JAG TV

JAG TV, October 31, 2000

As Reviewed by Salvatore Saitta (in Italian)

In this episode, Mac as prosecutor goes up against her old law school professor, Juanita Ressler, when the first televised military trial happens. Ensign Kingsley, the women on trial claims she didn't try to kill her husband's mistress but that instead she was doing it in self defense. Involved in the investigating of this case are the Gunny, Lt. Singer, and Bud. Mac has to play the press to her advantage because she will lose her case if she doesn't. She goes on a television show and gets the information she needs because of it when the press digs it up when she suggests something.

Harm is sent in this episode to the Seahawk to investigate the death of Petty Officer Matteo Palermo who supposedly committed suicide. After speaking with Matteo's grandmother and investigating. Harm proves that it was not a suicide that killed him but in fact it was an unfortunate accident when the stamp he borrowed from his roommates supply of stamps and that he used to send a letter to his grandmother had acid on it and that is why he did what he did and died.

Also in this episode we see two side story lines, one is when Bud, and Harriet bring baby AJ in to the office to speak with Mac to ask if it is allright with her if they name the baby on the way Sara. The second side story line is when Dr. Walden's son wants to borrow the Admiral's SUV to supposedly pick up some trees that he bought for his mom. AJ agrees to let him use the vehicle only to be confronted by the police later on in the day when they come to tell him that his car was involved in an accident, found abandoned with drugs in it. AJ confronts the son who denies any wrong doing stating the car was stolen and he just didn't tell AJ about it yet. The Admiral is not going to tell Dr. Walden about it but he does make the son do it. I loved this episode. We got to see all of our favorite characters doing what they do best.

By Michele Blackburn

TPTB did an excellent job on this episode and Patrick Labyorteaux (Bud) should be applauded for his excellent writing. This was indeed the best JAG so far.

Since the season started, JAG has incorporated two to three story-lines in their show. Some of them have been good. Some of them could have been better. The two storylines they incorporated in with Mac's storyline were excellent.

First let's start out by saying that the scene with Mac, Harm, the Roberts and Baby AJ was adorable. You can see how all five of them really care about each other. Bud and Harriet respect and love them enough to name their son AJ and their soon to be born daughter, Sara, after Mac. Now all they need is Baby Harm, Jason and Victor to end their brood.

Mac did an excellent acting job in this episode. She went up against her old law teacher in a who-dun-it mystery. Mac went against her principles in this episode and used the press to help her. She was adamant when she told the Admiral that she wouldn't sink that far, but after realizing that the press was using her, she went on a talk show and stunned everybody. By the way, PEOPLE magazine was incorporated into this episode. They did a story on Mac where they told several things that we already knew about her. For instance, she collects dinosaurs (Viewers learned that about her in the second season episode WE THE PEOPLE). We also learned that she can strip an M16 blindfolded in sixteen seconds (Viewers learned that in the second season episode SECRETS). We also learned that Mic had talked to PEOPLE and mentioned that Mac was his fiancée. Mac talked to his answering machine and threatened to hit him over the head with a lead pipe. Mac won her case and felt badly about it because she went against her principles.

Harm, meanwhile, was sent to the USS SEAHAWK (Long time JAG viewers will remember that the SEAHAWK was the first place we were introduced to Lt. Harmon Rabb) to investigate a suicide. He found out that the boy had been writing several letters to his grandmother. When all his theories had been exhausted he realized that one of the stamps was different from the others. Calling the boy's bunkmate in, they both realized that he had used his bunkmates stamps which were laced with LSD. It was an accident, but you could see how upset the boy's bunkmate was over what he had learned. "He was my best friend."

In the third storyline, Danny Walden, Sydney's son, used the Admiral's Explorer in a crime. He says he wasn't the one that dumped his car in a ditch and wasn't the one that had a quantity of drugs in the car, but I think the Admiral wondered himself if he was lying.
"Are you going to tell my mother?"
"No."
"Thanks."
"You are."

