Burn Notice (season 2)
Encyclopedia
Burn Notice
is an American
television
comedy
-drama
series created by Matt Nix
and starring Jeffrey Donovan
, Gabrielle Anwar
, Bruce Campbell
, and Sharon Gless
. The second season 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.
A burn notice is a document issued by intelligence agencies
to discredit or announce the dismissal of agents or sources who are considered to have become unreliable. The television series is a first-person narrative
(including frequent stream of consciousness voice-over
s providing nuggets of exposition
) from the viewpoint
of covert-operations
agent Michael Westen
, played by Jeffrey Donovan
. Michael Westen often delivers tips on unrelated subject matters, such as on burglar-proofing houses or getting promoted during commercial breaks.
and freelance spy
for anyone in town who can pay him any money in order to fund his personal investigation into his own situation as a blacklisted agent. Westen battles and outwits an array of mobsters
, con artists, contract killers, professional thieves, drug traffickers, arms dealers
and kidnappers.
Season 2 introduces a mysterious woman named "Carla" (Tricia Helfer
), an agent of the organization behind Michael's burn notice who is now trying to get him to work for that organization. Although he resists, she assigns him various tasks (which he later learns are preparation for an assassination), while he also attempts to find out who she is. She often coerces him into working for her by threatening the people he cares about with violence. Midway through the season, Michael is almost assassinated by an unknown group. Carla gets the assignment to discover who placed the hit, while Michael digs around for the mastermind to find what could be either a potential ally or a dangerous new enemy.
Carla's operation is sabotaged by a rogue agent in her organization, and Michael is assigned to find out who it was. At the end of Season 2, he has an encounter with Carla's superior, simply known as "Management" (John Mahoney
). Putting the pieces together, Michael realizes that Management falsified records to paint him as both corrupt and unreliable, forcing the government to burn him. When Michael demands Management leave him alone, Management complies. While it frees Michael from their grasp, it also removes the organization's protection, which now exposes Michael to police attention and allows enemies he made as a U.S. covert operative to track him down.
returned as the still-burned spy Michael Westen
. Gabrielle Anwar
reprised her role as ex-IRA
operative Fiona Glenanne
, and Bruce Campbell
returned as ex-Navy SEAL Sam Axe
. Sharon Gless
also returned, as Madeline Westen
, Michael's mother.
The second season saw even more recurring guests than the first. The most prominent of these was Tricia Helfer
, who appeared in many episodes as Michael's handler, Carla. Paul Tei also made several appearances returning as money-launderer Barry Burkowski. Seth Peterson
returned as Michael's brother, Nate Westen. Michael Shanks
was introduced as wrangler Victor Stecker-Epps. Silas Weir Mitchell
made two appearances as the quirky arms dealer Seymour. Marc Macaulay
and Brandon Morris returned for one episode as Agents Harris and Lane, two FBI agents who were formerly in charge of Michael's surveillance. Agent Jason Bly, another FBI agent, also returned for one episode, portrayed by Alex Carter. Gary Weeks
made various appearances as Campbell, Fiona's boyfriend, while Audrey Landers
made a single appearance in her previous role as Sam's girlfriend, Veronica. Virgil Watkins, a former client, made an appearance, portrayed by Chris Ellis
. Various other characters were introduced, who later became important recurring characters. These included John Mahoney
as Management, Tim Matheson
as Michael's former mentor-turned-assassin "Dead" Larry Sizemore, and Jay Karnes
as arms dealer Tyler Brennen. Notable one-time guest stars included Kevin Alejandro
, Erick Avari
, Rob Benedict
, Assaf Cohen, Patrick Fabian
, Oded Fehr
, Method Man
, Larry Miller, Amy Pietz
, and Fawad Siddiqui
.
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! style="background:#0000cd;"|Title
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! style="background:#0000cd;"|Written by
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Burn notice
A burn notice is an official statement issued by one intelligence agency to other agencies. It states that an individual or a group is unreliable for one or more reasons...
is an American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
-drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
series created by Matt Nix
Matt Nix
Matthew E. "Matt" Nix is an American writer, producer, and director. He is best known for creating the USA Network television series Burn Notice and the now defunct cult favorite Fox series The Good Guys.-Biography:...
and starring Jeffrey Donovan
Jeffrey Donovan
Jeffrey Donovan is an American television, film and stage actor. He plays the lead Michael Westen on the American cable television series, Burn Notice. Notable starring roles in film include: Hitch, Believe in Me, Changeling, and Come Early Morning. He portrayed Robert F. Kennedy in Clint...
, Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar is an English actress. She is known for her role as Margaret Tudor on The Tudors, for dancing the tango with Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman and for her current role as Fiona Glenanne on USA's Burn Notice.- Early life :...
, Bruce Campbell
Bruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
, and Sharon Gless
Sharon Gless
Sharon Marguerite Gless is an American character actress of stage, film and television, who is best known for her roles as Maggie Philbin on Switch , as Sgt. Christine Cagney in the police procedural drama series Cagney & Lacey and as Debbie Novotny in the Showtime cable television series Queer...
. The second season 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.
A burn notice is a document issued by intelligence agencies
Intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a governmental agency that is devoted to information gathering for purposes of national security and defence. Means of information gathering may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public...
to discredit or announce the dismissal of agents or sources who are considered to have become unreliable. The television series is a first-person narrative
First-person narrative
First-person point of view is a narrative mode where a story is narrated by one character at a time, speaking for and about themselves. First-person narrative may be singular, plural or multiple as well as being an authoritative, reliable or deceptive "voice" and represents point of view in the...
(including frequent stream of consciousness voice-over
Voice-over
Voice-over is a production technique where a voice which is not part of the narrative is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations...
s providing nuggets of exposition
Exposition (literary technique)
At the beginning of a narrative, the exposition is the author's providing of some background information to the audience about the plot, characters' histories, setting, and theme. Exposition is considered one of four rhetorical modes of discourse, along with argumentation, description, and narration...
) from the viewpoint
Point of view (literature)
The narrative mode is the set of methods the author of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical story uses to convey the plot to the audience. Narration, the process of presenting the narrative, occurs because of the narrative mode...
of covert-operations
Covert operation
A covert operation is a military, intelligence or law enforcement operation that is carried clandestinely and, often, outside of official channels. Covert operations aim to fulfill their mission objectives without any parties knowing who sponsored or carried out the operation...
agent Michael Westen
Michael Westen
Michael Westen is a fictional character played by Jeffrey Donovan in the television series Burn Notice. Michael, a spy, was abruptly blacklisted while on an assignment. Forced to go back to his hometown of Miami, Florida, he finds himself cut off from the United States Intelligence Community...
, played by Jeffrey Donovan
Jeffrey Donovan
Jeffrey Donovan is an American television, film and stage actor. He plays the lead Michael Westen on the American cable television series, Burn Notice. Notable starring roles in film include: Hitch, Believe in Me, Changeling, and Come Early Morning. He portrayed Robert F. Kennedy in Clint...
. Michael Westen often delivers tips on unrelated subject matters, such as on burglar-proofing houses or getting promoted during commercial breaks.
Season overview
The second season of Burn Notice continues the plot lines of the first season. Michael Westen had struggled to find out why he had been burned and by whom. Westen continues his work as an unlicensed private investigatorPrivate investigator
A private investigator , private detective or inquiry agent, is a person who can be hired by individuals or groups to undertake investigatory law services. Private detectives/investigators often work for attorneys in civil cases. Many work for insurance companies to investigate suspicious claims...
and freelance spy
SPY
SPY is a three-letter acronym that may refer to:* SPY , ticker symbol for Standard & Poor's Depositary Receipts* SPY , a satirical monthly, trademarked all-caps* SPY , airport code for San Pédro, Côte d'Ivoire...
for anyone in town who can pay him any money in order to fund his personal investigation into his own situation as a blacklisted agent. Westen battles and outwits an array of mobsters
Mobsters
Mobsters is a 1991 crime-drama film detailing the creation of the The Commission. Set in New York City, taking place from 1917 to 1931, it is a semi-fictitious account of the rise of Charles "Lucky" Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Frank Costello, and Benjamin "Bugsy" Siegel.-Plot:This highly dramatized...
, con artists, contract killers, professional thieves, drug traffickers, arms dealers
Arms industry
The arms industry is a global industry and business which manufactures and sells weapons and military technology and equipment. It comprises government and commercial industry involved in research, development, production, and service of military material, equipment and facilities...
and kidnappers.
Season 2 introduces a mysterious woman named "Carla" (Tricia Helfer
Tricia Helfer
Tricia Janine Helfer is a Canadian actress and former model, best known for her roles as Number Six in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica miniseries and television series, "Carla" on Burn Notice, and FBI Special Agent Alex Rice on Dark Blue, as well as for hosting the first season of Canada's...
