The Invisible Man
"Cat & Mouse"

Airdate: September 15, 2000

Frustrated at the failure of all their attempts to create their own invisible man, the Chinese government decides to steal ours. A leak inside our government has correctly led them to the Department of Fish and Game, but to the wrong agent as it is the one, the only [insert dramatic pause] Bobby Hobbes who is marked for abduction.

Hobbes is a target?

Attempts to capture Hobbes fail and lead to his apparent death. Well, it would have been apparent if Fawkes and The Official had actually tried to sound bereaved at Bobby's funeral. It turns out that the Chinese aren't as dumb as everyone thought they were. Clued in to the fact that Hobbes was the partner to the agency's invisible man, they see through the funeral ruse and capture Bobby to use as bait.

Although the solution to this week's dilemma was particulary contrived, I enjoyed the setup immensely. Okay, so the teaser ended on a seriously digusting note, but the idea of Hobbes' paranoid fantasies coming true was a treat. The peek at his very active social life -- in contrast to former bad boy Fawkes's sedate one -- was definitely worthy of a giggle. And Bobby's instincts, coupled with Darien's glandular gift, leading the Chinese agents on a merry chase was a lot of fun to watch.

Forget "The Value of Secrets", "Cat & Mouse" is the first episode to use Darien's ability to quicksilver others as something other than a casual afterthought. It was actually an important part of the plot. Additionally, Bobby's reaction to becoming invisible was pretty damn funny. Of all the times he's secretly wished that he were the one with the gland, he probably never counted on how freaky it feels.

For all its potential, however, "Cat & Mouse" remains a stand-alone, fluff piece. Instead of experiencing genuine worry about his partner, Darien seems kind of cold in his disregard for his partner's safety. Hobbes is a trained agent, true, but that doesn't make the situation any less dire. Had Fawkes expressed any of the sentiment of The Keeper -- who by now shouldn't be left in the dark -- it might have given this episode a little more substance. As it was, "Cat & Mouse" was sort of like the television equivalent of a Hostess Twinkie; good, but not up to discriminating tastes.

And speaking of discriminating tastes... Is it shallow of me to notice just how good Vincent Ventresca looks in a suit and yarmulke? Cause he did. I mean, it's not like a yarmulke is going to replace leather pants or anything, but... It wasn't bad.

-- Linda M. Najera

The Invisible Man airs at 8pm EST, Fridays on The Sci Fi Channel.

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