Alcatraz Revisited – “Kit Nelson”

We’re playing catch-up here, so let’s jump right into another Alcatraz recap.  This episode was a bit weak, all things considered.  It does have some nice moments, mostly from Jorge Garcia.  Warden James continues to be a flat-out weird character, too.  It’s like every single scene of his has the actor and the writers trying to make him more offputting than the last time he appeared on screen.  Basically, there’s too much focus on this week’s 63, to the extent that he crowds out the characters we’re still getting too know.  Spunkybuddy Larry Young gets to the heart of the problems in his write-up, which you should go read.  That said, it’s not bad.  Way to sell a recap, right? 

This week, we start in the present for a change.  InWalnut Creek, to be exact.  There’s a fellow walking around outside a house, holding a big white chrysanthemum.  He unlocks the door, coughs, and leaves the flower on a table.  Up in the attic, there are two young boys sleeping.  He tucks one in and gently strokes the cheek of the other.  And then the second boy wakes up and the man claps his hand over the kid’s mouth.  “Scream, and I’ll kill your brother.”  Ladies and gentlemen, we have our perp!  Just to make things extra creepy, he sheds a tear as he threatens the kid. 

Flashback to Alcatraz, 1960.  Our perp is in the prison yard, being threatened by a bunch of guts who call him “child killer”.  The guards look the other way as they stomp the living hell out of him.  Tiller finally has him brought inside before they kill the guy.

In the present, Hurley is drawing a comic page – this is the first we’ve heard that he’s an artist as well as being a writer, I think.  The two page spread we see is his version of Lucy’s shooting from last week.  (Guess who’s much thinner on the page than in real life…)  You know, something tells me that Hauser would not be thrilled to have his secret task force fictionalized like that.  I hope that becomes an issue later on.  As he works, he’s got a police scanner on, and he hears about an 11-year-old boy who’s been abducted.  That sends him to his Alcatraz files, in a tizzy.

Hauser and Madsen check in on Lucy in the hospital – she’s still in a coma.  Hauser makes a point of saying that the bullet hit her “sino-atrial node”, which I almost definitely misspelled and I only point out here because I still can’t tell what’s going to be important.  Hurley arrives to tell them about the news – the chrysanthemum means that it’s Alcatraz inmate Kit Nelson.  He kidnaps children on Friday and brings their bodies back home on Sunday.  By the way, there’s a folk singer named Kit Nelson, who is probably not thrilled to no longer be the top of the Google results.

Pertinent facts about Kit – he has no living family, and his brother died of Scarlet Fever when he was 11.  The same age as the boy he kidnapped.  I love the way that all of the criminals are so much creepier than they need to be on this show.  Madsen and Hurley arrive at the victim’s house.  The mother recognizes the picture of Nelson as “Warren” from the hardware store.  So he’s been casing the joint.  By the way, the kidnapped child is named “Dylan” and his brother is “Liam”.  When did “Liam” become an acceptable name inAmerica?  Because it just happened without warning.  Was Oasis really that influential?  Liam recognizes the picture, too.  The guy gave him rock candy.  He finally admits that he pretended to be asleep last night because he was scared. 

Nelson takes Dylan out to a fishing spot and hisses “remember the rules” before renting a boat.  He’s got his hand on Dylan’s neck the whole time, and he’s creeping me out.

Flashback!  We see a jacked-up Nelson in the infirmary, where the doctor is explaining that it’s not even worth setting his nose, since it’ll just get smashed again.  The doctor explains that he’s got a couple of kids, so Nelson shouldn’t expect anything better.  The guy on the other side of the curtain (Thomas Madsen) says not to mess with the doctor, or you’ll end up “giving enough blood to put the Red Cross out of business”.  Madsen taunts him, and gives him the helpful advice “They didn’t beat you because of what you did; they beat you because of who you are”. 

In the present, nobody at the hardware store recognizes Nelson’s picture – there’s a Warren who works there, but it’s a different guy.  Seems somebody stole Warren’s uniform and a couple of kid’s fishing poles.  The boss points them in the direction of the one place in town to go fishing.  Spunkybuddy Sam didn’t buy that there was only one place in town where people fished, but if you check the map, there ain’t much water in Walnut Creek.  It’s definitely a storytelling shortcut, but it’s one I can live with.

Out on the lake, Nelson tells Dylan that he has to get into the water, then he takes the kid’s lifejacket and tosses him in.  Nelson jumps in, then tells the kid to “Hold me under for as long as you can, and don’t let me up.”  The terrified Dylan plays along as best he can, and when Nelson resurfaces, he declares it “your turn”.  I hate this guy.

