Episode 102: His Visit: Day Two

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Original Air Date	June 17, 2007
Next Airing	TBA
Written by	Kem Nunn
Director	Gregg Fienberg
Next episode	"His Visit: Day Two Continued"

Linc gets Shaun into the Huntington contest, John takes a horrendous dump; Freddy visits Butchie; Barry enters Room 24; Shaun has an accident; Bill brings Zippy to see Shaun.

Synopsis

Tijuana Sloughs: Kai happens upon Mitch taking his early-morning surf. He offers to give her a ride, but on the way to the car they find Cass, who's been watching Mitch surf. She introduces herself to Mitch as a longtime fan, who had a big crush when she was 15. Kai isn't impressed, taking an instant dislike to the girl, and decides to walk home. Mitch notices her car, a 1961 convertible. "I like vintage," Cass smiles. She tells him that she's a filmmaker, and she'd like to shoot Mitch for her new film, Legends. She gives him her business card. Mitch doesn't know what to make of this, but he's flattered, and he agrees to think about it.

Bill's house: Bill calls the police station, and tells Anderson that he wants to get prints run on a "nutjob". The prints are on the police station water fountain handle, which Bill broke off yesterday after watching John take a drink. Anderson is understandably annoyed that Bill broke the water fountain. Bill gets annoyed and hangs up.

Snug Harbor Motel, Room F: John has spent the night sleeping on the floor of Butchie's room. They wake up, and Butchie is surprised to find that he's not suffering withdrawal symptoms. Still aping Butchie, John follows him to the toilet. It doesn't appear that John knows how to use the toilet, so Butchie has to give him instructions. Butchie realizes that he hasn't seen John use the bathroom since they've met. He goes outside to give John some privacy.

Yosts' house: Shaun is down about missing the competition at Huntington Beach yesterday. Linc comes over, and convinces Cissy to let him talk to Shaun.

Motel: Ramon tells Butchie that the new owner is coming over today, and reminds Butchie that he's supposed to be gone. Butchie returns to his room, and finds that John is finished on the toilet. "A+ on the fume control, pal," Butchie says, not realizing that John didn't actually do anything.

Yosts' house: Mitch is horrified when he comes home and finds out that Linc has "muscled" Shaun back into the competition. Cissy urges Mitch to think about what Shaun wants. Linc makes a pitch to Shaun, telling him that he has something special; watching Shaun can give people a taste of what it's like to feel the surfing rush. He admits that he made a mistake when he sponsored Butchie: "He was young, he was changing the sport... all I could see was that him being a bad boy was good for business. I thought the image was the thing. But what I see now -- what's taken me years to see -- is the thing itself? That's the thing. And I don't have to show them any more than that." It's obvious that Linc's pitch is really to Shaun's grandparents, who aren't sure whether to trust him. Shaun says that he'd like to compete. Mitch turns to Linc: "No 'image'." "Just him," Linc agrees, "and some really great waves." Shaun smiles. Reluctantly, Mitch gives his permission.

Pier: Butchie and John take a walk on the pier. Vietnam Joe greets John, and Butchie learns that Joe gave John a ride from the Sloughs yesterday. Butchie tells Joe that he's trying to figure John out; Joe doesn't have any insights. As John looks at the US Naval Radio array through a nearby telescope, Butchie mutters, "My old man levitated, I'm not feeling sick... John, what the hell's going on?" He talks to himself as if he's practicing for a conversation: "John, you can be honest with me, man, tell me what's going on." When he reaches John, he asks, "What are you looking at out there, John? What do you see?" John responds, "What do you want, Butchie?" Butchie takes his friend's hand and leads him away.

Motel office: Barry brings coffee and breakfast to the motel for Meyer and Ramon. He announces that he's decided not to tear down the motel; he's had a vision. He often gets visions after his epileptic seizures, and stressful days like yesterday can bring the seizures on. "I am called, among other things, to learn to surf," Barry says. A tough-looking man in sunglasses comes to see Butchie; they tell him that Butchie is out, so the man waits in the parking lot. Barry explains his idea for the motel: "Renovate the guest rooms. Upgrade them. Liberate them! Why not." He takes the key to Room 24. "It's his joint," Ramon shrugs.

Room 24: Barry opens the door to Room 24. He sees something inside that horrifies him, and he dashes away.

Bill's house: Shaun tells Bill that he's heading to the Huntington competition. His grandparents are driving, and he's hoping that his dad might show up. He invites Bill to come along, but Bill says says it should be a family event.

