'SEAL Team' Season 3 Episode 7 Review: Shifting gears is grueling, but Jason Hayes needs it to keep going
The review contains spoilers for 'SEAL Team' Season 3 Episode 7 — 'The Ones You Can't See'.
No matter how badly you want to get into action mode, sometimes you just need a backseat. Perhaps that is the case with Master Chief Special Warfare Operator Jason Hayes — whose physical injuries are only adding to his mental trauma. The new episode titled 'The Ones You Can't See' sheds light on how change is as good as rest. It shows how you need to accept the turnaround life offers and bow down to the insecurities and challenges. If you don't comply, it only takes a toll on your mind.
Bravo Team is off on a mission without their leader. Jason has to miss out because of his injury and it seems to have gotten the better out of him — as he didn't receive it while on a mission but during a workout session. It deeply plays on his internal conflict. Jason limps and goes to meet physiologist Natalie and she tells him to be honest about his injury level and asks him to go for an MRI. Forced to spill out the truth, he tells her, "Your annoying level is about 10." But, isn't Jason's patience level on zero?
Clay visits the ambassador's funeral and stumbles upon an old employee of Nicole's, Rebecca. She scans his shoes and gets the hint that he is from the military. She guesses he was there when she died. With not much to reveal about the secret mission, he tags her a "hero" and says, "She died fighting for what she believed in." Rebecca then tells him, "A soldier with an idealistic streak. No wonder Nicole loved you." At the bar, Ray confronts and talks to Sonny about his behavioral changes. "I don't like seeing you like this," Ray tells him.
Meanwhile, in the MRI tube, devastating memories come back and haunt Jason, from his daughter crying to his wife and a fight in a bar. Moreover, his doctor tells him that the injury may not be repairable. Heartbroken, Jason is desperate to get back to duty.
"The human body wasn't built to sustain your level of activity forever", his doctor tells Jason. Later, Natalie meets him and says, "The thought of being stood down scares you more than going home." Jason also meets Davis who tells him he would make a great Ops Chief. These remarks play on his mind. At home, he puts up pictures of fellow soldiers as the voices in his head grow louder and he smashes all the photographs and memorabilia in his room. David Boreanaz lives up to his character's agony. Not just Jason's action mode, but he embodies his misery and mental struggles with perfection.
Later, Jason tries to calm down and calls Mandy for a drink. He asks her to accompany him on a road trip. When she is reluctant, he asks if it is a no from her side. Mandy asks him, "You are inviting me on a road trip. That's a little odd. Why are you free next week?" Jason then tells her he is free not just next week but for the next two months for his hip surgery.
Back in Paris, the team meet their Parisian counterparts and start secret surveillance on possible attackers in the room opposite them where they guard security summit. Clay and Trent snoop on a "happy couple" in a complex. Ray, Vic and another soldier from the Paris unit stake out another part of the building while discussing rules of shooting from a far range.
On the day of the summit, Sonny grabs a man who is a potential suspect. Ray spots another possible suspect, he sets his eyes on a shooter and takes his shot. Clay and Trent rush to another rooftop to try and take them out. Clay takes a killer shot while the shooter is also attacked by Cerberus, the Seal Team’s dog.
Clay returns home and finds a new pair of shoes in his mail. It is from Rebecca. He calls to thank her and asks her out. Looks like Clay has a potential date. The episode ends on a suspenseful note as Jason shows up for surgery and suffers from a major panic attack after looking at the paperwork. He heads home and sits on the floor in a dark corner.
Jason Hayes' career is in jeopardy, thanks to an injury in a workout session. Will it break him after his devastating mental health issues already giving him a troublesome time? Shedding light on the mental pressure that comes with keeping yourself fit beyond your age and how the military men have their personal struggles along with the weight of their professional burden, the episode makes for a wondrous watch.
