Plot Synopsis:
Just days before the president visits Chicago, the paper arrives with a mysteriously smudged headline. Before Gary can make heads or tails of this development, however, he must rush to the Sun Times to save editor Hawks from being injured by a letter bomb. When Gary makes his mad dash into the Sun Times office and detonates said bomb in a file cabinet, a government agent lurks in the background watching his every move. This agent identifies himself as "John Dobbs", and in an interview with Hawks and Gary at the police station, he claims that he is here to ferret out any nuts who may be gunning for the president. Gary knows right away that this is directed right at him.
Later, Gary sits down in McGinty's with Marissa. Chuck arrives soon after and announces the mystifying news that his errand to the track (to win enough money to cover Gary's expenses) resulted in an unexpected windfall to the tune of $42 K. The winning horse? "Mr. Snow's Cat." Both Chuck and Marissa point out how eerie this is, but Gary dismisses the horse's name as a coincidence. Just then, Morris arrives bearing a package - labeled "Property of Lucius Snow" - that was found earlier that day by telephone techs drilling a hole in a wall at the Sun Times. In the package, Gary finds a 1963 issue of the Sun Times - the issue published the morning after JFK's assassination. He also finds a set of airline tickets and concludes that Lucius Snow went to Dallas to try to prevent Kennedy's death.
Meanwhile, "Dobbs" has invaded Crumb's office and has been looking through the detective's files. He notes that the name "Hobson" appears often in Crumb's case notes and suggests, darkly, that Gary might be the fireman who sets fires so he can swoop in and put them out. Crumb dismisses this as nonsense, but "Dobbs" won't drop the subject; he even convinces Crumb to take him to the Blackstone, where he again tries to plant the idea in Crumb's mind that Gary is dangerous.
Concurrently, Gary, Chuck and Marissa find a business card among Snow's effects and decide they must get in touch with the man whose name is on said card: J.T. Marley. They head to the Sun Times, where Gary cleverly persuades Morris to help them break into government records to track Marley down. Morris ultimately discovers Marley's obituary, which claims he died in a plane crash in 1964.
That night, a crash of thunder jolts Gary awake. He pulls out the 1963 paper and examines the photograph Snow has circled. Just before giving up, he finds Snow's cat in the picture. Clearly, there is something there the paper wants - needs - Gary to see.
The following morning, after receiving yet another mysteriously smudgy paper, Gary heads down to the newsstand to buy a pack of gum. In the background lurks "Dobbs." Gary pays for his gum with a fifty dollar bill and, when questioned by the checker, jokingly admits to robbing a bank. He then begins to question the checker about the paper's smudgy headlines, but before he gets far with that conversation, he is interrupted by "Dobbs," who hounds Gary for a block, taunting him about his precognition until Gary, disturbed, turns tail and runs away. From here, Gary goes to see Morris about blowing up the picture containing Snow's cat. In the meantime, "Dobbs" interrupts Crumb's breakfast and casually mentions to the detective that Gary has suddenly come into a tidy sum of money.
Morris finds a better copy of Snow's picture in the Warren Commission Report. The report identifies one of the three men in the picture as J.T. Marley. Gary declares this a "dead end," but then Hawks appears and reveals that Snow believed Marley faked his death. Gary chases Hawks into his office in an attempt to glean more information, but Hawks, who clearly thinks that Gary is just as cuckoo as Snow, takes the envelope full of Snow's clues from Gary and kicks him out.
Meanwhile, Crumb, now doubting Gary, decides to ask for a warrant to search Gary's apartment. At the same time, Gary, oblivious to the noose that is slowly tightening around his neck, sits down for a drink at McGinty's with Chuck. When Gary reaches into his pocket and discovers he's out of money, Chuck convinces him to use some of the money won at the track and offers to go get it. After Chuck leaves, Gary pulls out his paper to once again puzzle over the smudgy headline. He then looks up to watch a news report on the president's upcoming visit -- and is suddenly hit with a series of flashbacks to JFK's assassination in 1963. A realization dawns: the smudges are a second, hidden headline. Gary holds the paper up to the light, and the second headline is revealed. It screams that the president will be assassinated. Gary calls Marissa, and when Marissa arrives, he pulls her into an alley and, trembling, tells her that, according to the paper, he will kill the president and Dobbs the following afternoon. Marissa urges Gary to seek help.
Up in Gary's apartment, in the meantime, Chuck finds a gun and a map of the presidential route in Gary's desk drawer. Before the stunned Chuck has time to process this information, Crumb kicks down Gary's door and arrests Chuck. Thus, when Gary arrives at the police station, he finds Chuck being roughly handled by the cops. Chuck screams at Gary to run, which Gary does after a moment's hesitation. "Dobbs" orders Crumb and his men to let Gary go. "He may lead us to Marley," he remarks cryptically.
