Spree (Numb3rs)
Encyclopedia
"Spree" is the first episode of the third season of the American television show Numb3rs
The episode features Federal Bureau of Investigation
(FBI) agents pursuing a couple of spree killers. Series writer Ken Sanzel drew inspiration for the episode from pursuit curves
. "Spree" also launches a more general trend toward the serialization of the series.
David Gallagher
and Kim Dickens
guest-starred as the couple. For Gallagher, the role of Buck Winters was a sharp contrast with his role in a previous series. Lou Diamond Phillips
, reprising his role of FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton, made his third appearance on Numb3rs.
"Spree" first aired in the United States on September 22, 2006. Critics gave the episode positive reviews.
and drive off in a stolen a convertible. Some time later, FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton (Lou Diamond Phillips) informs FBI Special Agents Don Eppes
(Rob Morrow
), Megan Reeves (Diane Farr
), David Sinclair
(Alimi Ballard
), and Colby Granger
(Dylan Bruno
) that Crystal and Buck have been on a 17-day robbery spree from Texas
to Los Angeles. Don and Ian take a map to CalSci and ask Dr. Charlie Eppes
(David Krumholtz
), Don's brother and a FBI math
consultant
, for assistance. Charlie gets an idea that Ian missed a shooting in Wyoming
. At the office, the team learns that Crystal was Buck's high school teacher and that they killed Buck's father before beginning their robbery spree. A call stating that Crystal and Buck were involved in a shootout in a Wyoming bar confirms Charlie's suspicion and fills in a gap in the timeline. A background check reveals that Crystal, along with her friend Lydia Campos (Georgia Hatzis), was arrested for drug possession in Los Angeles at age 15. Meanwhile, Buck and Crystal drive into a downtown car dealership belonging to Pierce Brennan (Jerry D. O'Donnell). Brennan recognizes Crystal, and she shoots him. After arriving on the scene, Megan realizes that Crystal and Buck's actions have been changing since Ian started following them.
Meanwhile, Alan Eppes
(Judd Hirsch
), Don and Charlie's father, contemplates moving into a condo, citing privacy issues and the need to invest the money from the sale of the house. Also, Dr. Amita Ramanujan
(Navi Rawat
) tells Charlie that she is accepting the CalSci associate professor's position extended to her some time earlier, enabling Charlie and Amita to start dating. While telling his friend and fellow colleague Dr. Larry Fleinhardt
(Peter MacNicol
) about these changes and the idea about the Wyoming shooting, Charlie becomes inspired to use pursuit curves
to model Crystal and Buck's as well as Ian's movements throughout the western United States. The team stakes out Campos' house and learns through a wiretap that Crystal is going to a meth
house. Buck and Crystal grab some grenades and blow up the meth house.
Crystal calls Campos again, and Campos tries to talk Crystal out of leaving a bag of drugs and cash outside Campos' house. Unwilling to let Crystal kill Campos, David and Colby take Campos into custody. At the FBI office, Campos tells them that Brennan was connected to the meth dealers and that Billy Rivers, Crystal's boyfriend after her relationship with Brennan, was charged along with Crystal and Campos. Charlie assumes that Crystal and Buck are after something else, and the team realizes that Crystal wants to eliminate anyone and anything connected to her past "mistakes". This makes Rivers a target, and the team race to find him.
After narrowing down the number of places where Rivers could be, the team stakes out the house of Rivers' cousin. Ian cautions Megan about not letting Crystal's background influence Megan's perception of the case. Buck arrives, and Ian shoots Buck in the wrist. Buck is then taken to jail. Megan meets Larry at an all-night café for an early breakfast, and they discuss Megan's own decision to leave home at the age of 16. After Larry leaves, Crystal appears and carjack
s Megan.
" were originally written as one episode. Numb3rs series writer Ken Sanzel based the original script on the concept of pursuit curves. When Sanzel sent the script to the network, CBS executives requested that he divide the script into two parts. The second part became "Two Daughters".
"Spree" had two differences in storytelling. Beginning with season three, creators Cheryl Heuton
and Nicolas Falacci
decided to serialize the show in terms of character's lives. Since the series already delved into the personal lives and relationships of the characters, serialization was a natural progression in the development of the series. Also, "Spree" marked the first time in which the story was told from the criminal's viewpoint.
