The Equalizer: Season 5 Episode 9 – Recap/ Review

As Robyn takes on another case we’re likely to see no follow-up on, Marcus finally meets his brother James.

ByAmari Allah Hours Posted on

Spoiler Alert: This summary and review contains spoilers.

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Episode Details

Episode Title: Stolen Angel
Air Date: February 23, 2025
Network: CBS
Director(s): Pamela Romanowsky
Writer(s): Joe Gazzam

Recap

Lessons To Be Learned: Delilah, Aunt Vi, Robyn

Delilah remains grounded due to taking Robyn’s father’s car on a joy ride. What furthers her issues is talking rudely to a disgruntled neighbor. Aunt Vi chastises her for that, even though Delilah was in the right. However, with Aunt Vi understanding that the man needs purpose, his family is moving away, and he is lonely, she looks down on Delilah for not being more understanding.

So, to correct the course, she is kinder to the man, allows him to use his skills as a retired electrician, and even invites him to eat with them while Robyn is at work.

This Week’s Case: Robyn, Mel, Harry

This week, Robyn finds herself in a case where a pregnant woman, a former addict, is kidnapped. The woman is taken due to a non-profit clinic targeting mothers with a history who they believe they can exploit and sell their babies to wealthy parents. A nurse at the clinic has been orchestrating everything, mainly due to her own upbringing with a drug addicted parent.

The crew investigates, going from the pregnant mother’s doctor to the recent ex/person who she used to be with, finding the eventual adoptive parents, and eventually they loop back around to the clinic, find out the nurse is involved, and rescue the mother. Unfortunately, though, the mother is only the latest victim, of which there are more than five, with one believing their baby died after a c-section, with Robyn and Mel assuming the kid is alive.

Now, will Harry work his magic, and will viewers get to see potential reunions? Probably not. But, at the very least, the kidnapping of babies has ended.

Brother From Another Mother: James, Marcus, Ben, Robyn

Marcus and James finally come face to face, and their first meeting isn’t necessarily smooth. With James having long forgiven Ben, even visiting him in prison, while Marcus narrowly disowned his father, there is a conflict of which Ben is in the middle. What doesn’t help is Ben disappearing to a pizza shop, which forces the brothers to spend a notable amount of time together and compare notes. This reminds James of how Marcus lacks gratitude, which leads to some renewed animosity – even after they find Ben safe and sound.

But, with wanting to do better and recognizing James is now in his life, Marcus extends an olive branch.

New Characters

James (Neil Brown Jr.)

James (Neil Brown Jr.) in The Equalizer: Season 5 Episode 9, directed by Pamela Romanowsky (CBS)

James is a defense attorney who, despite only recently becoming known to Marcus, has been in Ben’s life even before Ben went to prison. In fact, James relays he saw Ben in prison while Marcus decided to disown him. Thus creating a bit of a rift between them, even though they appear to be aligned when it comes to other aspects of their individual life.

Review

Highlights

  • What James Can Bring To Marcus’ Storyline [83/100]

On The Fence

  • How Delilah Was Handled [73/100]
  • Robyn and Marcus’ Dirty Talk [70/100]

Trajectory

Trajectory (75/100): Decline

I feel “The Equalizer” is declining because the lead character’s only long-term storyline is with someone they don’t have much chemistry with. Robyn may check in with Delilah and Aunt Vi, but she doesn’t have much in the way of involvement with them. In many ways, Robyn comes off like the parent who is a provider but isn’t doing much in the way of rearing, with the excuse that if they diverted their attention from work, the lifestyle everyone enjoys wouldn’t continue.

And if Robyn’s job didn’t have episodic cases, I could be fine with that. But with notable villains coming and going, no follow up on cases like what she dealt with in this episode, and Robyn and Marcus feeling like a relationship of convience, that they are now pushing towards being sexual, it makes the show seem like it is on a decline.

Now, could James help things, so Marcus can suck the life out of another character? Maybe. But then there is Delilah. We love and adore her storyline, but Aunt Vi damning her for a man being rude and saying something racial, just because he is their neighbor, felt a bit off considering what both have said and done in past seasons. Yeah, the man might be lonely, but he was still out of line and harassing them.

Altogether, it is a bit frustrating since the show’s weak points are what are invested in the most. That is, the Robyn and Marcus relationship and episodic cases. Meanwhile, the only thing of note to us, that has been consistently growing and addressed, like Delilah’s storyline, are starting to get shoddy.

Delilah in The Equalizer: Season 5 Episode 9, directed by Pamela Romanowsky (CBS)

For take note, Mel’s issues with using a gun have disappeared, never mind the drama she had in her family or who she did or didn’t tell about Harry having to go into hiding. Robyn’s storyline dealing with the CIA seemingly wanting to make her a controlled asset again, or her former protégé being on the run, are gone or being held off so long that it almost feels unimportant.

Then with Harry, he has gone back to just being Robyn’s hacker and Aunt Vi’s various storylines? Whether it was her teaching, dating, all that? I’m not saying it is over, but it seems for her, they only let her have one thing going at a time, and to me, that teaching storyline was perhaps one of the best things that could have happened to her. It allowed her to be more than someone who cooks, cleans, or makes someone else feel important, and she could get to be the notable person and share that in ways you can see will become less and less as Delilah has to shift towards focusing on college.

“The Equalizer” Guide

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Amari is the founder and head writer of Wherever-I-Look.com and has been reviewing media since 2010. He approaches each production with hope, rooting for every story to succeed, and believes criticism should come from unmet potential, while praise is reserved for work that meets or exceeds expectations.