Graceland Recap: Tinker Bell Girls

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This episode moved much more quickly than last week's, a real treat for police procedural fans like myself.

Jakes is drinking himself into a nice little stupor here, after losing all chance at forging an actual relationship with his biological son.

He tries to go back home, punches Johnny in the face and generally creates a good amount of havoc. Everyone shows up except for Mike, who almost gets caught sneaking out of Jessica's room.

Solanski comes out of his new room, brandishing his gun.

"There's two things I don't abide by: being threatened in my room, being threatened in my underwear."

Okay, buddy. I guess that's...a choice. That someone would make.

Jakes is in limbo, according to Mike, so the decision is made to give Solanski the room for now, and Jakes is laid across a number of rolly chairs, passed out. Super safe decision, there.

Chuck has to fill Mike in on the fact that she couldn't go through with her bit of the operation from last episode, and passes Mike off to Johnny.

I said in last episode's recap that I'd like to see Johnny get some more development and screen time, and fingers crossed that's what we'll see here.

Mike and Jessica share some boring flirting, thankfully interrupted by Not-as-Hot-as-Brandon-Bollig. He's growing on me, I'll tell you that.

Next I might even learn his name. Though it has been a whole season already, and it still hasn't happened, so...chances aren't fantastic.

Not-as-Hot-as-Brandon-Bollig agrees to go with Jessica to be her "sugar daddy" and get info from a dealer on where he gets his supply, and Mike brings the millions of tapes Paul brought over to Jakes, who gets to go through all of them looking for anything that's out of place.

Policework is 5% excitement, 95% drudgery.

When X and Paul get to the dealer's house, they spin this cock-and-bull story about Paul hitting the lottery and the dealer doesn't buy it. He stabs Jessica in the hand and pulls a gun on Paul.

When Paul can pass his little test, he takes the cash and tells them he'll get the amount they want. They leave with their lives and a date (Sunday), but not a whole lot of dignity. Also, minus some blood.

Back at the house, Johnny and Solanski get caught with some random antique Mexican weapons by Mike, who goes full-on Vice Principal on the two.

He's disappointed, they're being reckless, yada yada yada. Johnny's antique pistols turn out to be French, and useless in the deal, but Mike covers for him when talking to the incomparable Emily Rose.

Later, Paul attempts to bond with Jakes, and he doesn't take it well. "I know you," he says.

"You're looking for somebody to save, you better look in a mirror." Finally, someone said it. That Briggs needs some pretty intense therapy, my friend.

Solanski gets kicked out of the operation, giving Jakes his room back, and we're left with the same core we ended last season with.

It's a little unfortunate. Solanski didn't contribute a lot other than the occasional scene-lightening one-liner, but I enjoyed him.

When I learned this episode was called "Tinker Bell," I couldn't wait to find out why. It wasn't nearly as imaginative as the reasons I had created in my own head.

Jakes has found something key in the videos: girls (young women, to be more specific) with Tinker Bell backbacks.

Jessica thinks this is how the Solano Cartel moves the drugs, but Jakes disagrees. Those girls are the product," he says, and I think he's on the right path.

Johnny and Mike snark at each other before the French/Mexican pistol handoff, and Johnny actually has an enjoyable interaction with Solano's sister, Lucia, who I personally find hysterical.

Solano himself...I'm not so sold on. His behavior leaves much to be desired.

Solano notices the pistols are French immediately, of course (where else would we get our tension?), and we get a fabulous little clip of Mike muttering angrily to himself. Johnny pulls himself out of it with some basic knowledge of Mexican history.

Yay for Wikipedia.

Johnny shows Solano how to load the pistols, gets hit on a little by Solano, and invited to duel in the traditional manner.

For those of you who didn't spend their childhoods reading terrible romance novels, that means he gets slapped in the face.

Johnny and Solano stand back-to-back and stride eight paces from each other -- or Johnny does. As Solano is about to shoot him in the back, Lucia shows up and shames her brother appropriately.

(Don't tell me you didn't see that coming.) Solano shoots his friend instead, and Lucia is absolutely ready to cover up bleach the scene and leave this guy for dead. I am Kevin Sorbo levels of disappointed right now.

Johnny passes some test, apparently, and Solano asks Johnny for his name. Apparently we'll be seeing some more of him.

Charlie is still a mess, back at Graceland, and Briggs has found the person he thinks he can fix. Match made in hell, baby.

Jakes and Jessica are staking out the bus station and in the middle of a really fatalistic conversation, Jessica spots a Tinker Bell girl off the bus from Tacate. She goes to talk to her, and brings her to the bathroom. Lina (Tinker Bell Girl) is from the Ukraine and Jessica speaks Ukrainian.

She learns that Lina is a mule. She swallowed balloons of drugs and doesn't know any more than that.

Jessica gives her a cell phone, tells her to go to her final destination, and probably sends her to her death. At least she feels a little guilty about it.

Jakes follows the bus to its garage, and Jessica follows Lina's bus to its final destination in Silmar. She calls the phone she gave Lina, and finds it stuffed inside the backpack still, in a garbage can. Lina has disappeared.

Let's see what happens next week!