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Cal (Tim Roth) and Ria (Monica Raymund) need to ascertain if a violent gang member, Manny Trillo (Paul Calderon) in prison has reformed and should be released pending a pardon from the governor. As the guards escort Manny to be questioned by them Cal notices the hostile intent towards Manny from the other prisoners. Anyone can see the prisoners will attack him and Manny is stabbed in the neck during the furore.
Gillian (Kelli Williams) and Eli (Brendan Hines) probe the death of a probie fireman who was left inside a burning building. Mike Adams (Carlos Lacamara) introduces them to Eric's (Andre Kincaid) grandfather, Mr Mitchell (Antonio Fargas). Eric was already dead before the fire reached him and so Mike suspects he was murdered. Gillian says Tom Clayton, the lieutenant (Brad Beyer) should question the men instead of them. Gillian and Eli will then gage their reactions. Tom was too likely a suspect especially that expression he made with his face, before Gillian tells him he'll be questioning his men. All of the firemen answer his questions in exactly the same way, all responding within one second. Eli says this is cos a lie is more easily told than the truth. All the men are lying.
Manny explains his love of reading and Ria is cynical from the start - that he hasn't reformed and people can't change. Manny seems to be remorseful about his past actions. Cal brings out his lunch and hopes Manny doesn't mind him eating. Cal pushes the burger in front of Manny's face, speaks with his moth full and slurps his drink. Didn't think Cal used to eat that sort of food. Notice the burger change in size in each different camera shot of Cal eating. Thus the problems with filming with food and taking a break in each scene then coming back to it. Manny felt disrespect when Cal spoke to him whilst eating and Gillian notices Manny is ashamed of what he's done as a gang member. Gillian suggests Ria should look at old footage of Manny and tells Cal she doesn't think Ria should be on this case, as she's clearly hostile towards Manny. She has her own preconceived views. Cal always has Ria working with him, most of the time anyway, is it to see how a natural works or does he really share a more personal affinity with her.
Cal looks at their firemen footage and believes Doug Donovan (Ross Thomas) is remorseful and should reveal the truth due to his guilt. During a training fire drill, inside the house, Doug notices a probie is unconscious and carries him out. The probie turns out to the Chief, Jack Morrow (Brett Rice). They make the distinction Doug carried out the Chief but not Eric and he replies he should have carried him out too and thinks he's just as guilty as the others. He doesn't name anyone but says Eric was hazed. The Chief is aware of the hazing, as it proves their manhood. As Eli and Gillian talk about firemen and the hazing, she notices Kerry (Christie Ann Burson) the Chief's niece, 'shushing' herself. i.e. placing her fingers in front of her mouth. She knows something.
Cal looks at Manny's tapes from before and sees Ria can't see any differences in his behaviour, where clearly there are plenty. Ria is adamant she doesn't want Manny released as he hasn't changed and will just get back with his gang. Cal truly believes people can change - wonder if he's speaking from personal experience. Holly (Deidre Lovejoy) the widow of the man Manny murdered is going to speak on Manny's behalf before the Parole Board and wants him released. Obviously she has an ulterior motive, she hasn't had revenge for her husband's murder and she's had all these years to think about it.
Gillian talks with Kerry in the toilet and she's afraid the firemen will kill her if they knew she was talking with her. Looking at Eric's hazing video, Wallace looks at Eric with disgust. Holly tells the Parole Board of how she was shocked at Manny's passion in his book and thinks Manny has changed. Cal watches her shake her head from side to side when saying he should be released, meaning she doesn't believe what she's saying. Ria is sure Manny has got someone to threaten her, missing the obvious here, she could only have one possible motive for wanting him released. (As already mentioned.)
Wallace didn't hate Eric, but Eric brought trouble onto himself when he complained about his treatment and the hazing. He thought it was racial but Wallace has been here nine years and just thinks of everyone as firefighters. They knew of his peanut allergy and gave him some peanut butter but that was a long time ago. He thinks someone tampered with Eric's equipment. Gillian and Eric put the firemen through a training exercise where they are given adjectives describing JFK and President Obama. They take longer attributing the same adjectives to President Obama, than to JFK. David (Matt Bushell) took the longest and he argues he isn't racist and didn't have any racial problems with Eric, revealing that he did have a different problem with him. He states Eric "couldn't keep it in." Eric was seeing a white woman, who was Kerry, since she's the only one around. They don't realize this until they speak with Mr Mitchell who tells them a woman came round after Eric was killed. That was a slow reaction on Gillian and Eli's part! The Chief wasn't aware of their relationship and that she and Eric were going to marry. Tom however (my suspect from the outset) knew and insists he was following the firefighter's code and didn't see Eric as one of his men.
Cal has finally cottoned on this case is personal for Ria, as did we and Gillian. She is certain people like Manny never change. Cal wants the police to follow Manny upon release and sure enough Holly turns up at his house gun in hand. She registered the gun a few months back. Why bother registering it if she was going to kill him with it, unless she wanted to be caught afterwards. Manny talks her out of it and is repentant for killing her husband. Showing everyone and especially Ria that people can change sometimes. Cal gives Ria Manny's book, as she puts away a photo which appears to be of her family.
Cal: "I'm sorry about before, sometimes I see so much, I don't know how not to tell people."
Ria: "I get that." Cal is also certain some people can change and she's had her nose done - so he can't read that reaction of contempt from her anymore. He knows she's a natural because of what that big man did to her when she was little. From his abuse he made her a natural. Cal had to learn his skills scientifically but Ria picks up on there being another reason for Cal being the way he is. When she asks him why he's like that, he doesn't answer. Saving that for another day of course.
Another episode where two different cases in which the plots boil down to the similar thing, how people react to other's around them and how some change but there's no changing for others and their hardened ways, such as Tom. Eli was a mathlete at MIT and Gillian believes hazing "can serve an important psychological function." She's the one who has the opposite views to most everyone else and especially to Cal. Not one of the best episodes and the show seems to be slow finding its feet.
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