The Enemy Within finale review: Did Shepherd, Keaton take down Tal?

Throughout the entirety of The Enemy Within season 1, one question has reverberated through every possible moment, every single scene. Whose side is Erica Shepherd really on? Is she on the side of Tal and the terrorists, or is she on the side of Agent Keaton? Everything culminated tonight with a mission to take him down in Cuba, and it’s one where we seriously thought that Shepherd was on Team Bad Guys for a good chunk of the end of the episode.

As it turns out, things were a little more complicated than they at first seemed. While it is true that Shepherd shot Keaton, she did so in the clavicle, a place where she knew it wouldn’t kill him. She mostly just wanted to catch Tal with his guard down, but doing that was so much easier said than done. She was able to track him down even after trying to look after Keaton, and at the moment that she did this, Tal made a confession to her — there was another mole, someone who was extremely high up in the intelligence community.

Basically, Tal tried to argue in order to save his life that if she kept him alive, he would help her take down the person that was supposedly helping him. Yet, the moment that he reached for the gun, it was all over — Shepherd shot him, and with that, she was able to end everything and get a little bit closer to resuming a normal life.

So what did Shepherd actually get out of this? Think in terms of a little bit of peace, and an opportunity to actually go to her daughter’s volleyball game and watch her compete. She had an opportunity for a little bit of normalcy and surprisingly, Keaton decided to join her (albeit in a sling). This was apparently the first time that the two people had been around each other since the mission … and that’s mostly because she didn’t exactly come back with the rest of the FBI.

In the aftermath of what happened with Tal, Keaton made it clear that he wanted Erica to stick around in Washington in order to help him with other counterterrorist operations. Yet, there were some conditions — he didn’t want her to keep any other secrets from him or help anyone out on the other side. That includes Chigorin from earlier this season.

For some more discussion on the finale, check out the video below! Meanwhile, remember to subscribe to CarterMatt on YouTube for more insight.

The final twist

Shepherd opted to not tell Keaton the truth about what Tal said before his death. That is the cliffhanger moving into season 2 — it’s not a huge one, but it’s enough to make you think that there is a Bigger Bad out there that needs to be taken out. It just remains to be seen how Shepherd would fight them.

CarterMatt Verdict

This was a strong ending to a season full of espionage, deceit, and all of the sort of stuff you would want within a show like this. If you love drama that makes you ask questions about the complicated nature of counter-terrorism, The Enemy Within is it. It managed to tie together the Tal story, so we at least have a fitting end no matter what the future holds.

For some more news on the future of The Enemy Within…

Be sure to head over to the link here, since that is where you can get our full take on both the finale, and also the show’s season 2 renewal odds.

What did you think about The Enemy Within and the big finale, and do you want to see more of this story after what we got tonight? Be sure to share right now in the comments. (Photo: NBC.)