After evading capture, Gary goes to the Sun Times to talk to Hawks -- but when he enters Hawks' office, he finds the editor shot dead in his chair. Horrified, Gary flees. He spends a long night hiding on the El.
The following morning, Crumb fights his way through a mob of reporters to get to his office, where he finds "Dobbs." (Of course.) Crumb believes that Gary has skipped town, but "Dobbs" is certain that Gary is still around. "Dobbs" says that Gary is in denial regarding the murder of Hawks and intimates that Gary's next target will be the president. Before Crumb goes to interrogate Chuck, he asks "Dobbs" who Marley is. "Dobbs" gives him a hostile brush-off. Later, in the interrogation room, "Dobbs" tries to convince a resistant Chuck to tell him where Gary is, and Chuck looks like he's beginning to doubt his friend.
At Navy Pier, meanwhile, Gary meets with Marissa and explains what has happened over the past several hours. Gary fears that he's going crazy - fears that he may not be able to stop what is about to happen - despite Marissa's reassurances. Marissa suggests that Snow's picture may be the key to this mess, and the two head over to the basement of the Sun Times to see Morris. Morris has armed himself, certain that he's once again been pulled into something dangerous, but he is willing to help Gary and suggests that they take the Warren Commission Report to his cousin Hanratty, who runs an illegal passport business in the back of a pawn shop. Hanratty is equipped with photo enhancement software and agrees, after some arm twisting on Morris' part, to work on "unblurring" the critical picture.
Gary leaves Marissa at Hanratty's and goes back to the Blackstone to search his now ransacked apartment. After climbing through the back window, he runs into Chuck, who was released by "Dobbs" in the hopes that Chuck would lead the police to Gary. At first, Gary finds nothing of import -- but then the cat meows and knocks a gold lighter across the floor. Gary bends down and picks it up -- and discovers the initials "J.T.M." engraved on the casing. Just then, the police arrive. Gary escapes down the fire escape while Chuck stays behind. Chuck is once again arrested. Gary, meanwhile, runs into "Dobbs" in the alley, but "Dobbs," oddly, lets him go. Crumb tries to pursue Gary, but can't keep up.
Gary calls Hanratty's from a pay phone and tells Marissa that Marley is alive. Gary then tells Marissa to keep working on the photo from the Warren Commission Report while he goes to find Marley himself. Concurrently, Chuck is once again grilled by Crumb. Chuck boldly refuses to cooperate and insists that Gary is innocent of any wrong doing. When Crumb is called away to answer a phone call, "Dobbs" asks Chuck if Gary found anything interesting, but Chuck remains tight-lipped. "Dobbs" then exits, leaving the door open to enable Chuck's escape.
Chuck immediately runs to Hanratty's to meet up with Marissa. Meanwhile, Crumb reveals to "Dobbs" that he's been doing some digging and has discovered that John Dobbs is a renegade agent. Crumb kicks "Dobbs" out of his office, and "Dobbs" goes willingly, leaving an envelope behind. And at the same time, Gary, while brooding at Navy Pier, is approached by a stranger who advises him not to run from his fate. Gary gathers up his courage and heads to the Randolph Building to seek out Marley.
Things unfold rapidly at this point. Hanratty is finally able to enhance the key photo enough for Chuck to recognize that the man who calls himself "Dobbs" is really Marley. Chuck and Marissa proceed to the police station, arriving just in time to save Crumb from being blown apart by another letter bomb. Marissa tells Crumb that Gary has gone to the Randolph Building to find Marley, and Crumb heads there with his force.
On the thirteenth floor of the Randolph Building, meanwhile, Marley tricks Gary into leaving his fingerprints on the rifle that will be used to assassinate the president, then cuffs Gary to a nearby piece of shelving. Marley is certain at this point that his plan is going off without a hitch, but before he can take the fatal shots, Crumb bursts into the room and kills him, rescuing Gary.
Overall: 9.6
We're not the sort who take stock in the various JFK conspiracy theories. Here, however, we believe the Rule of Cool applies. The Wall is recognized as a classic by all Early Edition fans, and deservedly so. It adds to the show's myth arc, features the series' most frightening villain, and is just a genuinely suspenseful ninety minutes of television.
Cut for length.
SABR Matt's Ratings:
Writing: 9.5
It seems like this is a show that worked better because the franchise was still young. I don't think you could have pulled off as much suspense after developing a huge amount of momentum for Gary as the unquestioned hero. He doubts himself and the audience, despite that conscious voice of logic telling them there's no way the star of the show would really do it, feels the doubt creeping into the back of their mind. I'm not sure it would have been as effective had it occurred in even the second season.