, Gallagher auditioned for the role of Buck Winters. The casting director noted the difference in roles but awarded Gallagher with the role. Kim Dickens, formerly of Deadwood
, auditioned and won the role of Crystal. Dickens enjoyed the role so much that she was disappointed in not being able to return. Lou Diamond Phillips reprised his role of FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton. The episode marked Edgerton's third appearance on Numb3rs..
by about 490,000 viewers. Critically, the episode was very well-received. Although she called Gallagher "out-of-character", Cynthia Boris of DVD Verdict seemed to enjoy the episode. Jeffrey Robinson, a DVD Talk reviewer, called "Spree" "[o]ne of the season's strongest episodes". Grouping "Spree" and "Two Daughters" together, Donald Liebenson, an Amazon.com editor, called "Spree" "compelling".
NUMB3RS
Numb3rs is an American television drama which premiered on CBS on January 23, 2005, and concluded on March 12, 2010. The series was created by Nicolas Falacci and Cheryl Heuton, and follows FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes , who helps Don solve crimes...
The episode features Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
(FBI) agents pursuing a couple of spree killers. Series writer Ken Sanzel drew inspiration for the episode from pursuit curves
Curve of pursuit
A curve of pursuit is a curve constructed by analogy to having a point or points which represents pursuers and pursuees, and the curve of pursuit is the curve traced by the pursuers....
. "Spree" also launches a more general trend toward the serialization of the series.
David Gallagher
David Gallagher
David Lee Gallagher is an American actor. Beginning a prolific career as a child actor and model at the age of two, Gallagher is a five-time Young Artist Award nominee and Teen Choice Award winner, best known for his role as Simon Camden on the long running television series 7th Heaven, as well as...
and Kim Dickens
Kim Dickens
Kimberly Jan "Kim" Dickens is an American actress and model.-Early life:Dickens was born in Huntsville, Alabama, graduated from that city's Lee High School, and attended Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she majored in communication...
guest-starred as the couple. For Gallagher, the role of Buck Winters was a sharp contrast with his role in a previous series. Lou Diamond Phillips
Lou Diamond Phillips
Lou Diamond Phillips is an American film, television, and stage actor and director. His breakthrough came when he starred in the film La Bamba. He earned a supporting actor Golden Globe Award nomination for his role in Stand and Deliver and a Tony Award nomination for his role in The King and I...
, reprising his role of FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton, made his third appearance on Numb3rs.
"Spree" first aired in the United States on September 22, 2006. Critics gave the episode positive reviews.
Plot summary
A recently married couple, Buck Winters (David Gallagher) and Crystal Hoyle (Kim Dickens), shoot the people inside a convenience store outside of Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
and drive off in a stolen a convertible. Some time later, FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton (Lou Diamond Phillips) informs FBI Special Agents Don Eppes
Don Eppes
Don Eppes is the main fictional character in the television show Numb3rs. He is played by Rob Morrow.Don is an FBI Special Agent who runs the FBI Violent Crimes Squad in Los Angeles. Don recruits his mathematical genius brother, Charlie Eppes, to help him and the Bureau solve some of their most...
(Rob Morrow
Rob Morrow
Robert Alan "Rob" Morrow is an American actor. He is known for his portrayal of Don Eppes on Numb3rs and as Dr. Joel Fleischman on Northern Exposure, a role which garnered him three Golden Globes and two Emmy Award nominations for "Best Actor in a Dramatic Series."-Personal life:Morrow was born in...
), Megan Reeves (Diane Farr
Diane Farr
Diane Farr is an American actress. She is known for her roles as FBI agent Megan Reeves in the CBS television series Numb3rs and Laura Miles on Rescue Me.-Life and career:...
), David Sinclair
David Sinclair (Numb3rs)
David Sinclair is a fictitious FBI agent in the TV show Numb3rs. First introduced in the Pilot episode, he has become the usual partner of FBI Special Agent Colby Granger and has also become the primary relief supervisor for the Supervisor of the FBI Violent Crimes division, Don Eppes...
(Alimi Ballard
Alimi Ballard
Alimi Ballard is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his role as FBI agent David Sinclair on the CBS drama television series Numb3rs....
), and Colby Granger
Colby Granger
Colby Granger is a fictitious FBI agent on the American television show Numb3rs. First introduced during the second season, he has become a part of the team led by FBI Special Agent Don Eppes and is usually partnered with David Sinclair...
(Dylan Bruno
Dylan Bruno
Dylan Bruno is an American actor and former model. He portrayed FBI agent Colby Granger in the CBS series Numb3rs.-Personal life:...
