The Unusual(s) Recap: The Circle Line

Welcome back to another edition of “The Unusual(s) Recap”! If you missed last nights episode, check it out at ABC’s “The Unusuals” page! If you missed any of my prior recaps, check them out here.

This weeks episode starts off with a couple big bangs before the first commercial break! First a Det. Powell shows up asking Det. Walsh for help. Powell is from a different precinct but used to work with Walsh. His knuckles and shirt are bloody and he says “I may have killed someone.” If that wasn’t enough Det. Delahoya was sitting in a restaurant when the Sgt. comes in and tells him “Son, your partner, Leo Banks, is dead.”

That line was a shocker. We know that Det. Banks had been obsessing with his own death, but I really liked his character and couldn’t believe they would have killed him off so quickly! When Delahoya arrives at the morgue to identify the body he laughs, because the dead Banks is an Asian man.

The medical examiner explained that even the mans social security number matched, and that she called the social security administration to let them know that Leo Banks was dead.

As I’m sure some of my readers know, identify theft is not an easy thing to fix. For the rest of the episode we follow Banks and Delahoya as they try to track down where the man got Banks information and fake ID’s. When they do, they find a very organized identify theif. Banks even finds that Delahoya’s identity had been stolen.

While going through the records of what the “other” Banks purchased Delahoya and Banks do a quick commercial for Disney Cruise Lines. Apparently the identity thief went on “one of those Disney cruises where everyone dresses up like Pinocchio.” Both Banks and Delahoya state that yes, in fact they both had always wanted to go on one of those cruises.

Unfortunately for Delahoya, that is the least of his problems. Delahoya repeatedly sees his high school girlfriend in visions during the episode. The brain tumor is now affecting his life and mental state. He asks the medical examiner for help.

Meanwhile, Det. Walsh and Det Schraeger work to help Det. Powell figure out what happened the night before. Walsh tells the Sgt. that it is a “1313” and is given six hours. Schraeger (and myself) had no idea what a 1313 was, but Walsh explains its an officer in trouble. The 1313 gives the cops six hours to figure out what happened before anything is reported. A little professional courtesy as it were.

Powell was a former alcoholic with five years sober and unfortunately we find he threw that all away. Powell visited a liquor store and according to the clerk “bought something brown.” Retracing Powell’s steps include a ride on “The Circle Line,” a three hour boat trip around the city!

Funny moment of the episode is after they decide they are going Det. Schraeger says “I hate boats” Walsh’s response “Uh huh.” Schraeger repeats “I hate boats.” Of course the next time you see her she is trying not to be sick over the side. I’m glad that they didn’t actually go there in the episode, as I have been known to get sick on smaller boats.

Walsh and Schraeger are able to trace Powells steps to a “Tikki Bar” and then to a hotel with a tall stunning blonde. Unfortunately the blonde provided the blood that they found on Powell’s shirt. This seemed to confirm Alvarez’s fears that protecting this “bad cop” was a bad thing.

Walsh wouldn’t accept it, something didn’t feel right. Luckily, he was right. Blood tests found that both the blonde and Powell had rohypnol (roofies) in their system. It turns out that the bartender at the “Tikki Bar” was the blonde’s ex-boyfriend. Powell was clean, much to the chagrin of Det. Alvarez.

At the end of the episode Walsh makes a very nice gesture to Alvarez at the bar. Buying him a beer and telling him that “being different makes us good at what we do.” We’ve seen teasers for later this season when Alvarez appears to be against the rest of the squad, but at least Walsh is trying to bring him into the fold.

The visions in Delahoya’s head finally convince him to visit the morgue and have the medical examiner test him. We see a very creepy (to me) scene of Delahoya sitting on one of the autopsy tables to have blood drawn. The medical examiner sticks him with the needle and he yells, she hasn’t worked on a live one in a while obviously.

The episode ending on a shot of this blood being drawn was touching. Could Delahoya be finally ready to try to live? Are we going to find out that what he has is even treatable? I hope so. His character is a good balance to Banks and the acting is great.

This was a lighter episode this week. We didn’t even see Det. Cole or Det. Beaumont in the episode. I like this decision by the writers because it gives Beaumont time to recover. How many times have you seen a character nearly dead at the end of a show and the next week is 100% better?

Remember to tune in to ABC at 10pm Eastern next Wednesday night for another episode of “The Unusuals” and check back here for another “The Unusual(s) Recap” next Thursday morning! Follow the second squad on twitter at @TheUnusualsNYC (http://twitter.com/TheUnusualsNYC).

You can also read my personal ramblings at Eternal Rambling of a Boy With Two Brains.