Lethal Weapon 2.14 Orders A ‘Double Shot Of Baileys’

[PLEASE NOTE: This recap of Lethal Weapon: Season 2, Episode 14: Double Shot of Baileys DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS. It is assumed you have already viewed the episode. If you have not, it is recommended you do so. Episode 14: Double Shot of Baileys can be seen on Fox On-Demand or via your preferred streaming service.]

I’m Irish, so while it may be stereotypical, I believe that a double shot of anything, just tends to improve things, in moderation of course. That’s certainly the case with the episode in recap here, 2.14: Double Shot of Baileys. The episode manages to keep the recent series streak going, and I must say, I’m thankful for that.
This episode opens in a club that’s absolutely jumping. A young waitress named Jess (Alisha Wainwright) is making her rounds, serving  drinks, and getting the most she can get out of flirting with her well-to-do customers. Not too far away on the club floor, Jess’ boyfriend, CJ (Mustafa Elzein) is in a small confrontation with a drug dealer named Drexel (Juan Bautista Gil). (Apparently, only pimps and drug dealers possess such a name.) Anyway, it seems Drexel has given CJ drugs to sell, and those drugs have been sold. Yet, Drexyl has yet to receive his cut of the profits. CJ cooly assures Drexyl that he’ll have his money in 2 days. The drug dealer’s not having this at all. He retorts by getting in CJ’s face and telling him, “You got two hours!” Jess witnesses the end of this heated conversation. Upon hearing it all, worry fills her eyes. Her boyfriend reassures her that everything is fine. Following that, he quickly changes the subject and with a smile ask her, “How’d we do?”

The couple had been pulling some scheme on the customers. This is evidenced by the fact that after the clubbing is done the two end up spending the night in a lovely hotel. However, Jess is suddenly a bit concerned when she realizes she has misplaced her “J” necklace. CJ tells her not to worry about it since they can afford to buy her a new one now. As he’s doing so, CJ gets up to open the door for who he assumes is room service. Alas, it isn’t room service who greets him at all. Instead, he opens the hotel door only to be fatally stabbed with an ice-pick, causing him to die on impact. Shocked, Jess hides under the bed as the killer enters the room. She inevitably would be discovered was it not for the fact that room service then comes calling. Since the door is open, the room service waiter enters. Of course, upon doing so and seeing everything, the room service guy immediately turns tail. Unfortunately for him, the killer follows.
The next morning in the Murtaugh house proves to be a busy one. Murtaugh (Damon Wayans) is preparing breakfast as his daughter, Riana (Chandler Kinney) is anxiously trying to get in touch with her mother. Murtaugh reminds his daughter that her mother is busy at a work retreat, but says that his full attention is available. Riana tells her father that, “It’s not a dad kind of emergency.” However, after a little back-and-forth, she reveals that she thinks her boyfriend, Robbie (Mavrick Moreno) is cheating on her. Such a suspicion is thanks to her idiotic boyfriend posting on Instagram.
Seeing this situation as an opportunity to be there for bond with his daughter, Murtaugh assures Riana that he has, “The full resources of the LAPD and if Robbie’s cheating, I can catch him.” Elsewhere, Riggs (Clayne Crawford) is having a much rougher morning as he wakes up disoriented, in someone’s sandbox. Beside him, lays a letter from the Texas parole board, requesting that he speak on his father’s behalf at a parole hearing. Picking up this message, Riggs begins to remember what set off the drunken night from which he had just awoken. Grabbing his jacket and keys, Riggs stumbles toward his truck; only to find that he has no idea where he left it.
Meanwhile, Murtaugh, Bowman (Andrew Creer) and Bailey (Michelle Mitchenor) are investigating the hotel room crime scene. Riggs then arrives on the scene very late and hungover. Murtaugh doesn’t miss the opportunity to give his partner a hard time about this. However, Riggs quickly explains that he had truck trouble and shifts his focus to the crime-scene. Going over to Bailey, Riggs quietly asks her to put a bolo out on his truck. After Riggs walks away, Bailey notices a piece of evidence on the ground, the “J” necklace; which she swiftly picks up and pockets. Despite his state, Riggs sees her doing so. Pulling Bailey aside, he asks her about why she pocketed the evidence. Bailey quietly reveals to Riggs that she had this same necklace custom-made for her little sister, Jess, years ago.