) that Crystal and Buck have been on a 17-day robbery spree from Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to Los Angeles. Don and Ian take a map to CalSci and ask Dr. Charlie Eppes
Charlie Eppes
Charles Edward "Charlie" Eppes, PhD is a fictional character and protagonist in the CBS crime drama Numb3rs.Dr...
(David Krumholtz
David Krumholtz
David Krumholtz is an American actor best known for playing Professor Charlie Eppes in the television series Numb3rs. He appeared as Seth Goldstein in Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle and its two sequels, Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay and A Very Harold & Kumar 3D Christmas...
), Don's brother and a FBI math
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
consultant
Consultant
A consultant is a professional who provides professional or expert advice in a particular area such as management, accountancy, the environment, entertainment, technology, law , human resources, marketing, emergency management, food production, medicine, finance, life management, economics, public...
, for assistance. Charlie gets an idea that Ian missed a shooting in Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming is a state in the mountain region of the Western United States. The western two thirds of the state is covered mostly with the mountain ranges and rangelands in the foothills of the Eastern Rocky Mountains, while the eastern third of the state is high elevation prairie known as the High...
. At the office, the team learns that Crystal was Buck's high school teacher and that they killed Buck's father before beginning their robbery spree. A call stating that Crystal and Buck were involved in a shootout in a Wyoming bar confirms Charlie's suspicion and fills in a gap in the timeline. A background check reveals that Crystal, along with her friend Lydia Campos (Georgia Hatzis), was arrested for drug possession in Los Angeles at age 15. Meanwhile, Buck and Crystal drive into a downtown car dealership belonging to Pierce Brennan (Jerry D. O'Donnell). Brennan recognizes Crystal, and she shoots him. After arriving on the scene, Megan realizes that Crystal and Buck's actions have been changing since Ian started following them.
Meanwhile, Alan Eppes
Alan Eppes
Alan Eppes is a fictional character on the television show Numb3rs, played by Judd Hirsch. Alan is the father of the main characters, brothers Charlie and Don Eppes...
(Judd Hirsch
Judd Hirsch
Judd Hirsch is an American actor most known for playing Alex Rieger on the television comedy series Taxi, John Lacey on the NBC series Dear John, and Alan Eppes on the CBS series Numb3rs.-Early life and education:...
), Don and Charlie's father, contemplates moving into a condo, citing privacy issues and the need to invest the money from the sale of the house. Also, Dr. Amita Ramanujan
Amita Ramanujan
Amita Ramanujan is a fictional character from the TV series Numb3rs. Over the course of the series, she has become a professor at CalSci and has since become romantically involved with her former thesis advisor, Dr. Charlie Eppes . First introduced in "Pilot", the character of Amita has received...
(Navi Rawat
Navi Rawat
Navi Rawat is an American television actress, known for her roles as Theresa Diaz on the drama series The O.C. and math prodigy Amita Ramanujan on the drama series Numb3rs. She is the niece of Prem Rawat....
) tells Charlie that she is accepting the CalSci associate professor's position extended to her some time earlier, enabling Charlie and Amita to start dating. While telling his friend and fellow colleague Dr. Larry Fleinhardt
Larry Fleinhardt
Larry Fleinhardt PhD is a fictional character in the television show Numb3rs, played by Peter MacNicol.Dr. Lawrence Fleinhardt is a professor of physics at CalSci and best friend and colleague of Charlie Eppes...
(Peter MacNicol
Peter MacNicol
Peter MacNicol is an American actor. He may be best known in films for his roles of Janosz Poha in Ghostbusters II, Stingo in Sophie's Choice, Thomas Renfield in Dracula: Dead and Loving It and David Langley in Bean...
) about these changes and the idea about the Wyoming shooting, Charlie becomes inspired to use pursuit curves
Curve of pursuit
A curve of pursuit is a curve constructed by analogy to having a point or points which represents pursuers and pursuees, and the curve of pursuit is the curve traced by the pursuers....
to model Crystal and Buck's as well as Ian's movements throughout the western United States. The team stakes out Campos' house and learns through a wiretap that Crystal is going to a meth
Methamphetamine
Methamphetamine is a psychostimulant of the phenethylamine and amphetamine class of psychoactive drugs...
house. Buck and Crystal grab some grenades and blow up the meth house.
