Damages Season 3, Episode 4

You know, it just occurred to me that Danielle’s name may just be an inside, just-for-the-writer’s joke about Danielle travelling (or rather, not travelling) tonight on a plane.

And one other thought: With this episode, we’re just about a third of the way through what will probably be the final season of the show. What’re your thoughts? Liking it? Hoping it goes another season? Just hoping this one has a solid ending?

Episode 4

Damages Season 3, Ep 4 at The Onion AV Club

In our opening moments, we get a shot of Danielle lying in her hospital bed. We then move to Patty and Tom, who talk about her status: In another 15 minutes, she would have been dead, the cops believe that Joe was taking her to the hospital, and she won’t be able to talk to Patty and Tom for a week.

Which is too late.

Five Months Later: The detectives talk about the fact that Tom drowned. Patty doesn’t know that Tom is dead, even though it was his car that hit her car. So they decide to tell her Tom is dead.

Now: Ellen is at work. Patty walks through, and she asks a co-worker why Patty is there. The co-worker fills her in.

Patty talks to Ellen’s boss. She wants a week to use Danielle against Tobin. She gets a day to talk to Tobin about Danielle.

Winstone talks to Joe in a park. He reminds Joe that Tobin is getting sentenced this week. Then he’s going to prison and never coming out again. Joe doesn’t want to talk to Tobin, even though Tobin wants to talk to Joe. Joe confirms that the money is still coming at a later time, and says he doesn’t need anything else from Tobin.

Winstone also asks if Joe needs to get back into rehab. Joe says he’s fine.

Ellen talks to her sister, Carrie, about the check Ellen wrote her. She cancelled it. She confronts Carrie about the drugs, and Carrie says they must belong to her ex. Carrie gets mad and leaves.

Tobin, the doctor, and Winstone talk. The doc says Danielle is going to be fine, then leaves. Tobin asks if Joe is drinking again, and Winstone avoids the topic. Tobin thinks they need to make alternate arrangements.

Winstone talks to a woman about Joe, and how he used to vanish for weeks during his drinking days. The woman says her people will follow Joe, and gives Winstone an untraceable cell phone to call her in the future.

Michael and Patty meet for lunch. She wanted him to know about the divorce. He already knew, Phil told him. Phil helped him get a job, working in stocks, on an entry level. Patty is quite clearly shocked, though she plays it close to the vest.

Michael also says that he and Jill are over now. Michael pays the bill.

Five Months Later: The detective tells Patty that Tom is dead. She wants to know what happened. So does the detective. She says the last time she talked to Tom, something was “wrong.”

Now: Winstone tells Tobin that Patty wants to talk to him. He also tells Tobin there’s “no real news” on Joe. Tobin decides to talk to Patty, just to get another day of freedom.

At Michael’s apartment, we learn that everything Michael told Patty was a lie. He has no job, he’s trying to paint, Jill is supporting them, and she’s pregnant.

Ellen’s boss tells Ellen that he wants her to sit in on the Tobin interview. Ellen says okay.

Joe talks to his wife, and tells her about Danielle. He says “there’s a way out of this.”

Joe has dinner with his wife. He tells her Joe is drinking again. She says he started drinking because of Tobin not paying attention to him.

Joe talks to his son, Kevin. They talk Tobin.

The dudes spying on Joe report to Winstone that Joe hasn’t been drinking.

Ellen and Ellen’s boss, Gates, go to Tobin’s interview. With Patty, and Tom, and Tobin. Tobin says he called Danielle on Thanksgiving night. He says Danielle was a pathetic old man’s indiscretion.

He tells a story wherein he calls Danielle on Thanksgiving to tell her to bring his heart pills.

He also says he tried to ship her out of the country to avoid bringing any more shame to his family.

Patty pokes and prods with mean words to find out where the hidden money is. Tobin says there is none. Then the interview ends.

Gates and Ellen talk. Ellen knows Patty was looking for a weak link, and that Danielle is it. She tells Gates to let Patty take the lead, because Patty will get something out of Danielle.

Joe’s stalkers call Winstone and say Joe is in the city and drinking. Winstone tells Tobin. Tobin says, “I’ve made my decision.”

Five Months Later: The detective grills Patty about Tom and the Tobin case. She relates a harried phone conversation she had with him.

After the talk with Patty, Tom answers a knock at his door. We don’t get to see who’s there.

Now: Tobin calls Patty at home. And he tells her that Joe didn’t want to see him on his last night of freedom. And some other things, though it doesn’t appear to be important.

In the city, Joe walks down the street and buys some booze in a liquor store.

Winstone also walks down a street, then sees himself on a display of TVs in a window. He looks at himself. He makes faces at himself.

A man follows Joe. Joe sees a couple of newspapers with his dad on the cover. He pours his booze into the street, and throws the bottle in the trash.

The stalker calls Winstone and says Joe might be turning over a new leaf.

Tobin’s doctor comes to visit him. Tobin says he’s ready. The doctor hands him something.

Tobin puts a few drops of something into his tea. He pulls out a manila envelope and sets it on the desk. He drinks the tea.

Ellen goes to see Patty at her apartment. They talk about each other’s families. Viciously. Ellen asks about the Tobin case.

Patty says she just wants Ellen’s company. Ellen needs to “let go of work.”

At his home, Tobin is dead. Joe picks up the manila envelope, and pulls something out of it.

Five Months Later: The detective tells Patty to stay available for the next few days. She says that Tom was like family.

At some point around the same time frame: Patty has a phone call where she says, “I told you to stop!”