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Original air date: November 15, 2006

Morse Code Transaction:
AOV Surprise

Synopsis: When Jericho receives a surprise visit from several seedy out-of-towner's, the residents realize they need a plan to keep intruders out. Emotions run high when the townspeople meet to discuss ideas for securing their borders. One solution that strikes a nerve with several citizens involves a strategy that would isolate a large part of the town from the other. Meanwhile, Emily wakes up on the day she was supposed to get married and imagines how her wedding day would have gone if Roger were still there.

Episode recap:
Stanley wakes up in the middle of the night to find a bunch of men with guns stealing his gasoline. They are Ravenwood and have come to Jericho after finding Eric's ID in the coat he left in Rogue River. Stanley comes out with his rifle but the men shine a flashlight in his face so he can't see. Mimi and Bonnie want to see what's up, Stanley tells them to stay inside and he bravely faces the thieves himself. Ravenwood lies and says that the government sent them; Stanley does not necessarily believe them, but there are a score of them with military rifles and flashlights, so he can't do anything else but allow them to take the gasoline.


Stanley goes to the Green's house the next morning and tells Jake what happened. Jake and Eric discuss Ravenwood while Stanley stands by not knowing what they are talking about. They explain to him about Ravenwood and how they killed a hospital full of people.

While the mayor is sick in bed, Heather takes Emily and the both of them deal with their stress by getting drunk. Emily talks to Kenchy, who spends the whole time complaining about the horrors he's experienced in a way that makes it sound like he isn't upset at all. (That's just the effect his voice has?) While they are doing this, Jake and the townspeople try to think of a way to keep Ravenwood away from their town. They plan to blow up the bridge using some explosives, but that will isolate Stanley and many other families on the far side. Eric runs to the sick-but-healing mayor and asks what to do; surely they can't leave those families for dead? The mayor, too weak to go go himself, tells Eric to stop the bridge plan no matter the cost. Jake goes over to Stanley's and tells him to come over to town. Stanley will not budge from his farm. Stanley cannot persuade Bonnie to go on the other side of the bridge, but Mimi is wiser and decides to go with Jake. Jake still wants Stanley and Bonnie to come over, but still Stanley refuses. He tells Jake to go warn other people; he was wasting his time there.

Jake returns to the bridge. Soon Ravenwood comes to the bridge and finds it barred with trucks. The squad leader, Goetz, doesn't care what is going on. He just states that unless those vehicles are moved in an hour, Ravenwood will shoot their way through. Goetz then leaves temporarily. Eric tells Jake not to go through with the plan, but Jake will not listen. Eric gets in his car and drives away, much to Jake's surprise. When Ravenwood returns, the trucks are off the bridge. They are all parked on the near side of the bridge, and lots of Jericho men with guns are hiding behind the vehicles. Jericho and Ravenwood shoot off for a minute, before Jake interrupts. With his close friend and his brother on the far side of the bridge, Jake is no longer willing to blow it up unless he has to. He walks bravely out onto the bridge and the firing stops. Goetz says, "We're here on government orders."

Jake replies with, "The same government... which ordered you to kill all those people in the hospital?" Jake then tells Goetz that the bridge is wired and that even now Jake is holding the switch to set it off. If he presses the switch then the bridge goes, Jake goes, and Ravenwood goes. But Goetz has a lot of back up. A sniper emerges from one of the trucks and aims at Jake. Hawkins acts first. He takes down the sniper and aims at Goetz.

However, the Ravenwood leader still has the advantage. About a dozen more emerge from the trucks, and Goetz smiles. "You're gonna need a lot more snipers, pal," he tells Jake.

Eric to the rescue! Eric drives up with Jonah and all his men in tow. Jonah's armed force is ready to fight Ravenwood. Ravenwood is now outnumbered and they pull out. But Ravenwood threatens to return. Jonah comes up coolly to Jake, who just stares. Despite the fact that he's not being thanked, Jonah says "You're welcome. Really. Don't mention it." Then Jonah and his gang drive off.

Later, the mayor is well enough to get out of bed. He asks why everybody is going against him, when Stanley stands up and says, "Not everybody." With his rifle in hand, he supports the mayor, as does Bonnie and Eric. Jake begins to say something (perhaps an apology?) but Johnston yells at him to be quiet.

After everyone is gone, Jake tells his father that Jericho is not going to survive without a trained security force. Although Jake suggests that Johnston do it, Johnston lays the responsibility on Jake, who does not object.

As everyone is going home, Mimi comes to Stanley and apparently still has no place to stay. Bonnie doesn't want Mimi on the farm, but Stanley ignores this and tells Mimi she can stay at the Richmond farm longer.

Jake then checks in on Heather, but finds her "pretty wasted". He goes and talks to Emily next, and the episode ends with Jake questioning what Emily really wants. (AKA, is she going to settle for Roger and never forgive Jake, and not wonder what might have happened if she makes a different choice?)

Emily's imaginary wedding day:
Emily realizes that today was the day she was suppose to marry Roger. All day she imagines how it'd be if he were still there. Heather plans to take Emily places and keep her preoccupied, but this doesn't seem to slide for Emily. When Emily waits for Heather in the truck, she spaces out thinking of how it'd be right before her wedding. She sees Heather motioning her to hurry up. So, it is revealed to us that if the wedding would have happened, Heather would have been her bridesmaid. Towards the end of the episode Heather and Emily are sitting at the bar drinking whatever they can get their hands on (this is really what was happening Emily wasn't daydreaming) and they end up meeting the doctor from Rouge River. At the very end Emily is shown sitting in a church when Jake walks in and says that he's seen Heather. Jake says, "She's pretty wasted." They talk about when they were young and it is revealed that Jake and Emily had once been engaged but "knew enough not to go through with it". Emily asks Jake why he he didn't just stay away, and Jake asks her if that's what she really wanted. A romantic scene comes in with Jake and Emily hugging each other. It turns out, Emily was imagining all of this.

Quotes:
(Bridge scene)
Hawkins: "He's making a stand."

(Bridge scene)
Jake: "The bridge is wired! If you go, I go."

After the Ravenwood leaves. Mimi has no place to stay.
(Stanley glances over at Mimi)
Bonnie: "No. She can't stay!"
(Stanley, still looks guiltily at Mimi.)
Bonnie: "You're an idiot." (Walks away.)
Mimi: "So what'd she say?"
Stanley: "Uh, yeah, she says it's...fine."
Mimi: "Right." (Takes Stanley's hand, and they walk off.)

(Emily meets Kenchy in the bar.)
Emily: "So things are pretty bad out there, huh?"
Kenchy (strong British accent): "Oh, murder, crime, disease...it''s bloody miserable. I'm sorry. ...I am drunk and I haven't slept in weeks."
Emily: "Me too."

Questions:
Q: In Emily's daydream of them at the bar, about half an hour before the wedding, who was the little girl that Heather was talking to?
A:
Q: What was the name of the bridge and the river in the episode?
A: Tacoma Bridge

Trivia:


Cast:

• Guest Starring: Alicia Coppola (Mimi Clark), D.B. Sweeney (Goetz), Christopher Wiehl (Roger Hammond), Clare Carey (Mary Bailey), Richard Speight, Jr. (Bill), Darby Stanchfield (April Green), Bob Stephenson (Jimmy), Aasif Mandvi (Dr. Kenchy Dhuwalia), James Remar (Jonah Prowse)
• Written By: Robert Levine
• Directed By: Paul McCrane

See also:

Crossroads Transcript
Music of Jericho
Morse Code
Plot Theories

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