Pilot (Burn Notice)

Last updated
"Pilot"
Burn Notice episode
Episode no.Season 1
Episode 1
Directed by Jace Alexander
Written by Matt Nix
Production codeBN100
Original air dateJune 28, 2007 (2007-06-28)
Episode chronology
← Previous
—		Next →
"Identity"
List of episodes

"Pilot" is the first episode of Burn Notice , an American television drama series created for the USA Network.

Contents

A spy kicked out of the Agency is stuck in Miami, Florida, where he helps locals who can not rely on the police. In the opener, Michael Westen (Jeffrey Donovan) finds himself cut off from his contacts and his cash, so he agrees to help a man clear his name in a high-priced art theft. Along the way he gets help from his ex-girlfriend and a retired Navy SEAL, and grief from his mother, who is unaware of his career.

Plot

While on assignment in Nigeria, covert operative Michael Westen learns that he's been "burned". For a spy, it is the equivalent of being fired. A burned spy is blacklisted from all government agencies and resources; his bank accounts are frozen and his credit is trashed. Michael barely escapes Nigeria and wakes up, battered, in a motel in Miami, Florida. In order to survive and fund his own personal investigation, Michael enlists the help of the only two "friends" he has: Fiona Glenanne, an ex-IRA operative who also happens to be an ex-girlfriend, and Sam Axe, a washed-out military intelligence contact who has been under surveillance by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). He is also forced to deal with the family he went halfway around the world to get away from—particularly his mother, Madeline Westen, who could not be happier to have her son back in town.

Through former spy-turned-security consultant Lucy Chen—whom Michael helped learn the trade—he gets a lead on a small investigation job: a caretaker of an estate, Javier (David Zayas), has been accused of stealing valuable art from his employer, Graham Pyne (Ray Wise). All evidence points to it being an inside job and Javier, with very little money to offer, has nowhere else to turn. When Michael begins to dig around, he quickly discovers that it was in fact an inside job: Pyne orchestrated the robbery and framed Javier in order to collect insurance.

Michael confronts Pyne with the incriminating evidence. When Pyne and his bodyguard come after Javier and his son, Michael is already a step ahead of them and has set up a trap at Javier's house. After the smoke clears, Pyne has accidentally shot his bodyguard, and Michael has enough evidence to send both of them to jail for conspiracy to commit kidnapping. With the mounting evidence hanging over his head, Pyne agrees to clear Javier's name and provide financial support to Javier and his son.

Meanwhile, Michael keeps trying to get in touch with his old government handler, Dan Siebels (Dan Martin), who will not accept his calls. Deciding to get creative, Michael resorts to mailing Siebels a fake bomb in order to get his attention. The ploy works, and Michael finally gets to confront Siebels about the burn notice. Siebels believes Michael has probably been framed and there is nothing he can do to help him, but that he still has allies within the Agency. He tells Michael not to leave Miami, unless he wants an FBI manhunt after him. To top it all off, Michael returns home to find his door open and the floor covered with surveillance photos. It is not the FBI, but whoever it is, they have been tracking his every move. And they have left a message: "Welcome to Miami."

Production

The pilot was originally produced to be shown as a two-hour movie or as two one-hour episodes. When USA decided to broadcast it uninterrupted, it was edited to fit a 90 minute time slot; this version is also on the Season 1 DVD. The two-part version was eventually shown in Australia. [1]

Filming began in December, 2006. [2]

Reception

Approximately four million viewers tuned into the series premiere of Burn Notice. [3] Jeff Commings of the Arizona Daily Star felt the first episode was better than the second, and overall the show was "good, not great." [4] The teleplay by Matt Nix won a 2008 Edgar Allan Poe Award, honoring the best in mystery, in the category Best Television Episode Teleplay. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Weston</span> American television and film actor (born 1973)

Michael Weston is an American television and film actor. His best-known roles are the private detective Lucas on House, the deranged and sadistic kidnapper Jake in the HBO serial drama Six Feet Under, and Private Dancer on Scrubs, as well as Harry Houdini in Houdini & Doyle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeffrey Donovan</span> American actor

Jeffrey Donovan is an American actor. He has played Michael Westen in the television series Burn Notice, and appeared in films such as Hitch, Believe in Me, Changeling, and Come Early Morning. He played Robert F. Kennedy in Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar (2011) and his brother John F. Kennedy in Rob Reiner's LBJ (2016). He had a recurring role in the second season of the TV series Fargo (2015). From 2022 to 2023, he starred as NYPD Detective Frank Cosgrove on the revival of the NBC crime drama Law & Order. He left the show before the 23rd season due to creative differences.

