‘SEAL Team’ Season 3 Premiere ‘Welcome to the Refuge’ Review: Weary

War takes its toll on the people who participate in it. In SEAL Team, what it takes to be a leader in a never-ending war. One may often hear how people eventually live with the fact that death may happen to a brother anywhere, anytime. However, this misconception is not always the case. After going through the experience of losing a friend, the feeling does not change. Instead, it grows on you.

On Wednesday’s season premiere of SEAL Team, Jason Hayes (David Boreanaz) leads Bravo Team on missions in Serbia. Meanwhile, Lisa Davis (Toni Trucks) and Lt. Cdr. Eric Blackburn (Judd Lormand) direct the team. After months in recovery from a nearly fatal mission, Clay Spenser (Max Theriot) rejoins Bravo Team, joining Ray Perry (Neil Brown Jr.) and Sonny Quinn (AJ Buckley). Throughout the operation, Jason worries about the lives of his teammates, afraid of losing more brothers to the war.

The Mission

CBS

Bravo Team’s mission in Serbia is to find and neutralize an organization linked to the bombing of multiple American military outposts. Much like their previous missions, it all seems straightforward. Tail a target here, follow him there, capture him for intel. Despite a couple of setbacks, the team completes its objectives with no casualties and minimal damage to property. Given their years of service, all the action they had that day went in their favor.

The show does not bank on the premise of fierce soldiers on a mission alone. Instead, it presents all sorts of things involved in a SEAL operation. From previewing the command post to showing the planning stages, the show makes sure that all stages of a mission have some spotlight. It has some elements of drama, too, between the SEALs as brothers and other personnel as something more. Dialogues during action scenes remain at a minimum, further validating the show’s portrayal of a SEAL mission. Overall, the armed forces characteristic of the show is not overused; instead, drama, as well as true-to-life and often unseen yet vital things inside the command post, complement it.

Serbian Urban Warfare

CBS

Jason is at his best on the field. The skilled SEAL Leader blends into the crowd with style– he went as far as flirting with a bartender while tailing a target’s chauffeur. On the field, the seasoned SEAL Operative proves invaluable to Bravo Team as he keeps the group from danger. At some point, Jason stood face-to-face with their target, who was a suicide bomber. Whatever the terrorist organization’s secrets were, it died along with the attacker who almost killed Jason, were it not for Clay’s intrusion.

Just as he mentioned, Jason is at ease the most when on the field. Being in missions keeps him calm, capable of making the best decisions in a split second. Also, Jason tends to put himself in the line of fire instead of having another of his brothers killed. The man’s experience puts him steps ahead of their enemies, capturing or neutralizing them no matter what the circumstances are. The crowded, busy streets of Serbia did little to impede with Bravo Team’s intel gathering.

Haunted

CBS

Despite their flawless performance that day, Jason could not help but worry about his teammates’ lives. Throughout his time in the barracks, Jason scrolled through a list of dead comrades. Brothers who lost their lives in the line of service became forever immortalized in Jason’s phonebook as numbers he can never call again. Years of being a SEAL Operative meant extensive experience, but it also means immense emotional baggage. With Clay returning to active duty, both Jason and the rest of the team expressed their concern but welcomed him back to the fold.

As the show revolves around Jason’s thoughts, we see the story through his point of view. The man is as conflicted as they come: he did not see himself as a good father nor a good husband, but he knew that he was an exceptional soldier. However, he is afraid of leading men to their deaths. It is indeed hard to imagine how heavy the burden is when it comes to the dangers of being a Navy SEAL. The forty men who died under his command is a testament to the cost of war.

‘SEAL Team’ Season 3 Premiere ‘Welcome to the Refuge’ Final Verdict

SEAL Team uses a different approach to the lives of the men and women in service. It explores the drama behind the tactical decisions made in a war room. Also, it shows a side of the leader we do not usually see. Without having to sacrifice what makes it an action show, SEAL Team intricately tells the story of a brotherhood mainly through the eyes of its leader. Side stories complement the right mix of emotions, on the field assignments, and the technical aspects that add to the show’s realism.

SEAL Team continues Wednesday, October 9th, with ‘Ignore and Override’ at 9/8c on CBS.