Line #85 Recap/Daredevil2015S1E3RabbitInASnowstorm


1	John Healy walks into a bowling alley late at night, approaches the on-duty attendant, and asks for some shoes. She tells him that the alley is closed; only Mr. Prohaszka, a gangster who worked out a special arrangement with the owner, is allowed to stay after hours. Healy approaches Prohaszka about joining his game, but it turns out this is all pretense as he's actually a hitman here to kill Prohaszka. He promptly knocks out both of Prohaszka's bodyguards, then draws a gun he just [[Recap/Daredevil2015S1E1IntoTheRing purchased from Turk Barrett]] 36 hours prior. He pulls the trigger...and the gun promptly jams (in spite of [[HonestJohnsDealership Turk's]] [[FalseReassurance promise]] [[GilliganCut that it wouldn't]]). After a bout of fisticuffs, Healy breaks both of Prohaszka's arms, then crushes his head with a bowling ball. As Healy catches his breath, he looks up and sees the lone employee on the phone calling 911 to summon the police. Hearing the sound of approaching sirens, Healy hides the useless gun in a pinball machine, then surrenders to the police without a fight when they enter the alley and demands a lawyer.
2
3	The next morning, Matt is sitting on a bench outside his church. He is recognized by Father Lantom, who knows him as Jack Murdock's son. Father Lantom invites Matt to take confession, or even a latte, but Matt declines the chance to talk.
4
5	At the docks, ''New York Bulletin'' reporter Ben Urich (Vondie Curtis-Hall) meets with Silvio, an Italian mobster and long-time source. Silvio is planning on retiring to Florida to avoid being killed like so many other New York gangsters. Ben has heard talk of someone hitting the Russians, and that there's a new player on the criminal scene, but Silvio warns Ben that pursuing the story is dangerous.
6
7	At Nelson & Murdock, Karen is already in and looking at a summons from Union Allied's lawyers that she's received in the mail. She quickly stashes the summons in her purse as Foggy arrives, followed shortly after by Matt. The three banter about Karen's salary and a visible bruise Matt has around his right eye from last night's fight with the Russians, which he claims is from tripping. They're interrupted by a knock at the door from a client.
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9	The prospective client in question is James Wesley. Wesley refuses to give his name or talk about Confederated Global, the multinational corporation he claims he works for, but he knows a lot about Matt, Foggy, and Karen's histories. Wesley says he wants to put the firm on a generous retainer in exchange for their services and discretion, but first they must take on a case: defending Healy. Foggy is eager to accept Wesley's check, but Matt is suspicious when Wesley lets slip that he recognizes Karen from his attempt to have her framed for murder. Matt follows Wesley out of the office, tailing him for a few blocks until he gets into the middle vehicle in a convoy of three Cadillac Escalades. He sits down across from another figure in the car and assures him that "It's been taken care of." Matt stands for a moment as the Cadillacs pull away from the curb, then turns around to head for the precinct, while feeling one of his wounds reopening up from stress, leaving a small bloodstain on his shirt.
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11	Foggy goes to the precinct and meets Healy, who claims self-defense and is clearly lying through his teeth about the circumstances of the attack. Just as Foggy is ready to drop the case, Matt arrives and agrees to represent Healy, believing it's the best way to learn more about Wesley and his employer. However, Healy deflects all questions about Wesley or why Confederated Global is paying his legal bills, and insists on going to trial rather than taking a plea.
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13	In his office at the ''Bulletin'', Ben finishes up a call with the hospital trying to deal with the insurance for his wife Doris, who is afflicted with Alzheimer's. He tries to convince his editor-in-chief, Mitchell Ellison (Geoffrey Cantor), to let him pursue the Union Allied story, but is told that he needs to write fluff pieces to try and boost the ailing paper's circulation. Ben reluctantly concedes once Ellison offers to pull some strings with Ben's insurance provider.
