Drake resigns from the police and goes missing. Flight is working for Shine and finds himself conflicted between loyalties. Jackson’s brother shows up on his doorstep with a shady proposition. Susan struggles with paying her debt to Duggan.
The Breakdown
At Court Vale, Cape Colony, Southern Africa, a man works as a foreman at a mine. He spots a singular rock among the debris, and when everyone is distracted he snatches it, puts it in his mouth, and swallows it. Seven weeks later he arrives at Tenner Street and asks Susan where to find Jackson. He arrives at H Division and when Jackson sees him he punches him in the face, telling him he thought he was dead. Turns out that this man is Daniel Judge, Jackson’s brother.
Reid arrives at Drake’s house to find it in shambles with Drake no where to be found. He takes a photo of Drake that he finds smashed on the floor. Reid happens across Rose on his way back, where she searches for the missing Drake. Reid gives her the picture to help with her inquiries. Reid arrives home to find Abberline, who tells him that regardless of the missing Drake that he must get on with his work.
Jackson and Daniel have dinner where Daniel tells him where he’s been the last few years. He tells him he’s been in Court Vale, which grabs his interest, and which Daniel uses to get Jackson to pay for dinner. Reid arrives at H Division to get back to work and finds that a craftsman name Hinchcliffe has complained of being defrauded and that Cobden’s surveyors had been assaulted. He goes to investigate each complaint.
Hinchcliffe made a man named Werner several pieces of ordinary jewelry, which he paid for promptly. He then ordered a great deal of extravagant jewelry and absconded with them without making payment. Reid entrusts Flight with the finding of Werner and the stolen jewelry. When Reid goes to see Cobden, it turns out that he hasn’t seen her since the night five weeks ago when he professed his love to her and she is understandably angry and confused. He explains that much has happened since and that he fears that in his attempt to make her happy he will do the reverse. She says he already has. He gets down to business and starts to investigate the assault of her surveyors.
Flight finds Werner but he fleas until he reaches Limehouse where he is under the protection of Inspector Shine. Flight goes to talk to Shine, who is practicing his boxing skills. He asks him about Werner and the protection he is paid, but it turns out that Flight is under Shine’s employ to spy on Reid and H Division. This somewhat plagues Flights conscience. Meanwhile, Susan meets with Duggan and is a week late with her payment. She offers him his choice of girls to satisfy him, but their agreement was that in the event of failed payment that he could take his payment directly from Susan. She is trying to avoid this, but Duggan moves himself into the house.
Flight returns without his man, saying that he had not found him. Rose searches the streets for Drake and is told where to find him. She finds him at an underground boxing match where people make wagers how many blows will fell Drake. He is tied to a post and withstands a beating until all bets are surpassed and the house wins. Rose approaches Drake but he refuses to talk to her or let her touch him.
Reid arrives home to find Jackson and Daniel fighting. Reid, not having met Daniel yet, assumes that Jackson is being attacked. Reid is supremely annoyed, Jackson feels awkward, and Daniel is oblivious. While Daniel sleeps, Jackson searches his belongings and finds the rock – a diamond in the rough – hidden inside the heel of his boot. Jackson says he’ll help Daniel sell the diamond for half the profits, but that it will be difficult to sell and have it go undetected by the Court Vale syndicate in London. Jackson hears about Werner and a jeweler named Finkel who deals with criminals. Jackson hopes that his share of profits will allow him to return to Susan.
Reid brings Cobden information about the people who own the estates she wishes to convert to clean housing, who also beat up her surveyors. Fred Best, who is in attendance with a number of other journalists, sees Reid and Cobden together and suspects something more than professionalism. Meanwhile, Daniel goes to see Finkel to set up a meeting with Werner. As Daniel leaves he walks past Hinchcliffe, who notices his jewelry designs being displayed in Finkel’s shop window and sees him meeting with Werner inside. He runs to H Division to get help. Meanwhile, Werner decides that rather than help sell the diamond, that he will inform the syndicate.
Hinchcliffe tells Flight that he has found Werner. Before he leaves to find him, he sends a telegram to Shine warning him of his coming. When they arrive, Shine ambushes Hinchcliffe and garottes him to death. Flight is horrified and distressed by his involvement in the death. Shine tells Werner to go with Flight back to H Division and that he doesn’t have to worry about being beaten up because Drake doesn’t work there anymore.
Meanwhile, Rose waits outside where Drake is staying and follows him to his job as gravedigger. She tells him that no matter what he does or says that she will be there for him always and that she will not leave him. He tries to ignore her. Meanwhile, Flight is told that he must bring Hinchcliffe back to H Division to make formal complaint, but instead he sits in a bar and contemplates his options and guilt. Susan has a fancy dinner with Duggan where he tries to seduce her, but ends up threatening the girls in her care unless she obliges him. Meanwhile, Daniel is threatened by the syndicate. They beat him and search Reid’s house for the diamond, which they cannot find. Flight and Reid deal with Werner unsuccessfully.
Susan receives a letter to meet with Jackson at a bar. He tells her about the diamond and how he hopes to fix things. Jackson has the diamond with him to show Susan. She refuses, saying that it is a fantasy and that she must accept the reality of the world. Reid goes to see Cobden and sleeps with her in her office, where Fred Best hears the action from outside the door. Susan goes to Duggan to “make her payment” to him. Jackson and Daniel hide the diamond. Drake discovers a number of murdered men going into the mass grave he’s dug – Hinchcliffe is one of them. He arrives at H Division with the body, unable to turn away from a wrongdoing.
The Analysis
Everyone seems to be struggling with moral decisions this episode, and its all pretty tense and uncomfortable and sad. I root for Susan and Jackson, but she’s definitely in the right here. His selfishness and arrogance has forced her to sacrifice her honor to a slimy, disgusting man. No husband should ever put his wife in that position. No matter what Jackson intended, it is a betrayal of her trust and her worth as a woman. I don’t blame her for not believing in his newest scheme. Given his history, there’s just no reason to believe it.
And then there’s the continuing saga of Drake. He’s a dark character at heart with a lot of guilt and self-loathing. It is heartbreaking to see that he’s found himself a job that requires him to be beaten nightly. But it makes a lot of sense, because he feels like he’s being punished for his wrongdoings and he’s found a way to punish himself. And for a man who is made of naught but death, he’s certainly found himself the appropriate daytime job. I suppose he thinks that as long as he’s only working with the dead that he can’t hurt anyone. Which is ironic, because working as a gravedigger is what ultimately gives him the chance to help someone and find redemption. And how beautiful is it that Rose stays by his side every moment, proclaiming her everlasting friendship and dedication to him. I am hoping that next season finally brings them happiness, because they are two of the most tragic characters in the series.
Flight obviously has some things to work out as well and his claim to innocent inefficiency will not hold up for much longer. Reid clearly has suspicions, finding his behavior strange and his stories unlikely. Now with the discovery of the murdered Hinchcliffe, it won’t be long before the truth about Flight and Shine comes out and decisions will have to be made about what side he’s on.
Reid, meanwhile, finally hooked up with Cobden, which is beautiful. However, one can predictably say that Fred Best will put that relationship in jeopardy pretty quickly. Reid never catches a break when it comes to love and happiness. Its like he’s doomed to loneliness. We will have to see where things lead in the finale.
