Burn Notice (TV Series)

Noble Causes (2010)

Jeffrey Donovan: Michael Westen

Photos 

Quotes 

• Michael Westen : You're getting the "Take a Bite Out of Crime" award?

  Madeline Westen : It's for citizen crime fighters.

  Michael Westen : This just happened out of the blue?

  Madeline Westen : Well, I mean, you know that I'm the Neighborhood Watch captain for my block. And it didn't hurt that I called in three stolen cars in the last two months.

  Michael Westen : You mean the cars I asked you to call in, the ones *I* stole?

  Madeline Westen : They're giving me a plaque. Now, I'm allowed to have one guest at the reception. But you have to dress up, because the chief of police is gonna be there.

  Michael Westen : [horrified]  Mom! I can't be in a room full of cops giving you an award for reporting crimes *I* committed!

• Sam Axe : You know what they serve in there? Foie Gras. Lappin.

  Michael Westen : You mean lapin?

  [pronounces it correctly] 

  Sam Axe : Whatever. It's still French for bunny rabbit.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Microwaves are one of the most dangerous appliances in the home to repair or modify, but in a pinch, you can use their extremely high voltage to your advantage... Remove the microwave's surge inhibitor, mix in some reactive household cleaning supplies in pressurized cans and some silverware... make sure the door is sealed tight... and to save time, just press "popcorn". Do it right, and you have the makings of a very big...

  [explosion] 

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  You can often tell when a team of guys is going out to kill someone. There's something about the way they drive: always below the speed limit, always careful at stop signs. There's something about the way they move: a little strut, a hard set to the jaw. See it enough times, you don't even need clues like the target's car sitting in the driveway.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Infiltrating hostile territory is all about blending in, which means, if you're a sniper in the bush, you wear a ghillie suit, and if you're a beautiful woman in a Miami house party, you wear a slinky dress.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  A bug is only as good as what it hears, so if the discussion you want to be part of isn't taking place around your listening device, you have two choices: you can move the discussion or you can move the bug.

• [first lines] 

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  It's never fun to be the guy who clears a location for a meet. In the best case, you waste your time looking for dangers that aren't there. In the worst case, of course, you miss something.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  In covert ops, you get used to seeing old enemies. Sometimes they're looking for intelligence. Sometimes they're looking for revenge.

  Sugar : What are you going to do? Shoot me again? If that's what it takes for you to help my cousin, go for it.

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  And sometimes they're looking for a friend.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Whether its a drug compound in the mountains of Columbia or a tropical estate in Miami, nothing says "success" like a lot of land. Of course, the more land someone has, the easier it is to hide out and do surveillance. Lush landscaping may be beautiful, but it's hardly secure.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Finding the best place in a house to hide a bug can be tough, but if you can't wire every room for sound, the TV remote is a good all-purpose choice: it's got a power source, it's kept in areas where people gather, and it's usually in the hand of the most powerful guy in the room.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Everyone knows about the placebo effect: people get healed by sugar water because they think it's medicine... Of course, the placebo doesn't just work for medicine... It turns out fake poisons work pretty well, too. Which is useful when you need someone terrified enough to do whatever you say.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Working undercover is all about judgment calls: give the bad guy too little help and you can't do your job;

  Bolo : D.J., say it's a deal.

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  give the bad guy too much help and you become part of the problem.

  Michael Westen : Deal.

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  It's a tough call, but sometimes things have to get worse.

  Lynch : Deal.

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  ... before they can get better.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  Even the most skilled operative knows a good plan is 10% execution, 90% preparation. Advance work is crucial if you want an operation to be successful. Advance work is also crucial if you want an operation to fail. For example, for someone who likes to break into buildings by free climbing, tampering with potential handhold can be a very serious problem.

• Sam Axe : I've checked. They *can't* be headed to the Flower Mart.

  Fiona Glenanne : Then why would Lynch make sure Dougie's at work?

  Michael Westen : Check again, Sam.

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  There's nothing worse than the feeling you get when you know you've made a serious tactical mistake, when thought you had two days to deal with a problem and you realize you may not even have two *hours*.

  Sam Axe : Oh, dammit. How did I miss that?

  Michael Westen : [narrative]  Because when you make mistakes like that, people die.

  Fiona Glenanne : Miss what, Sam?

  Sam Axe : There's a pick-up this afternoon that's listed as "Anderson", I figured it was a *guy* named Anderson, but it's gotta be Anderson *Couriers*, an armored truck. Today's Friday, so they're probably doin' end-of-the-week pick-ups.

  Michael Westen : This late in the day, that truck is going to be loaded with cash.

  Sam Axe : We gotta get to the Flower Mart. Lynch's heist is going on right now!

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  When you make a mistake in the field, the key is to focus on solutions, not regrets. Being sorry doesn't mean much in combat situations. You can't apologize to a corpse.

• Michael Westen : You know, the last thing you want to do in Miami is fool with people's air conditioning.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  A good diversion draws people's attention but doesn't make them run for their lives. If you're using a parked vehicle, that means you want smoke and fire without the risk of an explosion. Olive oil starts to smoke at 375 degrees. Mix in the right amount of cheap motor oil with a low flash point, apply it to the inside of the exhaust pipe, and you should have enough time to walk away before the fun starts.

• Michael Westen : [narrative]  In free climbing, the general rule is always to maintain at least two points of contact with the surface. Challenging climbs always include a point where the only way to continue is to make a leap from one point of support to the next. For experienced climbers, it's a routine technique with minimal risk unless, of course, the handhold you're jumping to is coated with a silicon-based lubricant.

• [last lines] 

  Mason Gilroy : Glad you could make lunch after such a busy morning.

  Michael Westen : [gestures to hold on the drink]  I heard drinking whiskey before dinner was a sign of weakness.

  Mason Gilroy : Indulge me, out of respect for Claude. Dunmore was his favorite.

  Michael Westen : *Was* his favorite?

  Mason Gilroy : Unfortunately, our comrade didn't survive his injuries.

  Michael Westen : He broke his ankle.

  Mason Gilroy : There were complications. Luckily, we still have each other. You wanted to work alone? Bully. The acquisition of those documents is now solely your responsibility.

  Michael Westen : You know, I feel like we've moved on to a new level of trust. Maybe now you can tell me where this relationship is headed.

  Mason Gilroy : If Claude's fate teaches us anything, it's that we must live in the moment, and I suggest you honour his memory by completing his mission. Consider it a reason for living, as it were.

  Michael Westen : To Claude.

  [glasses clink] 

  Michael Westen : And to living.

  [They both down their drinks]