"Guadalajara Dog" is the second episode of the first season of Graceland. It was released June 13, 2013 on the USA Network.
| Guadalajara Dog | |
 | |
| Season 1 · Episode 02 | |
| Rating | TV14-LV |
| Airdate | June 13, 2013 |
| Writer | Jeff Eastin |
| Director | Russell Lee Fine |
| Episode images | |
| Episode chronology | |
|---|---|
| Previous | Pilot |
| Next | Heat Run |
Summary[]
Encouraged by his secret case manager, Juan Badillo, Mike convinces Briggs to let him in on one of his assignments. But Briggs’ mysterious, unorthodox methods spark Mike’s suspicion and admiration.
Plot[]
Walking down Venice Beach, Briggs asks Mike to create a new cover for his daily life. But when Mike suggests ‘Mike the Surf Bum’, Briggs teases him that he has to be good at surfing for that. Briggs' own daily cover is Paul, who likes motorcycles, Tae Bo and rum. It’s simple because details invite questions, and questions put Graceland at risk.
Johnny is flirting with three women when Briggs invites him to join him and Mike for tacos at Hector’s, Graceland’s favourite food place. But when a thief assaults an employee for trying to stop him from stealing a bag of chips, Mike gives chase. Briggs tries to stop him. But when that fails, he sics Johnny on him.
Just as Mike catches up with the thief, Johnny tackles Mike to the ground. Briggs steps in when the pair argue.
As FBI agents, they must engage if they witness an act of violence. However, Briggs informs Mike that the ‘Book’ was not written for undercover agents. They must protect their cover above anything, especially near their home. Johnny is still upset and tells Mike to join the LAPD if he wants to catch petty thieves.
The next day, Mike wakes early to run along the beach. He cheerfully greets hungover Charlie as she does her walk of shame before B.D. joins him on his run.
Jakes, Johnny and Briggs are in the kitchen when he returns home. Jakes playfully greets Mike, teasing him about the Hector’s Tacos situation as he does paperwork. Mike then loudly greets Charlie, who is half-conscious at the breakfast bar. Briggs teases her about her walks of shame but she reveals that she was out all night cultivating a CI.
Briggs slaps Mike with the spatula when he tries to take the flapjacks he is cooking. Johnny comes in with Bureau mail for Briggs. Charlie also tells Briggs to talk to Lauren, who is hiding upstairs.
Mike gets upset when Briggs tells him to take a plate of flapjacks to Johnny. He promises that what happened at Hector’s Tacos won't happen again, swearing on ‘The Book’. But Briggs tells him, "Never say never."
Briggs flips a hot flapjack at Jakes, who makes a hasty exit to escape the stench of Johnny's durian.
When Johnny opens Briggs’ mail for him, there are two psych orders for Briggs and Mike. Briggs tears his up but convinces visibly reluctant Mike to attend his.
As Johnny continues to read the mail, he reveals top brass wants Mike on one of Briggs’ active cases. Briggs’ mood immediately darkens and he orders Mike to join him upstairs.
Mike never gets his flapjacks.
On the balcony, Briggs insists that Mike is too new to go on any of his active cases. Mike insists that he’s ready and that they kicked ass together on their last operation. He assures Briggs that he knows his whole case log. But Briggs shoots down every suggestion he has. For Gutierrez, Mike doesn’t know enough Spanish and the Irish counterfeiters are no longer active.
Mike then suggests Bello: A major player in Long Beach, trying to unite the street gangs. Briggs is reluctant because he thinks Mike's not ready for a case this big. He brings up Hector’s Tacos, again. Mike is frustrated when Briggs leaves.
Briggs is reluctant because Mike has only been working for under two weeks and is not ready for a big case. He brings up Hector's again. Mike reminds him that the Bureau want him on something.
Somewhere in LA, the bird dealer shows Jakes a truck of birds. But there seem to be far fewer than expected. As Jakes digs through it, he finds a mysterious crate. The dealer panics, locks him in the truck and flees. Jakes uses his transmitter to get the Tac Team to help him out. The team tell him that they caught the bird dealer. They crack open the crates to find a thousand ‘cop-killer’ bullets.
Back at Graceland, Briggs walks in on Lauren as she breaks up a crime board. The DEA has given her a week to tie loose ends with the Russians. When Briggs brings up Donnie’s transfer, she is in denial. Briggs clearly tells her that Donnie is not coming back to Graceland. But when he leaves the room, Lauren starts reassembling the crime board.
Mike arrives at the Federal Building for his psych evaluation. When he arrives at his psychiatrist’s office, he notes the sign says, ‘Juan Badillo’.
Juan is amicable, but Mike jokingly complains that there is no couch. Instead, he finds a copy of History of the FBI on his chair. Mike then asks if he should refer to Juan as ‘Dr. Badillo’ but is told to call him Juan.
