Burn Notice (TV Series)

Eye for an Eye (2011)

Jeffrey Donovan: Michael Westen

Photos 

Quotes 

• [first lines] 

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  In any investigation, leads go cold fast - it's true for ops and even truer for spies, who tend to be after a more sophisticated class of bad guy - so if you get intelligence that the person you're chasing hired a bomb maker who lives a few hours up the highway, you can't afford to sit on the information. You have to move immediately.

• Michael Westen : [carrying a heavy bag of weapons]  Sam, are you gonna help?

  Sam Axe : Yeah, it's just that, I mean, you really think this old guy built that bomb? I mean, he's owned a clock shop for like 20 years.

  Fiona Glenanne : Under a different last name. He's a war criminal, and he's hiding.

  Michael Westen : Fiona went to a lot of trouble to get that file. If it says the bomb maker's hiding out in Tallahassee, that's where we're going.

  Sam Axe : Well, I just want to be sure we're making the right move.

  Michael Westen : It's the *only* move, Sam.

• Michael Westen : Fi, Sam and I won't be able to get back until late tomorrow night.

  Fiona Glenanne : Which means we're not having that dinner at the Forge.

  Michael Westen : Sorry.

  Fiona Glenanne : [sighs]  All right, this is important. You want me to cancel the reservation?

  [Michael hesitates] 

  Fiona Glenanne : [under breath]  There *is* no reservation.

  Michael Westen : I'm sorry. It was- This guy...

  Fiona Glenanne : Could help you find out who killed Max, I know. Take these.

  [Fi gives Michael two more weapons] 

  Fiona Glenanne : Be safe.

• Michael Westen : [southern accent]  Are you the fella that fixes the clocks?

  Lucien Balan : Yes, I buy, sell, and repair. Like the sign says: I'm a clockmaker.

  ["Lucien" / "Bomb maker"] 

  Michael Westen : A football buddy of ours, well, his father passed away, left us this collection of, uh, antique clocks.

  Sam Axe : Yes, sir, and we were told that, uh, Lucien Balan's the fella we should talk to about selling them. They're outside in the car if you want to come out and take a quick look.

  Lucien Balan : Spare me the trip. Please. Come in back. I'll show you my catalogs, you show me what you have. Uh, who told you about me? I like to know who gives referrals.

  Michael Westen : Martin McCauley up in Greenville; he sung your praises.

  Lucien Balan : [chuckles]  And this Martin: did he tell you how he knows me? I don't hear the name Lucien much. These days, they call me Luka.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Only the smartest, nastiest war criminals make it to old age. If you have to capture one of them, you can assume they'll have a trick up their sleeve, like a concealed weapon, a covert escape route, or a metal floor grate rigged to electrocute any unwated visitors.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  The real experts in resisting interrogation aren't the ones who stonewall in silence.They're the ones who have mastered the art of talking about nothing, pretending to cooperate, throwing out endless leads... They use youre need for information against you... giving you things you want to believe... All they're doing is running out the clock. You're not oging to break them with more conversation; you need an edge.

• Fiona Glenanne : [sighs]  You know what kind of girlfriend drives all the way to Tallahassee to search a crust old man's equally crusty apartment?

  Michael Westen : A *good* girlfriend.

  Fiona Glenanne : A *great* girlfriend. The kind of girlfriend who deserves dinner at the Forge.

  Michael Westen : Point taken. How about *two* dinners?

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  When you're looking for an angle in an interrogation, it often helps to let a subject watch you go through the details of his life right in front of him... Keeping one eye on your research and one eye on his reactions can often tell you what he wants you to see... and what he doesn't.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Like Aikido masters, interrogators know that breaking their adversary isn't just about leverage; it's about knowing how and when to apply it. The moment your opponent feels most confident... is also the moment he's most susceptible to a game-changing reversal.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  A good way to sell your expertise in protecting people is to point out holes in security that most people wouldn't notice... Pointing out holes in security is also a great way to create new holes in security.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  People tend to implement security based on anticipated threats: they install firewalls and encryption if they're afraid of being hacked; they use vaults and armed guards if they're worried about being robbed;... and if you need to get them to keep their personal security with them at all times, you have to make them afraid to ever be alone.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  When you're being smuggled into a secure area, the best hiding spot is somewhere that people are confident they've checked thoroughly. By attaching reflective window tint to multiple sheets of glass, you can create what's known as the infinity illusion. And just like any magician won't tell you, as long as the light outside the space remains brighter than the inside, you'll be as good as invisible.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  When a plan goes wrong, it's crucial to stay cool. You may have to bail out, but how you bail out is everything. Do you run and leave behind evidence that gives away your plan to your enemies? Or do you keep the mission alive by covering your tracks?

• Michael Westen : [on security camera and over radio]  Hey, Mr. Forte. I just want to take this opportunity to share something else I learned when I was reading at my mother's deathbed. You know why Hell is scary? It's not the pain, it's not the torture, it's not burning in a lake of fire; it's that it lasts forever - just like me. So let me be the first to tell you: welcome to Hell, Mr. Forte. Welcome to Hell.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  The morning after a failed operation, you have two choices: you can admit defeat and lick your wounds, or you can re-engage immediately, sticking by your enemy so you'll be in position when you find another opening.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Even a fender-bender can stop traffic for a few minutes, but creating a longer-lasting roadblock is about provoking an emergency response. Cops and firefighters won't go anywhere near a burning chemical truck billowing smoke that looks toxic. Which means you can get four hours of roadblock with a smoke canister and a little gasoline.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Sleight-of-hand tricks aren't just for kiddie parties. The same misdirection and quick moves that a magician uses to find a quarter behind a 5-year-old's ear can also help an operative plant a listening device in someone's car.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Work long enough as a spy and you learn that distress calls don't always work exactly as planned. Just because someone calls for help doesn't mean they're going to get it. A surprisingly high percentage of the time, friends turn out to be less concerned with rescue... and more concerned with making sure no one talks.

• [last lines] 

  Sam Axe : [on Lucien]  He's gone, Mike. We lost our only lead.

  Michael Westen : [on Max's killer]  Not quite. Lucien told me where to find him.

  Sam Axe : Well, then, I think we owe that son of a bitch a visit.