Outside Yost Boards: Cass and Linc talk on the phone, across the street from each other -- Linc doesn't want them to be seen together. He's annoyed that Kai saw Cass hitting on Mitch. She needs to make everyone believe that she's only interested in making a film.

Yost Boards: Cass tries to make things right with Kai, who's dismissive. Cass says that she's only interested in making a movie about Mitch, and she's sorry that they got off on the wrong foot this morning. "No sale, chick," Kai says. "You know, that family's got enough of their own problems, but can't we all still do our little part just to make 'em worse?"

Road: Mitch and Cissy drive Shaun to Huntington. Cissy is happy to see Shaun smiling.

Bill's house: Bill is suddenly gripped by a feeling of fear. He calls out to his dead wife, Lois, wishing that she would come to him.

Motel office: A terrified Barry tells Ramon and Meyer that Room 24 is haunted. Meyer says that Barry mentioned "an unpleasant experience" in that room; Barry replies, "It was all one in my mind. Time flies when you're having fun," indicating that his "deflowering" may have been more than one incident. Ramon says that Barry's getting a little hard to follow, but Barry says, "Not for Gilbert Rollins. He can do it dead." Ramon says that Barry doesn't need to go into that room anymore. Barry hugs him, thankful. He thought that he could conquer his past. "God showed you what was what," Ramon observes. Barry prays: "Please, God, help me live. I forgive Gilbert Rollins. I forgive Butchie Yost." Ramon and Meyer join in with an "Amen".

Convenience store: Butchie tries out John's platinum card, and he's delighted to find that it works.

Road: Shaun wants to call his dad and ask him to come to the competition. Mitch shrugs; they might as well bang their heads on the lamppost.

Street: Butchie and John walk home, with their arms full of convenience store loot. Butchie has to stop John from walking out into traffic, and he guesses that John isn't from a big city. He says, "I'm feeling a little Cincinnati." John brightens: "I am from Cincinnati!"

Huntington Beach: To get Shaun into the competition, Linc has had to pull one of his other young surfers out. The boy's father, Mr. Nolan, protests, but Linc tells him he doesn't get a vote.

StinkweedUSA tent: In Linc's tent, Shaun prepares for the competition with the other surfers. The boys in the tent are quiet and laid-back; young girls look in, hoping to attract their attention. Shaun doesn't know how to handle himself. He looks around at the other surfer boys for clues about what to do.

Beach: Mitch, Cissy and Kai watch as Shaun paddles out for the competition. Cass is watching too, and filming the event. Shaun takes the waves easily and gracefully -- a real natural. Cissy is thrilled, and Mitch finds himself enjoying it. Unless the judges are blind, Shaun's going to win the event.

Motel: Butchie and John come home, and they find Butchie's dealer, Freddy, waiting. Freddy walks up to Butchie and punches him in the face, knocking him down. He's pissed about the angry message that Butchie left for him yesterday. Freddy yells at Butchie for being a fuck-up -- he remembers when Butchie was surfing Rocky Point, one of the greats. Butchie has no business trying to buy a lid of smack, as if he's going to become a dealer himself: "You'd have OD'd and died before you sold your third bag." Freddy sees John standing by, and hits him in the face too -- although John stays standing, and hardly seems to feel it. Suddenly, an earthquake starts to rumble beneath their feet. "What do you want, Butchie Yost?" John asks...

Bill's house: Bill also feels the temblor rumbling. Scared, he calls the police station again.

Beach: At the beach, the earthquake makes a great wave for Shaun to surf on -- but then he takes a spill, and the board smacks him in the head. Kai is the first to notice that Shaun didn't come back up -- he's lying face-down in the water. Mitch and Cissy run to the shore.

Motel: Butchie and Freddy's fight is interrupted when Ramon tells Butchie that he's got a phone call -- it's Mitch, telling Butchie that Shaun broke his neck, and was airlifted to Mercy Hospital. Butchie tells John to get in the car, but Freddy forces them -- at gunpoint -- into his own car.

Road: Freddy drives Butchie and John to the hospital. He remembers Butchie surfing with Shaun back in the day, and he's shocked that Shaun is hurt. He watches John in the rear-view mirror, nervously: "That mope in the back seat keeps changing fuckin' shapes." He tells Butchie to go into the hospital, and act like a man. Their business can wait. "And take this shape-changing mope with you. I ain't afraid of you, pal." John parrots back: "I ain't afraid of you, pal." Butchie gets out of the car: "Thanks for not killing me."

Bill's house: Watching TV, Bill hears a news report that Shaun was injured at the competition. He calls the police station, desperate for more information.

