Detective Scanlon occasionally has a way of disappearing into the woodwork. Admittedly, the show is called Medium, and it is focused on Allison. Still, there are episodes, or sometimes stretches of episodes, where Lee just doesn’t get the time you might think he deserves after all these years. “How To Beat A Man” didn’t have that problem. It was the most Lee-centric episode we’ve seen in a long time. And that’s a good thing, even if the story was a very bad thing.
Before we get to Lee’s troubled family history, we have to talk about Allison. Perhaps I’m looking too hard. Or maybe Friday night and the end of the work week just puts me in a particularly odd TV watching frame of mind. Whatever it is, I think I got something completely unintended from the opening scene and Allison’s following visions. Looking back, the mugging was there to put Allison next to Kira, and set the dominoes a’ tumbling.
Easy enough, and that all worked out fine. However, I took the shot to the head, added in her fingering the undercover cop, and came up with visions that can’t be trusted. It’s an idea we touched on when Allison was recovering at the start of the season as well, and I still find it to be a fascinating ‘what if’ scenario. Imagine the shake-up in Allison’s world if her visions were suddenly just so much fiction.
My trip down the rabbit hole made for quite a reveal when Scanlon clued her in about who Henry Maynard really was. It also gave a little weight to Paul’s insistent claims of innocence. But it did get a little shaky when Devalos mentioned that Maynard’s ribs were shattered. That shined the bright light of did it right on Kira and took some of the surprise out of that bit of the story. It was still great to watch it all play out. Casting Laura Prepon was a nice choice as well.
Also good casting, Dean Norris as Lee’s big brother Paul. There was a little mystery to this one in the buildup. The way things were going, it was easy to fall for the trap. Much like Lee, you want to believe that Paul really has turned a corner, because the other option is just evil. All that mystery was long gone by the time Lee made his hard decision though. The mystery evaporated with their conversation at Lee’s apartment. After Paul said, “I don’t need help. I don’t want help. I like me.” and Allison saw Kira killing Paul, it was clear where it was all going.
It’s an ending that was obvious, but far from simple. There are all kinds of legal, ethical, and moral questions about Lee’s choice. You could argue whether it is right or wrong from someone to make that choice. But I thought it made perfect sense that Lee made the choice he did. After six years of getting to know the character, it was exactly what I expected.
Clacked by Brett Love 
on Mar 06, 2010 @ 10:00 EST5EDT
I absolutely love the character of Lee Scanlon. I’ve wondered about his past for a long time, and this episode really delivered a look into how he became the person he is now. You could see him struggling with his memories of his big brother. I thought the scene when he held the gun to his head, and then sat back and dropped the gun on the floor was very telling. Even if his brother was a killer, Lee knew he would never hurt him. Watching the progression of his pain throughout the episode was great…he really does deserve more screen time, and his choice was heartbreaking, but clear.
Of course, from the moment we saw Laura Prepon, I knew she was the bad guy. They bring on guest stars for one of two reasons, and the broken finger just gave it away.
This season has been pretty well done, not as well as last year, but right up there. Hope it comes back next year!
Loved the ep and storyline with Lee–he is too cool. What a dark road to go down, though. Great acting and I hope they do more Lee-centric type spins.