Episode Report Card Keckler: A+ | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Patriots and Tyrants
By Keckler | Season 2 | Episode 7 | Aired on 03.25.2008
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close. Wow. I'm so satisfied, I think I need a cigarette. And I don't even smoke! Of course, I'd be far happier if the show was coming back, but as series finales go, this one was simply kissable. Imagine -- they didn't even feel the need to murder off a beloved character. Did you hear that, Enterprise?Jake and Hawkins arrive in Cheyenne and immediately make contact with a disillusioned Gray and a helpful but doomed Cheung. With Cheung's help, Jake and Hawkins intercept the bomb, but run afoul of the fully bodied voice of John Jacob Jingleheimer Smith. By the time Jake rescues Hawkins and secures the bomb, Cheung is bullet-fodder, Smith has run off, and Hawkins is disturbingly wounded and bleeding. With fanfare of Awesome, Jake busts through the gates of the Texas Embassy, where they get asylum from Ambassador Dr. Phil, as well as access to a plane to get the bomb to Texas. Jake finally gets to show off his storied flying skills in a flimsy Cessna, but trouble shows up in the form of Cheyenne fighter jets. Thank god a couple of Texas Air National Guard flyers show up to both clean up their Bush-smirched reputation and rescue Jake awesomely. In Texas, Hawkins gets his much-needed medical attention and Chavez takes the bomb to some engineers.
Back in Jericho, Eric attempts to talk to Constantino about dealing with the military presence but is scared off by how evil he is. Beck is near tears when he confronts Heather about her betrayal with the radiation survey binder and finally throws her in jail. Stanley insists on burying Bonnie properly, and Mimi pleads with the military police to leave them alone until they pay their respects.
Being left alone with Hawkins' bag of tricks and reluctant to carry out his orders to visit some Phase Three vengeance on Jericho, Beck uncovers everything we already know about J&R and the September attacks. Finally resolved to keep doing the right thing as best he knows how, Beck tells Stanley and the other Rangers that they can take their time burying Bonnie because as far as he's concerned, they're free to go. After going rogue on his superiors, Beck springs Heather from jail and also makes sure that his men also know the truth about J&R and the September attacks. Instead of taking him into custody, all his men rip off their curiously Velcro-ish ASA patches and join him.
We're left with the comfortable feeling that everyone in Jericho is going to be all right, but the fight for the country has just begun. Want more? The full recap starts right below!
Well, my friends, we're at an end, and as sad as I am not to have this show to poke fun at, I don't think we could have asked for a better second season or a more satisfying wrap up to this final episode.
Happy Hunting Hut. Jake and Hawkins pack and load up for Cheyenne. There's a large outlay of filled plastic water bottles lined up on the table. Hey, if they say it's Sierra Springs water, they might get five more seasons from the USA Network. They talk about how they're going to get through checkpoints with the help of one of Mary's runners and also about where they'll be able to stay in Cheyenne. Hawkins acknowledges that he has a lead on Cheung's location, but they're going to need more immediate help. Hawkins reminds Jake that when they get to Cheyenne, "this mission is everything." Jake gets it. Hawkins doesn't think he does, because he commands his attention when he says, "No, no, see -- I gotta be sure. I'm asking for your help, but I can't afford for you to go off-book out there, and I don't have any room for debates, so if you got any questions, now's the time." Well, in that case, Jake does have a question: "How are we going to find the bomb." Hawkins shakes his head, shruggingly, "No idea. Anything else?" HA! Hawkins is not one to let a lost nuclear bomb get in the way of finding that nuclear bomb. Why? Because he's of the Awesome. Jake snorts a laugh and they leave.
Via the office television, one of Beck's superiors gets all mad at him for the level of insurgent activity in Jericho and orders him to begin Phase Three. Beck balks at this and says he believes Jericho is still salvageable without going that far. "Two prisoners escaped your custody yesterday. You've lost three supply convoys through raiding parties in the past week -- the time for restraint is past. You have your orders: this insurrection must end." Two prisoners? Who other than Jake got rescued last week?
Federal District of Cheyenne. In an elevator that has one of those electronic ad panels boasting about the ASA Constitutional Convention, which is probably bugged, Gray and another delegate bitch about the convention. Apparently, they just got rid of the Second Amendment. Sheesh! No wonder Texas felt the need to get involved. Don't mess with Texas and their right to bear arms or you'll get blown right out of the sky! Gray muses, "It's a lot easier to pacify a country when its citizens can't shoot back." He doesn't appear to be disagreeing. The other delegate, who is quite young and excitable by comparison, says he's sick of people telling him he worries too much, "This is the Constitution we're talking about -- not a stereo manual!" Gray mutters tiredly that they just have to keep raising their voices.