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Episode Recap #23: Badge of Honor
Original Airdate: July 9, 1988
Starring:
John D. LeMay as Ryan Dallion
Louise Robey as Micki Foster
Guest cast:
Val Avery as Russ Sharko
David Proval as Victor Haas
John Stockwell as Tim Ayres
Lloyd Adams as Solly
Shane Cardwell as Lou
Frank Crudell as Printer
John Goar as Castro
Jane Heeley as Irene Sabara
Kenneth McGregor as Van Der Beck
Written by Jim Henshaw, Roy Sallows
Directed by Michelle Manning
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We open on some sort of bad guy counterfeit money deal, with cops listening in. One of the cops, Russ Sharko, jumps the gun, rushing out to try and make a bust. His female partner chases him, some other guy gets blown away, as does the female cop. Soon, all hell breaks loose and there are cops everywhere.
This dude is part of the bad ass mob.
Later, at the precinct, Russ, the old cop is turning in his badge and gun, his captain reprimanding him for his rash behavior that led to another cop's death. As he walks through the squad room, he is shunned by the other officers. He empties out his locker, drops the equipment at the store room and an old sheriff's badge falls off the shelf. Russ picks up the badge and pockets it.
Also a mobster.
A very confident and quickly killed goon.
At a club called "Haas," people are dancing and having a good time. Victor Haas shows up, and we see that two of the men in the club are the men Russ dreamt about running in his dream. Haas checks out his club and gets some attention from some ladies. Outside, Russ tries to enter, but is denied by one of the guys from his dream. They struggle, Russ falls and the badge falls from his pocked. Russ ends up hitting the guy with a 2-by-4. The guy falls onto the badge, his body contorts and he dies and the badge appears in Russ' hand, with a scorch mark of its shape on the dead man's shirt.
And here is your mob don. Guy is a joke.
At Curious Goods, a customer greets Ryan asking for Micki. When she returns, she throws her arms around the guy and kisses him. He asks how she has been and she introduces him to Ryan as Tim Ayres. Tim says her father told him where to find her. Micki offers to let Tim stay with them while he is in town. Tim says he has to go run some errands, but he'll be back and they can talk. He also calls Ryan Bryan. Ryan isn't fond of the guy. Micki calls Tim an old friend.
At Russ' house, he talks to Gwen, who is still under the tent, and tells her he killed one of the guys, with the badge. He tells her has to be patient, but he can get to Haas, too.
At night, on the docks, Russ meets a game name Raoul, asking him where he can find Haas. Raoul doesn't want to spill, but he says Haas is planning to split til things cool down. Russ pressures him, but Raoul says he has no more information. Russ presses the badge onto the guy's chest, he thrashes about and falls into the water. The badge reappears in Russ' hand.
Convoluted history for this tiny antique.
Haas is inspecting some new counterfeit bills from Tim. Tim says he can launder the counterfeit bills, but wants a better cut. Haas is suspicious, but Tim says he could always go with someone bigger than Haas. Haas says he has to do some checking before they deal. They share some champagne in toast of a future in business.
At the store, Micki is waiting on Tim to come back. Ryan asks what their past is, Micki says they spent a lot of time together once. Ryan is leery of the man. Tim asks to use the phone, Ryan overhears and wonders what the conversation is all about.
Micki makes tea for Tim, but they end up kissing. Tim knows Ryan doesn't care for him, but Micki doesn't care. They kiss again. Micki wonders why Tim never wrote. He said he was afraid. But he wanted to see her again. They kiss again. He gives Micki a locket she had left behind. They wander off into her bedroom and onto her bed.
And here is your police force.
At Russ' house, he again talks to Gwen about how he has to stop Haas. He says he isn't worried for his safety, he needs to take care of Haas and his men. He leaves Gwen a vase full of flowers.
At the precinct, the captain approaches Russ as the older man cleans out his desk. He tries to make peace with Russ, and Russ asks if the captain can get him close to Haas. The captain scoffs and Russ says he would have helped him in the old days. The captain tells him to go, he's finished.
Micki is singing when Ryan approaches and asks what she is up to, obviously ticked off at Micki's house guest. Ryan probes her for information about Tim and mentions the phone call he overheard. Micki tells him to mind his own business. Ryan grabs Tim's suitcase and unzips it, Micki protesting. He says Micki might not know Tim anymore, at all. She reluctantly lets him look inside. Ryan pulls out a gun with a silencer. She is shocked and asks him to keep looking. Ryan finds photos of Haas and some other men and recognizes the man from the shoot-out on the news. They are both confused as to what Tim is up to.
At the club, Haas is doing coke and telling a story to Tim about a fox waiting for mice at the opening to their hole and how the mice tricked the fox. He offers Tim a final offer, Tim counters and then Russ arrives. Haas and his men knock the old man down and flee. Ryan and Micki watch from the alley. Russ gets up and rushes outside, but Haas and the men are gone. Russ hides as the other man from his dream comes out of the club, he shoots at Russ but misses. Russ rushes him and pins the badge to his chest. The man thrashes about and dies. Russ takes off as Micki and Ryan come out of hiding. They see the sheriff's badge, but it vanishes.
At his house, Russ fill Gwen in on how he just missed getting his hands on Haas. He apologizes and tells her he knows they don't have much time.
How has Russ been able to function at all at work,
if this is what his home life entails?
Ryan and Micki consult the manifest and the files and find the badge and info about its history. The article tells about the star-shaped brands left on the bodies. They wonder if it was in police storage. Tim comes in and Micki asks why he was at that club, but Tim says he can't involve them. Micki tells him his whole visit has been a lie, he denies it. Tim won't offer apologies, saying he did come to see her, that is the truth. Micki says she remembers why she left him in the first place and tells him to leave. Tim tries to follow but Ryan stops him.