Juan questions Mike about his original plans to become an FBI director and his request to get posted in Washington D.C. Mike explains he is inspired by his grandfather, a well-regarded crime scene photographer working out of the J. Edgar Building. He is proud that his grandfather was even asked for personally by Hoover.
Juan asks if Mike is disappointed about being assigned to Graceland. But Mike says that the house and its agents are great. But he calls Briggs complicated and admits he feels as if he owes him after the incident with the Vzarkonye.
Mike finally reveals that he knows Juan is not a shrink:
- There is no Dr. in front of Juan Badillo’s name on the door.
- Juan purchased ‘History of the FBI’ to get Mike talking.
- No shrink would make him feel under interrogation.
Impressed, Juan invites Mike for a walk. Outside, he admits that he is Mike’s control officer in his investigation into Paul Briggs. He tells Mike that Briggs had been just like Mike when he started. But when asked why they are investigating him, Juan ignores it and tells Mike to befriend Briggs.
Mike is sceptical because Briggs isn’t the type you get close to overnight. But Juan tells Mike he will not go to Washington D.C. until he closes the case. He makes out it's an incentive but Mike sees it as blackmail.
Back at Graceland, Mike visits Charlie’s room to ask for advice on convincing Briggs to let him in on a case. She tells him that Briggs needs to be charmed and to do that, Mike needs to show initiative.
They discuss Bello and how overcautious Briggs has been. Charlie tells Mike that Briggs needs to do something splashy to get Bello’s attention. She then asks Mike to join her on a covert operation, introducing him to the cover closet. Mike teases her about how goofy the props are as Charlie tries to make him look badass. When she realises she can’t do that, she settles on cocky.
Charlie needs to deliver something to Paige, the DEA agent Mike has yet to meet. She wants Mike to escort her to the karaoke bar because everyone keeps hitting on her there.
Mike greets Jakes when he enters the closet and asks how the parrots are. But Jakes hands Mike a bullet, which he immediately identifies as 5.7, 40 grain hardcore bullets - Highly illegal ‘cop-killers’. Charlie is impressed with his knowledge. Jakes has to inventory them, then send them for destruction. It has given Mike an idea.
Paige sings something in Japanese onstage as Mike and Charlie arrive. Charlie teases Mike about how awkward he is, implying Mike has never had a girlfriend before. A random guy asks Charlie, “Who’s the geek?” To which Mike ‘politely’ pushes him away.
Charlie then gets Mike to grab her ass to mark his territory. They partake in flirtatious banter before Mike stops to admire Paige onstage. Charlie tells him to stop staring because he’s her fake boyfriend. In response, Mike drapes an arm over her.
Charlie points out Bobby Moi, who has his fingers in most East Side contraband. Paige is under as his girlfriend. Charlie and Paige then drag Mike into the ladies’ bathroom. While Paige enters a cubicle, Charlie crushes up contraceptives into a drink. Mike keeps correcting Paige when she calls him Levi. And the women discuss how ‘hot’ he is as if he’s not there. Paige then questions Mike, who is uncomfortable because he can hear her pee.
Paige then informs Charlie that she is getting nowhere with Bobby Moi. All he wants to do is have sex with her. Mike asks if that’s why she is taking the contraceptive pills. Paige leaves the cubicle and explains that she is spiking Bobby with them. If a man takes female contraceptives, they struggle to perform.
He asks Paige why she doesn’t get out of the case. But she says, “Because I want the bastard.” Mike is impressed. And Paige slaps his ass on her way out.
Back at Graceland, Briggs and Johnny are working on the Bello crime board. Briggs reveals that he has made little headway but is close to one of the lieutenants, Eddie. Eddie is Jekyll and Hyde, affable but unpredictable.
Mike enters the room as Johnny leaves and informs Briggs about Jakes' thousand armour-piercing bullets. He suggests giving them to Bello, finally sparking Briggs’ interest. But as Mike continues to lay out the plan to trap and flip Eddie, Briggs is disappointed. He pushes Mike out of his room, claiming he would consider it.
Briggs encounters Paige in the kitchen, where she complains that Bobby Moi kicked her out and won’t talk business in front of a woman. She desperately wants to catch him because he’s such a pig. Briggs gets an idea and assures her he will help close her case.
He heads to Mike’s room, informing him that he has decided that they will go through with his plan.
The next morning, Mike asks Jakes if he can borrow the bullets. Jakes is adamant that that will not happen. He rants about the danger of any of the bullets hitting the streets. Mike gives him a rousing speech about letting them do some good before they get destroyed. Jakes agrees, but Mike has to do all of his chores for two turns of the wheel.
