taken care of.  Cameron goes to get the cash, and Mr. Dakara insists that the three dots are just a logo.  Sarah, even I think it’s time to let this one go.  Sometimes dots are simply dots.

All veiny and scary-looking, Derek confronts Jesse.  “John Connor is my nephew,” he states.  “Three people know that fact; you’re the fourth.”  Jesse swallows kinda funny, but all she says is “I see.”  Derek says he’s here to stop Skynet.  If thery’re going to do this together, there can’t be any more secrets.  “If there’s anything you haven’t told me, I need to hear it now,” Derek tells Jesse.  Her response?  That she used his toothbrush when they were stationed together.  And then she hugs him, as if that’s it and everything’s hunky-dory and she’s not actually conspiring in dressing rooms with the undercover soldier girl that John’s sortakinda dating.  I’ll just say this: it’s hard to play both sides and not get caught.  I don’t think this is going to end well for Jesse.  Meanwhile, Sarah arrives home, all splattered with blood, and for once John actually seems glad to see her.  Something’s definitely different between them since the incident in the desert, and I think I like it.  Anyhoo, just then Riley shows up, and she’s back to her sarcastic, funny self.  This girl is one helluva actress.  She says she’s here to “reject his rejection.”  As they go out for a walk, I’m left to ponder exactly what Riley's mission really is.  Sarah heads into the bathroom to get cleaned up, only to notice that three droplets of blood on her cheek resemble the triangular pattern of the dots on the wall.  Furious, she punches the mirror, shattering it into pieces.   

Catherine thought about what Ellison said about rules and the Ten Commandments, but she doesn’t feel qualified to teach John Henry those things.  Y’know, being that she’s a Terminator herself.  So apparently she’s decided that Doc Sherman’s emotion-imparting torch should pass to Ellison.  Catherine takes him down into the secret lab, where a little surprise is waiting.  OMG… it’s Chromardi’s repaired body, hooked up to the AI’s server.  “Hello, my name is John Henry,” smiles the Terminator in a manner so freaky I may or may not have just wet myself.  “How are you today?”