Did anyone think stalker when they saw Danny in this episode?

Da Salvatore Saitta

SFIDA TELEVISIVA

Alla stazione navale di Norfolk, il tenente Kingsley accompagnato dalla moglie, un guardiamarina, incontra Misty Janes, la sua amante, per dirle che tra loro è finita. Il tenente però non parla e la moglie scende dall’auto e irrompe sulla scena; avviene una lite e la Janes viene uccisa dal guardiamarina.

Harm interroga il guardiamarina Susan Kingsley, la quale rivela che Misty Janes, in combutta col marito, quella sera voleva ucciderla e che lei si è difesa dall’aggressione. Mac interroga il tenente che dice che la moglie venne fuori dall’auto con un pezzo di tubo con il quale colpì ferocemente Misty: le versioni dei coniugi sono diametralmente opposte. L’autopsia dimostra che la donna è morta per un trauma cranico causato da tre colpi alla testa portati dal pezzo di tubo; inoltre il guardiamarina non presenta ferite difensive, il che fa supporre l’assenza di una colluttazione. Il capo d’accusa viene definito di comune accordo da Harm e Mac: omicidio premeditato. Mac rappresenterà l’accusa con l’assistenza di Bud, mentre ad Harm l’ammiraglio assegna il caso del sottufficiale di 3° classe Matteo Palermo, suicidatosi.

L’avvocato della difesa è la vecchia insegnante di Mac, Juanita Ressler che sfrutta la particolare situazione della corte marziale che verrà ripresa da Trial TV, iniziativa atta a far meglio comprendere al pubblico il funzionamento della giustizia militare. Durante il processo proprio la presenza delle telecamere influenzerà un teste (un sergente che sopraggiunse sul luogo dell’incidente) a dichiarare cose sentite dire.

Harm si reca sulla SeaHawk dove era di stanza il sottotenente Palermo; è stato spinto ad indagare dalla nonna, che, cattolica, non può seppelire il suo corpo vicino a quello della madre se non si dimostra che non è stato un suicidio. Palermo stava bene ed era felice perché era appena entrato nei SEAL; nonostante ciò, si è gettato contro un aereo che stava atterrando venendo tranciato dall’ala, gridando una frase di un fumetto. Harm scopre che pochi giorni prima aveva la fidanzata lo aveva scaricato, ma questo sembra poco; poi, le indagini di Galindez, portano all’identificazione di LSD nel sangue della vittima (l’esame per l’LSD non è un esame di routine, e il ragazzo non aveva sintomi evidenti).

Intanto il processo va avanti, ma Mac non ha testimonianza in grado di inchiodare la Kingsley, e ci sono solo voci su eventuali suoi precedenti; così, anche su suggerimento di Chegwidden, si fa intervistare dichiarando che non le piace sentire voci che turbino il processo, ma solo fatti. E invita persone informate sui fatti a farsi avanti.

Con un’intuizione Harm scopre che un compagno di Palermo aveva nel suo armadietto francobolli impregnati di LSD; il giorno dell’incidente, per errore, avendo finito i suoi, Palermo ne usò uno di quelli, mentre stava scrivendo una lettera alla nonna, con la gioia di sempre. La nonna può così seppellire il nipote accanto alla madre.

Mac sferra l’attacco decisivo contro la Kingsley riferendo di alcuni suoi precedenti: quando era minorenne aggredì la nuova ragazza di un suo ex, e successivamente una donna che flirtava con il suo fidanzato (i precedenti non sono ammessi, ma poiché l’imputato ha dichiarato di non avere mai picchiato nessuno, l’accusa può procedere a interrogare il teste). La giuria dichiara la Kingsley colpevole di omicidio premeditato.

Bud e Harrieth riferiscono a Mac che chiameranno la loro bambina Sarah.

Il figlio della dottoressa Walden chiede in prestito all’ammiraglio la sua auto, e questa viene ritrovato in panne con della mariuana a bordo.

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