Well, that wasn’t exactly what he all had hoped for, now was it? Then again, it certainly doesn’t make the wait for the final season any shorter, either. The spotlight remained on Vic this week as he struggled to stay on the force. Despite a seemingly effective blackmail of Aceveda (after securing the original memory card containing the infamous photo from Cruz), the former captain continued his claims that he couldn’t help with his current situation. He did, however, offer up a suggestion: play the autistic child card with the head of the appeals (the only man with the power to turn the vote), who just so happens to have a grandchild with the same disease.
Not content with using his children as an excuse, Vic turns to his last resort: crack the San Marcos case wide open. After tailing the one-armed delegate to a money drop with some Mexican intelligence former who’s joined up with the Mexican mob, Vic uncovers a plan that involves the Mexicans buying up land in Farmington as a means to both launder money and do illegal business. The smell of crooked politicians is too much for Aceveda to pass up, and so he teams up with Vic on the hunt.
Unfortunately, Vic doesn’t have the kind of time needed to investigate a case of such proportions the right way. Instead, he goes straight to the source, pulling over the aforementioned intelligence officer to discover a trunk filled with boxes of blackmail-quality material. The guy didn’t go down without a fight, though – attempting to drive away before Vic jumped through the window and beat his ass – and now it looks like Vic finally has the case needed to guarantee his future at the Barn. A worthy story arc for the final season? You bet. Despite butting heads several times in the past, the Vic/Aceveda dynamic has always been one of the best thins about the series, and I can’t wait to watch the two of them working together again.
And if that’s not enough, he might even get a final nudge from Claudette’s end. Granted, the weary captain called for more of a Vic-type when she so gloriously booted Hiatt from the job, but with his recent good behavior, she might just be willing to accept the fact that he’s going to be around a little longer than originally anticipated. Billings, on the other hand, isn’t so keen on sticking around. In fact, he’s actually informed Claudette of his intentions of suing the department for injuries rendered during the Vic/Kavanaugh brawl a few months back. He’s not stupid, either, as he made sure to document complaints about headaches and neck cramps every chance he got with Dutch, but can a place like Farmington really afford a $3.2 million lawsuit. Methinks not, which means Billings will surely return for one last confrontation with Dutch before the show is gone for good.
And what of Shane? Well, he managed to escape yet another season unharmed, and without a confrontation with Vic, no less. It certainly looked like he had it coming after kidnapping Corrine and Cassidy (at gunpoint) and locking them in the back of a semi, but Vic has pushed that to the back burner for the time being. Shane’s actions were actually well intentioned (the Armenian mob was going to kill them), but all Vic is going to remember is that puddle of blood in his house. Of course, the blood was from Shane shooting the Armenian assassin sent to kill Vic’s family, but he’ll never know that he was protecting them. In fact, Vic thinks that Shane was sending him a message, and it’s only going to go downhill from there. For both men.
After making a deal with Rezian (the gas station attendant killer he recently put in jail) that would allow him to stop Diro’s retaliation, Shane finds himself between a rock and hard place. He’s officially become Rezian’s bitch, working off the money train debt by doing favors for the Armenians. Vic, on the other hand, will probably kill Shane the next time he sees him. Then again, Shane might just be able to make things right if he can convince Vic that he was responsible for the safety of Corrine and Cassidy, but what are the chances Vic will actually believe him?
