"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.14) "Heart of Winter"
The previous episode, (1.13) "Black Jack" focused on the town's need to find a way to stay warm during the winter. This need led Jake Green and three other people on a road trip to the Black Jack fairgrounds, which served as newly formed trading post for those living around Kansas and Nebraska. In this next episode, (1.14) "Heart of Winter", found Jericho's citizens searching for more food via various hunting trips.
I must admit that I was a little surprised by this sudden need for more food, considering that the town had received extra food not only from an abandoned freight train discovered by Dale Turner in (1.03) "Four Horsemen" and the supply sent by the Chinese government in (1.10) "Red Flag". So . . . what happened to the food? It is possible that Jericho's citizens had unwisely consumed the food discovered by Dale. Following Gray Anderson's election as mayor in (1.11) "Vox Populi", he had quickly distributed the food from the Chinese without any regard to saving a supply of it for future use. There is a third factor to consider - namely Jericho's recent population growth, due to the arrival of refugees in "Vox Populi". All of these factors led to Jericho in the middle of a food crisis in this episode.
Various hunting teams have been scouring the countryside for game to kill, including Johnston and Eric Green. Upon their return to Jericho, the former expressed both surprise and dismay at the lack of game in the area. Jake and his best friend, Stanley Richmond decided to conduct their own hunting trip further outside of town. The latter also insisted that his new love, former I.R.S. Agent Mimi Clark, accompany them so that she would learn a few survival tips in case something happens to him. However, the trip proved to be more than any of them had anticipated.
The trio first came upon a trail of refugees who had died from hypothermia on the trail. Both Jake and Stanley surmised from the items they were carrying that the refugees probably came from both North and South Dakota. While continuing their hunting trip, the trio encountered a bigger problem when a black Silverado truck ran them off the road and caused Stanley's truck to flip over. Although Mimi recovered from the crash without a scratch, Jake woke up with his legs pinned underneath the truck and Stanley found himself with a broken ankle. The men from the Silvarado truck managed to steal their coats, guns and supplies before Jake is able to get hold of his own pistol. After the marauders left, Jake and Stanley instructed Mimi to walk back to Jericho for help - despite the threat of an approaching snowstorm.
Meanwhile, Robert Hawkins and his former lover/C.I.A. colleague, Sarah Mason decided to search for the leader of their conspiracy - the "old man" - and kill him before he can kill the remaining members of their group. Unbeknownst to Robert, Sarah had been recruited by "the old man" to find Robert's package - the bomb he had taken instead of detonating it - and kill him. Although Robert trusted Sarah, his wife Darcy did not and advised her husband to keep an eye on their guest. Although Robert and Sarah failed to find the conspiracy's leader, the latter managed to kill the assassin who had been murdering the conspiracy's members on behalf of "the old man". Apparently, Sarah had her own agenda.
After my latest viewing of "Heart of Winter", I realized that it was one of those episodes that I had underestimated during my first viewing. It will never be one of my favorite episodes of the series, but it turned out to be a lot better than I remembered. Perhaps when I first saw this episode, I had focused most of my attention on the subplot featuring Robert Hawkins and Sarah Mason. Although this subplot ended up having major consequences on the series' narrative, what occurred in this particular episode only seemed mildly interesting to me, due to their inability to achieve their goal. Or should I say . . . Robert's goal? The episode eventually reveal that Sarah was actually working with "the old man" in setting up Robert to be killed. Only that last scene featuring Sarah's murder of her leader's personal assassin made me realize that she has her own plans regarding both Robert and his "package".
I did come away with a few thoughts regarding this particular subplot after viewing this episode. It finally occurred to me that Sarah may have deliberately made her way to Jericho in order to get close to Robert on the orders of "the old man". Neither he or his assassin could reach Robert alone, while the latter resided within Jericho - especially since the latter spent a good deal of time interacting with the town's other citizens during a series of crisis. Perhaps I am wrong after all. Who knows?
But I must admit that I found the episode's major subplot a bit more interesting. And I did so for a few reasons. Jake, Stanley and Mimi's discovery of the dead refugees and their encounter with the road scavengers really drove home the point on how dangerous the country had become in the months following the September attacks. It made me realize how lucky those refugees who had arrived at Jericho with Roger Hammond two episodes ago had been. As for poor Mimi - I could understood the terror she must have felt, while being forced to return to Jericho for help . . . by herself.