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15	Wesley goes to the bowling alley and retrieves Healy's gun from its hiding place. Meanwhile, Matt and Foggy settle their disagreement over the case and come up with a strategy for the defense. Matt suggests that Karen investigate Confederated Global, but Karen has ducked downtown to Lower Manhattan to respond to the summons. Union Allied – which is in the process of being dissolved – argues that Karen breached her non-disclosure agreements by releasing the pension file to the media and could be sued. Instead, they agree to pay her six months' salary in exchange for her silence, as long as she signs a contract to that effect.
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17	Ben visits Metro-General Hospital that evening to visit his wife. Although his insurance doesn't cover Doris's continued treatment, he manages to petition the hospital's administrator Shirley Benson into buying him another week of care so he can have extra time to file appeals. Later, he visits Doris's private room, though she's not awake.
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19	At Nelson & Murdock, Foggy gripes about their poor office equipment as the team works late to put together Healy's defense. Karen digs up information on Confederated Global, but is only able to find a string of shell companies. When Matt reminds her to not take any long lunch breaks, she doesn't mention the Union Allied payoff. Some time later, Healy's case goes to trial, but while Foggy is giving the opening statement, Matt observes that one of the jurors becomes agitated when Wesley enters the courtroom.
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21	Suspicious, Matt follows the juror that night in his vigilante outfit and learns that she's being blackmailed by one of Wesley's henchmen. Matt beats up the thug to learn more and demands a name, but the thug tells him that he has never been given one: All he knows is to watch out for a window in a certain building, and if the light is on he has a job. Matt then the settles for telling the thug to leave the juror alone and skip town. By the trial's end, the juror is excused from duty before Matt gives his final summation.
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23	->'''Matt Murdock:''' Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, forgive me if I seem distracted. I've been preoccupied of late with, uh, questions of morality. Of right and wrong, good and evil. [[BlackAndWhiteMorality Sometimes the delineation between the two is a sharp line]]. [[GreyAndGreyMorality Sometimes it's a blur]]. And often it's like pornography: you just know when you see it. [''...''] A man is dead. And my client, John Healy took his life. This is not in dispute. It is a matter of record. Of fact. And facts have no moral judgment. They merely state what is. Not what we think of them, not what we feel; they just are. What was in my client's heart when he took Mr. Prohaszka's life, whether he is a good man or something else entirely, is irrelevant. These questions of good and evil, as important as they are, have no place in a court of law. Only the facts matter. My client claims he acted in self-defense. Mr. Prohaszka's associates have refused to make a statement regarding the incident. The only other witness, a frightened young woman, has stated that my client was pleasant and friendly, and that she only saw the struggle with Mr. Prohaszka after it had started. Those are the facts. Based on these and these alone, the prosecution has failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that my client was not acting solely in self-defense. And those, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, are the facts. My client, based purely on the sanctity of the law which we've all sworn an oath to uphold must be acquitted of these charges. Now, beyond that, beyond these walls, [[ConvictedByPublicOpinion he may well face a judgment of his own making]]. But here in this courtroom, the judgment is yours and yours alone.
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25	Owlsley is somewhat desperate to meet with Wesley's employer, believing the Healy situation is spinning out of control and he should simply be killed, but Wesley says they can't afford to leave any more bodies in light of everyone they killed to silence the Union Allied matter, so using a couple of newly minted lawyers who've just started a small practice is the most effective way of clearing things up.
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27	Karen meets with Daniel Fisher's widow, who is moving out of New York with her children. Jennifer feels guilty for pushing her husband to do the right thing, and though Karen begs for help in exposing the conspiracy around Union Allied, Jennifer has already signed the payoff contract. Not knowing where else to go for help, Karen visits Ben at his office, claiming to have more on the Union Allied story.