When Madsen and Hurley arrive at the scene, Nelson and Dylan are already gone.  Hurley explains that, back in olden times, witnesses saw Nelson taking a victim mini-golfing, but the cops didn’t believe it because it was “too creepy”.  Hurley is visibly uneasy, and whether this is supposed to point to an upcoming revelation about his past or not is kind of up in the air.  In the next scene, Nelson and Dylan are watching an old monster movie, while Nelson demands that Dylan finish his popcorn.  I’m pretty sure the movie is Them, because it has giant ants in it.

Flashback!  The Warden comes to the infirmary to take Nelson for a ride in a wheelchair.  He’s decided to separate Nelson from the rest of the inmates for his own safety.  (Hey, Ernest Cobb is probably so jealous right now!)  He also reveals that he received a letter from Nelson’s father – he wants to come for a visit.  Nelson doesn’t want to see him, but the Warden demands it.  This guy gets very involved with the inmates, doesn’t he? 

In the present, Hauser yells at somebody on the phone, there’s a close shot of his pinky ring as he picks up the glasses Lucy left on her desk.  I feel like anything could be significant, so keep an eye on that ring!

Madsen and Hurley talk to Dylan’s mom, and when Hurley has a flash of insight, Madsen dismisses him so he’ll stop upsetting the poor woman.  He notices the cops leaving – Hauser cancelled the Amber Alert.  Get this, since Nelson’s MO is to bring back the body, he’d rather not have cops at the house to scare him off.  Just wait for him to return with a dead child, and you’ve got your 63.  Hurley is not on board with this, quite understandably.

Hurley takes a taxi to a diner.  He mentioned something about “cherry pie” in the last scene.  You know, having somebody who knows all about every 63 can really lead to some storytelling cheats.  (I have to say again – this wasn’t my favorite episode.  It has its moments, though.)  Anyway, they tell him they have the best cherry pie in the county, but they don’t recognize Nelson’s picture.  (“If he’d tried my cherry pie, he wouldn’t look so damn unhappy.”  Hee!)  Madsen tries to call him and leaves an expository message about cherry pie.  Hauser shows up, and then they’re both talking about cherry pie.  This episode took a weird turn without warning.

Anyway, we see Hurley in a different diner, going over his notes.  Nelson drags Dylan in and orders two slices of cherry pie.  Hurley answers his phone, and tries to make it sound like he’s talking to his wife.  Jorge Garcia is so good at trying to act casual and failing. 

Flashback!  It’s visiting day, and Nelson’s dad is there to report that his mother died, leaving a dried chrysanthemum for her son.  It’s made pretty clear that Nelson actually killed his brother, and the Scarlet Fever was a lie.  Nelson’s mom covered for him so she wouldn’t lose both of her sons.  Nelson still denies it.  This is a pretty good scene, but (SPOILER WARNING) we don’t really need a lot of backstory on Kit Nelson, since he’s only got about twenty minutes of breathing ahead of him. 

In the present, Nelson and Dylan prepare to leave.  Hurley tries to create a diversion, dropping a plate, asking for change, and then finally just asking Nelson “So, what are you guys up to?”  HA!  None of it works, so Hurley confronts him, and then Madsen arrives.  It’s a standoff, but Nelson puts a gun to Dylan’s head and demands Madsen drop the gun and turn over her phone and keys.  Hey, how would a guy from 1963 even realize that you could be carrying a phone on your person?  Yeah, somebody is preparing these guys.  Strangely, at this point Sylvane is the only one who seemed to have a purpose – Cobb and Nelson are just being their creepy selves.  Anyway, Nelson escapes.  Hurley:  “I just got that kid killed, didn’t I?” 

Back in modern-day Alcatraz, Hurley takes Nelson’s box of stuff to a cell and starts sorting through it.  He’s inspired when he finds multiple packs of Ottoman cigarettes – a name brand that a small-timer like Nelson wouldn’t have been able to afford.  A little digging finds that a cement company (one that made bomb shelters) put some back pay in Nelson’s commissary account.  From there, they figure that Nelson knows where the circa 1960 bomb shelters are, and there’s one in particular where the house is long gone.  Sure enough, that’s where Nelson is hiding out with Dylan, playing checkers. 

