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Bullock completes the awful task of building his son's coffin, and he and Martha prepare for William's funeral. The rest of the camp prepares as well. Everybody takes baths, no lie -- even Jane. The whores of the Gem are particularly beside themselves with grief over the innocent boy's death. They are allowed to go to the service with Trixie. Al further messes with Jarry's head trying to ramp up Yankton's offer on the annexation. Bad things are afoot between Wu and Mr. Lee. The San Francisco Cocksucker is burning the bodies of the dead Chinese prostitutes, and Wu is in a rage about it. Andy Cramed takes a few knocks from Cy, and then goes on to conduct the funeral service, at which Martha loses her mind, just a little bit. Later, she and Bullock agree to try to live through it, together. Meanwhile, Mrs. Garret accepts Ellsworth's marriage proposal. Want more? The full recap starts right below!
Something... smelly is going on in Deadwood. Al walks through the thoroughfare when an odor wholly unpleasant hits his nostrils. Behind him, a plume of smoke goes up into the air, and I guess we can go on and assume it's not a cookout or something, organized by the neighborhood dads.Because, no. No, it isn't. It's Mr. Lee. Burning the bodies of the Chinese prostitutes. Behind him, we hear a scream of outrage and Wu stomps up, mad as hell. Lee does not even turn around as Wu gets more and more upset, gesturing and yelling in Chinese. I guess he says something pretty insulting, because Lee's henchmen tackle him and knock his hat off. Ooooo, Wu's mad. He spits on the ground at Lee's feet, yells some more, and leaves, visibly stressed.
Speaking of stress, Bullock is across the way, building a coffin for his son. He's all alone when Al comes up, saying, in perhaps the least heartfelt tone of all time, "Sorry, Bullock." Actually, the tone doesn't bother me, now that I think of it. When something awful happens to someone, it really is better just to say to them: "I'm sorry," rather than bullshit around about feelings and whatnot. No, really, I tell you this on the two-year anniversary of the fiery demise of my worldly possessions. There's no right thing to say, I guess, is the point I'm trying to make, not that Al should win any prizes or anything, since he most likely really isn't even sorry.
Al takes out a dirty handkerchief and offers it to Bullock, who apparently hasn't noticed that one of his hands is bloody. He doesn't take it, instead distractedly lifting the coffin up on his shoulder and heading toward the house. Al hangs back a little before asking if Bullock can abide him walking along and talking to him for a minute. Bullock kind of clenches, by way of answering, and Al tells him that "Yankton's man is among us." Al's worried that Jarry, even under these terrible circumstances, will come to Bullock to see if he's really allied with Al on the whole Montana story. "If he does," Al says, "your nod would advance the cause." Without even pausing in his sad walk, Bullock says "all right."
Mose Manual is waking up at the Chez Amie, hacking and coughing. "Yeah, you fat fuck," Jane says, kind of sweetly, "you're alive." Mose is less than thrilled to hear this. "Let me die," he wheezes out, and Jane asks if that's "thank you, in whale talk." She offers him something to drink but he tells her no. "Drink it..." she says, faux-menacing, and looks over at Joanie, wordlessly asking her to have a go at him. Going over to Leon and Con who are asleep against the wall, she tells them to get up and get the Doc, "and tell him he's got a live one." The two toadies are in rough shape, and Jane is making it no better. She throws them out and goes back to Joanie, who is now leaning over Mose, trying to soothe him. "time he opens his eyes," Jane says, "he's gon' think he died and went to Heaven." Aw, we love the ladies, and we love the ladies who love the ladies.
Inside the Bullock's house, more caretaking is going on, except here, Martha Bullock is washing the body of her little son, readying him to be buried. Awful. The awkwardness of grief is something no one really ever tells you about, and Timothy Olyphant and Anna Gunn are playing it just right. Bullock brings in the coffin, and then kind of wanders a few steps in, not knowing what to do . Without a word, he passes her and goes upstairs, where he sees open suitcases full of Martha's things. Going to the washbasin, he pours some water and cleans his wounded hand.