Person of Interest (TV Series) Root Path (2014) User Reviews

One of the very best POI episodes

[bassmanpro · 10/10 · 19 February 2018]

I don't know who exactly had the idea of creating the Root character, but whoever this is, this person is a pure genius. Though I loved the show straight from pilot, I found it even much more interesting when Root was introduced (then gradually became on of the main characters).

This episode is focused on Root. Her major action is what is happening today and regarding tomorrow's threats, but also her past. The richness of this episode still blows me. It could have been directed by Mr Spielberg : there is EVERYTHING in this episode : (much) fun, (much) action, redemption, danger, violence, intelligence, strategy, etc.

It's in this episode one may realize that probably no actress except Amy Acker could have impersonated Root in this show. She acts it awesomely, at a point when one may wonder where does Amy stop and when does Root begin. She plays so naturally.

Great, great, great episode, including the starting point of a huge danger that is coming. This episode can be watched standalone if you didn't watch the previous episodes and seasons, but of course, having watched them will help understanding the subtle elements.

Producers : please bring POI back to life !

The writers launch Acker into the air ... and she flies

[A_Different_Drummer · 9/10 · 23 March 2015]

In many ways the episode I was waiting for -- great fun.

The real backstory -- not the one in the script -- is that as this is written (spring 2015) there are in my view two dramas in production where the writing team is barking mad and unafraid of taking chances.

They are in no special order POI and Banshee.

And the above was a compliment I think this episode is important because the writers having long since thrown away the predictable but reliable Harold-Reese-Machine arc (how many shows do that?) just keeping trying stuff.

Here they gave Acker room to take over the whole episode (if she wanted to, and it seems she did). She steals it.

In my reviews I try to emphasize the "fun" factor and the "connection" factor because unlike theatrical releases TV makes you suffer through commercials to get to the good stuff, so you the viewer deserve a payoff And this episode delivers one

Depth, character, intrigue, humour- perfect

[paulcooneymsc-28020 · 10/10 · 9 July 2019]

My lord what a show PoI was. Film makers should watch n learn.

Root Path, episode title

[kols · 10/10 · 20 July 2014]

For some reason IMDb doesn't list the title of this episode - weird.

The emergence of Samaritan, Decima and Vigilance were not happy events for me; the addition of Root and Shaw were. Take on one hand, give on the other.

Unhappy because another show I love has succumbed to Soap-Opera-Plot and Evil-Recurrent-Villains and, in the process of closing HR, kills off Carter.

Happy, on the other hand, to see the addition of two such strong, positive characters every bit as capable of mowing down evil minions as Reese (or Dirty Harry).

In general, Person of Interest is doing a much better job of dealing with its SOP and ERVs than most of their victims and, to be fair, the battle between The Machine and Decima/Samaritan does provide justification for adding Root and Shaw while the Evil-Power-Hungry-Bureaucrats are the equal of HR as far as ERVs go but I still wish the show would return to its roots.

In a way, Root Path does: the SOP takes a back seat to Root's story, especially her connection to the 'subject du Jour', while Decima and Vigilance provide a plenitude of minions to be mowed down in shootouts equal to the best any Western has produced.

As satisfying as it is to see villains vanquished, the real story is the episode's theme of Sin and Redemption, expressed with all the nuance that is Person of Interest's stock in trade.

Amy Acker is outstanding as Root, emoting like a tear in a thimble, understating her own emotions yet letting them blaze out like a quiet sun, burning fiercely, subdued. Performance and role of a lifetime.

Sarah Shahi, is just as good, just as effective, as Shaw; a character almost as complex as Root though in a sledgehammer kind of way. Highlighting that effectiveness is the contrast between Shahi's Shaw here in Person of Interest and her role as Kate Reed in Fairly Legal. The two characters couldn't be more different and the fact that Shahi is capable of giving full measure to both elevates each.

And, of course, there are all of the show's signature bits, little codas and pieces of business that make it so fun to watch. The mere appearance of Bear on a leash should earn him (or her; they've never really said) an Emmy.

Person of Interest is a great show, good enough with episodes like this, perhaps, to survive SOPs and ERVs until it returns to single story episodes.

The Chip

[claudio_carvalho · 8/10 · 3 March 2024]

Root under the guidance of The Machine breaks a prisoner named Billy Parsons out of his prison transport and uses his resemblance with a German to receive a package. Then she sends Billy back to prison with instruction of how to be protected along his sentence. She meets the janitor Cyrus Wells and immediately after, Finch receives his number from The Machine. Reese and Shaw follow Root and Cyrus and her are attacked by the Vigilance. Root forces a situation to arrest Cyrus and save him, and Finch calls Fusco to protect him. But Root poses of a FBI agent with a warrant and Fusco's captain asks him to release Cyrus. She learns that Cyrus was a wealthy man that donate his fortune after the murder of his two partners and friends and their co-workers. Decima uses a device to jam the contact of Root and The Machine, and Reese saves her, but Cyrus is kidnapped by the men of Decima. Root steals Finch's device and asks a doctor to implant it in her deaf ear. She updates the firmware, allowing her to contact The Machine without a cellphone. They learn that Decima intends to use Cyrus' retina to access a laboratory where a powerful chip was developed.

"Root Path" is a good episode of "Person of Interest", where Root tries to stop Decima from stealing a state-of-art chip. However, somehow, she prefers to save Cyrus Wells rather than the chip. She discloses to Finch that she was the killer of Cyrus's partners and co-workers, and she might have had remorse for the first time. Would The Machine be also changing her psychopath feelings? My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Root Path"

Amy Acker is not an action star

[namstonk · 3/10 · 30 March 2021]

Convincing an audience that you are 'controlled ' by a super computer is one thing, but old squeaky voice is a lousy action character. Probably some of the worse casting in modern TV. As for the series well it's just becoming repetitive and the characters are cliche and hobbled.