Episode Report Card Niki: B | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Won't Someone Please Help George Bailey Tonight? (2)
By Niki | Season 2 | Episode 20 | Aired on 04.17.2001
We see the "Conscience of Chicago" sprawled in his desk chair, as he smarms that he might be able to help Rick. He allows that there were a lot of people against the project, but he suspects "there were compelling arguments to be made on the other side." It's the biggest line I've ever heard. He says he's giving Rick "the opportunity to clear [his] name." Rick ponders this for a second before saying, "On television?" The Conscience reminds him what time they air, and Rick hesitates, saying he'll call back.
Cut to Karen in line at a café. Dumanjiak says her name with pleasant surprise, and she spins around, startled. He asks to join her in line, and Karen checks with the guy behind her before agreeing. Dumanjiak rambles that he was on the third floor of her building, and he told himself that if he went to the coffee shop, he'd see her and she'd think he was stalking her. Karen's a little confuddled by the third-floor information, going over in her mind which offices are located there. He smartly changes the subject to congratulate her on halting the Atlantor project. They reach the counter, where Karen orders a "grande non-fat cap with an extra shot." Dumanjiak asks whether they serve "coffee," and acts overwhelmed by the whole newfangled caféthing just so we can appreciate, yet again, what a dork he is. The chick behind the counter certainly seems to think so, anyway. She tells them the total is $5.63, and Dumanjiak almost pops his eyes right out of their sockets. But he insists on paying. Karen thanks him, her demeanor expressing that she's not sure what he's after, and he trails her to the opposite end of the counter, still gushing about her victory. He declares that she'll "win the Sinclair Award next year." She modestly tells him to stop. He asks whether she's going to the awards ceremony the following night. She hedges that she "might have to be with [her] kids." He says that he's introducing the keynote speaker and jokes that it means he has to keep the keynote speaker from drinking too much. Karen sympathizes, smiling and saying that her firm usually doesn't allow her to miss the awards. "Mark my words," he says, "you're going to win it next year." Their coffees are up, and Dumanjiak takes another opportunity to display his doltdom, asking, "You didn't put anything weird in this, did you?" The girl looks like she regrets the fact that she didn't.
Cut to a TV studio, where people are racing around just before going on the air. Lily is standing on the sidelines, watching as Rick meets Mason Gould on the set of The Conscience of Chicago. Gould clips on his mic, distractedly saying, "What a kick in the pants, huh? How many thousands of jobs went out with this bathwater?" Rick takes his seat, muttering, "Yeah, tell me about it." Lily grins and waves like a simpleton. The show starts, and Lily gives Rick a thumbs-up as Gould blathers an introduction to the subject matter of the Atlantor project. He introduces Rick as the architect and one of the project's "chief apologists"; Rick's warning bells go off. Gould starts off easy, asking about the grand jury, and what it was like testifying in front of it. Rick sidesteps Gould's land mines, agreeing that it was scary, but only in the sense that it's always scary having to come before authority. Gould says, "And you didn't have anything to hide," with a big smile, trying to disarm Rick. It works. Rick smiles and says it's like getting stopped by a cop -- you're nervous even though you didn't actually do anything. Gould smiles into the camera and snidely carries Rick's metaphor a little farther, saying it must be even scarier when "you have been doing eighty-five in a forty-mile-an-hour zone." Rick starts to protest, but Gould cuts him off with a "come on." He launches his attack, expressing his doubt that Rick didn't know about the bribes and kickbacks. Rick starts to defend himself, but Gould just steamrolls over him with more implications and dubious tones. Lily realizes Rick's being sabotaged, and turns to ask an assistant what Gould is doing. The assistant smiles at the blood in the water and assures Lily that it's going great. Gould turns up the heat again, and Rick's really getting fired up now. Gould smugly smiles into the camera and says he doesn't know "how you guys can sleep at night, with the whole city practically begging you not to tear apart its historical neighborhoods, and you couldn't have cared less." Rick glances at Lily, and she gives him a helpless "I have no idea" gesture. Gould keeps on with his diatribe, and Rick purses his lips, gritting, "All right," as he wrestles off his microphone and throws it on the table. Lily covers her face. Rick snaps, "Why don't you tell your audience the pretenses you used to get me down here," before storming off-camera. Gould, unfazed, assures him, "That's all right, my friend. That's all right. You can run, but you can't hide." And you can't have much of a career, spouting predictable clichés like that, my friend. What a sleaze.