Flashpoint in a Flash: Season 1 - Episode 9: Planets Aligned:

I did something different this week - I threw in both the American and Canadian commercials in the breaks for those of you wondering what sorts of commercials air in the opposite country! We all loved this episode and we're sad that it's over in the US. Full summary after the jump!


The US finale begins with the SRU swarming around a seemingly peaceful house. A woman recites a passage from Milton over and over again, Greg tries to contact someone in the house, and the SRU makes their way into the basement. A man shows up with a gun in front of the woman, and says “your time is up” REWIND! We’re now 8 years ago, and a girl named Penny is camping out in the backyard with her dad looking at stars with her telescope. The dad goes back inside to get some snacks, as she sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and someone appears behind her. She thinks it’s her dad who returned pretty quickly... fast forward to today. Penny has now grown up and awakes from her bed. Her walls are covered with murals of construction paper of the outside world. She tries to look out the window, but her ankle bracelet buzzes. On her desk, she transcribes Milton’s Paradise Lost. Back at SRU headquarters. Greg walks in and signs a female officer’s letter of recommendation for a tactical operations course. He looks at letters to his son that have all been marked return to sender. He remarks it’s just the way it always is. Back at the woman’s house, the phone rings as she is transcribing Milton. She sees it is Gerald, and she answers the phone. He tells her he has a surprise for her, and hangs up. He opens his car’s door and there’s a little girl inside. At a gas station, the attendant is watching the news (CTV News nonetheless!) and learns of a little girl who has been kidnapped 12 hours ago. Gerald walks in with the girl, and asks to use the restroom. She gives them a key. At the SRU, Jules is hesitant to sign up for a Psych evaluation, and Greg just wants everything to be copacetic (in order). Jules says she doesn’t agree with the questions, because there’s no right or wrong answer. Greg says that they are only human, and that they are going to get things wrong. At the gas station , Gerald returns the key and pays for the gas. The attendant notices the kid’s a little too scared, and she offers him a free lollipop. She swirls it in the air to look at the kid’s chin, and there’s a birthmark there that matches the description given on the TV. As she gives back change, she notices a gun under Gerald’s coat. She calls 911, says she has found the missing girl, and runs out to get the license plate. The SRU is on the scene and finds out who the car is registered, and a home address. They suit up! Gerald returns back home, and kisses Penny as if she is his. The girl walks into the kitchen, and Gerald takes off her cap revealing pigtails. He simply says “Honey, this is Lily”. ROLL CREDITS! Commercials! In the US we saw some ads including for some Kohl’s sale and Pizza Hut’s new pastas. And the premiere of NCIS, a show which none of us on staff cares about. Canadians saw commercials for CTV News, Bagelfuls, and Stephen Harper trying to convince Canadians he’s the better choice for Prime Minister (Yeah Right, I’m sorry but I don’t want Bill C-10 or C-61 taking effect). Back to the show! The SRU drives to Scarborough , while in the kitchen, Gerald praises Penny for the spic-and-span job she did cleaning. Penny asks why she is here, if it’s because she did something wrong... someone has a severe case of Stockholm syndrome. In the SUV, Ed and Greg talk about Greg’son. Ed urges Greg to go to Dallas to go see him, as it’s the only way he’ll recognize he still has a father that cares. At the house, Gerald puts an ankle bracelet on Lily, and forces her to thank him. He tells her the rules of the house, that she isn’t supposed to go near a window, or the bracelet will buzz. If she leaves the house, a wire will be tripped and she will be shocked dead. He lies to her and says the police will hurt her bad and it’s better to die. The SRU arrive at the house. Her dad told her over the phone that he has to keep her safe this way and asked him to bring her here. Gerald continues to lie to Lily when she pokes holes in his story. He forces Penny to make her lunch. The SRU gets a profile about Gerald. A contractor built this house especially with all windows frosted. He was in jail for a couple months years ago, and has no weapons registered. Gerald explains to Lily the rules are there to keep her safe. Penny wants to take her around the house rather than Gerald, and they get into an argument. Lily tries to run and is buzzed. She hugs Penny, and Gerald throws Penny in the closet for a time out. This Gerald character sure is twisted...Penny recites a passage from Milton. The SRU sets up snipers outside the house as Gerald shows Lily around. He notices motion detectors going off outside the house and the phone rings... this is where our episode began. Greg talks to him and asks him and the occupants to walk outside the house. Gerald threatens him and says he will kill Lily if anyone enters the house. As the SRU enters the house, he gives Penny a gun, and she knows what to do. Commercials! An awkward commercial about restrictions from T-Mobile, Hot Pockets Paninis, and JC Penney. Canadians saw commercials for Grey's Anatomy, Cinnamon Pecan Special K, and Winners. Back to the show! Greg tries to call Gerald again as Penny and Lily go upstairs to Penny’s room. Gerald hugs and kisses Penny, promising he will be back in 2 minutes. Penny doesn’t want Gerald to leave her alone. The SRU doesn’t know what to do to save the girl, but they eventually decide to roll under the garage door to enter the house. Lily helps Penny tip furniture down in the room. One member uses a special scanner to check the walls for surprises. The make their way through to the kitchen and around the living room. Wordy finds a box for a dog collar. Greg thinks there’s an electric circuit around the house for containment, so some members go to disable