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29	In court, the jury returns from deliberation, but Matt realizes from reading the jurors' heartbeats that the jury is hung, and though multiple hung juries would normally result in a retrial, Matt is confident that Wesley and his people will make sure the case goes away. Sure enough, Healy goes free a few nights later, but Matt confronts him in his vigilante outfit, beats him into submission and tortures him until Healy gives up the name of Wesley's employer: Wilson Fisk. No sooner has he said the man's name that Healy starts shaking in fear. As he tells Matt, Fisk kills anyone who says his name, as well as [[AndYourLittleDogToo everyone they care about]] [[MakeAnExampleOfThem to send a message to others who might consider talking]]. Despairingly, Healy calls Matt a coward, and tells him he should just have killed him instead of making him talk, and then, without hesitating, he commits suicide by impaling his head on a spike, much to Matt's shock.
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31	The art dealer at an expensive gallery, Vanessa Marianna, is drawn to a large bald man who is transfixed by a painting that seems to be nothing but gradations of white.
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33	->'''Vanessa Marianna:''' There's an old children's joke. You hold up a white piece of paper and you ask, what's this? [[TitleDrop A rabbit in a snowstorm]].
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35	When Vanessa asks how the painting makes him feel, Wilson Fisk solemnly admits that it makes him feel alone.
36
37	----
38	!!Tropes:
39	* AnalogyBackfire: When Leland is bemoaning how they can’t use [[JuryAndWitnessTampering Juror #8]] any more, Wesley assured him she’s “only a piece of the puzzle”. Leland irritably points out that you can’t complete a puzzle with a missing piece.
40	* ArtisticLicenseGunSafety: When Turk is selling the gun to Healy, the guns are shown being transported magazines-in. This is not a smart move as that makes it impossible to verify if the weapon is unloaded. It's also implied the gun was probably a low quality knock-off that was not stored and maintained properly after it left the factory, so there's also a failure on Healy's part in not test-firing the gun before the hit. Later seasons establish that [[HonestJohnsDealership Turk specializes in selling extremely cheap and unreliable guns that are at their deadliest when used to bludgeon someone to death]].
41	* BetterToDieThanBeKilled: When Healy reveals the name of his employer, he's so afraid of the prospect of [[MakeAnExampleOfThem what will happen to him in retaliation]] that he immediately rams his face into a fence spike.
42	* BillionaireWristband: Wesley wears a fancy Cartier Automatic wristwatch. Matt follows him by listening to the watch's ticking sound.
43	* BribeBackfire: Fisk's people attempt to bribe Karen with the equivalent of six months' salary in exchange for her silence. It's pretty obvious that Karen sees it for the bribe it truly is.
44	* CallBack:
45	** Owlsley mentions the method of [[Recap/Daredevil2015S1E1IntotheRing Rance's murder]] as a possible way to off Healy.
46	** While dealing with Ben's insurance, Shirley mentions that [[Recap/Daredevil2015S1E2CutMan her best nurse is out sick for unknown reasons]].
47	* ComicBookMoviesDontUseCodenames: John Healy is never called "Oddball," in keeping with his being re-imagined as a hitman.
48	* ContinuityNod: The framed newspapers in Ben Urich's office reference [[Film/TheIncredibleHulk2008 the Harlem Terror]] and [[Film/TheAvengers2012 The Battle of NY]].
49	* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes:
50	** Silvio Manfredi, the old-time mobster Ben Urich is talking to in the opening.
51	--->'''Silvio:''' When I went up for my ten, every paper in town dragged my name through the shit. But you, you did it without mentioning my kids. Always been grateful for that.
52	** Even Healy, presented as a sociopathic professional killer, has people he cares about so much he'd take his own life so Fisk won't exact retaliation on them.
53	* EyeScream: Healy impales his own face on a fence spike so that Fisk won't kill those he cares about.
54	* FoodAsBribe: Ben uses this on Shirley Benson. In a twist, he does it after the nurse has helped him out.
55	-->'''Shirley Benson:''' Uh... what's that?\
56	'''Ben Urich:''' Cheese blintz from that place you like.\
57	'''Shirley Benson:''' You should've led with that.\
58	'''Ben Urich:''' ''[smiles]'' That'd be cheating.