Back at the station, Riggs is late again. When Avery (Kevin Rahm) inquires about his officer’s tardiness, Riggs tells his captain that he had to walk back from the crime-scene because Murtaugh wouldn’t give him a ride. Without hesitation, Murtaugh maintains that he did so because Riggs lost his truck. Avery is appalled by this, as he believes you always give your partner a ride. Riggs gets out of the threeway argument by going to help Bailey. Sensing something isn’t right, Murtaugh and Bowman quickly tail their fellow officers, which leads them all to a drug house. Unfortunately, Bowman and Murtaugh get spotted in the Crown Vic by the drug dealers, who quickly open fire on them. Murtaugh quickly speeds the Crown Vic away as Riggs returns cover fire. Meanwhile, Bailey catches her little sister trying to escape through the back door.  The team questions Jess once their all safely back at the station. Of course, they do so after having brought Drexyl in as well, whose alibi checks out. Jess explains that all the cash in the room wasn’t from drugs, but from wallets, she and CJ had stolen from club patrons. While the hotel room wasn’t charged on plastic, but the in-room champagne was, so a trace gets put on the card.
As all the questioning wraps up, Avery steps out to tell Riggs that he was just informed by IA that a bartender had taken out a restraining order against Riggs last night. Our hero quickly calls the bartender (Jimmy Walker Jr.) to find out why the restraining order was filed. Not surprisingly, the bartender isn’t happy to hear from Riggs; notably, since Riggs was responsible for shooting the bar’s antique jukebox, six times. Riggs pauses for a moment and asks, “Just out curiosity, what song was playin?” To which the bartender angrily responds, “‘Today I Started Lovin’ You Again!’” Upon hearing this Riggs’ is triggered and taken back to the memory, he associates with the song. It’s the evening after his mother’s funeral as his father, Nathan (Rex Linn), stands solemnly by a similar jukebox, having played the song in question six times.
The sixth time seems to be the charm as an aggressive patron, tired of hearing such a depressing song; confronts Riggs’ drunk and grieving father. Young Riggs (Chase Mangum) quickly diffuses the confrontation by explaining their loss. After this, father and son leave the bar, with young Riggs the only sober one between the two of them to drive home.

Back in the present, Bailey shows her sister a picture of a man and ask her if she stole his wallet. Jess admits that she did, at which point, she finds out this man has been asking about her. This leads the boys and the sisters to go into the field, at the club later that night. Riggs has managed to find his way BEHIND the bar. At the same time, Jess has made sure Bailey gets crowded out, to lose her. Nearby, the man whose wallet was stolen, points out Jess to another man named Steve (Alex Miller), who’s angrily asking about money. Steve promptly stabs the other guy and turns his attention to Jess, following her. Luckily, Riggs cuts-off Steve’s pursuit, causing the two men to get into a fight. Once on the ground, Riggs puts Steve’s own ice-pick to his neck. However, on the mirrored walls, our hero spots a man who looks like Steve’s twin aiming a gun in his direction.
As the shot rings out, off-screen, the clubgoers scramble as Murtaugh follows the sound. He finds Riggs semi-conscious and thankfully alive. Alas, it seems Riggs was only saved by his metal flask. After all this club drama, at least some there’s some good news for the team, back at the station. Avery tells them that they have a make on the killer’s car, “An old-school, two-tone burgundy sedan.” This information has been derived thanks to Jason Bristo (Abe Martell), a book-cooking accountant for The Minnesota Mob. It turns out Bristo’s card had been stolen by Jess and shortly after that, Bristo was killed in the club, earlier that night by Steve. His death was a result of his having embezzled money from the mob, according to the St. Paul PD.
Later that night, having borrowed the LAPD surveillance van Murtaugh is on a father-daughter stakeout with Riana. Unfortunately for Riana, the stakeout proves to be fruitful as she spots Robbie kissing another girl, at the nearby juice bar. Riana responds to such proof by marching over and dumping Robbie’s juice on his head. Upon getting back in the van though, the teenage girl’s tough facade immediately begins to break down as she starts crying. Some spend their night cooped up in a van; others are a little more active. In Riggs and Bailey’s case, they’ve been out and about searching for Jess, to no avail. Jess is out on her own, having taken Bristol’s keys, car, and wallet, which leads her to a locker. This locker holds a bag containing nothing short of a few million in cash.

