Steve is on assignment to tail mob hitman Bruno Crespi. Crespi is returning to the states from a Malaysian ship after nearly a year broad, hiding out from the murder of mob boss Danny Baylor. As Steve and his team watch Crespi, he suddenly keels over. Steve brings in Mark to check on the man, and draws a shocking conclusion. Bruno is sick... specifically, with the bubonic plague.
While a doctor with the CDC is blowing his horn about containing the virus and saying Bruno caught it from the rats aboard his ship, Mark is convinced he was tricked into injecting in in his meds in an attempt at murder.
"The Plague" displays symptoms of the following tropes:
- Bait-and-Switch: Jennifer is seen coming into Community General after hearing a report that Bruno is still alive, and is grabbed by Jack and Steve, then tested for the plague, leading the audience to think the killer has been found. However, we then see Regina walk into Bruno's room disguised as a nurse, and figure out quickly that she is the real killer.
- Bluffing the Murderer: Dr. Niven gives out a press conference that Bruno is sure to recover that all three of the suspects hear.
- Dr. Jerk: Dr. Niven, the CDC blowhard going on about the plague.
- Fanservice: Charlene Baylor is first introduced tanning in a bikini, with Mark examining a tattoo on her butt. (The tattoo has apparently been infected, as Mark tells her to get it pricked).
- Fingertip Drug Analysis: Mark does this with some cocaine found on Spengler's desk.
- Friend in the Black Market: Jack's cousin runs numbers for the Baylor crime family.
- He Knows Too Much: Regina killed Spengler to keep him from spilling the beans about the attempted murder.
- Improvised Weapon: When Steve comes into his room after checking Jennifer, distracting Regina, Mark throws the book he was reading at her to disarm her.
- Laser-Guided Karma: Dr. Niven has been soaking up glory in Community General's halls by having constant press conferences about the state of Bruno and the plague. When Mark has captured Regina, he ends up attracting the reporters and takes Niven's thunder with him.
- Medication Tampering: The plague entered Bruno's system by being inserted into his epinephrine.
- Wham Line: "Unless I'm mistaken, it's the plague."
