THE SHIELD

SEASON THREE NOTES

 

Season 3, Episode 9  “Slipknot”

Air date: 5-04-04   

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this episode, at least for repeated viewings, is watching Vic's political machinations.  This might be his most beautiful Machiavellian work ever in that aspect.

First, he agrees to back Walon up when he goes to the assistant chief asking to transfer the Decoy Squad.

However, for doing so he gets Walon to give him short term use of his two black team members- earning chits and thanks with Claudette on the other side for doing so.  "Walon was way out of line" he tells her.

Then besides just backing up Walon's story to Assistant Chief Phillips, he also gives him the spin about Walon's team being stuck with paperwork [a punishment for insubordination], taking them away from the mayor's pet project of protecting the homeless- while subtly pointing this black superior toward the racial spin that  there is an unsolved lynching of a black kid- in context, a diabolically clever little racial play.

Then, just as the other special team is about to be pulled, he leans on Aceveda with the calculated threat of transfer to get out from under Claudette entirely. 

Best of all, Vic does all this in such a way that no one even has a clue that he's played them.

And Aceveda is the one who's supposed to be the master politician.

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Dutch had a somewhat diminished role in this episode, but he had one really good scene when he steps up to defend Claudette, his beloved partner.  He's absolutely in Captain Aceveda's FACE- with the assistant chief standing right there.  His display of loyalty was really touching.

Here's just where his low self-opinion undercuts him, though.  Assistant Chief Phillips cuts him down in the middle of his little rant for not having caught the "cuddler" rapist- a totally irrelevant point- and Dutch falls silent.  He all but literally hangs his head in shame.  Why?  

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Aurora's reaction to David's delayed confession that he had been raped was just SO wrong.  What the hell is wrong with people, anyway?  She blames HIM for getting raped.  "How could you let this happen?"  She runs out, and won't even look at him hours later.  What, he's damaged goods now?  Is this a Latino thing somehow, or what? 

The few seconds of Aceveda on his own private stakeout of his rapist at the end of the show was outstanding.  There's the mug book laying on the seat of his car with the guy's picture- and of course his gun. Besides his original issues, his dumb bitch wife has pushed him over the edge of reason.  Oh hell, what kind of stupid thing is he going to do?

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The racial theme of the lynching storyline turns out to be an internal black thing. A black guy strung up a black kid well known for refusing any gang affiliation, and then murdered a priest associated with the rival Latino gang in order to start a racial war.

He was all out of sorts about the Mexicans taking over the neighborhood, apparently.  "That rainbow coalition stuff was crushing us."  

There was the psycho who actually did the killing, then there were the local businessmen now willing to associate with the 1-9ers gang for protection.  Harry  has an excellent bit of discussion with Vic that starts out with him lamenting the Spanish language billboard overhead, and spins backwards to the Watts riots from the 1960s. 

In a less than sympathetic or morally impressive explanation to Dutch and Claudette about the murdered black boy, he says "In this neighborhood you have to choose sides.  I'm black- that's my side.  It should have been his, too."

When asked by Dutch, Claudette suggested that the black-on-black nature of the lynching was WORSE than if it had been somebody else. 

What might she have had in mind by that?  Discuss amongst yourselves.

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Mara sure is a piece of work.  When Shane deduces that his pregnant woman has found the storage facility and stolen $7,000 of Money Train dough (some of it marked), she goes on the attack.  Somehow, her fiancee was "lying" to her by not having told her about this money.  "Are you going to lie to your son, too?"

It was for US.  "Us" she says three times.  See, if she didn't take this money to give to her broke mother, then she'd show up at THEIR door. 

The stupidity and ugliness of her actions and even more the cheap manipulations of her explanation are just astounding.  Jebus Criminy, but she's dumber than he is. 

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Owen, therapist and boyfriend, is SUCH a weenie boy.  You can see how he might look good as a man in your life after Vic.  He's open and honest, tender and sensitive, always available emotionally and physically- all those great nicey things Vic sure ain't. 

Or to put it differently, he might as well cut off the penis and start wearing a dress.

This comes out in the early scene where Vic comes in with Corrine, who's just been slightly mauled at her hospital job by a doped up patient.  Rather than hunting the guy down, Owen thinks she should just let it go.  It's not worth it.  What's to stop him from coming back after her?  Vic, naturally, answers the HE is what's stopping him.  

Owen wants to submit and cower, Vic promises to PROTECT THE FAMILY.  Which one of them do you think will end up with the woman?

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Having identified the cleverly named Asian perp "Tung Yung" who had accosted Corrine, Vic is anxious to have Julien help him get a crack at the guy when he gets caught before they haul him in.  He can't be "feeling good" when they bring him in, see.  

It doesn't quite work out that way, but the dude sure weren't feeling much good.  He went straight to attack mode when Danny and Julien show up, and that crack Julien gives him as Danny pulls him off Julien knocks him a good way off.

They finish that scene with a beautiful moment of physical comedy.  It probably won't sound that funny from reading it on a page, but Tung is on his hands and knees a couple of seconds after Julien knocked him across the sidewalk.  Danny tells him to get down on the ground.  The crazy, violent, beat up perp hovers for a few seconds of precise comic timing- then simply collapses face first into the pavement.

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From the mouths of babes: Cassidy set off the whole final segment nicely.  Daddy has been trying to reassure her that Mommy will always be Mommy, and he will always be Daddy, and that's never going to change.  But Cassidy does not feel so confident.  "Everything's changing."

Then we cut to Aceveda explaining to Claudette that he's taken the Strike Team away from her, we see the Decoy Squad packing up, and so on.

Steve Earle's song "Ashes to Ashes" plays out its harsh rock strains as the stars realign. 

Someday even great walls will crumble
And every idol ever raised falls
And someday even man's best laid plans
Will lie twisted and covered in rust
When we've done all that we can but it slipped through our hands
And it's ashes to ashes and dust to dust

   

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