The next afternoon, Bailey comes back to her apartment to find her sister waiting there. Jess says she found out why CJ was killed and hands over the key to the locker. About this time, Bailey has another visitor in the form of Murtaugh. She steps outside, telling him that Jess is inside. Riggs is doing some looking of his own as he finds Steve quietly ransacking another apartment in Bailey’s complex under the ill-assumption that it’s hers. (Who knew a quite ransacking was possible?) Meanwhile, Steve’s brother Larry (also played by Alex Miller) has Murtaugh and Bailey at gunpoint. Larry immediately asks about Jess, who Bailey says skipped town. Thus, the two are taken hostage while Jess watches from her sister’s apartment.
This lands the two of them in the trunk of that aforementioned old-school sedan. After driving to where the money is Bailey’s  taken out of the trunk to escort her captor to the locker. Making such an occurrence into an opportunity, Murtaugh climbs into the car through the backseat and puts a noose around the driver’s neck, using his restraints. As all this is happening Riggs pulls up behind the sedan, not knowing that his partner’s in the car as well. Inside the vehicle, the struggle continues as the driver panics; shifts the car into Drive and punches the gas. Hoping to stop the vehicle Riggs fires a single shot at the driver.
The round forces the car off course as Bailey screams that Murtaugh’s also in the car. Hearing Bailey’s exclamation, Riggs takes off after the sedan, on-foot. In a matter of a few hundred feet, the car hits a construction barrier, flips over and explodes. Riggs stands there, in quite, devastated shock. Thankfully though, Murtaugh managed to escape the sedan before the crash. Of course, he wastes no time, accusing Riggs of not having enough of a reaction upon his presumed death. As is his way, Riggs responds by saying, “I thought you’d exploded. What was I supposed to do?”
After a long day, the two sisters are safe and sound, back at the station. Bailey offers to contact the DA in an effort to get her sister’s charges reduced. However, Jess refuses, saying she wants to face the consequences. Meanwhile, back at home, Murtaugh attempts to comfort his daughter with ice-cream and 27 Dresses (2008). Riana politely refuses, just wanting to talk to her dad about the whole breakup instead. Murtaugh obliges, explaining that breakups about “Getting your heart in fighting shape for when the right person does come along.” Riana takes comfort in this, but the father-daughter heart-to-heart is interrupted when Trish calls. Murtaugh tells his daughter to go ahead and take the call. She does, smiling and planting a kiss on her dad’s cheek as she answers it.
Shortly after that, there’s a knock at Murtaugh’s door. It’s Riggs, who admits he lost his truck due to getting blackout drunk. Furthermore, he believes it’s time to get help with his alcoholism. Murtaugh takes this all in, having waited a long time for Riggs to come to such a conclusion. He then walks his partner out his garage, where Riggs’ truck sits. It turns out, Riggs left it at the bar, which resulted in Murtaugh getting a call about it. Thus, he had it towed to his house. Riggs thanks his partner for not only doing that; but for always looking out for him. Our two heroes then walk into the house, presumably to eat ice-cream and watch chick-flicks.
Overall, I found this episode to be very entertaining. Yes, the troubled sibling of a cop involved in a case plotline is something we’ve seen countless times. However, I felt hat the show handled such a cliche-prone plot very well. It was also nice to see the character of Bailey get to do something more than serve as a source information and exposition. Moreover, Lethal Weapon as a series, seems to be evolving. If you read my recent recaps, you know that I’ve hoped and hypothesized that the series would do just that and indeed it has. Riggs attempting to go sober opens up the series for more drama, comedy and overall potential. I very much look forward to seeing what the possibilities are for this series from this point forward. However, I just hope the series doesn’t take too much of Riggs’ edge away like the latter sequels in the Lethal Weapon film franchise (1987-1998) did when embracing the potential of the character being sober.