FBI: International got some help from a familiar face, and we need to see more of them in the future!
Caution: This article contains SPOILERS for FBI: International Season 4 Episode 11
Since joining FBI: International in Season 2, Megan “Smitty” Garretson (Eva-Jane Willis) has been an intriguing character. The Europol liaison has aided the team by dropping a few teases about her past.
That past came up big time in “Veritas Fidelis” as Smitty investigated the death of a student at her old boarding school. Smitty was convinced the girl was killed when she wanted to expose a powerful secret society.
This was personal to Smitty as she had run afoul of the same group when she was a student and was expelled when someone found a bottle of alcohol in her room. The same headmistress was clearly trying to cover this up, thanks to how many rich and powerful families were involved.
In the course of the investigation, Raines had Smitty realize that her expulsion was a setup to silence her accusing the daughter of a rich man of stealing from her. That drove Smitty on to target the man who’d raped and murdered the current victim.
That youth fled England thanks to his rich dad to fly to Russia. The team was able to get the plane to land in Germany, and Smitty smiled at the team. She knew just who to call.
Who returned to help the team in FBI: International?
In Germany, fans were treated to the welcome return of Katrin Jaeger (Christiane Paul). The Fly Team’s original Europol liaison had been a regular in Season 1 before being promoted. It was established that Jaeger was a mentor for Smitty, and it made sense that Smitty would call her in.
Jaeger was in fine form as the rich father seemed to have the upper hand, having bought his son a passport. But the Fly Team discovered the man’s funds were tied to some Russian oligarchs and violated sanctions. Thus, the deal was off, giving Jaeger the excuse to arrest the kid and warn his father to stay out of this with a jaunty wave and “Auf Wiedersehen!”
Talking to TV Insider, Willis shared how great it was to have Jaeger returning and fit into the storyline.
"It is so nice. I’m so glad they put that in. Jaeger is really her hero. When people talk about the voice in my ear when she’s doing her job, it’s Jaeger who was always the one that she was looking up to before she ever came onto the Fly Team, and the fact that Jaeger gave her that position even more so, it means that she looks up to her, she owes her. Every time she speaks to her, she says, thank you, I owe you. And Jaeger always seems to come in right at the moment that Smithy needs her and sort of save the day."
This was a great episode for Smitty to put some ghosts of her past to rest. That was evident when she came to the headmistress’s office, where the woman was fired and arrested for covering up all this. Smitty smugly gave the headmistress a bourbon bottle as a mocking farewell.
Why we need more of Jaeger
It was terrific to see Jaeger back, even if briefly. Her role here fits the story perfectly as Jaeger is a top Europol director with the pull to run things from Germany. It also fits how Jaeger is willing to drop everything to help the Fly Team, as she still thinks of them as friends.
It’s no secret FBI: International has seen some big cast turnover in its short run. Paul’s cameo gives hope to fans there may be a chance some other faces could pop in, even if for only one episode. It’d be terrific to see Heida Reed drop back in as Jamie Kellett needs the Fly Team’s help on a case.
Maybe the show can finally bring Forrester’s story to a close with Luke Kleintank making a brief return. At the least, a cameo from Paul now and then giving the team some info on a case in Europe would be a good connection.
This was a fun throwback for FBI: International fans to remind them of the show’s good past and the hopes other former cast members could drop by in the future.
FBI: International Season 4 airs Tuesdays at 9/8c on CBS.