Johnny, Briggs and the Tac Team prepare for the operation at a temporary base. When Mike emerges in full greens, he recites his cover as Mike the Marine, a reservist with the 316th Quartermaster company at Pendleton. Mike the Marine stole bullets the manufacturer supposedly donated for live testing. And if Eddie or Bello dig, they will find Mike’s fake identity in the database.
Mike and Briggs pull into the construction site as Eddie and several others fire at makeshift targets. Eddie greets Briggs amicably as one of the other guys pats Mike down. Mike then guides Eddie through the sample of fifty bullets.
But Eddie and his men miss the stuffed bears they are testing the bullets on. As Briggs tries to smooth it over, Mike tells Eddie his men are awful shots.
Mike asks Eddie for a gun. Briggs reassures Eddie that he will kill Mike if he turns the gun on Eddie.
With the gun, Mike guides the gunmen as to where they are failing. He fires a test shot, missing his target and eliciting cocky laughter from Eddie and his men. But he suddenly zeroes in and shoots out the limbs and eyes of every bear with ruthless precision. Everyone is impressed and Eddie tells Briggs they have a deal.
Later, most of the housemates gather around the fire pit as Johnny tells the story of Merciless Mike and the Bulletproof Bears. He mimes shooting each of the housemates as they all play along, dying one by one. Jakes demands vengeance upon his death. And as Paige approaches the group, Johnny pretends to shoot her. She plays along, even though she is confused.
Briggs tells Mike it was the best marksmanship he has ever seen. He then digs for intel on Mike’s psych eval. Charlie tries to stop him. Mike lies, claiming that the evaluation went well but wants to go weekly. Jakes warns Mike not to let them label him.
The next day, Briggs and Mike trade the bullets for $500,000 at the construction site. Mike becomes furious when he discovers that Briggs has not put a tracker on the money and that he has changed Mike’s plans without telling him. But instead of acknowledging Mike’s concerns, Briggs rambles about Guadalajara and hot dogs.
Parking up outside Sun City Hot Dogs, Briggs sends Mike to get him a Guadalajara hot dog. While waiting in line, Mike leaves Juan Badillo a concerned voicemail. He then tricks his way to the front of the queue.
When he returns to the car, Briggs asks if Mike trusts him. Mike is honest, admitting that he doesn’t.
Briggs then reveals that Eddie does the same heat run after every meeting. And Mike realises that Briggs knew exactly where Eddie was going. And just as Eddie pulls through the area, they are ambushed by Bobby Moi’s men.
Briggs teases Mike about what happened at Hector’s Tacos again and suggests Mike go over and arrest the armed gangs.
They cross town to Bobby Moi’s karaoke bar to buy the stolen bullets back with Bello’s money. Bobby recognises Mike from the other night and compliments him for dating Charlie. Briggs and Bobby shake on their deal before the Tac Team storms in.
A while later, Mike joins Briggs outside the bar to ask why he didn’t keep him in the loop. Briggs asks who Mike was calling back at Sun City Hot Dogs. Mike lies that it was just messages. Briggs suspected Mike called the Bureau. And while Mike admits he had been tempted but didn’t.
Briggs tells him to enjoy their success, takes a wad of cash from the evidence and tells the Tac Team that drinks were on him and Mike. He then tells Mike that it pays to trust him.
At the Federal Building, Mike informs Juan that he has finally got on one of Briggs’ cases. And that he called because he had thought Briggs was making a play. He warns Juan that they should not underestimate Briggs.
Mike gets a text telling him to meet in an hour for something important.
Mike and Briggs enter a dark building dockside warehouse somewhere in California. As Mike walks ahead, Briggs draws his gun and aims it at his head.
Briggs then asks, “Who you been talking to?”
Cast[]
Starring[] |
Guest Starring[]
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Co-Starring[]
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Quotes[]
- "Right there is Sun City Hot Dogs. They have got a dog that is smothered in sour cream, tomatoes and jalapeños. For the life of me, I can't figure out why, but they call it a Guadalajara Dog."
- ―Briggs[src]
- "Everybody on our island of misfit toys could do with a little head shrinking."
- ―Briggs, to Mike about his psych appointment
- "I believe there’s evil in the world and I want to fight it and win."
- ―Mike, about why he wants to be FBI Director
- "He hits the trifecta while the rest of us are still sizing up the horses."
- ―Mike to Juan about Briggs
Trivia[]
- "Guadalajara Dog" is a reference to the hot dogs sold by Sun City Hot Dogs, where Briggs sends Mike as they wait for Bobby Moi's men to interecept Eddie.
Music[]
| Song Title | Artist | Timestamp |
|---|---|---|
| California Sunset | Poolside | 3:49 |
| Holding on (Main Theme) | Ian Franzino | 8:56 |
| Girl Can't Help It (Cover/Remix) | Little Richard & Serinda Swan | 18:30 |
Media[]
Photos[]
