Episode Report Card Daniel: B | Grade It Now! YOU GRADE IT Chips On Your Shoulder
By Daniel | Season 1 | Episode 2 | Aired on 10.02.2012
In a hurry? Read the recaplet for a nutshell description! Finished? Click here to close.Is Vegas going to remind us it's 1960 at the beginning of every episode? Because I don't think that's necessary.
Anyway, Sheriff Ralph busts up a jewelry robbery with the same non-urgency he had when shooting out the tires of a car driving straight towards him, by calmly waiting outside with a broom handle to kick the shit out of the thief with when he tries to make his getaway. I mean, I realize that we're supposed to realize when a cool cucumber he is, but given that he saw the thief enter the store with a shotgun, you'd think he would have been a little more worried that the guy was going to use it.
But that's just the opening, and doesn't have much to do with what follows: a dead casino dealer who was attacked by someone with a mask. Turns out someone else in the dealer's regular poker game was attacked too, and in both cases they were looking to hit a safe full of unreported income -- not likely to be reported missing by the victims.
The Lamb boys follow the trail through a safe installer to a robbery duo who bought a list of the installer's clients (one of whom gets shot by Dixon, who saves his father's life by doing so) and finally to the ex-boyfriend of the girlfriend of the dead dealer. Jealous at being thrown over for an unmanly "card-flipper," he'd hoped the crimes would be pinned on the robbery guys. But he ran into squinty justice instead.
Meanwhile, Savino's getting antsy at the damage Bob Perrin can do to him and his associates, but Sheriff Ralph has cleaned the jail out of any flunky who can eliminate that problem. A thug purposely gets himself thrown in jail and is moments from stabbing Perrin to death, but Dixon stops that, due to sheer luck, and fortunately his dad turns the thug back over to Savino. Not so fortunate for Savino, obviously, who's running out of time before the feds move Perrin to a more secure location. Savino winds up popping a fire hydrant that forces a detour of the prisoner transfer, and a car bomb along the route leaves Perrin's car ablaze.
Savino's still rubbing up against Sheriff Ralph, who is discovering that his predecessor may have been a little friendlier with a particular casino due to the stash of hundred-dollar chips in his desk drawer. Savino's also got continued interest from back home, who sends the daughter of his friend to be the new count room manager, after fallout from Perrin's skimming has cost a few more people from the casino crew. Mia Rizzo fits the familiar casino trope of noticing all the little things (like Savino himself) but she oversteps her bounds, when she suggests dealers hit on soft 17 for a slight boost in profits. Savino won't do it, so she goes over his head and the change gets implemented. He points out that the slight boost in profits will be more than wiped out by the loss of business when gamblers figure out what's going on and move to other casinos. She promises not to go over his head again.
Sheriff Ralph, after a good hard day's work, ends the episode at his ranch, discovering that someone's been there -- and left an ominous gift: several stacks of chips like the ones found in is his predecessor's drawer.
Daniel is a writer in Newfoundland with a wife and a daughter. He'd be in the mob's pocket for, like, half the chips they gave Sheriff Ralph. Follow him on Twitter (@DanMacEachern) or email him at danieljdaniel@gmail.com.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!"Las Vegas 1960" the screen announces -- in case anyone forgot from last week and the old-timey casinos and cars and Nixon newspaper headlines aren't enough to remind people that we're not in the present day.
We open with Sheriff Lamb eating breakfast at a diner, where he has to tell the waitress to keep calling him "Ralph" instead of "sheriff," and he'd like to continue paying for his meals, despite her attempt to give it to him on the house, a benefit his predecessor wasn't shy about taking advantage of it seems. ADA O'Connell comes in to buy a pack of gum and continue lay the foundation for the love-interest story, and they leave together. I mean, not together together, just together.
Outside, O'Connell exposits that the mayor's got a stump speech and Lamb attends to avoid it, what with him being simple and honest and squinty and everything. He walks her to her car -- little brother observing -- and then they see a shady guy nervously walk across the street. Ralph notes the collection of cigarette butts that have accumulated in the place where the guy was apparently staking out the jewelry store across the street, and more important gets a glimpse of the shotgun he carries into the store with him. With a little less urgency than I think the situation warrants, Ralph deputizes a handy street sweeper's broom and pulls the handle off the brush while he calmly waits just outside the jewelry store door. And when the shady guy runs away, Ralph beats the crap out of him with it. Good thing we didn't hear any shotgun blasts in there.
As it happens, Vincent Savino is driving (well, being driven) by to take in the Lone Ranger. Ralph appears to see him and gives a little smirk as he makes a big show of emptying the would-be thief's shotgun of its shells.
He's on his way to talk to his casino staff, where he reminds them all of Bob Perrin's nefarious dealings and warns that anyone who was working with him should heed his advice: "Leave now, and never look back." Within a few moments, three staff members have filed out and Savino looks like he's trying to keep his surprise in check. His right-hand, Red, tells him they can replace the crew no problem, but the manager who just left will be a problem. Savino tells him Chicago will send them a manager they can trust.
Meanwhile, the Lamb brothers have finished whipping on the bearded jewel thief -- that'll teach you not to shave, hippie! -- when Dixon pulls up and says they should head over to Henderson.