In retrospect, it's surprising that a series which is pretty much based around having a new character with inner demons every episode has yet to cover a shell-shocked war veteran. Fortunately, this predictable premise doesn't follow a predictable plot line, and while the climactic plot twist is very similar to one in a certain season 2 episode, it's played well and the episode doesn't rest too heavily upon it.
Things start typically enough: David rescues our veteran (Paul Koslo, in a role very different from the one he played in season 3's "Long Run Home", and one he does equally well) from a mugging and has him rest inside for a few minutes, and they get to know each other a little. But from there things take a different and ugly turn, as David later realizes the vet was carrying a rifle, and is aiming to assassinate a politician who was in his squad in Vietnam.
The vet takes over a dance studio occupied by only its student-less instructor, taking her prisoner. The dialogues in the studio are quite silly, as yes, the instructor develops feelings for him (though at least they stop short of explicitly defining those feelings). Despite this, Koslo's effective performance as a mentally unhinged guy who is still trying to do the right thing makes these scenes pretty gripping to watch.
This is a Nicholas Corea script, which as always means a few fantastical elements: David is interrogated by the politician's underling using what looks like a stethoscope hooked up to a control panel from a 1950s sci-fi b-movie. But though the episode takes a few odd turns, throughout it all you genuinely root for the vet to do the right thing, and that makes for both consistently intense drama and real heart. Add in two splendidly handled Hulk-outs, and you have an episode which is somewhat uneven in the details but nonetheless hits in all the places it counts.