Due to the scavengers' attack, Jake found his legs pinned underneath Stanley's truck and suffering from a nearly severe case of hypothermia. Fortunately for both, Mimi managed to encounter Johnston and Gail Green, who had grown worried about the hunting party. While Gail drove Mimi and Stanley back to Jericho, Johnston remained with a barely coherent Jake. While the latter eased in and out of consciousness, he made a startling confession. During his time as a military contractor in Iraq for Jennings & Rall, Jake had killed an innocent Iraqi girl in the heat of battle. Following his return to Jericho, Jake asked Johnston to forget what he had confessed, but the latter refused to do so. While Jake sobbed with grief and regret, Johnston made it clear that as a Vietnam War veteran, he realized what war can do to anyone caught up in combat.
Did Jake's confession led me to lower my opinion of him? Not really. His efforts to protect Jericho and his reaction to the wrecked car that he and his brother Eric Green had spotted in (1.08) "Rogue River" reflected a ruthless pragmatism that I have always suspected he possessed. And that same ruthlessness had also been expressed in a negative way during those brief years as a criminal with Emily's father, Jonah Prowse; reared its ugly head when he killed that girl in Iraq. And yet . . . my opinion of Jake did not sink when he finally confessed to his father. Why? Based upon his reaction, it seemed pretty obvious that he felt a great deal of guilt . . . shame, actually, over that girl's death. Not even Johnston's words that combat can drive just about anyone to terrible acts could alleviate his guilt. And I am glad for it told me that Jake had matured a great deal during those five years he had been away. He knew how to take responsibility for his actions. I could not say the same for a good number of other fictional protagonists - including those from shows like "CHARMED", "24"and "POLDARK".
As for the performances featured in "Heart of Winter", I must admit that I was very impressed. Well . . . with the exception of Kenneth Mitchell. Although the actor, who portrayed Eric Green, made a brief appearance, he barely said a word in the episode. However, I did enjoy some very competent performances from Lennie James as Robert Hawkins, Pamela Reed as Gail Green, Ashley Scott as Emily Sullivan, Brad Beyer as Stanley Richmond, and Christopher Wiehl as Roger Hammond. But there were performances that really impressed me. One came from April D. Parker, whom I believe did a great job in conveying Darcy Hawkins' suspicion and dislike of Sarah Mason. Speaking of the latter, Siena Goins gave an enigmatic and slightly sinister portryal of the character. I really enjoyed Alicia Coppola's performance as the usually sardonic Mimi Clark, who really found herself outside her comfort box in this particular episode. Gerald McRaney was outstanding as a compassionate Johnston Green, who must have been both shocked and saddened by Jake's confession. But for me, the best performance came from leading man Skeet Ulrich. The latter did a superb job in conveying Jake's emotional journey in this episode. Thanks to his skillful performance, audiences not only saw another look at his hardcore survivor skills, but also saw how his physical situation led him to finally face the ugliness of his past as a military contractor.
What else can I say about "Heart of Winter"? It has never been one of my top favorite "JERICHO" episodes. But this latest viewing of the episode finally led me to appreciate it a lot more than I did when I first saw it, thanks to an intelligent screenplay and direction from both Nancy Won and Steve Gomer, respectively. But it was Skeet Ulrich's harrowing performance as a very haunted Jake Green that made this episode memorable for me.
