Burn Notice (TV Series)

Truth and Reconciliation (2009)

Jeffrey Donovan: Michael Westen

Photos 

Quotes 

• Michael Westen : [first lines - narration]  Bribery is a lot more difficult than it sounds. There's no way to shop around, so you usually overpay for whatever information you're after. There's no money-back guarantee if the information's bad. And, of course, the only thing that you know for sure is that you're handing your money to a thief and a liar.

• Michael Westen : [narration - concerning Claude's renewed plea for help]  Working covert ops, you learn to exploit weakness. You manipulate greed, fear, pride, to make people do what you want. But when you're dealing with true believers, those weaknesses aren't there. All you can do is help, or get out of the way.

• Michael Westen : [narration - as Fi chats with bad guy]  Spend time with corrupt, homicidal, Third World political figures, and you'll hear a lot of self-pity. What kind of man throws his political enemies in prison and then tortures them to death? Usually it's a guy who feels so sorry for himself, he feels justified doing anything. Killers, by and large, are whining losers. But that doesn't make them any less dangerous.

• Michael Westen : [narration]  Spend enough time in international hot spots, and you'll learn that a lot of the worst monsters on earth are just spoiled rich kids. Mass murderers come in many shapes and sizes, but they tend to drink the same brands of champagne.

• Michael Westen : [narration - walking into Duman's compound]  Most people have a hard time letting go of their past. The same guy who will burn a village to the ground without a thought, often won't throw away an old tie because it reminds him of his high school graduation. If you know what you're doing, you can hang him with that necktie.

• Michael Westen : [narration - as a close-in gun battle is about to ensue]  It takes a lot longer to pull a gun than people think it does; almost 5 seconds on average to draw and line up a shot. This is good news or bad news, depending on what side of the gun you're on.

  [Sam shoots out the window from outside, Michael escapes] 

• Michael Westen : [on phone]  Go easy on him, Fi.

  Fiona Glenanne : You're breaking up.

  [closes her phone and tosses it into the back seat] 

• Fiona Glenanne : I still can't believe you're giving all this money to some sleazy bank manager.

  Michael Westen : I went to a lot of trouble to find this guy. I don't have a lot of options here.

  Fiona Glenanne : Michael, he hid money for a man who tried to assassinate you.

  Michael Westen : Which makes him a good person to know if I'm trying to *find* that assassin.

  Fiona Glenanne : You're going into this meeting unarmed, with no information.

  Michael Westen : It's a tactical risk. Fi, I was warned not to meet you the first time.

  Fiona Glenanne : Yeah! I almost blew off your hand with a block of C-4.

  Michael Westen : And I made a friend. Maybe I'll make another one. Watch my back.

• Madeline Westen : They want us to come down to the station house, look at some mug shots...

  Michael Westen : Uh...

  Madeline Westen : Michael, what is so important that you couldn't do that with me?

  Michael Westen : I'm helping a man find justice for his murdered daughter.

  Madeline Westen : ...Well, if you need any help with that job, you let me know.

• Madeline Westen : Did you catch yours? The guy that killed the girl?

  Michael Westen : Uh... yeah. Yeah, I did.

  Madeline Westen : [beams]  Good for you, sweetheart.