XIII - Tempest

Searching for answers to the latest conspiracy surrounding him, XIII (Stuart Townsend) travels to Ariella Island to seek out a scientist with a connection to the Tesla letters. Dr. Westlund (Kenneth Welsh) and his daughter Gale (Cristina Rosato) are kept on the isolated island under a perpetual storm and armed guards to protect the scientist while he works on a top secret Tesla weapon project for HARPE. However, that's by far the only secret on the island as in his wanderings XIII discovers the grave of the scientist's real daughter (Jennifer Dzialoszynski).

The episode includes a flashback sequences to Tesla's (also played by Townsend) 1904 experiment at Wardenclyffe Tower and the scientist's partnership with J.P. Morgan (Stephen McHattie) who wanted to use Tesla's research to create a weapon. We also get several scenes of an increasingly irrational President Carrington's (McHattie) final days in office including his contentious meeting with President-Elect Harriet Traymore (Ingrid Kavelaars) in the Oval Office which leads him to declare his plans to remain in the White House by any means necessary.


Finding common ground with "Gale" and Dr. Westlund, XIII learns more about Tesla's research and the lengths the scientist took to keep it hidden, falsifying the reports he sent to Morgan while dividing the real data into thee documents (just like last's seasons three watches) which "function as a Rosetta Stone" to decipher the scientist's code. Westlund also shows XIII his replica of the Tesla Tower and the HARPE Projects determination to see Tesla's weapon recreated. Able to save the pair from the Synequanon soldiers, but unable to convince them to come with him, XIII sets out to leave the island for Washington to seek out a Russian national in possession of another of the Tesla letters. However, the sudden appearance of Amos (Greg Bryk) and XIII's capture leads to a change in his travel plans.

"Tempest" finally reveals the truth behind the hidden conspiracy, the Tesla weapon, and the three hidden pieces of information scattered around the world with the scientist's hidden code (which is nearly identical to the search we were given last season). The scenes with Carrington are increasingly goofy, and still relatively pointless, and stall the episode every time they are reintroduced. The flashback sequences, though overly-simplistic, work much better and any excuse to give the audience more of Tesla's designs works for me.

We still don't quite know how Traymore and HARPE fit in with XIII's double, or who XIII's doppelganger  is working for. XIII's capture at the hands of Amos spells nothing but pain for our protagonist who the head of Synequanon blames for the deaths of his wife and daughter but might also finally lead to the exposure of the double and get XIII off Amos and the United States Government's most wanted list.