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.13) "Black Jack"This next episode of "JERICHO" began with a topic, which had been the hallmark of the series' earlier episodes - namely another town crisis. In (1.13) "Black Jack", newly elected Mayor Gray Anderson and other town officials become aware that numerous citizens are either suffering or dying from hypothermia, due to low power and gas supply. The town engineer suggests that Jericho should convert to wind power and create new windmills. However, the lacks the parts like a regulating governor for even one mill. One of the newly arrived refugees - Emily Sullivan's fiance, Roger Hammond - reveals that a fairgrounds in southern Nebraska called Black Jack has been the site of a trading post and a place to gather information from around the country. Gray asks for volunteers to go to Black Jack and use the town's salt supply to trade for parts needed for new windmills. In the end, four people go - Jake Green, his father Johnston Green, science teacher Heather Lisinski and young Dale Turner. Johnston volunteers due to curiosity about the world outside Jericho. Heather volunteers because she feels she is the only one who can recognize a regulating governor and Dale volunteers in order to barter new items for the store he had inherited from Gracie Lee.Upon their arrival at Black Jack, the four travelers discover that the camp is guarded by heavily armed men, who are willing to retaliate violently against anyone who causes trouble. They also discover that other countries throughout the world have been sending supplies to the United States. And thanks to the fairground's bulletin boards, they learn a good deal of information about the outside world, including the fact that the country has been divided into six Federal regions, with many people are trying to stake claims to the presidency. Jake, Heather, Johnston and Dale also meet citizens from the neighboring town of New Bern; Heather's original hometown. The quartet learn that New Bern had an ugly encounter with John Goetz and his band of Ravenwood mercenaries after Jericho had driven off the latter in a previous episode, (1.09) "Crossroads". Heather's New Bern acquaintances prove to be a godsend when Dale endangers them all with an act of theft."Black Jack" featured other story arcs. Tension rises in the Hawkins household when Robert Hawkins allows one of the new refugees, his former C.I.A. colleague Sarah Mason, to stay at his home. Darcy Hawkins immediately senses that Robert and Sarah were former lovers. She not only develops an instant dislike toward the other woman, but also begins to suspect that the latter might be a threat to the Hawkins family. Darcy's instinct proves to be accurate. While Robert plots with Sarah to permanently deal with the leader of the conspiracy behind the September bombs - their employer, Sarah schemes with "the old man" to use the Hawkins family to coerce Robert in giving up the bomb in his possession. And finally, Gail Green has a confrontation with Mary Bailey over the latter's affair with Eric Green. Their confrontation leads to Mary's revelation that her own mother cuckolded her father with another man before abandoning the Bailey family. I would not regard "Black Jack" as one of my favorite episodes. There is nothing really wrong about it, if I must be brutally honest. For the first time since the series' seventh episode, (1.07) "Long Live the Mayor", Jericho citizens and the series' viewers get an idea of what is going on outside of the town. And judging from Jonathan E. Steinberg and Dan Stolz's screenplay, matters have grown exceedingly grim - not only for Jericho, but also the country. This sense of a growing post-apocalyptic world had been featured in episodes like "Long Live the Mayor" and (1.08) "Rogue River". But the Black Jack Fairgrounds setting and the bulletin boards in this episode, along with Sarah Mason's plot against the Hawkins family and Roger Drummond's recollection of how a light led him to the safety of a refugee camp in Nebraska really drove home how grim the country had become. More importantly, the narrative for "Black Jack" served as a starting point for the grimmer plot arcs that played out for the rest of Season One and Season Two. The four Jericho travelers' encounter with citizens from New Bern and the deal created between the two groups served as a major continuation of a story line that began in episodes like "Rogue River" and "Crossroads". This deal consisted of New Bern providing windmills for Jericho in exchange for much needed salt. Also included in the bargain is for Heather to return to her hometown and construct governors for the windmills. Sarah Mason's dealings with Robert and the Hawkins family is another story line that will continue in a major way - probably a lot bigger than the one between Jericho and New Bern. More importantly, an important piece of information on one of Black Jack's bulletin boards - a name, actually - will play a major, major role in the series' future narrative in Season Two and beyond.Considering how "Black Jack" played a major role in the series' narrative, why is it not a big favorite of mine? I honestly do not know. Perhaps it felt more like a source of information and a narrative device than a story with any real emotional connection to me. One is bound to point out the confrontation between Gail Green and Mary Bailey, Darcy Hawkins' hostility toward her family's new house guest or Roger Hammond's recollection of finding a refugee camp as story arcs with real emotional connection. Perhaps. These story arcs, although rather interesting, simply fail to personally click for me. The screenwriters even added a moment between Jake Green and Heather Lisinski, in which the latter brought up the brief kiss they had shared near the end of "Long Live the Mayor". But considering that I have never really sensed any romantic chemistry between Jake and Heather, I only felt relief when they finally dropped the topic of the kiss.The performances in "Black Jack" were top notch, as usual. The episode benefited from some excellent performances from Skeet Ulrich, Lennie James, Sprague Grayden, Siena Goines, Ashley Scott, Candace Bailey, Michael Gaston and Dustin Seavey. But for me, the best performances came from Gerald McRaney and Erik Knudsen, who created an interesting mentor/protege chemistry between Johnston Green and Dale Turner; Pamela Reed and Clare Carey, who were fantastic as the two women in Eric Green's life at odds with each other; and April Parker, who was superb conveying Darcy Hawkins' anger at the intrusion of Sarah Mason in the lives of the Hawkins' family.In the end, "Black Jack" proved to be a very interesting episode. I did not exactly find it emotionally compelling, but I must admit that it conveyed a strong image of the grim world beyond Jericho, following the September attacks. More importantly, it set the stage for uglier turn of events for the rest of Season One and Season Two for "JERICHO".
