This was absolutely the wrong kind of battle for Jason Hayes.
The master chief went up against an unfamiliar enemy on a different battlefield on SEAL Team Season 4 Episode 10.
Even worse, he was having to fight alone against the charges that had been leveled against him.
The big question that no one seemed interested in investigating was why?
Why was Jason being targeted by some unspecified higher-ups? No one appeared to know who was pushing this charge and why they were promoting it.
Jason shot an enemy combatant while in pursuit of a high-value target on SEAL Team Season 4 Episode 9. So what was the problem?
Granted, the op took place in Jordan, an ally to the U.S. But like many allies, Jordan wasn’t doing a great job at policing the terrorists within its borders.
Jason, Ray, and Bravo did what they had to do to recover the stolen missiles before they could be used and to hunt down their target.
And that’s what they did. Maybe they pushed the rules of engagement a little but they got the job done. Getting vengeance for Ray was just a bonus.
The “civilian” Jason shot was serving as a lookout at a terrorist nest. Jason has been at this too long to shoot an unarmed man. Also, having a living prisoner to interrogate would have beaten the cell phone that Davis and Mina ending up having to sweat intel out of.
So why all the fuss over someone who it was a stretch to call collateral damage? That’s a question that has yet to be addressed.
And why was Jason being scapegoated for what had to be considered a successful military mission? There has to be a political or a financial component.
Maybe this is just a case of karma, with all those years of Jason asking forgiveness rather than permission coming home to roost.
But the military is an ends-justify-the-means kind of operation. No one asks about the details of how the battle was won. They ask who won the battle.
So prosecuting Jason after a successful mission is so out of character for the military.
The problem was that Jason is accustomed to working as part of a team that is striving for his perception of the greater good.
Suddenly he was all alone attempting to defend himself against what he felt were specious charges. This was just another ally with its nose out of joint for some reason who wanted something as a payoff.
Only it soon became clear that wasn’t the case, that instead he was being framed for a fictitious crime.
Why call it a frameup? As happens on every crime drama, the victim’s gun disappeared. Maybe it was just a local arming himself but more likely the gun vanishing was deliberate.
Especially when it was coupled with the carefully chosen video, from only one angle, which made Jason look guilty.
It wasn’t helpful that Jason didn’t get Harmon Rabb as his JAG lawyer. Wouldn’t that have been a great crossover, since Harm liked to bend the rules as much as Jason does?
Lt. Commander Williams was hardly a ball of fire. She seemed like an overworked public defender looking to settle one case and get on to the next one.
It didn’t help that they clashed almost immediately. Jason quickly fulfilled her caricature of how a special operator acts.
She needed to get invested in Jason and mount a more strenuous defense. Instead, all she would offer was two bad options: a plea deal that would remove him from operating or laying off the blame on Ray, his brother.
For that matter, if the prosecution had such an ironclad case, why was it offering a plea deal to start with? Out of the kindness of its heart? Or to make the case (and Jason) go away quietly?
Well, there was zero chance of the latter happening. Have they looked at Jason’s record? (At least he didn’t ask, “Do you know who I am?”)
Jason is a blunt instrument (not Sonny Quinn blunt, but still blunt).
Unfortunately, his current situation calls for finesse. Jason can pull that out on the battlefield. But not in the courtroom, or a political storm.
Ray or Clay, yes. Jason, no.
It wasn’t beneficial that his brothers (and sister) trying to help Jason probably got him in more hot water with their after-action reports and testimonies.
It was a sure thing that Davis telling the truth got the charge against Jason upgraded.
But it all comes back to the question of why Jason was even charged. Hopefully, that will come out in the trial, if Williams makes more of an effort.
And now we wait for another two weeks.
Well, Davis accidentally hurt Jason’s case, at least she’s standing by Sonny while urging him to do the right thing.
Hannah knows who Sonny is and doesn’t expect him to make her an honest woman. But he does need to attempt to be an occasional father.
Sure, he grew up with a lousy dad. Hopefully, he learned something from that.
And is Stella really ready for Clay’s messy world? Despite how she tries to convince herself and him, I don’t think so.
To revisit how Jason ended up in this mess, watch SEAL Team online.
Who’s doing right by Jason: Clay or Ray?
When will Sonny pick up the phone and call Hannah?
Will Jason’s lawyer do her job?
Comment below.
Dale McGarrigle is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow him on Twitter.