), an agent of the organization behind Michael's burn notice who is now trying to get him to work for that organization. Although he resists, she assigns him various tasks (which he later learns are preparation for an assassination), while he also attempts to find out who she is. She often coerces him into working for her by threatening the people he cares about with violence. Midway through the season, Michael is almost assassinated by an unknown group. Carla gets the assignment to discover who placed the hit, while Michael digs around for the mastermind to find what could be either a potential ally or a dangerous new enemy.
Carla's operation is sabotaged by a rogue agent in her organization, and Michael is assigned to find out who it was. At the end of Season 2, he has an encounter with Carla's superior, simply known as "Management" (John Mahoney
John Mahoney
John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...
). Putting the pieces together, Michael realizes that Management falsified records to paint him as both corrupt and unreliable, forcing the government to burn him. When Michael demands Management leave him alone, Management complies. While it frees Michael from their grasp, it also removes the organization's protection, which now exposes Michael to police attention and allows enemies he made as a U.S. covert operative to track him down.
Cast
Jeffrey DonovanJeffrey Donovan
Jeffrey Donovan is an American television, film and stage actor. He plays the lead Michael Westen on the American cable television series, Burn Notice. Notable starring roles in film include: Hitch, Believe in Me, Changeling, and Come Early Morning. He portrayed Robert F. Kennedy in Clint...
returned as the still-burned spy Michael Westen
Michael Westen
Michael Westen is a fictional character played by Jeffrey Donovan in the television series Burn Notice. Michael, a spy, was abruptly blacklisted while on an assignment. Forced to go back to his hometown of Miami, Florida, he finds himself cut off from the United States Intelligence Community...
. Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar
Gabrielle Anwar is an English actress. She is known for her role as Margaret Tudor on The Tudors, for dancing the tango with Al Pacino in Scent of a Woman and for her current role as Fiona Glenanne on USA's Burn Notice.- Early life :...
reprised her role as ex-IRA
Irish Republican Army
The Irish Republican Army was an Irish republican revolutionary military organisation. It was descended from the Irish Volunteers, an organisation established on 25 November 1913 that staged the Easter Rising in April 1916...
operative Fiona Glenanne
Fiona Glenanne
Fiona Glenanne is a fictional character in the television series Burn Notice, portrayed by Gabrielle Anwar. According to Fiona's biography from USA Network:...
, and Bruce Campbell
Bruce Campbell
Bruce Lorne Campbell is an American film and television actor. As a cult movie actor, Campbell starred as Ashley J. "Ash" Williams in Sam Raimi's Evil Dead series of films and he has starred in many low-budget cult films such as Crimewave, Maniac Cop, Bubba Ho-tep, Escape From L.A. and Sundown:...
returned as ex-Navy SEAL Sam Axe
Sam Axe
Commander Samuel "Sam" Axe, USN is a fictional character in the television series Burn Notice and TV movie Burn Notice: The Fall of Sam Axe, played by Bruce Campbell. He is the best friend of Michael Westen, the main character in Burn Notice.-Overview:Sam served several years as a U.S...
. Sharon Gless
Sharon Gless
Sharon Marguerite Gless is an American character actress of stage, film and television, who is best known for her roles as Maggie Philbin on Switch , as Sgt. Christine Cagney in the police procedural drama series Cagney & Lacey and as Debbie Novotny in the Showtime cable television series Queer...
also returned, as Madeline Westen
Madeline Westen
Madeline Westen is a fictional character in the television series Burn Notice portrayed by Sharon Gless. She is the main character Michael Westen's neurotic, chain-smoking, hypochondriac mother.-Overview:...
, Michael's mother.
The second season saw even more recurring guests than the first. The most prominent of these was Tricia Helfer
Tricia Helfer
Tricia Janine Helfer is a Canadian actress and former model, best known for her roles as Number Six in the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica miniseries and television series, "Carla" on Burn Notice, and FBI Special Agent Alex Rice on Dark Blue, as well as for hosting the first season of Canada's...
, who appeared in many episodes as Michael's handler, Carla. Paul Tei also made several appearances returning as money-launderer Barry Burkowski. Seth Peterson
Seth Peterson
Seth Peterson is an American actor, best known for his role as Robbie Hansen from 1999 until 2002 on the television series Providence....
returned as Michael's brother, Nate Westen. Michael Shanks
Michael Shanks
Michael Garrett Shanks is a Canadian actor who achieved fame for his role as Dr. Daniel Jackson in the long-running Canadian-American military science fiction television series Stargate SG-1.-Early life:...
was introduced as wrangler Victor Stecker-Epps. Silas Weir Mitchell
Silas Weir Mitchell (actor)
Silas Weir Mitchell is an American character actor known for playing disturbing or unstable characters.-Career:He has had recurring guest roles in the first season of 24 , My Name Is Earl , and Prison Break...