it. Ed and Wordy head to the basement, as Jules and Sam wait outside Penny’s room. They use a small camera to see inside the room, and they see Penny and try to identify her. They look around for Duglin and they don’t see him. Ed and Wordy yell in the basement for Gerald to freeze, but to no avail. Jules sees the transcripts of Milton, and Sam remembers his Dad when he sees the book. Lily shoots at Jules, Greg tries to get snipers to surround the room as Ed goes looking for Gerald...and him and Wordy find a tunnel in the basement?! They don’t know where it leads. The officer from the beginning of the episode, Kira, identifies the girl as someone who was abducted 8 years ago, and matches an age enhanced picture. Commercials! Quaker Oats, Macy’s Shop For A Cause, and Aflac Insurance. Desperate Housewives’ Kathryn Joosten appears in a Yoplait commercial and there’s a McCain-Palin ad. Change is Coming? This commercial doesn’t really tell me what they stand for... Canadians saw ads for Zellers, Iron Man on DVD, and Sheryl Crow’s Canadian tour. Back to the show! Police cars arrive at the house, as does an ambulance and an armored truck of sorts. Greg tells Jules to talk to her, because Penny needs to hear a female voice after spending 8 years at the hands of a man. Jules is scared, but Greg helps her out with advice on how to talk to her. Greg calls Spike to help out Jules and Sam. Jules works slowly to try to get Lily, but Penny freaks out and shoots again (but the SRU is safe). Lily asks how the SRU knows her name, and Penny tells Lily to keep quiet. Jules tries to get Lily to put the gun down. Penny panics and asks for Gerald, and Jules agrees to find out. She learns he has escaped through the tunnels. Kira tells Ed and Wordy that they are headed to a deserted brick factory. As they are making their way through underground railroad tracks, a man appears from the other end and shoots. Outside the house, Greg talks to Penny’s parents who seem happy that she is safe after these 8 long years. Lily wants to leave, but Penny has identified completely with her captor. Penny tells Lily a twisted story about Anne Frank, and that they can’t leave for the same reason that she couldn’t live her house. Jules tells Penny that they don’t know where Gerald is, and Penny thinks they are lying. She quotes Milton again, that without him there is no life. Lily tries to get away from Penny saying that Gerald made the story up and that she wants to go home. In the tunnels, Ed and Wordy chase Gerald. Jules promises Lily her parents are flying up from Sault Ste. Marie and that they will not hurt her. Lily runs, but Penny threatens to shoot her. Commercials! The US saw commercials for the Special K Challenge, a trailer for Righteous Kill, Lowe’s, and a Maverick ad for McCain and Palin. Canadians saw commercials for Without a Trace, Michael McCain, an apology from the CEO and President of Maple Leaf Foods about the Listeria outbreak, urging Canadians that their machinery has been sanitized, and Egg Farmers of Canada. And we’re back! Sam wants to shoot Penny to free Lily, and Greg wants Jules to stand down, but Jules tells Sam to wait. She talks to Penny in a language she can understand about choice, to let Lily choose where she wants to be. Lily chooses the SRU, and Spike grabs her and takes her to safety. Penny finally goes to the window, not being buzzed by the wire, and squints at her first glimpse of sunlight in 8 years. She watches as Lily is put onto a gurney. In the warehouse, Ed and Wordy are on the hunt for Gerald. Ed recognizes the gun he is using and counts bullets, wondering where the sixth one is in the hopes that while he reloads, he can have a chance at getting Gerald. At the house, Penny sees her parents through the blinds. They call out to her, but she moves back into the corner. Ed and Wordy encounter Gerald, and tell him to put the gun down and come to them or else in 5 seconds they will go to him. Gerald says that they don’t understand, that this is not the way he wants it to be. Ed asks what he wanted, and Gerald says he just wanted to be happy just like everybody else. Ed says he isn’t like everybody else and asks him to put the gun down. He says without Penny there is no life, before shooting himself in the head. Ed remarks that’s the 6th bullet, and walks over to Gerald. At the house, Jules talks to Penny, but once again finds herself at gunpoint while trying to reason with Penny. Greg says it’s Sam’s call to shoot. Jules makes one last attempt to help Penny , and says she wants to help her remember the girl she used to be. Greg asks her parents for memories when she felt joy and love. Jules hears all of this and tells Penny in a tone that she identifies with. Penny eventually breaks and Jules tells her there is a great big world out there that is much prettier than her room. She drops the gun, and Jules and Sam help her outside. Still slightly deranged and not used to the outside world after 8 years, she walks slowly to her parents. Greg tells Jules that he made her proud, and although she wasn’t perfect, she was human and she did just fine. Jules offers to buy Greg a drink, but Greg says he’s going to go away for the weekend. At the SRU, Kira has a ticket to Dallas ready for Greg. Back in her old room, Penny looks through her telescope, and says “the stars are still there”. The episode ends.

This was a fitting ending to a great run on two networks which far exceeded anyone’s expectations! The series is not over on CTV yet, so we’ll be keeping up our coverage of the last four episodes for all of our readers all over the world, who can’t watch the episodes or who just want a sneak peek. It’s a little odd though that the networks both chose to air commercials for just one candidate on both sides of the border rather than balancing out with the others. We also open up our inboxes to any of our viewers around the world where Flashpoint is premiering - if you read a story or learn about ratings, we would love to hear how the show is doing in your country! Don’t hesitate to send us an email at moonchasers@NOSPAMPLZKTHXWITHACHERRYONTOPgmail.com.