Flashback!  Tiller and the guards toss Nelson in the Hole.  It’s basically solitary except you’re totally sealed in without any light – Same place Sylvane went after they found the shiv in the pilot.  Insanely, and I can’t tell whether there’s an implied time cut in there or not, Warden James is waiting for him.  He lights a match and announces that the conversation is four matches long.  He spends the first match talking about his matchbox collection.  Second match, he wants to know what Nelson did to his brother.  Nelson repeats the Scarlet Fever story, but the Warden wants the truth.  Match number three has the Warden reminding Nelson that he’s a father, and then blowing the match out.  With the fourth match, Nelson confesses.  He strangled his brother when they were playing in a bomb shelter, and then discusses the murder in great detail.  Even Warden Crazy Eyes is alarmed.  The Warden gives him a bonus match to ask about the flower – Nelson left a chrysanthemum on his mother’s bed, because it was her favorite.  The Warden’s satisfied, and Nelson’s reward is that he gets to keep his clothes and the remaining matches.  Which is not a great prize, frankly.  Slightly better than being naked in unending darkness, I guess.

In the present, Nelson plays with that same book of matches for a bit.  Dylan waits until he’s distracted, then throws his shoe at the only lightbulb, breaking it.  He escapes, but Nelson gives chase.  Madsen and Hurley arrive at the bomb shelter, and they follow the sounds of Dylan’s screams.  They find Nelson just as he catches up to the kid.  It’s a standoff, but Nelson knows he has the upper hand.  There’s a gunshot, and he falls over dead – it’s a couple of seconds before it’s revealed that Hauser fired the shot.

Back at headquarters, Hauser talks to Hurley about arrested development – some trauma befell Hurley when he was eleven.  He doesn’t give any details, but Hurley clearly knows what he’s talking about.  Hauser needs him to be an adult, and not an eleven  year old.  When Hauser leaves, Hurley starts to explain to Madsen, but he can’t bring himself to talk about it.

Hurley takes a cab to Dylan’s house – he noticed Dylan was missing some issues in his comic book collection, and he brings them over.  (Issues “12, 27, and 35” for those numerically inclined.  And the series in question is Justice Society of America.  And if you don’t think I’m going to dig through my own collection to see what happens in those issues, then you just don’t know me at all.)  Dylan admits he’s still scared, and Hurley opens up a little.  He says that when he was Dylan’s age “somebody took me”, and he got away.  Oh man, I sense a dark flashback coming up. 

And now, we cut to Hauser’s secret prison.  He hauls in the corpse of Kit Nelson and brings him to Dr. Beauregard, who’s poring what appears to be red water out of a bucket.  More importantly, he’s the same doctor from Alcatraz in the 60s!  Hauser also makes the cryptic statement – “I may need your help with something, depending on how things turn.  It’s for a friend of mine.”  Even stranger is the doctor’s response “Armed and ready, sir”.  I assume he’s talking about Lucy, but what is he looking for from the doctor?  The doctor lights a cigarette and does a little dance before going to work.  I can not even tell you how hard I laughed at that.

OK, just some things.  It’s a little worrisome that we’ve gotten more insight into the 63s than any of the main cast.  Especially in this case, where Kit Nelson’s story is (literally) a dead end.  We shouldn’t know more about him than Rebecca Madsen.  But I’ll give them time – there might be a good reason why we’re not getting to know them just yet.  It’s early, and this is a procedural at heart.  At this point, here’s what I think are the most important questions.

-Why did everybody disappear?  Who’s behind it, and why did Sylvane appear to have marching orders when the others didn’t?  And why do they seem so acclimated to 2012?

-How did Thomas Madsen manage to run afoul of law enforcement without getting Hauser on his tail?  And what’s the obsession with Maden’s blood in the flashbacks?

-It seems like the 63s are just starting to reappear – how long have Lucy and Beauregard been in the present?  Does Hauser know that they’re also time-lost?  And did they disappear under the same circumstances that the prisoners and guards did?

-What happened to Warden James?  Did he timeslip, or is he just a strangely intense old man now?

-Thanks to spunkybuddy Larry Young for this one – Hauser doesn’t seem old enough to have been a prison guard fifty years ago.  Did he slip through time to a smaller extent?

-What the heck was with Sylvane’s key?

Some of these show up more in the next couple of episodes, but there’s a lot going on.  I’d just prefer that we learn a little about the major characters – it’s sort of like if LOST had devoted flashback episodes to the guy who got sucked into the turbine and that one girl who drowned in the first season.  Still, next week it is implied that there’s a monster in the Alcatraz basement, which makes me very happy.

Related posts: