Many Happy Returns (Person of Interest)

"Many Happy Returns" is the twenty-first episode of the first season of the American television drama series Person of Interest. It is the 21st overall episode of the series and is written by Erik Mountain from a story by Mountain and series creator Jonathan Nolan and directed by Frederick E. O. Toye. It aired on CBS in the United States and on CTV in Canada on May 3, 2012.

"Many Happy Returns"
Person of Interest episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 21
Directed byFrederick E. O. Toye
Story byErik Mountain & Jonathan Nolan
Teleplay byErik Mountain
Produced by
Featured musicRamin Djawadi
Cinematography byTeodoro Maniaci
Editing byScott Lerner
Production code2J6221
Original air dateMay 3, 2012
Running time44 minutes
Guest appearance(s)

Plot

Flashbacks

In February 2011, Reese (Jim Caviezel) is on a bus to New Rochelle, after seemingly "losing his job." He then arrives at a hospital, asking for Jessica, who used to work there as a nurse. He is told by a nurse that Jessica died in a car crash two months ago. In another flashback, it's revealed that Jessica (Susan Misner) was accidentally killed when she was arguing with Peter (Jonno Roberts). Instead of calling the police, he staged her death to make it look like a car accident.

Reese breaks in Jessica's house while Peter is gone. When Peter arrives, Reese laments the situation he placed on Jessica for leaving her and proceeds to attack Peter.

Present day

Reese arrives early at the library but is told by Finch (Michael Emerson) that the Machine hasn't produced any number. Finch then gives him a present as it's his birthday and gives him the day off. When he leaves, Finch begins investigating their new number: Karen Garner (Dagmara Dominczyk).

Reese opens the present, revealing it to be a key. Carter is told by Agent Donnelly (Brennan Brown) that Reese's new details have linked him to a case in New Rochelle in 2011. She then meets with Finch in a bar, who tells her to meet with Donnelly and work with him to get information. Karen is revealed to be working there as a waitress. Finch runs into a U.S. Marshal named Brad Jennings (Jeremy Davidson), who claims that Karen is a fugitive named Sarah Atkins. Before he continues getting questioned, Reese takes Finch.

Reese confronts Finch for the case. He explains that when he began working on the Machine, the same numbers would show up frequently, eventually finding that the women would be abused by their husbands. Reese meets with Karen, whose real name is Sarah Jennings, the abused wife of the Marshal. Reese attacks the Marshal in his office and threatens him to never contact Sarah again. Meanwhile, Carter is told by Donnelly that resurfacing evidence suggests that Peter was in debt with loan sharks and Reese was sent to kill Peter. She examines Jessica's body and instantly deduces that Peter was abusing her.

Sarah attempts to leave New York but is arrested by authorities and the Marshal picks her up. Reese locates the hotel they are staying at and drives alone there. He attacks the Marshal and is about to kill him when Carter arrives and lets him do the rest of the work. Carter is called by a warden in Torreón that they received "her fugitive", delivered by the "Marshal". Deducing Reese took the Marshal to justice, Carter gets happy. Reese is given an address by Finch and using the key he received, finds that is a new loft for him to reside. In a final flashback, it's revealed that Finch (in a wheelchair) was present when Reese received Jessica's death, revealing to be a person of interest he failed to save. He utters, "I'm so sorry" to Reese's retreating back.

Reception

Viewers

In its original American broadcast, "Many Happy Returns" was seen by an estimated 13.27 million household viewers and gained a 2.5/7 ratings share among adults aged 18–49, according to Nielsen Media Research.[1] This was a 4% increase in viewership from the previous episode, which was watched by 12.73 million viewers with a 2.4/6 in the 18-49 demographics.[2] With these ratings, Person of Interest was the third most watched show on CBS for the night beating The Mentalist, but behind Rules of Engagement, and The Big Bang Theory, second on its timeslot and fifth for the night in the 18-49 demographics, behind Rules of Engagement, Grey's Anatomy, American Idol, and The Big Bang Theory.

Critical reviews

"Many Happy Returns" received very positive reviews from critics. Keysha Couzens of TV Overmind wrote "The final shot of Reese exploring his birthday present gave us Reese being as close to finding peace with himself than we’ve yet seen on Person of Interest. Now if we could only fill in the blanks on Harold Finch’s past, then I’d be supremely pleased with the first season of the show as a whole–I’m simply dying to know more about him all the time. I blame Michael Emerson’s infuriatingly charismatic enigmatic character portrayal in addition to the writing for giving us just enough to make us crave more especially when the focus is on someone else."[3]

Luke Gelineau of TV Equals wrote "It was a bit strange that we didn't hear anything about Reese's old partner this episode, seeing as how the reveal that she's still alive was a bit of a cliffhanger last week. We did get a cool little bit of information in that Finch has been researching Reese for a long time, and it will be interesting to see if he ever tells Reese about that. With only two episode left after tonight, it will be interesting to see how everything is wrapped up! I can't wait!"[4]

Sean McKenna of TV Fanatic gave the episode a 4.8 star rating out of 5 and wrote "There's something truly entertaining about watching a show that feels like it has the potential to be predictable, yet manages to flip concepts on their head or find a nice balance between character and story rather than lay out a simple cookie cutter hour of television. Even the raw emotions and ideals that delve into morality and change while ignoring simple happy endings make Person of Interest continue to stand out."[5]

References
  1. Gorman, Bill (April 27, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings:'The Big Bang Theory', 'American Idol', 'Vampire Diaries', 'Grey's Anatomy,' 'Mentalist', Adjusted Up; 'Secret Circle','Scandal' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 17, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  2. Gorman, Bill (April 27, 2012). "Thursday Final Ratings: 'Idol', 'Big Bang Theory', 'Grey's', 'The Vampire Diaries', 'Mentalist' & 'Missing' Adjusted Up; 'Scandal' Adjusted Down". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on August 17, 2017. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  3. Couzens, Keysha (May 4, 2012). "Person of Interest 1.21 'Many Happy Returns' Review". TV Overmind. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  4. Gelineau, Luke (May 3, 2012). "Person of Interest "Many Happy Returns" Review". TV Equals. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
  5. McKenna, Sean (April 27, 2012). "Person of Interest Review: Breaking Bad". TV Fanatic. Retrieved November 28, 2017.
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