59	* FriendOnTheForce: Wesley claims that he knows of Karen's legal situation because of his police contacts (read: corrupt cops on Fisk's payroll), and ''not'' because he was involved in setting her up or trying to have her killed in jail, and also makes clear he's aware of Matt and Foggy's relationship with Brett Mahoney.
60	* FriendlyEnemy + WorthyOpponent: Salvio Manfredi and Ben Urich speak together with respect and courtesy, even though Manfredi's in the mob and Ben's an IntrepidReporter fighting for the little guy.
61	* GilliganCut: Healy disables Prohaszka's bodyguards, then pulls a pistol and prepares to shoot Prohaszka in the head. As his finger closes on the trigger, the scenes suddenly cuts back to 36 hours earlier, when Healy is buying the gun from Turk Barrett.
62	-->'''John Healy:''' [[RevolversAreJustBetter I'd like a good revolver better. No chance of jamming up.]]\
63	'''[[HonestJohnsDealership Turk Barrett]]:''' Man, look at this! ''[racks the slide]'' This is top of the line. I guarantee, this baby will ''not'' jam, or my name ain't Turk Barrett.\
64	''[Cuts to Healy pulling the trigger, and it jams. He was right, should've gone with the revolver]''
65	* GoodLawyersGoodClients: Defied in that Matt has to (successfully) defend the obviously guilty Healy.
66	* HeroesLoveDogs: When Matt arrives at work a bit banged up from the fight he had with the Russians in the previous episode, he claims to have tripped, prompting Foggy and Karen to suggest that he get a seeing-eye dog.
67	-->'''Foggy Nelson:''' You need a dog.\
68	'''Matt Murdock:''' ''[smiles]'' I'm not getting a dog.\
69	'''Foggy Nelson:''' ''[incredulously]'' What, you don't like dogs? Who doesn't like dogs?\
70	'''Karen Page:''' I--I ''love'' dogs.\
71	'''Foggy Nelson:''' Everybody loves dogs.
72	* HiddenBadass: Healy, who on the surface is a short, average-looking guy with a receding hairline, is actually a skilled assassin and fighter that even puts up a good fight against Matt.
73	* HonestJohnsDealership: The handgun that Turk Barrett sells to Healy jams up, despite Turk assuring him this wouldn't be an issue.
74	* HonorAmongThieves: Manfredi and Ben have a decent working relationship. Manfredi gives two examples of this, one to how the game has changed, and the other a thank you to Ben.
75	-->'''Manfredi:''' Used to be when you killed a guy you sent his wife flowers. Now they just send the wife with him.
76
77	-->'''Manfredi:''' Y'know, when I went away to do my ten, every paper in town dragged my name through the shit. You're the only one who did it without mentioning my kids. Always grateful for that. ... Take a pass on this one, Benny. Some fights will just get ya bloody.
78	* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Healy rams his own head through a fence splinter after he rats out Fisk's name to Matt.
79	* JuryAndWitnessTampering: Matt finds out that one of the jurors on Healy's trial is being coerced by one of Fisk's guys, who is threatening to release a sex tape that she did when she was 19. Matt pummels the man into telling the woman to excuse herself from the trial. Although it matters not, as the trial ends with a hung jury with it implied that Fisk just managed to persuade other jurors.
80	* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: Fisk makes his first physical appearance only moments after Matt finally learns his name.
81	* TheMobBossIsScarier: The second Healy says Fisk's name, he is terrified, because he knows what's going to happen if his employer finds out.
82	-->'''Matt Murdock:''' You get in your car. If I ever see you in Hell's Kitchen again…\
83	'''John Healy:''' No.\
84	'''Matt Murdock:''' You do not want to test me.\
85	'''John Healy:''' You think this is still about you? I gave up his name. You don't do that, not to him. He'll find me, and [[MakeAnExampleOfThem make an example]]. And then he'll find everyone I've ever cared about and do the same to them, so that no one ever does what I just did. You should have just killed me. You coward! ''[Healy turns and runs his face through the nearest fence spike]''
86	* MurderIsTheBestSolution: Owlsley advocates for Healy to be killed rather than go through the process of rigging a trial to get him off. Wesley has to explain to him why this is not an option.