made two appearances as the quirky arms dealer Seymour. Marc Macaulay
Marc Macaulay
Marc Macaulay is an American actor.He was born and raised in Millinocket, Maine. He graduated with a BFA in theater. He recently appeared in the new USA Network Series Burn Notice for five episodes as Agent Harris, and as "Blaine Bauer" in the horror film Thirteen Floors.Some of his most prominent...
and Brandon Morris returned for one episode as Agents Harris and Lane, two FBI agents who were formerly in charge of Michael's surveillance. Agent Jason Bly, another FBI agent, also returned for one episode, portrayed by Alex Carter. Gary Weeks
Gary Weeks
Gary Weeks is a German-born, American film and television actor; he is also a film producer and screenwriter.-Film and television acting:...
made various appearances as Campbell, Fiona's boyfriend, while Audrey Landers
Audrey Landers
Audrey Landers is a German American actress and singer, who is probably best known for her role as Afton Cooper in the television drama series Dallas and her role as Val Clarke in the film version of A Chorus Line.- Early years :...
made a single appearance in her previous role as Sam's girlfriend, Veronica. Virgil Watkins, a former client, made an appearance, portrayed by Chris Ellis
Chris Ellis
Chris Ellis may refer to:* Chris Ellis , who started on YouTube in late 2008.* Chris Ellis , actor who performed in movies such as My Cousin Vinny and Days of Thunder...
. Various other characters were introduced, who later became important recurring characters. These included John Mahoney
John Mahoney
John Mahoney is a British born American actor, known for playing Martin "Marty" Crane, the retired police officer, father of Kelsey Grammer's Dr...
as Management, Tim Matheson
Tim Matheson
Tim Matheson is an American actor, director and producer. He is perhaps best known for his portrayal of the smooth-talking Eric 'Otter' Stratton in the 1978 comedy National Lampoon's Animal House and has had a variety of other well-known roles, including providing the voice of the lead character...
as Michael's former mentor-turned-assassin "Dead" Larry Sizemore, and Jay Karnes
Jay Karnes
Jay Karnes is an American actor, born in Omaha, Nebraska. He attended the University of Kansas . He is well known for his role as L.A.P.D. Det...
as arms dealer Tyler Brennen. Notable one-time guest stars included Kevin Alejandro
Kevin Alejandro
Kevin Michael Alejandro is an American actor. Alejandro may be best known for his roles as Nate Moretta in the series Southland and as Jesus Velasquez in the series True Blood.-Early life:...
, Erick Avari
Erick Avari
Erick Avari is an Indian American television, film and theater actor known for his roles in various science-fiction serial productions.-Early life:...
, Rob Benedict
Rob Benedict
Robert Patrick Benedict is an American stage and screen actor. He is perhaps best known for his work on the television science-fiction series Threshold and the college drama Felicity.-Biography:...
, Assaf Cohen, Patrick Fabian
Patrick Fabian
Patrick Fabian is an American actor. He has played numerous roles in TV shows , and after twenty years of acting achieved a breakthrough of sorts in the 2010 movie The Last Exorcism.-Life:...
, Oded Fehr
Oded Fehr
Oded Fehr is an Israeli film and television actor now based in the United States. He is known for his appearance as Ardeth Bay in the 1999 remake of The Mummy and its sequel The Mummy Returns, as well as Carlos Olivera in Resident Evil: Apocalypse, Resident Evil: Extinction and Resident Evil:...
, Method Man
Method Man
Clifford Smith , better known by his stage name Method Man is an American hip hop artist, record producer, actor and member of the hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He took his stage name from the 1979 film The Fearless Young Boxer, also known as Method Man. He is one half of the rap duo Method Man...
, Larry Miller, Amy Pietz
Amy Pietz
Amy Pietz is an American film and television actress.-Early life:Pietz was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the adopted daughter of Nancy, a nurse, and Arnold Pietz, a truck driver. She trained throughout her childhood in ballet and prepared to go professional, but eventually decided not to due to...
, and Fawad Siddiqui
Fawad Siddiqui
Fawad Siddiqui is an American actor, improvisational comedian, journalist and cartoonist. He has appeared on the USA Network television show Burn Notice alongside Bruce Campbell and Jeffrey Donovan, in the George Clooney film The Men Who Stare At Goats with Ewan McGregor [1], and in the indie films...
.
Episodes
In the following table, "U.S. viewers in millions" refers to the number of Americans who viewed the episode on the day of original broadcast.|- style="color:white"
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! style="background:#0000cd;"|Original air date
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