Ryan, you goofball.
Haas questions his men, wanting to know how Russ got into his club and so close to him. Haas wants to know how they could let one of his closest friends die. He wonders why he should keep paying them. He singles out his bouncer and tells him no one should have gotten past him. He smashes a bottle over the man's head and threatens the others.
This pic should be the mascot pic for my page!
Micki and a mug!
At the police station, Micki and Ryan question the captain about the previous case and if he knows what happened to the sheriff's badge, telling him they saw an older man using it at the club last night. The captain feigns ignorance and says he has to go. Micki and Ryan don't buy his story.
Some of the angles used to shoot the scenes in the store are great.
At the club, Haas gets a call from Tim. They make a deal and Tim ask when to come, Haas tells him tomorrow at 4:00 am. Tim tells another man in his car about the deal.
The police captain shows up at Russ' house, Micki and Ryan have followed him and are watching from outside. Russ is angry with the captain for showing up at his house. The captain questions him about Haas, but Russ denies anything. The captain asks about the badge, Russ, who has been drinking, again plays dumb. He tells him about the recent bodies with the badge mark burned into their chest. He tells Russ the last body was found with witnesses. Russ scoffs, saying the idea of criminals dying is a good thing. Micki and Ryan slip in through a window. The captain and Russ argue, Russ begging his old boss to let him continue. The captain tries to draw his gun, but Russ takes the badge out and pins it to the man's chest.
Ryan Crockett and Micki Tubbs.
The captain convulses throughout the house, dying, as Micki and Ryan hide. The captain bursts into the bedroom, collapsing on the tent covering Gwen. As it pulls away, we see she has been dead a very, very long time. Russ comes in, worried about Gwen. The badge reappears in his hand and he takes off, knowing he has to get to Haas.
Gwen, what lovely, er, cobwebs you have.
At the club, Russ grabs a girl and chokes her, demanding to know where Haas is. She says he is on the docks and Russ punches her out and heads off.
At the docks, Haas and his men wait for Tim. Micki and Ryan show up, having followed Russ. Tim and his friend arrive, as well. Russ grabs one of the men and tosses one of the men and knocks him out. Micki and Ryan continue to wander about. Haas sends a second man to find the first. Micki and Ryan find the first man Russ killed and hide when they see Tim.
Tim approaches Haas, asking if he is ready to do business. Haas tells him to come closer. Ryan tries to climb up to get a better look and falls, making a huge noise and knocking himself out. Tim then pulls a gun on Haas, saying he is F.B.I. But Haas is faster and shoots Tim. Micki then jumps, trying to protect Haas and is herself shot in the shoulder.
As bad as Ryan's idea to climb this was,
all the other parties reacted so much worse to the noise!
Having heard all the gunshots, Russ steps into plain sight and gets shot, as well. Haas approaches him to gloat, but Russ sticks the badge on him and Haas then convulses and dies. Micki and Ryan, battered, approach Russ, who is dead, and find the badge.
See? We do have evidence of Micki being shot.
At the store, Micki is sad, thinking about Tim. Ryan comes and sits with her, saying the badge is locked up and that he guesses Tim was one of the good guys. Ryan admits to Micki he was jealous of Tim, that he was too slick. Micki tells Ryan he looks pretty good to her.
Micki ain't missing Tim too much.
Pivotal moment for our pair of antique hunters.
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My thoughts:
Wow. This episode. I have never cared for this one. The story is all over the place, and that is being kind. It is just haphazard, amateurishly written and feels like it was edited together in a rush.
The cop scenes are a joke, written, it seems, by someone who only knew cops from television and, even then, from badly written television.
The subplot of Tim and Micki having a past together feels like way to shoe-horn them into the weird cop/mob tale. Tim, who works for the F.B.I., needs a place to stay while he is in town working on a big case involving a dangerous mobster? Well, why not go and stay with your ex-girlfriend and then be vague about what you are doing and, on top of that, make phone calls in earshot of people you don't want listening. Makes sense.
I love how when Ryan and Micki go out to investigate Tim and the badge, they are dressed like they are going to some formal event. What the hell?
And Ryan decides to climb up some precarious pallets on the dock for... what reason? Oh, to fall and then cause a ruckus that then makes Tim blow ALL his cover and prematurely announce he is F.B.I. before having his gun ready. Of course he is shot and killed, as it Russ. Oh and Micki was shot! Or was she? We see zero evidence of her being hurt or wounded at the end.
The soundtrack is another problem here. It is so freaking loud throughout. In the club, we get to hear one of Louise Robey's songs, "Killer Instinct". It is good and fits the club scene. But for the rest of the show, we have background noise that just overpowers the scenes. It feels like someone wanted to make a Miami Vice type episode but had no idea how to go about that.
I know I am picking this one apart for all its faults, but it is just that there are SO many of them. I love the show and usually find stuff to enjoy in them all, but this one leaves me so lost.
I do think it is funny that Ryan, when he is alone at the store at the beginning of the episode, is reading some sort of comic book but hiding it with a newspaper. While he is alone, I remind you. Too funny.
The final scene is one scene I do like, however. Ryan admitting to Micki that he was jealous of Tim and felt like he couldn't compete, is monumental. For the first time, it is outright stated by one of the two that there could be something more between them. And Micki follows his statement with telling him he looks good to her. Quite a step forward in their relationship.
Next week: "Pipe Dream"
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