The script most likely includes many of the dramatic details Stephanie calls attention to in her bonus comments, or at least the writer likely had a lot of input in establishing mood and dramatic timing. The WORDS are tight and thoroughly enjoyable, although, to me, they aren't quite in line with (say) Duet (DS9) or Broken (House). I think most of the power is in the presentation (acting and direction) and the plot.
Acting: 10.0
I seem to recall being genuinely on the edge of my seat in about a half dozen different places the first time I watched this wonderfully crafted story. But although the script, as I have already said, deserves a lot of credit, I think the real winners here are the actors. Fisher Stevens generally plays the comedic sidekick, but this is a severely underrated actor. His confrontation with Crumb the second time he gets arrested was enough to get me to stand up and yell "yeah!!" which I don't do all that often watching TV reruns. Stephanie S. probably remembers that moment. He's got more range than most supporting actors on low budget second banana network shows (we love Early Edition, but you have to admit, it was never a highly billed show on the CBS marketing board) and a wonderful feel for his own character. GO CHUCK GO! indeed.
Stephanie S. also knows that I'm a huge fan of Ron Dean (Crumb) and think almost every episode in which he appears is better off than most on the acting front. And I don't think Marley would have been half as scary if not from some outstanding reacting by Kyle Chandler and some great work on the part of Marley himself. In point of fact, I don't recall there being an "off" moment in the whole piece, which gets increasingly common the longer this show airs -- that is until Chuck leaves and the show jumps the shark. :) (Stephanie S. adds: Ha, ha. Personally, I think the show struggles in season three and gets a second wind in season four, but there you go.)
Message: 9.0
The hidden message in an episode that's mostly about suspense and perhaps does not end with a discretely planted moral like most EE episodes is wrapped up in the work of the benevolent hand. I think this episode is about trust and faith. Of course, that is woven into a lot of EE episodes, but this is the first time God puts Gary through a trial that makes him question his role -- the first time he gets into the kind of trouble that he can't know for certain he'll be able to get out of -- the first time some of his allies turn on him. The paper (God) requires him to do some suffering because he has to be there to stop Marley and stand for the greater good. Not all suffering is bad -- not if the sufferer learns from his experience as Gary evidently does (given his increasing confidence and faith in later seasons). Gary could easily get very bitter with the paper and turn his back on his responsibilities; it would probably keep him out of trouble with the law, after all. But God is there at Navy Pier to remind him that he'll never be happy if he turns away from his faith in his mission.
Stephanie S.'s Ratings:
Writing: 9.8
I think the First Law of Early Edition is as follows: if Lucius Snow is involved somehow, chances are pretty high (though not 100%) that you're dealing with a feature.
Early Edition never has and will never again set Gary against as horrifying a human adversary as J.T. Marley. Lining these episodes up beside Fatal Edition, a fantastic two-parter from the fourth season that is notably similar in structure, is instructive. While the few days he spends as a hunted man in Fatal Edition are certainly traumatic, Gary never once doubts his innocence, and this confidence serves to strengthen his resolve. In contrast, no such confidence exists in The Wall. Why? Marley. A master of psychological gamesmanship, Marley rattles Gary so completely that Gary begins to question his innocence -- even his own sanity. And while he's at it, Marley also plants doubts in the minds of two of Gary's most trusted allies, thus threatening Gary's safety net. What results is a skin-crawlingly tangible fear for Gary's well-being.
Beyond Marley, these episodes also heavily feature some of Early Edition's most memorable secondary characters -- and all of them acquit themselves well. Crumb's gruff impatience with Marley, with the press, with the mayor - basically with the whole situation - approaches comedy gold -- but you also come to deeply respect his street smarts, which are a big key to the resolution of the story. Also critical to Gary's ultimate salvation is Morris, who really takes a big, big leap of faith in taking Gary to his cousin's shop. Remember, unlike Marissa or Chuck, Morris has absolutely no reason to believe that Gary is telling the truth aside from his passing acquaintance with Lucius Snow -- but he decides to trust Gary anyway, and that is an incredibly brave thing to do. Finally, we also can't forget Chuck himself, who, as my co-author notes above, steps up and brings the heroic awesome in a huge way. All of these characters imbue these episodes with color, liveliness, and unexpected humor -- and they do this despite the darkness of the plot itself. It is this kind of melding of quirkiness and drama that makes Early Edition such a dear treasure.
