Phoenix



Phoenix is the eighth episode of Nikita, and the eighth episode of the first season. It premiered to American audiences on November 4, 2010 at 2.41 million viewers.

Synopsis
The episode starts with Anna Harcourt bringing in her groceries to her home she shares with her dog. She is an intern in Washington, DC who is having a secret affair with a U.S. Senator. Division agrees to cover up any trace of the affair as long as Senator Jack Kerrigan agrees to help pass a bill that will continue to fund the agency. Nikita arrives on the scene too late to save her but does save her dog Yoshi. Yet, as Anna Harcourt lies dead in her kitchen, leaving the previously infallible Nikita dealing with the bitter realisation that she was seconds away from saving her, Thom is revealed as the contrite but merciless assailant. Nikita's investigation into Anna leads her to meet Anna's boyfriend, who was oblivious to her affair with the politician, taking us to the least secure ‘Secure' meeting place and also Anna's Federal workplace, accessed via stolen keycard. Nikita's investigation leads her to Anna's parents' house. The woman and man posing as Anna's parents seem awkward, and Nikita realises that there is only one photo of them with their daughter repeated throughout their living room. Nikita is forced to use many makeshift weapons (vases, tables and even a vacuum cleaner) and Nikita eventually kills the fake mother with a shad of glass. This leads Ari Tasarov, the leader of another covert government unit (Russian) to offer her the chance to work with them and to help them bring down Division. Nikita refuses. However, Ari injects her with a poison that will apparently "liquify" her stomach in twelve hours if she does not take out their target. The antidote can be found in only one other place (the medical wing at Division) and Nikita asks Alex to get it for her. With the excuse of a sprained wrist from sparring, Alex goes to the medical wing and asks the doctor to give her an X-ray. Whilst he is in the other room, she rummages through the cabinets and finds the antidote. She later kisses Thom as he goes out onto his first op with Michael, planting the antidote in Thom's pocket for Nikita to find later on. Den Of Geek said that: "Tasarov appears to be a character we will get to see much more of. This is very good news. He secretes the arrogance and cold charm that you sometimes wish Percy had, but in the introduction of Tasarov it seems Percy's comparative benignity is intentional, as they are opposite faces of the same evil coin. His admission of his knowledge of Percy's black boxes and his offer of allegiance with Nikita paint him out to be a major player in future episodes, and while there's no doubt at all that the any of your enemy is most certainly not your friend, his relationship with Nikita will be an interesting one."

Trivia

 * Although credited, Tiffany Hines (Jaden) does not appear in this episode.

Goofs and Errors

 * When Nikita is going over Anna's information she sees that she studied Baltic languages. She then asks the dog if Anna ever spoke to her in Polish, Russian or Czech. None of those are Baltic languages though, they are Slavic.

Music

 * "Ghosts" by Blue Horns

Main Cast

 * Maggie Q as Nikita
 * Shane West as Michael
 * Lyndsy Fonseca as Alex
 * Aaron Stanford as Birkhoff
 * Melinda Clarke as Amanda
 * Xander Berkeley as Percy
 * Ashton Holmes as Thom
 * Tiffany Hines as Jaden