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.09) "Crossroads"
The previous episode of "JERICHO" - (1.08) "Rogue River" - left off with Jake and Eric Green returning home from a harrowing trip to a town called Rogue River with the medication needed to save their very ill father, Mayor Johnston Green. Unfortunately, Eric discovered that he had left his wallet, which included his identity, behind. Even worse, the leader of the Ravenwood mercenaries that they had encountered, John Goetz, had discovered Eric's wallet.
The series' ninth episode, (1.09) "Crossroads" focused upon the Ravenwood mercenaries' attempt to invade Jericho and rob the town of food and other supplies. Goetz made the mistake of leading a scouting party to the farm owned by Stanley Richmond, who did not hesitate to inform Jake and Eric about their presence. The two brothers quickly inform Jericho's other leading citizens, which include the two remaining lawmen, the mysterious Robert Hawkins and businessman Gray Anderson, about the potential threat of Ravenwood's arrival. The men manage to recruit of citizens to defend the town at a crossroads by barricading the road with trucks and cars. Goetz gives the citizens to remove the vehicles within an hour or his mercenaries will shoot their way through. The townspeople decide that the only way to defend themselves from the threat of Ravenwood is to blow up the bridge . . . with the exception of Eric, who fears that its destruction will cut off those citizens who live on the far side - including the inhabitants at the Richmond farm.
Meanwhile, both Emily Sullivan and Heather Lisinksi decide to deal with the stress of Mayor Green's illness with a walk and a few drinks at Mary Bailey's tavern. The two women meet Jericho's newest citizen, Dr. Kenchy Dhuwalia, whom Jake and Eric had rescued from Ravenwood. The two women spend their time drinking with Kenchy and listening to his horror stories about the road and Rogue River. And when Emily realizes that this day would have marked her wedding to her missing fiancé Roger Hammond, she begins to image what would have happened if he had never left Jericho.
I was surprised that the showrunners would immediately follow up from what happened in Rogue River. I figured they would wait for another episode or two before dealing with the aftermath of Jake and Eric's road trip. But it did not matter. "Crossroads" proved to be an interesting episode filled with tension, suspense and a little action. To be honest, most of the action occurred in a scene that featured the first confrontation between Jericho's citizens and the Ravenwood mercenaries. A few shots exchanged resulted in the death of a Ravenwood mercenary. Ironically, this only led Goetz to keep his cool and threaten the townspeople with more violence if they do not cooperate. But I got the feeling that "Crossroads" was basically a character study of three people - Jake, Eric and Emily. Did this bother me? No. But it left me feeling slightly deflated after the high level tensions of"Rogue River".
When I first saw this episode, I was surprised to see Jake and Eric at odds over whether to blow up the bridge. Even more surprising was that both Jake and Gray agreed that the bridge should be destroyed, while Eric opposed the suggestion. I found this surprising because Jake and Gray rarely agreed on anything. Also, Eric has always been the only member of the Green family that Gray genuinely liked. But the most surprising aspect of this conflict is that for once, Eric proved to be right. And he settled the matter in a way that not only surprised Jake, Gray and Jericho's other citizens, but also Goetz.