Acting: 10.0
SABR Matt is absolutely right: the strong performances of supporting players like Ron Dean and Fisher Stevens (and John Watson Sr., whom my co-author does not mention) definitely contribute to the success of these episodes. As I've remarked before, Early Edition has an incredible casting team. But allow me to praise - up, down, and sideways - Josef Sommer, whose quietly deadly portrayal of Marley is so frightening that, as I mention in the highlights below, I can't hear the line "Like a moth to the flame" without developing the sudden urge to run screaming into the woods. And Kyle Chandler? Best. Reaction takes. Ever. Kyle has the terrified deer-in-the-headlights thing down. It's such a crime that this man has never picked up an Emmy or a Golden Globe (for either Early Edition or his more recent work on Friday Night Lights).
Message: 9.0
I agree with SABR Matt here as well. This episode is about faith - and not just Gary's faith, but everyone else's as well. Morris, as I mention above, must put aside his "superstition" to help Gary -- and Lucius Snow by proxy. Chuck must fight against Marley's mental manipulation in order to rally around his best friend. And Crumb survives because he listens to the little voice in the back of his mind that whispers incessantly that "somethin' ain't right." Bottom line, Marley is defeated when Gary and all of his friends come to trust what the Spirit is telling them.
Bonus Production Score: 9.8
We don't often comment on production elements, as we're not film experts by any definition. Here, however, Michael Dinner's direction in Part One stands out for its expert use of atmosphere (for example, the thunderstorm that jolts Gary awake in the middle of the night) and slow motion. And if Part One isn't impressive enough for you, Part Two features some of the best shots in the series hands down. First, when Gary jumps off of his fire escape and runs into Marley in the alley, a crow flies up from the pavement beside them, and let me tell you, it looks really, really cool. Secondly, James Quinn deserves high praise for the shots of Gary at Navy Pier, as the Ferris wheel makes an absolutely gorgeous frame. Television shows don't generally have blockbuster budgets, but in this instance, Dinner and Quinn use their available resources to maximum effect.
The Benevolent Hand:
The Benevolent Hand is busy, busy, busy in these episodes:
First of all, there is the suspiciously timely discovery of Snow's package in the titular wall at the Sun Times - a package that contains precisely the items Gary needs to foil Marley's plot to assassinate the president. As I've mentioned before, the personal effects of Lucius Snow have a habit of appearing at just the right moment.
Secondly, there are the smudged headlines, designed to warn Gary days in advance (instead of the usual hours) that trouble is brewing.
Third, there is Chuck's big win at the racetrack - courtesy of "Mr. Snow's Cat" - which, near as I can figure, is meant to attract Marley's attention. To put it another way, while Marley is trying trap Gary, God is trying to trap Marley. Despite Gary's protestations to the contrary, that is damned mystical if you ask me.
Fourth, we have Gary's epiphany in McGinty's regarding the second headline, which can only be described as a full-on vision.
Fifth, there is the stranger at Navy Pier - one of Early Edition's angels - who urges Gary to go and meet Marley -- and trust that things will eventually work themselves out.
Gary is also fortunate to have the allies that he does - and this too, I think, is partially God's work.
Highlights, as collected by Stephanie S.:
(Gary is preparing to send Chuck to the betting parlor.)
CHUCK: Man, I have been comin’ here every month and having to watch you make a budget - a budget - when you could have more cash than the Prince of Brunei! Monks in Tibet make more money than you! Its startin’ to drive me crazy!
GARY: Well then don’t go.
CHUCK: Oh, no, no, no. Pathetic as it may seem, this is the one time in my life when I know I can actually beat the odds.
MARISSA: That is pathetic.
CHUCK: Thank you, Marissa. (LOL!)
"DOBBS": Gentlemen, the President is due in town the day after tomorrow. He’s here to make a speech. I’m here to make sure that everything goes well.
HAWKS: One guy? I thought they had a whole team for that.
"DOBBS": Oh, they do. Protection, surveillance, security. They know what to look for. My job is different. I work in the background. I’m what you might call a.... a hunter.
HAWKS: Hunting for what?
"DOBBS": Oh, most anything. People with grudges, people with plans, the odd schizophrenic, garden variety nut. The one who hasn’t shown up on the radar screen...yet. My job is to see that he doesn’t.
HAWKS: And that’s why you came to see me?
"DOBBS": It's funny the things that pass through a newspaper editor’s office. For instance, ah, people who think that they know things that the rest of us don’t. (He's referring to Gary, of course. And by the way, this character is the creepiest character in the history of Early Edition. I'm so not kidding.)
"DOBBS": Ah, Crumb. Mind if I borrow your desk?
CRUMB: Apparently not. Anything else I can do for you?