87	-->'''Leland Owlsley:''' I don't see why we're going through all of this, anyway. Just get rid of Healy the way you got rid of the other guy. They find him hanging in his cell, boom-boom, case closed.\
88	'''James Wesley:''' [[Recap/Daredevil2015S1E1IntoTheRing Rance, Fisher, McClintock, Farnum.]] We've been leaving a trail of bodies lately, and trails eventually lead somewhere. [[PragmaticVillainy This? This needed to be handled quietly, within the confines of the law.]]\
89	'''Leland Owlsley:''' So you hire a couple of back-door shysters? I know a hundred defense attorneys with more experience than WesternAnimation/HeckleAndJeckle.\
90	'''James Wesley:''' ''[scoffs]'' It's not their experience that matters. They just opened shop and they're completely clean. [[ArmorPiercingQuestion Say that about any of the other hundred you know? Huh?]] Two lawyers above reproach. Self-defense. No questions, no trail.\
91	'''Leland Owlsley:''' There's too much light shining on this. I can't move on Prohaszka's holdings until the glare is off.\
92	'''James Wesley:''' Get the papers ready, and let my employer worry about the rest.
93	* MyGodWhatHaveIDone: Matt's reaction to Healy committing suicide. He is clearly dismayed and disturbed by both the act itself and [[TheMobBossIsScarier what it means]].
94	* ObviouslyEvil: Healy. Foggy is completely freaked out sitting in the room with him.
95	-->'''Foggy Nelson:''' That's not a client, that's a shark in a skin suit!
96	* OhCrap:
97	** Karen's reaction when Wesley makes clear that he knows her.
98	** Wesley's poker face falters briefly when Matt asks him how he knows Karen.
99	* OldMediaPlayingCatchUp: {{Conversed}} by executive editor Mitchell Ellison. He bitterly points to Ben that the ''Bulletin'' is losing relevance with the rise of online journalism.
100	-->'''Ben Urich:''' There used to be a time when the people in this building wrote the hell out of the news.\
101	'''Mitchell Ellison:''' Everybody we know is making twice what we are, writing from blogs, working from home in their underwear. [[ArmorPiercingQuestion We're hanging on by our fingertips, Ben. Do you really want to be greasing that ledge?]]
102	* OneDialogueTwoConversations: When Foggy and Karen notice the bruises on Matt's face from his fight, Matt truthfully says "Yeah, I'm fine. I just..wasn't paying attention last night. It was my fault," talking about how he got overconfident and ended up in Claire's dumpster, while letting Foggy and Karen think he just walked into a door or tripped.
103	* PercussiveMaintenance: The Nelson & Murdock wi-fi is acting up. Karen fixes it by whacking the router a few times.
104	* ProductPlacement: Matt follows Wesley by listening to the ticking sound of his Cartier Automatic wristwatch.
105	* RevolversAreJustBetter: Healy's attitude towards handguns, because handguns jam. Sure enough, the semiautomatic pistol Turk gives him jams right when he's about to shoot Prohaszka, forcing him to improvise with the bowling ball.
106	* SayingTooMuch: Wesley lets slip while soliciting Matt and Foggy that he knows who Karen is and the legal predicament that she was in thanks to him, despite her ultimately never being charged and it never being reported in the papers. Despite trying to provide a plausible explanation ("I have [[DirtyCop friends on the force]]. [[NotSoDifferentRemark I hear I'm not the only one]]"), Matt doesn't buy it.
107	* SnarkToSnarkCombat: Wesley's soliciting Matt and Foggy.
