Blood Diamonds is the 21st episode of the 9th Season of Walker, Texas Ranger. It aired May 5, 2001.
In an episode told in flashbacks, the Rangers are tasked with breaking up an arms racket that involves the black market trade of African conflict diamonds for weapons, which leads up to Trivette being killed and Walker being mortally wounded while he recounts everything that happened. Trivette and Walker went undercover as, respectively, a diamond smuggler named Joseph Ileka, and a weapons expert named Mr. Crawford. Ileka was a member of the Revolutionary United Front, a rebel group in Sierra Leone, who came to Dallas for a tradeoff of smuggled diamonds for weapons, and when Ileka turns up dead, having been killed by a pimp after a one-night stand with a prostitute named Sparkle, Trivette had to assume his identity for him and Walker to try to trick the arms dealers into a trap, but the dealers have somehow caught on to their cover. Meanwhile, the Rangers find out through the medical examiner's office that Ileka was a carrier of an extremely deadly variant of Ebola virus and had transferred it to Sparkle, who, in turn, transferred it to Flint (her pimp), the night he was killed, and Gage, Sydney and Alex need to get tested after questioning her, which could throw a hitch into their operation.
Tropes seen in this episode:
- All Just a Dream... Or Was It a Dream?: The entire episode turned out to be a nightmare Alex had, but Walker was actually on the case from this nightmare.
- Anyone Can Die: The body count is as follows:
- Before Walker starts the story, the first victim is Trivette, who is hung by Drake and his goons, much to Walker's surprise when he turns around during the confrontation, upon which Drake and his goons mortally wound Walker.
- See Asshole Victim below for the deaths of the criminals.
- After getting a tip on the pimp, Flint, two Dallas police officers raid his home, only for one of them to be shot dead, triggering a manhunt against him.
- Walker is mortally wounded, and then gunned down by Victor Drake and his goons near the end of the episode.
- Asshole Victim:
- Joseph Ileka is stabbed to death by Flint after he beats him over the head and robs him of his valuables and smuggled goods.
- Flint ends up catching Ebola from Sparkle after he kills Ileka. Gage, Sydney and Alex question Sparkle after the two Rangers catch her, and when she begins exhibiting the early symptoms, they fear they've been infected, too, but luckily come out negative after being tested. When Gage and Sydney catch Flint at a bar after he murders a Dallas police officer, Sydney shoots him dead, while the bartender is arrested and everyone else is quarantined.
- Catapult Nightmare / Nightmare Sequence: After Drake and his goons kill Walker, Alex wakes up from the nightmare.
- Contamination Situation / Plague Episode: The Medical Examiner's office reveals that Joseph Ileka had an Ebola virus that's 90% fatal and spreads like wildfire, likely to kill thousands if it's not contained right away. Due to the nature of the virus, Alex was scared for herself and her and Walker's unborn baby. With Sparkle already exhibiting the early symptoms, Gage, Sydney and Alex, after questioning her, were tested and luckily came out negative, but Flint wasn't so lucky, and perhaps those on Ileka's flights from Uganda to Europe, then to the US were infected, as well. Along with the Rangers, Dallas PD, the FBI and the Center for Disease Control were tasked with handling the matter before it got any worse. Gage and Sydney catch Flint at a bar, where the former arrests the bartender and the latter shoots Flint dead, and afterwards, everyone is quarantined. The disease prompted a change in the Rangers' plans to immediately take down the buyers before dealing with Drake.Sparkle: I don't feel good, Mrs. Walker.
Alex: Okay. I'll take you to the infirmary. - Cruel Twist Ending: The entire episode turned out to be a nightmare Alex had, but it just might come to pass since Walker is on the case from that nightmare.
- Didn't Think This Through: Maybe Walker and Trivette should have worn gloves while undercover, had they known Victor Drake could figure out their real identities through their fingerprints.
- The Dragon: Hendrick Rolfe, a Danish mercenary who fought in South Africa, the Congo and Angola. He is Victor Drake's right-hand man.
- Dream Episode / Dreaming of Things to Come: The entirety of the episode was a nightmare Alex had, but Walker was actually on the case from this nightmare.
- End of an Age: Knowing this episode takes place in the final season, this is the last episode directed by Eric Norris.
- Evil Brit: Victor Drake was born in Liverpool in 1963, right at the same time The Beatles hit it big and speaks in a heavy British accent.
- Flashback B-Plot / How We Got Here: As Walker flees from Victor Drake and his men while mortally wounded and rationing his ammo after Trivette is killed by Drake after he caught on their cover, he spends the entirety of the episode recounting the events that followed that would eventually lead to his own death.
- Foreshadowing: Sparkle was feeling under the weather while being interrogated by Alex, Gage and Sydney and was taken to the prison infirmary. Later, while watching TV and reading his newspaper just before his home is raided by two Dallas police officers, Flint is shown blowing his nose constantly. This is a warning that Ileka gave both of them that extremely contagious and fatal Ebola just before the Medical Examiner's office revealed this information.
- Hanging Around: Victor Drake kills Trivette this way after catching on to his and Walker's cover.
- Heroic Sacrifice: Walker spoils Drake's victory by throwing the diamonds of the roof, but then is gunned down and falls to his death. Luckily, it was all a nightmare Alex had.
- No MacGuffin, No Winner: When Drake and his goons corner Walker on the roof and demand he hand over the diamonds before mercilessly gunning him down, Walker throws them off the roof.
- Right-Wing Militia Fanatic: The Revolutionary United Front, a rebel group in Sierra Leone that Ileka was a member of, which is led by General Nelson Abu. The Ebola outbreak caused a shift in the sting conducted by the Rangers, deciding they had to take out Abu right away.
- Special Guest: Peter Woodward as Victor Drake (the main villain) and Ray Proscia as Hendrick Rolfe (Drake's right-hand man).
- Stuff Blowing Up: In the final moments of the flashbacks, Walker engages Drake's men in a shootout. He spots a can of gasoline at his feet and throws it into barrels of gasoline tanks in the middle of the crossfire, setting it ablaze. Walker then fires his gun at the tanks, triggering an explosive enough to kill one gunman.
- We Are Not Going Through That Again: Played for Drama. The entire episode turns out to be a nightmare Alex was having, and when she wakes up for breakfast that morning, she reads the exact same newspaper article "Weapons Stolen from Army Base" that she read earlier in the episode. Needless to say, she freaked.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: As Gage, Sydney and Alex questioned Sparkle, the Medical Examiner's office discovers that Joseph Ileka had Ebola, and Sparkle began to exhibit the early symptoms after she was interrogated. After Gage, Sydney and Alex all came out negative, she was able to give the two Rangers a tip on her pimp's location, whom she got infected, as well. It is unknown of what happened to Sparkle after Flint was killed by Gage and Sydney.