"DOBBS": Well, I’ve been browsing through some of your files. Interesting reading. I couldn’t help but notice a common thread running through a lot of them.
CRUMB: And what would that be?
"DOBBS": Well... Hobson... Hobson, Hobson... and, ah... Hobson. Kind of a theme, don’t you think?
CRUMB: You’re wasting your time. The kid’s harmless.
"DOBBS": Harmless? Seems like everytime something happens, he’s around.
CRUMB: I don’t know. He, ah, gets these feelings, I guess.
"DOBBS": He gets feelings and things blow up and fall down?
CRUMB: What are you saying? He’s makin’ this up?
"DOBBS": Well, lets say he’s the, ah, fireman who sets the fires and then shows up to put them out. This doesn’t seem strange to you?
CRUMB: I see things different, that’s all.
"DOBBS": I think he’s trouble.
CRUMB: I think you’re making a mistake. (Good for you, Crumb.)
(Hawks walks in on Morris as he's looking for records on Marley.)
HAWKS: What’s goin’ on here?
GARY: Research.
HAWKS: Research on what?
GARY: Uhh...
CHUCK: Bolivian Finches. Bobtailed Bolivian Finches. White-breasted Bobtailed Bolivian Finches - very rare.
HAWKS: Cute. Now get outta here. This isn’t a public library. (Hee!)
MIKE: Ooooh. Fifty dollars. For gum. What’d you do, rob a bank?
GARY: Ha, ha. [Sorta.]
MIKE: Tell you what. Next time, rob one for me.
GARY: Yeah. Hey, Mike?
MIKE: Yeah.
GARY: You, ah, find any of these headlines, find anything strange in ‘em?
MIKE: Strange? How?
GARY: I don’t know, they got, ah, marks on ‘em. They’re kinda...
("Dobbs" has been spying on Gary in the background.)
"DOBBS": Which bank?
GARY: It's you again.
"DOBBS": Like a moth to the flame. Which bank did you rob?
GARY: (sarcastically) Oh, all of ‘em.
"DOBBS": So, where are you going, Hobson?
GARY: None of your business.
"DOBBS": Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t. You seem to be in a hurry.
GARY: Beat it.
"DOBBS": I would if I could.
GARY: What the hell is it you want with me?
"DOBBS": Oh, what do I want? Well, maybe I want the answer to a few questions, like, ah, what are you going to do today, huh? You’re not going to work - you haven’t got a job. I know that.
GARY: Congratulations.
"DOBBS": So maybe you got something else in mind? Something you heard, in your head, huh? I mean, what does that sound like, this, ah, voice that you talk to? Or is it a vision, huh? Gary do this, Gary do that. Must be kind of a drag, huh? Do you see a shrink about this, or do you try to keep it down inside?
(Gary is deeply unnerved by "Dobbs" and starts to run away. And frankly, I don't blame him.)
"DOBBS": (calling after Gary) Yeah, that’s it, its like a genie trying to break out, huh? Its crazy, isn’t it? Heh. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? Its crazy, huh? And you can’t stop it, can you?
"DOBBS": So, I was thinking like, ah, well the letter bomb. Do you have any leads on that?
CRUMB: No, not a trace. And don’t start with this Hobson stuff again.
"DOBBS": I know. I’m probably too hard on that guy, huh?
CRUMB: You’re damn right you are. (Love!)
"DOBBS": Well, you know him, I don’t. But you can’t blame me for asking questions. You have to admit he’s strange.
CRUMB: Ha, ha. Yeah.
"DOBBS": Like all that money he carries around. (Uh oh.)
CRUMB: What money?
"DOBBS": All that cash. I mean, he hasn’t got a job. Who’s paying him, huh?
CRUMB: How much money?
"DOBBS": Well, look. Its not like you have to have a search warrant or anything. And like I said, its just strange, huh? (Serious trouble is brewing.)
GARY: Listen, Hawks. All I need to know is...
HAWKS: Forget about it. I don’t wanna talk about this any more, ok? You’re wasting my time, not to mention my staff’s.
GARY: So what about Snow. You said...
HAWKS: Snow. He was a lunatic. The guy drove me batty. Him and his crack-pot theory.
GARY: What theory?
HAWKS: Oh, come on. It’s Kennedy. Everyone has a theory. C.I.A. Bandits. Outlaws. Pink elephants. But Snow’s - ho, ho - that was a doozie.
GARY: So he told you about it?
HAWKS: I was just a cub, ok? I was trying to be polite, but my God! Renegade agents? Falsified death certificates? Oswald was just a dupe? Come on, that’s crazy.
