Broken Frontier

In this week’s episode of Human Target, Christopher Chance, Winston and Guerrero hit the jungles of South America to rescue an archaeologist/anthropologist named Doug (Kris Marshall), who is being held captive by the corrupt local military after stumbling upon a $40 million stash of gold.

While this may seem like a pretty standard job for Chance (protect somebody from bad guys), his boss this time around is Maria (Leonor Varela), an old flame who was one of the few women he ever allowed himself to get close to. Awkward? Yep.

This episode, “Salvage and Reclamation,” doesn’t skimp on explosions or gunfire, but the most intriguing thing about it is the relationship (or, at this point, lack thereof) between Chance and Maria. At least partially inspired by the history between Indiana Jones and his former gal pal Marion Ravenwood in Raiders of the Lost Ark (Maria even owns her own bar), this relationship is a welcome shift away from the “girl of the week” stories Human Target has told in the past. Could we be seeing Maria in a later episode, or will Chance continue to shield himself from long-term romantic entanglements?

Also introduced this week is a slimy bounty hunter named Bertram (Kim Coates), who’s after the gold—and Doug by extension. Since Bertram survives at the end of the episode, it’s likely that he could become a recurring villain on this series. Because, honestly, who doesn’t love bounty hunters? Aside from bounties, I mean.

While Bertram and a group of soldiers are chasing Chase, Maria and Doug through the jungle, Guererro and Winston are flying in a rickety plane toward an abandoned airfield in the mountains called “La Boca del Diablo” (The Mouth of the Devil). It’s just as dangerous as it sounds. They land safely, but not before Winston freaks out on Guerrero when he suspects a string of disturbing end-of-life confessions from his shady partner during a near-crash. While they weren’t given all that much to do this week—save for hijacking a rickety plane—the back-and-forth between Chi McBride and Jackie Earle Haley is very fun to watch.

In one of the most inspired moments of this series thus far, Chance—who is caught by Bertram and his men near the end of the episode—leads his unsuspecting captors into a mine field with explosive results. As great as pyrotechnics are, this is an excellent display of Chance’s ability to think two steps ahead of his enemies. His aerial escape with Doug at the end of the episode also showcases his ingenuity under pressure.

“Salvage and Reclamation” is one of the better installments of Human Target. We get to see more of Chance’s sensitive side though his past (and perhaps future?) relationship with Maria, and the fact that Chance, Maria and Doug are being pursued throughout the episode keeps the tension high even during its quieter moments.