Crystal calls Campos again, and Campos tries to talk Crystal out of leaving a bag of drugs and cash outside Campos' house. Unwilling to let Crystal kill Campos, David and Colby take Campos into custody. At the FBI office, Campos tells them that Brennan was connected to the meth dealers and that Billy Rivers, Crystal's boyfriend after her relationship with Brennan, was charged along with Crystal and Campos. Charlie assumes that Crystal and Buck are after something else, and the team realizes that Crystal wants to eliminate anyone and anything connected to her past "mistakes". This makes Rivers a target, and the team race to find him.
After narrowing down the number of places where Rivers could be, the team stakes out the house of Rivers' cousin. Ian cautions Megan about not letting Crystal's background influence Megan's perception of the case. Buck arrives, and Ian shoots Buck in the wrist. Buck is then taken to jail. Megan meets Larry at an all-night café for an early breakfast, and they discuss Megan's own decision to leave home at the age of 16. After Larry leaves, Crystal appears and carjack
Carjacking
Carjacking is a form of hijacking, where the crime is of stealing a motor vehicle and so also armed assault when the vehicle is occupied. Historically, such as in the rash of semi-trailer truck hijackings during the 1960s, the general term hijacking was used for that type of vehicle abduction,...
s Megan.
Writing
"Spree" and the following episode "Two DaughtersTwo Daughters
"Two Daughters" is the second episode of the third season of the American television show Numb3rs. The second half of a two-episode storyline, the episode features the aftermath of a Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent's abduction, which results in the search for not only the agent and...
" were originally written as one episode. Numb3rs series writer Ken Sanzel based the original script on the concept of pursuit curves. When Sanzel sent the script to the network, CBS executives requested that he divide the script into two parts. The second part became "Two Daughters".
"Spree" had two differences in storytelling. Beginning with season three, creators Cheryl Heuton
Cheryl Heuton
Cheryl Heuton is an American television writer and producer. Along with her husband and writing partner Nicolas Falacci, she co-created the television series Numb3rs.-External links:...
and Nicolas Falacci
Nicolas Falacci
Nicolas Falacci is a television writer and producer. Along with his wife and writing partner Cheryl Heuton, he co-created the television series Numb3rs. His only directing credit is the season 6 finale of the program. Falacci also wrote the story and screenplay for the 1991 horror film Children of...
decided to serialize the show in terms of character's lives. Since the series already delved into the personal lives and relationships of the characters, serialization was a natural progression in the development of the series. Also, "Spree" marked the first time in which the story was told from the criminal's viewpoint.
Casting
David Gallagher was cast as Buck Winters, and Kim Dickens was cast as Crystal Hoyle. Looking to show more acting depth than exhibited in his previous role in 7th Heaven7th Heaven
7th Heaven is an American family drama television series, created and produced by Brenda Hampton. The series premiered on August 26, 1996, on the WB, the first time that the network aired Monday night programming, and was originally broadcast from August 26, 1996 to May 13, 2007...
, Gallagher auditioned for the role of Buck Winters. The casting director noted the difference in roles but awarded Gallagher with the role. Kim Dickens, formerly of Deadwood
Deadwood (TV series)
Deadwood is an American Western drama television series created, produced and largely written by David Milch. The series aired on the premium cable network HBO from March 21, 2004, to August 27, 2006, spanning three 12-episode seasons. The show is set in the 1870s in Deadwood, South Dakota, before...
, auditioned and won the role of Crystal. Dickens enjoyed the role so much that she was disappointed in not being able to return. Lou Diamond Phillips reprised his role of FBI Special Agent Ian Edgerton. The episode marked Edgerton's third appearance on Numb3rs..
Reception
When the episode premiered, 11.42 million people in the United States watched "Spree", beating Law & OrderLaw & Order
Law & Order is an American police procedural and legal drama television series, created by Dick Wolf and part of the Law & Order franchise. It aired on NBC, and in syndication on various cable networks. Law & Order premiered on September 13, 1990, and completed its 20th and final season on May 24,...
by about 490,000 viewers. Critically, the episode was very well-received. Although she called Gallagher "out-of-character", Cynthia Boris of DVD Verdict seemed to enjoy the episode. Jeffrey Robinson, a DVD Talk reviewer, called "Spree" "[o]ne of the season's strongest episodes". Grouping "Spree" and "Two Daughters" together, Donald Liebenson, an Amazon.com editor, called "Spree" "compelling".
External links
- Numb3rs: Spree at TV.comTV.comTV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...
- Numb3rs: Spree (2006) at Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...