GARY: And what about Marley?
HAWKS: They found his bones scattered all over a mountain top in Central Peru. So were his teeth, which they identified one by one. I checked it all out. Its a waste of time. I almost got fired.
GARY: And what about the cat?
HAWKS: Cat?
GARY: The cat in the picture?
HAWKS: What cat?
GARY: Snow’s cat. (Gary waves the envelope filled with Snow's clues.)
HAWKS: Gimme that. You found this here, its property of this paper, and here it stays. The only reason I don’t throw you out is because you saved my life, which I thank you for. Now get out.
GARY: Listen, Hawks...
HAWKS: No, you listen to me: cats don’t kill Presidents, got it? Now go. I got work to do.
(Gary leaves.)
HAWKS: (to Gary) Come back any time! (muttering to himself) Conspiracy theories. This stuff will be the death of me yet. (Eerily prescient!)
MARISSA: Oh, my God, Gary. Gary, you’re shaking. What’s wrong? What’s happening?
GARY: Listen, President Tyson’s gonna be shot.
MARISSA: What?
GARY: Listen, the headline, the marks in the paper - it’s been trying to tell me.
MARISSA: Oh, my God. We’ve gotta get help.
GARY: No, we can’t do that.
MARISSA: Of course we can. If there’s a gunman out there -
GARY: Marissa, its me! (And the boom lowers.)
MARISSA: What are you talking about, "It's you"?
GARY: Listen, tomorrow at 2 o’clock the paper says I’m gonna try and shoot the President of the United States.
MARISSA: That doesn’t make sense. It’s not right. Maybe someone’s trying to set you up. Dobbs -
GARY: No, it's not Dobbs.
MARISSA: How do you know it's not Dobbs?
GARY: Because I’m gonna kill Dobbs too! (Meeeep!)
FEMALE REPORTER: Detective, can you give us any news about last night's murder of Harry Hawks?
CRUMB: No.
FEMALE REPORTER: Can we assume the assailant is still at large?
CRUMB: Assume what you will. You're going to assume anyhow.
REPORTER: You do have an accomplice under arrest, is that true?
CRUMB: In my line of work, nothing's true.
FEMALE REPORTER: Is there any connection between this murder and the president's visit to Chicago?
CRUMB: Yeah, and my fat Aunt Rosie is the real queen of England. Don't make me laugh. (LOL!)
CRUMB: You! Don't you ever sleep?
"DOBBS": Not today. Any news on Hobson?
CRUMB: (sarcastic) Yeah. He's sittin' right in this chair. Dollars to donuts, the guy skipped town.
"DOBBS": No, he's around. I can feel it.
CRUMB: So can they. You know, I still can't believe that he killed Hawks.
"DOBBS": Neither can he. He's in total denial. That's what makes him so dangerous.
CRUMB: Oh, come on. You don't still think he's going for the president? We've got half the force looking for him.
"DOBBS": He's a man with a mission. Now he's got nothing to lose. (Gulp.)
MARISSA: Gary? Are you all right? (A beat.) Guess that's a stupid question.
GARY: Hawks is dead
MARISSA: So I heard. What happened?
GARY: What happened? I don't know what happened. He was dead when I found him. They think I did it.
MARISSA: Well, then you just have to tell them you didn't do it.
GARY: It's not that simple, is it?
MARISSA: Well, someone's got to tell them. You can tell them, I can tell them, Chuck... what about Chuck?
GARY: They arrested Chuck last night. They found him in my apartment. They found enough evidence to prove I'm some kind of assassin or something. I go back to them, they're going to lock me up for the rest of my life!
MARISSA: Well, what about that Agent Dobbs? Maybe if you went to him…
GARY: Dobbs? Dobbs thinks I'm some kind of a lunatic. Besides, they're setting him up, too, and according to the paper, I'm still going to kill him
MARISSA: You don't believe that, do you?
GARY: Marissa, I don’t know what to believe. Maybe I'm crazy or something, I don't know.
MARISSA: You're not crazy, Gary. Remember the paper only tells you what's going to happen unless you change it.
GARY: But Marissa, what if I can't change it? (Gary's fear is palpable here.)
CHUCK: Look, I told you what I know. This has all been a big mistake.
"DOBBS": You say he's your friend.
CHUCK: Yeah.
"DOBBS": He tells you everything.
CHUCK: Yeah.
"DOBBS": But you don't know anything?
CHUCK: Yeah, I know he didn't do what you say he did.
CRUMB: He already did it.
CHUCK: The guy spends all his time saving people. He's a hero! You know that.
"DOBBS": Look, I know what you're feeling You think you know someone, and then one day you open a door, and something else is there. You say it's not him. Okay, I'm open. Help him with this.