More importantly, "Crossroads" drove the series' main narrative forward. Like "Rogue River", it did not focus on the town's efforts to deal with the latest survival crisis. Instead, it pushed forward storylines that will prove to have a major impact later in the series. Near the end of the episode, a defeated John Goetz promised Jake that sooner or later, some kind of order will be restored. And when that happened, he would be back to cause more trouble for Jericho's citizens. Sure enough, he kept his promise in Season Two. But more surprising, the Jericho/Ravenwood conflict will have consequences that will take the town's citizens by surprise . . . later in Season One.
The subplot regarding Emily had originally struck me as nothing more than an episode filler. Watching her imagine how her wedding to Roger Hammond would have panned out did not strike me as particularly thrilling . . . or interesting. But after a re-watch of this episode, I realized that this subplot was really a foreshadow of Emily's future with both Jake and Roger. In fact, this "triangle" will prove to have a strong impact in Season One's second half. But what I really found interesting about Emily's visions is that she was finally able to face the fact that she was still in love with Jake. I am certain that many Jake/Heather shippers were upset with this revelation. I was not. As I have stated in an article for a previous episode, Jake and Heather had always seem more like siblings to me, instead of potential lovers.
I could not find a performance out of step in "Crossroads". Everyone did their job. The episode featured competent performances from Lennie James, Michael Gaston, Darby Stanchfield, Sprague Grayden, Pamela Reed, Alicia Coppola, Shoshannah Stern and Gerald McRaney. There were a few that stood out above the other performances. I thought Skeet Ulrich did an excellent job in conveying both Jake Green's bull-by-the-horn approach to any crisis and the fear that nearly had him shaking during his second confrontation with Goetz. Kenneth Mitchell was exceptional as a determined Eric Green, who is certain that Jake's decision to blow up the bridge was wrong. I was also impressed by Brad Beyer, who did a great job in portraying Stanley Richmond's determination not to abandon his farm even in the face of the threat from Ravenwood. Ashley Scott did an excellent and subtle job in conveying Emily's growing realization that she was still in love with Jake. I also enjoyed Aasif Mandvi's performance as Dr. Kenchy Dhuwalia. I thought he was very skillful in conveying his character's drunken charm, while conveying a sense of horror to Emily and Heather of his experiences in Las Vegas and Rogue River.
I also have to commend And once again, D.B. Sweeney managed to knock it out of the ballpark in his portrayal of the Ravenwood leader, John Goetz. I realize that many might find this hard to believe, but what really impressed me about Sweeney's portrayal of Goetz was the skillful manner in which he conveyed the character's cool. Goetz was a cold-blooded, ruthless and violent man. But he knew how to keep his cool. And Sweeney managed to convey all of these aspects of Goetz's character with great skill.
What else can I say about "Crossroads"? Although not as action-oriented as I had originally assumed it would be, the episode still proved to be a first-rate study of some of the leading characters. Thanks to screenwriter Robert Levine, "Crossroads" did an excellent job of driving the show's main narrative forward.
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.06) "9:02"
This sixth episode of "JERICHO" picks up at the same moment where the previous episode, (1.05) "Federal Response"left off. In other words, (1.06) "9:02" started with the citizens of Jericho, Kansas witness the presence of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) soaring eastward over the town's skies, before the time period jumped another two weeks.
Despite this exciting opening, I found myself wondering why the series' producers and screenwriter Nancy Won used"9:02" as the episode's title. I realized that it referred to the time in which the ICBMs sent an electromagnetic pulse that disrupted the electronic devices – cellphones, the Internet, television, radios, etc. - throughout the town. But what did it have to do with the episode's plot overall?
Come to think of it . . . aside from all electronic devices in Jericho not working (save one), what was "9:02" about? There seemed to be at least three subplots at work in this episode. One of them involved the town's citizens failed attempts to assume some form of normalcy, following the ICBMs' disruption of Jericho's electronic devices. Kids have been stealing from Gracie's Market. And so has a new character named Mitchell Cafferty, who happened to be an old friend from Jake Green's delinquent past. Cafferty’s thefts have put him in the path of Dale Turner, the young shop assistant who managed to stumble across a supply of food for the store. Cafferty has also been stealing horses from various farms and ranches outside of town. When Jake and his mother Gail visit the Green family ranch to feed their horses, the latter is nearly trampled, when Mitch and a fellow thief are in the middle of a heist. This sends Jake on the warpath to take down his former friend. Robert Hawkins becomes aware of the enmity between Jake and Mitch and decides to investigate the pair’s past relationship.
