Monday night’s episode of Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles might have been the best one yet. “Mr. Ferguson is Ill Today” proved yet again that this show is the best thing on television. In addition to some of the best action sequences this show has seen, the plot was deeply thought-provoking and the characters continued to exhibit a broad range of emotions.

The majority of the episode takes place in a small town in Mexico where John lived as a child. He and Riley sneak off for a night and all goes awry when Cromartie breaks into the Conner house and kidnaps Sarah. John gets into trouble and calls Sarah, but realizes that she is in trouble herself when she doesn’t respond correctly to the phone code. Cromartie grabs Sarah and takes off after John. John then sends a distress call to Reese, who also takes off to Mexico with Cameron. But the party isn’t over yet. A friend of Ellison’s finds out about John’s arrest and gives him a call. Ellison too makes his way down South.

I though it was really awesome they way the plot brought everyone together for one big confrontation. Ellison arrives first, right before Cromartie and helps John and Riley avoid being killed. They steal his car, only to realize that there is someone in the trunk: Sarah. The four of them evade Cromartie and hook up with Reese and Cameron. Together they plan the take down and pin Cromartie down in a crossfire in a church. Amazing scene. Very well done.

Fox revealed that one major character would be killed in this episode and I guess the title was a bit of a clue. Cromartie first appeared in Season One posing as substitute teacher in John’s class. His first words were “Mr. Ferguson is ill today.”

The weirdest part of the show was the whole “seduction” scene. Early in the episode, Cameron goes to talk to John, but decides to add a new variable to the mix: sex. Cameron leaves her sweater at the door and lies down on the bed (a nice little twin-size), next to John while she talks to him. It was definitely a little creepy, but at the same time…well, I won’t go there…it’s just not right.

I really like they way this episode played out. I think it was possibly the best yet. I think it was good timing to kill Cromartie. With him out of the way, the show can begin to focus on the real villain: Catherine Weaver.

Fox recently announced that Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles was picked up for a full season. So after we get through this first batch of episodes, there will be a hiatus (which is normal for televsion shows in the winter) and then we’ll get the second half of the season on a new night.

It looks like TSCC will be moving to the 8:00 timeslot on Fridays and will be followed by Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse at 9:00. This worries me because Friday is known to be one of the worst nights for television ratings. If ratings were to drop off in the second half of the season, I’m just not sure if TSCC will be picked up for a third.

Perhaps with Terminator and Dollhouse airing on the same night, there will be enough sci fi appeal to save the two shows, but I’m not sure. So far, Dollhouse has had a lot of trouble convincing corporate execs that it can be a mainstream success. Despite Whedon’s genius, an awesome cast, and an intriguing concept, there has been enough turmoil behind the scenes for many to predict the show to be an immediate flop. That wouldn’t bode well at all for TSCC. With this move, it may be that the two shows have tied fates, and if one fails, the other may too.

Nonetheless, it is still good news that TSCC has been picked up for a full season, because it has just been one the highest quality programs on tv so far this season. With Heroes going through a transitional phase and a lot of corporate drama, I feel that Terminator is the best sci fi show on television right now. I really enjoy every episode. For a show that you that you might expect to be all explosions and violence, it really has great character development and thoughtful plot lines. Of course, it does still have all of the great action sequences that you would expect too.

Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles proved yet again this week why I think it is the best show on television right now. After seeing the first season, I wasn’t sure the show would really develop the way I would like, but I was wrong. Not only does the show never lack in action, but it also has developed a compelling overarching plot that weaves its way through each episode. At the same time, each episode is also its own contained story.

This week’s episode, “Goodby to All That” was an excellent example of how the show has continued to evolve emotionally. The characters, that seemed somewhat wooden in the first season, have shown a wide range of emotional states leading to some rather compelling episodes like tonight’s. Each Cameron, John Conner’s personal Terminator bodyguard, has shown evidence of emotional development and, as much as it is completely counterintuitive, I really like it.

The fifth episode of the seaosn focused primarily on John, Sarah and Reese. Early on, the guys learn that a Terminator has been sent back to kill a teenager that will become one of John’s cohorts in the future. Like the orginal Terminator movie, the machine uses the phone book to systematically kill off all of the males in Los Angeles with same name as John’s friend Martin. The Terminator has already killed one of the three, so John and Reese set off the protect the real Martin, while Sarah and Cameron rescue the other Martin, who is just a child.

Sarah’s time with the child gives her a chance to reflect on her role as a mother. Meanwhile, Reese is forced to relive Martin’s actual death in the future as they ensare and destroy the Terminator at Martin’s military academy. The events of the episode force all of the characters to work through difficult situations and question their destinies.

One thing that I really liked was how they combined the scene of Sarah reading The Wizard of Oz and the battle with the Terminator. It worked really well and poetically symbolized their fight to save mankind. I also thought it was pretty cool that Agent Ellison finally, though inadvertently, discovered that Sarah is alive while investigating the events that went down at the power plant from a couple episodes ago. However, I can’t help but think that the writer’s have set Ellison up for a fall by putting him in the employment of a Terminator.

Overall, the fifth episode was fantastic. It has helped to prove what an original and compelling drama the show can be. But we need your help! The show has not received stellar ratings and is in danger of being pulled from Fox’s lineup. If you are a fan, now is the time to get your friends watching too.