Law enforcement is an integral part of the HBO drama series The Wire. The show has numerous characters in this field and their roles range from those enforcing the law at street level up to those setting laws citywide. The Baltimore City Police Department has been explored in detail from street level characters to the upper echelons of command. The show has also examined those setting laws in city politics and touched upon the FBI, the correctional system and the family of police officers.

<i>Life</i> (American TV series) American crime drama TV series (2007–2009)

Life is an American crime drama television series created by Rand Ravich that aired for two seasons on NBC. It was produced by Universal Media Studios under the supervision of executive producers Rand Ravich, Far Shariat, David Semel, and Daniel Sackheim. Semel also directed the pilot.

<i>Burn Notice</i> American espionage television series

Burn Notice is an American espionage television series created by Matt Nix, which originally aired on the USA Network for a total of seven seasons from June 28, 2007, to September 12, 2013. The show stars Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, Sharon Gless, and Coby Bell.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Nix</span> American writer, producer, and director (born 1971)

Matthew E. Nix is an American writer, producer, and director. He is best known for creating the television series Burn Notice, The Good Guys, and The Gifted.

Joseph Chappelle is an American screenwriter, producer, and director of film and television. He is perhaps best known for his work on the critically acclaimed HBO series The Wire, where he directed six episodes and served as co-executive producer for three seasons. In 2018, his episode "Middle Ground" was named the 6th Best TV Episode of the Century by pop culture website The Ringer. He has also produced and directed several other popular cable television programs, including CSI: Miami, Fringe and Chicago Fire.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 1 Season of television series

The first season of the American television series Burn Notice originally aired from June 28, 2007, to September 20, 2007.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 2 Season of television series

The second season of the American television action-drama series Burn Notice, created by Matt Nix and starring Jeffrey Donovan, Gabrielle Anwar, Bruce Campbell, and Sharon Gless, premiered July 10, 2008. The season was split into two parts, with episodes 1–9 airing in the summer of 2008 and episodes 10–16 being broadcast in early 2009.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 3 Season of television series

The third season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 4, 2009 on the cable television channel USA Network. Season three consists of sixteen episodes, split between a nine-episode summer season and a seven-episode winter season.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 4 Season of television series

The fourth season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 3, 2010 on the cable television channel USA Network. Coby Bell joined the main cast as Jesse Porter, a counter-intelligence agent Michael unwittingly burns.

<i>Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe</i> 2011 television film directed by Jeffrey Donovan

Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe is a 2011 American television film based on the USA Network television series Burn Notice. It was the first and only official Burn Notice spin-off, starring Bruce Campbell, and directed by Jeffrey Donovan. The show was broadcast in the United States on April 17, 2011, on the U.S. television network USA Network. The film, while not an episode of the show, introduced plot elements for the show's fifth season.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 5 Season of television series

The fifth season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 23, 2011 on the cable television channel USA Network. The season concluded after its eighteenth episode on December 15, 2011.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 6 Season of television series

The sixth season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice premiered on June 14, 2012, on the cable television channel USA Network.

"Episode 6", also known as "Realization Time", is the seventh episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by Harley Peyton, and directed by Caleb Deschanel. "Episode 6" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Sherilyn Fenn and Eric Da Re, with guest appearances by Chris Mulkey and David Patrick Kelly.

<i>Burn Notice</i> season 7 Season of television series

The seventh and final season of the American television spy drama Burn Notice aired from June 6, 2013 to September 12, 2013, on the cable television channel USA Network. The 13-episode season was ordered by USA Network on November 7, 2012. In May 2013, the network announced that this season will be the show's last. Production on the series wrapped on July 31, 2013.

Pilot (<i>The Americans</i>) 1st episode of the 1st season of The Americans

"Pilot" is the first episode of the first season of the period drama television series The Americans. It originally aired on FX in the United States on January 30, 2013. The episode was written by series creator Joe Weisberg and directed by Gavin O'Connor.

"Reckoning" is the final episode of Burn Notice, an American television drama series created for the USA Network.

References

  1. ↑ "The Digital Fix | for entertainment fans in the know".
  2. ↑ "Exclusive Interview: Gabrielle Anwar, from 'Burn Notice'". 2 August 2007. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  3. ↑ "Looks like Burn Notice is a hit". TVSquad.com. 2007-07-09. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  4. ↑ "'Burn Notice' -- Good, not great". Arizona Daily Star. 2007-07-11. Archived from the original on 2007-08-09. Retrieved 2007-08-06.
  5. ↑ "Mystery Writers of America Announces the 2008 Edgar Award Winners" (Press release). 2008-05-01. Retrieved 2009-05-02.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.