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Quantum Leap
Season 5, Episode 9:
Trilogy, Part 2: For Your Love
Sam: I don't know what to do. I want her. I want her so bad, it's killing me. I can't think about anything else, except holding her and touching her and tasting her and smelling her. I feel like she belongs to me. And that's all that matters.
Al: What matters is that you are Sam Beckett. That's the reason that you got this crazy job.
Sam: It's not fair.
Al: All right, it's not fair! It's not fair! Life isn't fair. Who ever said it was fair?
Sam: Oh, don't stand there and tell me that life isn't fair, Al.
Al: You're here to save Abigail. You saved her once before. You've got to do it again. That's it!
Sam: Why me?
Al: Because you're a hero.
Sam: Even heroes are human.
Written by Donald P. Bellisario
Directed by James Whitmore Jr.
Airdate: November 24, 1992.
June 14, 1966
Sam leaps forward eleven years, and now as Abigail’s fiancé, must once again protect her from harm. The disappearance of a young boy has cast suspicions on Abigail, who some still blame for the smiliar and mysterious disappearance of her childhood rival, Violet Aider.
Tropes:
- Armor-Piercing Question: Sam shames the mob by asking them how they'll feel if they kill Abigail now and Pervis turns up alive afterwards.
- As You Know: Parodied. Sam recaps the events of the first part while talking to himself. Al appears and asks him who he's talking to and why.
- Back from the Dead: Thematically: As Sam had previously leapt into Sheriff Fuller, he as Will accuses Leta of murdering him.Leta: Abigail Fuller is not my cross to bear.Sam: No. But the m-murder of Clayton Fuller is.Sam: You set the f-fire that k-killed him. You know that, and I know that.
- Burn the Witch!: Leta stirs up the angry mob by claiming Abigail is a “New Orleans Voodoo Witch”.
- But Now I Must Go: Under the impression that this was the last time he would see Abigail, Sam desperately has one last conversation with her before leaping:Sam: I don't have a lot of time.Abigail: What are you talking about?Sam: I love you. No matter what happens or whatever I say in the future, just know that in this brief moment of time we belong to each other. Please know that.
- Explain, Explain... Oh, Crap!: After leaving Abigail's, Sam reflects on what he remembers of the previous leap. When he talks about the fire in the attic, he realizes that leaping saved his life but sent Sheriff Fuller to his death.
- Foreshadowing:
- When Sam visits Laura at the hospital for the second time, her head and arm are wrapped in bandages. The reason why isn't revealed until the final part.
- The circumstances of what went on between Sam and Abigail prior to the lynch mob breaking in only become important in the next episode.Al: Sam, you're not stuttering.Sam: (in pain; climbing to his feet) As soon as I touched Abigail, Al, it was me. There was nothing left of Will... Just... me and Abigail.
- Larry Stanton's only major scene in this episode sees him try in vain to stop the lynch mob from killing Abigail, only to get knocked out in the process. No points for guessing who Sam leaps into next.
- Foregone Conclusion: With "Trilogy" being the multi-parter's main title, Abigail's problems surely weren't going to be over at the end of Part 2. Even more so that, when originally aired, both this and the final part of the trilogy aired the same night as a two-hour special.
- Gun Struggle: When it becomes clear that the mob is not going to lynch Abigail, Leta wrestles a rifle from someone in the mob and tries to shoot Abigail.
- Happily Adopted: In a sense: after her dad died in the fire, Abigail was raised by Marie.
- Here We Go Again!: The day of Abigail's wedding, Bo shows up to inform her that the child she had babysat, Pervis, had went missing... and she was the last one to see him. Meaning that yes, Abigail is once again on the hook for a missing child...
- Hope Spot:
- Larry Stanton intervenes to protect Abigail, only to get knocked out.
- About to leap out, Sam regrets leaving Abigail but is relieved she'll be safe. Then he leaps into Larry Stanton years after that, which means Abigail still needs help.
- Hotter and Sexier: This particular episode is the most intimate part of the trilogy, all things considered...
- Hypocritical Humor: Al says people are gonna think Sam's crazy if they see him talking to himself, which is how it usually seems whenever Sam talks to Al.Al: To whom are you talking? People are gonna think you're cuckoo walking around like this!
- In Spite of a Nail: In Part 1, it was established that Abigail and her father died in the house fire in the original history. Here, it's confirmed that, despite ensuring Abigail got out, Sheriff Fuller still wound up dying in that fire.
- Just in Time: After Sam was knocked unconscious by the lynch mob, Abigail was mere moments away from being hung when Sam managed to wake up and catch up to the mob.
- Kids Are Cruel: The other children tease Pervis Takin because his parents own the town’s funeral parlor.
- Killed Offscreen: The fate of Sheriff Fuller from the previous episode; because Sam leapt out as the ceiling in the attic collapsed, Fuller was left to take the hit.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Sam's obsession with Abigail leads to him spending the night with her, instead of keeping watch to make sure that the lynch mob doesn't break in.
- The Oner: The scene where we follow Sam after he leaves Abigail's house, where he talks to himself about the previous leap and talks to Al about leaping back into Abigail's life, is all one shot. The cut occurs when Sam and Al walk down a different part of the street.
- Only Friend: Young Pervis thinks of Abigail as this. The other kids tease him (see above).
- Only Sane Man: Larry Stanton tries to talk some sense into the lynch mob and gets beaten up for his trouble.
- Precocious Crush: Pervis Takin, a child Abigail occasionally babysits, has a crush on her and is so upset about her impending marriage, he runs away from home.
- This Is Reality: Sam's obsession starts to complicate the leap as he feels that he shouldn't be allowed to leap out. When Al tries to remind him that his is part of his job, that he's a hero, Sam fires back that is still isn't fair. After all-Sam: Even heroes are human.
- Shaming the Mob: Larry Stanton tries and fails to do this. Sam tries a second time and manages to get through to everyone except Leta.
- She Is All Grown Up: Abigail is now 21 and gorgeous. Sam is smitten with her to the point of obsession.
- Speech Impediment: Sam develops one as a result of his mind merging with the leapee, Will Kinman.
- This Cannot Be!: Sam is stunned to be back in the same town and encountering the same people, if several years later.
- Villainous Breakdown: After Sam manages to calm the mob down, Leta steals a shotgun and attempts to kill Abigail. After she and Sam duck, and the gun is ripped out of her hands, Leta collapses to the ground and sobs.
- You Can See Me?: When Sam visits Laura once more, the following conversation happens:Laura: You're gonna keep her safe... Now. That's what you came back for, isn't it?Sam: (confused) What do you mean, why I "came back"?Al: (quietly) She knows you're not Will.Sam: How do you know that I'm-Laura: She really needs you.
- Your Princess Is in Another Castle!: Mere moments upon leaping into 1978 at the end, Sam quickly realizes with his fading memory that he has once again remained in Louisiana in order to help Abigail.
Marie: You better start believin' in bad luck, 'cause it sure believes in you.