108	-->'''Matt Murdock:''' What is that line of work exactly?\
109	'''Foggy Nelson:''' What my partner is trying to say is [[CrusadingLawyer we're still building a practice, so we're very particular about our clientele]].\
110	'''James Wesley:''' [[FalseReassurance I assure you, all my employer wants is for you to continue to be ethical, decent men...]] [[VerbalBackspace good lawyers.]] [[BlatantLies And for that, for nothing more than your exceptional skills and your discretion...]] [[EveryManHasHisPrice you'll be fairly compensated]]. ''[Wesley passes a check to Foggy. Foggy looks at the amount]''\
111	'''Foggy Nelson:''' [[GoldFever Uh-huh. It's... It's fair. That's... That's fair.]] \
112	'''James Wesley:''' Your partner doesn't seem convinced.\
113	'''Matt Murdock:''' Like Foggy said, '''[[InsistentTerminology we're particular about our clientele]]'''. ''[Wesley smirks, glances at Karen, then back at Matt and Foggy]''\
114	'''James Wesley:''' [[ShameIfSomethingHappened I'm curious about your...]] ''[[ShameIfSomethingHappened clientele]]''. [[ShameIfSomethingHappened Do they all end up working for you]] [[ClearMyName after you get them off for murder]] [[SexySecretary or just the pretty ones?]] ''[[[OhCrap Karen gasps softly]]]'' \
115	'''Matt Murdock:''' ''[to Karen]'' [[TranquilFury You, uh, give us a minute, please?]]
116	* TakeThat: A direct jab made by the hospital manager quotes this as a reason why she is so busy after helping Ben out with his insurance issues.
117	-->'''Shirley Benson:''' Now get the hell out of my office. I've got a measles outbreak to deal with because idiot parents don't want to vaccinate, and my best nurse is out with who-the-hell-knows-what.
118	* TheReveal: Wilson Fisk appears onscreen for the first time in the final scene, after Matt learns his name.
119	* TitleDrop: Mentioned by Vanessa as the punch line of a children's joke in the final scene when explaining the painting to Fisk.
120	* TooMuchInformation: Wesley does his best to hide the fact that he already knows who Karen is, until he lets slip to Matt and Foggy that he knows about her being framed for murder. This is what makes Matt suspicious enough to want to probe deeper into Wesley to find out more about his employer.
121	-->'''James Wesley:''' I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset anyone.\
122	'''Matt Murdock:''' How did you know about Miss Page's situation? She was never charged. There was nothing in the papers.\
123	'''James Wesley:''' I have [[DirtyCop friends on the force]]. [[NotSoDifferentRemark I hear I'm not the only one]].
124	* TranquilFury: While strongarming Nelson & Murdock into defending Healy, Wesley asks, "[[ShameIfSomethingHappened I'm curious about your]] ''[[ShameIfSomethingHappened clientele]]''. [[ShameIfSomethingHappened Do they all end up working for you after]] [[Recap/Daredevil2015S1E1IntoTheRing you get them off for murder]] [[SexySecretary or just the pretty ones?]]" Matt's calm voice takes on a much sharper edge after dismissing Karen from the conference room.
125	* VillainousEthicsDecay: When talking to Ben, Silvio laments how the criminal underworld has kept getting nastier, more ruthless, and more extreme with time.
126	-->'''Silvio:''' Used to be when you killed a man, you sent his wife flowers. Now? Now you send his wife with him!
127	* VillainsOutShopping: Wilson Fisk is introduced pondering a painting for sale in an art gallery.
128	* WhosOnFirst: On being told by Wesley that Fisk is busy with [[WickedCultured "art"]], Owlsley asks, "Art who?" forcing Wesley to clarify he's referring to "paintings".
129	* WorstNewsJudgmentEver: Ben and Ellison both know the subway line piece is terrible even by meaningless fluff piece standards, but it's not a potential risk and it sells papers. At the end of the episode, when Karen visits Ben at his office, [[BrickJoke the copy on his desk]] shows that the subway story has been buried in the back pages, right above a "[[CatUpATree rescued cat]]" article.
130	* YourHeadAsplode: When Healy finds himself unable to shoot his target, he uses a bowling ball to smash his head into pieces.

Context Recap / Daredevil2015S1E3RabbitInASnowstorm