CHUCK: How?
"DOBBS": Tell us where he is. It's for his own good. (Oh, this guy is a smooth operator. Don't fall for it, Chuck!)
MARISSA: I won't accept this. There has to be something we can do.
GARY: There isn't something we can do. Today at 2 o'clock I'm going to be on the top floor of that building with a rifle.
MARISSA: Gary, that's crazy. You won't be there.
GARY: What, are you saying the paper's wrong?
MARISSA: No, what I'm saying is, you need to find a way to change that headline.
GARY: What am I supposed to do? Wish it away? Because I've tried that. That doesn't work.
MARISSA: Then we need to find someone to help you. Someone you know, someone who trusts you, Gary.
GARY: Marissa, half this town is out looking for me right now.
MARISSA: Lucius Snow.
GARY: What?
MARISSA: Lucius Snow!
GARY: What about Lucius Snow?
MARISSA: Gary, that picture that was in the wall -- where is it?
GARY: Forget about the photograph, would you?
MARISSA: Maybe that's the reason why it came to you.
GARY: Well, if that's the reason, it's too late. It's gone. I gave it to Hawks.
(Then Gary comes to a realization.)
GARY: Marissa... you don't think that's the reason Hawks got killed, do you?
MARISSA: I think we need to get that picture back and find out what's really in it.
MORRIS: (brandishing a gun) Stop right there. Put your hands up. Go ahead. Now, come closer... but slow.
MARISSA: Gary?
GARY: It's all right.
MORRIS: That's far enough. Keep them up. (A beat.) Been reading about you in the paper. You're in a world of trouble, son.
GARY: Yeah.
MORRIS: Always figured, sooner or later, this business would come to no good.
CHUCK: Psst!
GARY: (jumping) What are you doing here?
CHUCK: I'm waiting for you.
GARY: What do you mean, you're waiting for me? What the - -? Why would I be stupid enough to come back here?
CHUCK: I don't know, but you did! (ROTFL! This is my favorite funny moment in these episodes.)
CHUCK: Gar, what the hell are we supposed to be looking for, anyway, huh?
GARY: I don't know.
CHUCK: Well, I don't know, either. (Chuck looks doubtful.) Gar, is there something you're not telling me? You know, I'm starting to think that, ah, maybe...
GARY: Maybe what? (Then Gary catches on.) Yeah, I know. I'm beginning to believe that myself.
CHUCK: Awww, what? Again? You just released me!
CRUMB: In that case, welcome back.
CHUCK: On what grounds?
CRUMB: Aiding and abetting a fugitive.
CHUCK: What? It was his own house!
CRUMB: I wanna know what he was doing there.
CHUCK: You know, the usual stuff -- shower, shave, eatin' cereal --
CRUMB: Look, Fishburn --
CHUCK: Fishman.
CRUMB: Whatever. You're not helping yourself here, you know.
CHUCK: Just as long as I'm not helping you. So, he got away then?
CRUMB: Yeah, he got away.
CHUCK: Good.
CRUMB: Now listen --
CHUCK: No, you listen! You can keep me here as long as you want, but it won't do you any good. You know as well as I do, Gary is not the one you're looking for! (GO, CHUCK, GO! As I said, we're in a very good run of episodes for him.)
CRUMB: Going somewhere?
"DOBBS": The president's due in about an hour.
CRUMB: Oh, I see. So you thought you'd just run out there and save the world, huh?
"DOBBS": Someone has to. So far you haven't.
CRUMB: Yeah. Well, I'm just an ignorant flatfoot, out chasing murderers. I don't have a fancy briefcase or nothin' like that. But something's been bothering me.
"DOBBS": What would that be?
CRUMB: Why'd you let him go? Hobson. You had him. Twice. And you let him run. What are you up to?
"DOBBS": If you have questions, check with my employer.
CRUMB: Oh, well, I, I, I did that. They gave me the usual party-line run-around. So I went somewhere else. Friends of mine in the agency. They tell me a completely different story.
"DOBBS": Oh? May I see that?
CRUMB: They tell me you're a renegade. A man on a mission. One that the agency doesn't even acknowledge exists. You've been after this guy for three decades now, haven't you?
"DOBBS": Who?
CRUMB: Marley. J. T. Marley. There's not a shred of evidence that he's still alive, but you think he is. And you'll do anything to find him, wouldn't you? Including selling me down the river. Maybe even Hobson.
"DOBBS": What do you think you know?
CRUMB: I know this. I want you out of my office and out of my precinct. Right now. (And Crumb steps up too! Woot!)
