If Episode 9, “What He Beheld” was not originally meant as the Season 1 finale, then it was one hell of a replacement. It makes for a great progression on nearly every storyline that has been introduced in the show so far, including FBI Agent Ellison’s growing awareness of Skynet, Brian Austin Green’s growth as Derek Reese (Beverly Hills 90210 what?), and young John Connor’s gradual acceptance of the man he will someday become. And yes, we learn a thing or two about Sarah Connor as well; for instance, despite her toughness, has she ever actually killed anyone?

All those questions, and more, are answered in “What he Beheld”, the final episode of a shortened T:SCC Seaon 1. And yes, there are some new questions, and new characters, but not all of them lasts for the entire episode. In fact, by the end of “What he Beheld”, we have seen the face of a new villain, and this one likes to take matters into his own hands — personally, as Cameron finds out in the episode’s cliffhanger.

The episode features a fantastic, understated performance from Brian Austin Green, who is quickly becoming Derek Reese. Beverly Hills 90210 was a show that I barely watched, but knew about, and Green was as heavily associated with it as Luke Perry or Jason Priestley. But with T:SCC, Green has escaped from Beverly Hills, and embodies Derek Reese, scarred resistance fighter from the future so fully that I now have no trouble seeing him as this character, in particular during a quiet moment when Derek takes John Connor to a park. Simply outstanding work by Green here, and not bad from Thomas Dekker, either.

Although much of the episodes is devoted to the Connor brood as they attempt to retrieve the Turk from a mysterious seller (not all that interesting, actually), the episode’s stand-out is a 5-minute sequence toward the end, set at a motel where the Terminator Cromartie is currently residing. Ellison, after making a couple of stunning discoveries, arrives with a small army of FBI commandos to take down the faux FBI agent. Brilliantly executed to the sounds of Johnny Cash’s “The Man Comes Around” (one of the all-time greatest songs, without a doubt), the sequence explodes in a sea of violence and blood and death — and you don’t even see 99% of it, with a major portion of the sequence shot from the bottom of the motel pool, as an endless tide of FBI commandos plummet into, dead before they even hit the water.

And now, the face of the show’s new villain, one Margos Sarkissian:

Notable moments from the episode:

The (temp) bad guy…we hardly knew ye…

Agent Ellison is starting to see the light…

Kyle Reese was always good at cracking heads, even as a kid…

There goes the motel security deposit…

This is definitely no way to make friends…

The cliffhanger… (Got insurance?)