Episode Title: “Good Heart and Willing Head”
Writer: Kevin Deiboldt
Director: T.J. Scott
Previously on “Copper:”
Episode 2.10 “The Fine Ould Irish Gentleman”
This week on “Copper,” everyone’s fed up with everyone else and finally ready to do something about. And the way they go about it makes this episode especially fun,
We knew a showdown between Corky (Tom Weston-Jones) and Donovan (Donal Logue) was on the horizon and with the evidence (albeit circumstantial) mounting, Corky decides to confront the General. The copper knows what Donovan’s done and what he’s planning to do, but he has no way to prove it. And so instead of arresting him, Corky drops by the General’s office to settle things with a game of Russian Roulette.
As the two men sit across from each other with five guns and one bullet between them, Donovan does his best to try and mentally disarm Corky, even going so far as to bring up his late wife, Ellen. Donovan accuses Corky of using “pain and death” as motivators, and getting his fix for such by policing the streets Five Points. “Misery befalls anyone in your orbit,” Donovan tells Corky. He may be right, but that has little to do with Donovan’s crimes – or does it?
It’s interesting to watch Corky react to such an acute observation about his own life. Corky’s a good man, but statistically speaking, Donovan’s accusation can’t be denied. And it appears Corky agrees with it as he tells Eva (Franka Potente) he refuses to lose someone else he cares about.
As Corky, O’Brien (Dylan Taylor) and Maguire (Kevin Ryan) investigate Donovan’s dirty dealings, “off-book,” the General proves to be the common denominator in all of Corky’s cases. He’s responsible for the death of the alderman and his son, Lansing, Teresa Trembley and he even has a hand in Eva losing the paradise to the Morehouses, of all people. Clearly, Corky isn’t the only one who brings misery to everyone is his orbit. Donovan tells Corky they’re a lot alike and in that respect, he’s right.
While Corky attempts to rid Five Points of Donovan and his plans to uproot its citizens, the Morehouses and Freemans deal with their own frustrations. Elizabeth’s opium habit has taken its toll on her relationship with Robert and in a rare redeeming moment, his father, Norbert (Geordie Johnson) helps her realize this by repeatedly dunking her head in a tub of water. And as for the reason why she became an addict in the first place, it seems to have something to do with her past – a past which we know little about but hopefully will explore in future episodes.
As for Freeman (Ato Essandoh), he’s sick of the racism he and his family have suffered in Five Points and takes out his anger on Maguire and O’Brien when they ask him to examine Teresa Trembley’s corpse. Seeing how pent up in anger he is, Sara (Tessa Thompson) suggests Matthew settle things with the shopkeeper who attacked him which he does, putting the small-minded man in his place with words instead of fists.
By the end of the hour, a number of lingering grievances have been settled with several characters, but we’ll have to wait until next week to find out if Corky pulls the trigger on Donovan. The striking similarities between the two men make Donovan an especially difficult challenge for Corky. Uncovering his corruption wasn’t too hard, but killing a man who is in some ways, a very accurate reflection of himself, can’t be easy for Corky. Killing Donovan could save Five Points, but it might mean the end for its greatest champion.
