Jericho

Previously on Jericho: Major Beck began to rebuild Jericho, asking Jake Green to be the new sheriff. Robert Hawkins teamed with his wife and Chavez to reveal the Cheyenne government's involvement in the attacks to neutral Texas.

Stanley (Brad Beyer) makes Mimi (Alicia Coppola) breakfast for her first day at work for Jennings and Rall. She's excited to return to a world of accounting and spreadsheets. They're happy with their boring life, which is a perfect cue for a helicopter to land on their front lawn. It's the advance team for President Tomarchio, and they want to use the Richmond farm as the location for the president's speech.

In town, Jake (Skeet Ulrich) is doing a good job on his first day as sheriff. Major Beck (Esai Morales) criticizes his uniform, which is, of course, Jake's standard t-shirt and jeans. The costume designers on this show need some praise, because somehow they're able to throw a t-shirt on Skeet and make him look so damn good. Actually, I don't know if that's due to the costume department or Skeet himself. Beck informs him that Condor (the president's code name) is quickly approaching. In a cabin, Chavez and Hawkins (Lennie James) are plotting something.

Beck gives Jake the tour of a state-of-the-art command facility for the president. Beck is running facial recognition software to flag possible threats. Because of her dad, Emily is flagged. Jake says he might be too, but Beck implies that he knows all about Jake's past and is cool with keeping it a secret. Chavez, who is undercover in the military as Lt. Parker, is assigned to help oversee the president's arrival. With him out, Darcy and Robert plot a way to get into the command center by stealing a walkie talkie.

Jake meets up with a reporter from the Modesto Bee, now the second largest newspaper in California. Jake asks whether this guy is reporting on the new government, or for them. The reporter's response is “Yes.” I love surly newspaper men.

Eric (Kenneth Mitchell) and Emily (Ashley Scott) raise concerns to Mayor Anderson (Michael Gaston) about the new American textbooks, with such fair and balanced chapter titles as “The Fall and Decline of the First Republic,” which explains how the United States grew weak following World War II. Mayor Anderson doesn't much care about Cheyenne co-opting American history.

In the command center, Darcy takes a walkie talkie, and Jake follows after her, winding up in Bailey's. Fresh-faced President Tomarchio rolls up, shaking hands and kissing babies. He's played by an actor named George Newbern, which is an unbelievably perfect casting coup. Tomarchio invites Mayor Anderson to represent the area at a new constitutional convention. This new president reminds me of a smarmy Steven Culp.

Secret service agents rush in screaming “Crash Condor” (great band name) and everyone is isolated where they are because the missing walkie talkie poses a security risk. With everyone crashed, Robert Hawkins is able to sneak into the command center and snap some necks. He logs on and downloads the information on the government computers.

Jake and the reporter talk about how the government controls the news. There are untold reports that the Hudson River Virus has jumped the Blue Line (aka the Mississippi River). Jake slowly prods the reporter to get the stones to report the real story. Elsewhere, Eric is still angry at the new government. He also exposits that Gail Green has gone to visit relatives, which explains the sad absence of Pamela Reed from the opening credits.

The missing walkie talkie is finally found in the sheriff's office (where Darcy hid it) and the crash is lifted. Jake uses that adorable head of his to realize Hawkins caused the crash on purpose to gain access to the command center. A fight ensues, and Hawkins flees while Chavez is captured, but not before handing off a note to Jake to give to Robert.

Jake brings the note to Hawkins, and it's a password to open the files on the computer. He accesses the information about the test results of the nuclear bombs which reveals they weren't actually from North Korea, but Russia. Hawkins notices one file he can't open using the password, something called Boxcar. I'm certain that will play a huge part in the finale. With Chavez in prison, Jake suggests using the reporter to get the information out. The reporter is willing, but he has to drive straight through to his editor without calling anyone. Shortly thereafter, Jake finds the reporter dead, allegedly from a heart attack.

Stanley, Mimi and Bonnie (yay, Bonnie's back!) watch on as the advance team refurbishes their house. Stanley makes a joke about Mimi's friends having to buy the expensive items from their wedding registry, which she is already planning. The ever-brilliant Bonnie (Shoshannah Sern) slaps her brother, because he's somehow forgotten that Mimi doesn't have anyone to invite to the wedding, on account og Washington D.C. being nuked. Stanley and Bonnie ask Trish, the J&R hottie, for some help. Naturally, Trish knows how to sign. They try to find any living relatives Mimi may have, but they fail. Mimi thanks them for trying, and says that the Richmonds are her family now.

Finally, it's time for Tomarchio's big speech. A 21-gun salute for those who died during the New Bern War isn't sad, just creepy. Tomarchio talks about acting while the true federal government debated the proper response. He describes the new flag of the Allied States of America, with stripes still representing the 13 colonies, but now they run in a new direction, just like the country must move in a new direction. He wins over some people, but Eric and Mayor Anderson look worried.

Anderson assures Eric afterwards that he didn't raise a stink because he wants to go to the convention to challenge Tomarchio's changes. Then he asks Eric to take temporary control of his mayoral duties.

As Beck ships Chavez off, Jake attacks Chavez, using the opportunity to sneak something into his pocket. Once the jeep is gone, Beck gets the fingerprint analysis of Chavez, and discovers that Lt. Parker died in 2003, and Beck instantly realizes he's black-ops. He calls the jeep, but the escorts have been killed and Chavez has escaped. He meets up with Hawkins. Chavez is heading to Texas and gives Hawkins a secure cell phone.

Beck tells Valente this news via teleconference. Valente is unpleased, and is sending someone to oversee day-to-day operations while Beck tracks down Sarah Mason. That night, Valente's new man shows up. It's…Goetz, the Ravenwood mercenary Jake faced in Rogue River and who tried to invade Jericho!

Next week on Jericho: Jake and Goetz face off, again. Also, we get the return of some more familiar faces, including Dale Turner and Dr. Kenchy!


-John Kubicek, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image courtesy of CBS)