ELDERLY MAN: Waiting for something?
GARY: Yeah, something like that.
ELDERLY MAN: I was thinking of going up there and seeing the motorcade. The president's coming, you know.
GARY: Yeah. Yeah, so I heard.
ELDERLY MAN: The hurt won't last forever you know?
GARY: What?
ELDERLY MAN: Whatever's troubling you. You're young, you'll get over it.
GARY: I'm not so sure. See, I've gotta be somewhere today and I'm not sure I want to be there. I mean, I don't have to go. I could stay here. I could stay right here, but no. I can't do that. Something's going to happen. Whether I'm there or not, something's going to happen. You can't cheat it and you can't wish it away.
ELDERLY MAN: Then don't.
GARY: What?
ELDERLY MAN: You can't run away from your fate. Might as well go toward it. (Have faith, Gary. There is a reason for this - and you will come out okay.)
"DOBBS": Like a moth to the flame. (This ranks right up there with "What do you want?" on the list of phrases my favorite shows have made me permanently afraid of.)
GARY: Dobbs, listen to me, you got to get out of here. Look, I know what you're thinking. The gun. Hawks. I was there, but I --
"DOBBS": And now you're here.
GARY: Listen, Dobbs. We're being set up. You and I. Both of us. Someone's settin' us up.
"DOBBS": And who might that be?
GARY: Marley. J.T. Marley. He's alive, Dobbs.
"DOBBS": No, he isn't.
("Dobbs" gestures to the feet of a dead man lying behind him.)
GARY: You got Marley.
"DOBBS": No, you did. And that isn't Marley. It's Dobbs. Are things beginning to fall into place?
(Gary realizes that "Dobbs" is, in fact, Marley. He jumps for the rifle.)
MARLEY: (pulling out another gun) That won't do you much good. It isn't loaded. But now, at least, we have your fingerprints. Put it down, please. Now... may I have my lighter? (To steal a phrase from a Trek reviewer from years ago, I'm at the edge of my seat at this point mainly because my skin has crawled there on its own.)
MARLEY: The waiting's the hardest part. Too bad Snow isn't here. You never met him, did you? He was completely naïve. Reminds me of you.
GARY: He almost stopped you, didn't he?
MARLEY: You tell me.
GARY: Okay. He came to the book depository in Dallas. He came there 'cause no one else would listen to what he had to say. I know how that feels. When he got there, he found a man with a rifle. Oswald. Only Oswald wasn't alone. Was he?
MARLEY: It's your theory.
GARY: It was the first time you met Snow, wasn't it? You introduced yourself. You gave him your card. Then you escorted him out and told him everything was going to be fine. A few minutes later, John Kennedy was dead.
MARLEY: My, my.
GARY: Only that's where your logistics fell apart. 'Cause Oswald didn't die when he was supposed to. Instead, he ran. A few months later, you supposedly died in a plane crash.
MARLEY: Anything else?
GARY: Yeah. Why?
MARLEY: No matter how things are, someone always wants something changed, and there's always someone to do it.
GARY: "Man without a country."
MARLEY: "Soul is a country unto itself."
GARY: But you don't have one.
MARLEY: When I need one, I borrow one.
GARY: And then what?
MARLEY: After that, I just throw it away. (See the remark on the highlight above.)
MARLEY: It's almost time. History repeats itself.
GARY: You don't really think this is going to happen, do you Marley?
MARLEY: You have to admit, it's rather well planned.
GARY: Well, I'm not so sure. It seems to me like you made a few mistakes.
MARLEY: Such as?
GARY: How about Hawks? The letter bomb to Hawks. You meant to kill him, but you didn't.
DOBBS: True. But it got me you, didn't it?
GARY: That's still not what you planned.
MARLEY: You're here, aren't you?
GARY: My choice.
MARLEY: Admit it. These past few days you've fantasized squeezing the trigger. Immortality a heartbeat away. You've been tempted.
GARY: No, I haven't.
MARLEY: Of course you have.
GARY: All right, you're so sure, let me have the rifle. I'll take the shot. (Good try, Gary.)
GARY: Listen, Marley. What you said before about not having a soul. That was a lie, wasn't it?
(Marley begins to take aim out the window.)
GARY: You hear a voice of your own, don't you? You're lost, Marley! You're drowning in your own logistics! You're so far gone, you don't even remember when you were you!
CHUCK VOICEOVER: On the books, it never happened. Anyone who knew, said nothing... They buried Dobbs at Arlington. Gave Marley an unmarked grave. Harry Hawks had a park named after him downtown. People missed him. And... things moved on. Only now, for one man, things were different. From now on, that paper would never be the same.
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