Meanwhile, Stanley Richmond is approached by I.R.S. auditor Mimi Clark for room and board in exchange for her labor on his ranch. During their conversation, Stanley discovers worms that have infested his corn crop. He tries to acquire pesticide from merchant Gracie Leigh. But she is only willing to give Stanley insecticide in exchange for profit from half of his corn crop. Even worse for Stanley, Mayor Green is willing to help him get the insecticide if he is willing to share his corn with the town’s citizens. In the final subplot, Allison Hawkins discovers that her father Robert possesses the only electronic device that is still working. She also discovers that he has a map of the U.S. locations that were bombed . . . and a gun. When Allison confronts her father, he decides to tell her that he is a government agent who knew about the September attacks. He also decides to teach her how to shoot. Father and daughter eventually begin to grow close.
Many of these subplots proved to be interesting. And all of them proved to have an impact on the characters’ relationships, developments and the series’ main narrative. At first I had a hard time believing that the situation with Stanley Richmond’s corn crop had any future impact. But it did. One, Stanley’s desperation for the insecticide led Mimi to hire a few kids to steal it from Gracie’s Market. This act led to a visit to the Richmond farm by Deputy Bill Koehler, who reveals his aggressive nature for the first time in the series. This storyline also marked the first time both Stanley and Mimi display something other than hostility toward each other. And it exposed Gracie Leigh’s penchant for avarice, which proved to have an impact upon her character’s future development. Gracie and Dale’s encounters with Mitch Cafferty not only played a major role in their characters’ arc, it also revealed Jake’s past with the criminal. And this, in turned revealed how dangerous Jake could be – something that Robert Hawkins found very interesting.
All of these subplots – Jake/Mitch Cafferty conflict, Dale/Mitch Cafferty conflict, Robert and Allison Hawkins’ relationship, and Stanley’s corn crop – end up having some kind of impact upon future story and character developments. The question remains . . . what did the episode’s title, which was an indication of when the ICBMs disrupted the town’s electronic devices, had to do with the plot? The lack of electronic devices seemed to have robbed Jericho’s citizens of a sense of normalcy, leading many of them to behave more irrationally or aggressive. But overall, the impact of no electricity seemed more like a metaphor of the disruption in the lives of the town’s citizens, instead of any real impact on the series’ overall narrative. And this is probably why I found the use of "9:02" as the episode’s title a bit weak.
However, "9:02" did provide some interesting moments in the series. The episode featured two interesting conversations – one between Robert and Allison and another between Stanley and Mimi. Both conversations changed the relationships of all involved. "9:02" also featured an exciting action scene in which Jake and his brother Eric had a violent encounter with Mitch that I found rather suspenseful. Not only did I find myself wondering if Jake and Eric would be able to arrest Mitch. I wondered how Jake would react once they made the arrest. Needless to say, I was not disappointed by how that encounter turned out. But my favorite sequence proved to be the montage in which Jericho’s citizens arrived at the Richmond farm to help Stanley save his corn crop. After Jake greeted Robert in the middle of the cornfield, the following exchange occurred between the Hawkins father/daughter duo:
Allison: [in reference to Jake] Is he a good man or a bad man?
Robert: Baby, there is no such thing.
In that one line, Robert Hawkins said more about humanity’s moral ambiguity than any other person – fictional or real – ever has.
Do not get me wrong. I enjoyed "9:02" a good deal. It was interesting to see how the ICBMs’ impact upon the town’s electronic devices affected the citizens. And the episode featured some very good performances, especially from Skeet Ulrich, Pamela Reed, Lennie James, Erik Knudsen, Jazz Raycole, Brad Beyer and Alicia Coppola. But if I must be honest, I wish that someone on the production staff for "JERICHO" had given this episode a better title. This sounds like a shallow criticism. But if one looked at the episode, the ICBMs’ impact upon the town seemed to have a minor impact upon the episode’s narrative, aside from the Robert and Allison Hawkins’ familial relationship.