Mercy Hospital: Cass and Linc both show up at the hospital, still careful not to talk to each other. In a waiting room, Dr. Smith tells Mitch and Cissy the terrible news -- Shaun was paralyzed and unable to breathe, and there was catastrophic damage to his brain. Their tests show that there's no electrical activity in the brain. Mitch and Cissy will have to make the decision whether to keep him alive on life support. Mitch wants them to take the machines away right now -- he's brain-dead, and suffering. Cissy says, "He needs it to breathe. He stays on the machine. I will murder you in your sleep." Mitch walks out. Butchie and John arrive, and Kai tells Butchie to go talk to Cissy. He leaves Kai with John.

Men's room: John tells Kai that he needs to "dump out", so Kai leads him to the bathroom. John isn't sure what to do. He sees another man go into the stall, so John goes in too. He sits on the toilet without taking his pants down.

Shaun's room: Butchie and Cissy go into Shaun's room, and stare at the comatose child. Butchie strokes his son's head: "I thought one day, a day with no dogfights, I'd square things. We'd surf some spots, in Indonesia maybe. I didn't have the time."

Hospital stairs: Bill hurries up the stairs to Shaun's floor, holding his jacket closed over something that he's carrying.

Men's room: John listens to the noises that the man in the next stall is making, and tries to imitate them. After the man leaves, though, John looks upwards and holds his gaze to the ceiling, the next scene shows the bird Zippy kissing and healing Shaun.

Hallway: Kai notices that Linc and Cass are pretending not to know each other. Linc whispers to Cass to go follow Mitch. Bill approaches Dr. Smith, holding his jacket closed. Dr. Smith watches Bill, and somehow knows to ask if he's here to see Shaun. Cissy asks Dr. Smith if she needs to make a decision now.

Shaun's room: Bill enters the room, and Butchie leaves Bill alone with Shaun: "You were more a father to him than I was." Left alone, Bill opens his jacket, and brings out his parrot Zippy. "Don't hold back on me, pal," he instructs the bird.

Hallway: John tells Kai that he just took a dump. Then he turns to Linc, and says, "The end is near."

Shaun's room: Bill brings Zippy close to Shaun so that the bird can kiss him. As Zippy's beak touches Shaun, the brain-dead boy's eyes open...

Tally

Profanity

A running tally of the curse words used in John From Cincinnati. This is the list for "His Visit: Day Two". For the series total so far, see Series Tally.

"Fucking" : 28
"Take a dump" : 6
"Dumped out" : 4
"Shit" : 4
"Ass" : 3
"Fuck you" : 3
"Get the fuck out" : 3
"What the fuck" : 3
"What the hell" : 3
"Asshole" : 2
"Cock" : 2
"Crap machines" : 2
"Fuck" : 2
"Fucked-up shit" : 2
"God damn" : 2
"Blow me" : 1
"Bullshit" : 1
"Crapper" : 1
"Dick" : 1
"Faggot" : 1
"Friggin" : 1
"Fuck Room 24" : 1
"Fuckin' A" : 1
"Fuck-up" : 1
"Give a fuck" : 1
"Go fuck yourself" : 1
"Motherfucker" : 1
"Motherfucking Christ" : 1
"Penis" : 1
"Piss" : 1
"Pissed off" : 1
"Shut the fuck up" : 1
"Take a leak" : 1
"What the fuck is going on" : 1

John's catchphrases

"What do you want, Butchie Yost?" : 3 times
"I ain't afraid of you, pal" : 2 times
"I don't know Butchie, instead" : 1 time
"The end is near" : 1 time

Notes

Cass drives a black 1961 Porsche 356 Speedster Convertible, the same car that Luke Perry, as Dylan McKay, drove in Beverly Hills, 90210.
This episode averaged 1.2 million viewers, down nearly two-thirds from last week's 3.4 million. ^[1]
The theme song is "Johnny Appleseed", performed by Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros.
The song playing as Shaun waits in the surf tent is "Tic" performed by Kava Kava.
The end/credits song is "Staring At The Sun", performed by TV on the Radio.

Cast

Regulars

Guest starring

Co-starring

Landon Bell
Hutchi Hancock : ICU Nurse
Steve Maines : Man in hospital restroom
Jayne Taini

Transcript

Transcript of episode 102

References

↑ "Hit series 'Closer' has record opening", The Hollywood Reporter, Kimberly Nordyke. June 20, 2007.

Theories

Previous episode:	Next episode:
His Visit: Day One	His Visit: Day Two Continued

[1] "Hit series 'Closer' has record opening", The Hollywood Reporter, Kimberly Nordyke. June 20, 2007.

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