Season 2, Episode 4
Hard Cases
After five inmates end up dead due to the spiked drugs, Avon (through Levy) naturally offers "information" about what happened in exchange for getting his sentence reduced. The prison authorities don't like it, but they're forced to make the deal, and Tilghman gets arrested after drugs are found in his car. Also not happy about this is D'Angelo, since while Avon told him not to take any drugs that time, he didn't say why.
Both Bunk and Nathan press McNulty to find Omar. He has no success on his own, but when he happens to see Bubbles and Johnny after they've shoplifted, he presses Bubbles into service. Bubbles goes into a crack house to look for Omar and has no luck, but Kimmy happens to overhear him, and when Bubbles and Johnny come across some copper to steal one night, they're greeted by Omar and his shotgun ("Snitchin' Bubs. You be askin' for me?"). Meanwhile, McNulty is also trying to give a name to the floater he found, but has no luck.
Burrell manages to convince Daniels to take the detail, with Daniels insisting 1) if they make a case, the detail becomes a permanent one under the name "Major Crimes", and 2) he gets to choose his own people. Rawls approves everyone but McNulty, so Daniels convinces Kima, and Herc joins them as well. Though they recognize it might be nothing, Daniels at least is glad to be doing real police work again.
Frank hears about Nick and Ziggy stealing merchandise, and is not happy about it. He's even less happy when Beadie, Bunk and Lester visit the port and then the Clement Street bar, to let them know they're being investigated concerning the dead women.
This episode contains examples of:
- Back Story: Beadie reveals she used to be a toll operator, and the main reason she became a port officer was because she needed the money to take care of her kids after their father left her.
- Blatant Lies: McNulty telling Bunk he never "lost" Omar.
- Also, when Nick tells Aimee he now has money, he tells her he received back pay he was owed.
- Call-Back: When Levy asks for Avon's parole hearing date to be moved up as part of the deal, Reynolds brings up Kima getting shot.
- Valchek says he remembers how Daniels did Prez a good turn.
- McNulty signs the agreement Elena asked him to sign.
- Continuity Nod: Rawls still won't let McNulty out of the Marine unit.
- Stringer is still taking college classes; after Shamrock gives him the good news about Tilghman, Stringer says he has a midterm to study for, and dismisses him.
- The van Frank and his men stole from Valchek is now in New Orleans.
- Deadpan Snarker: Nick.Frank: Great view. Of the harbor, I mean.
Nick: It's fuckin' picturesque is what it is. Every morning, I ask myself, is today the day I drive down to Fort Armistead, stare out at the harbor? But no, I figure eventually, if I mind my own business, Uncle Frank will call and wake my ass up at seven in the goddamn morning, tell me to get my ass down there for some mysterious fucking reason. - Double Take: Rawls has a beaut of a double take when McNulty walks through Homicide and salutes him
. - The Dreaded: Omar, of course. None of the corner boys McNulty interrogates want to say anything about Omar, and even Bubbles would almost rather go to prison than look for him.
- Empty Cop Threat: Bunk and Freamon attempt to strong-arm Horseface, telling him they "have to" take him downtown to "sort some things out". However, Horseface immediately asks if he's under arrest, and if so, he will have to notify the union so they can send a lawyer to accompany him. Since Bunk and Freamon have no warrants and are just on a fishing expedition, they grumble and slink off.
- Failure Montage: Near the end of the episode, we see a montage (while classical music plays) of Kima and Daniels having a candlelit dinner with their respective significant others (Cheryl and Marla), and Cheryl and Marla both being so upset at the news of Kima and Daniels going back to the detail (we don't hear any dialogue, but it's implied that's what happens) that they both leave the table without finishing their dinner.
- Foreshadowing: The chemicals Glekas asks Nick to get become important later. Also, Maui becomes important, as does his feud with Ziggy.
- Framing the Guilty Party: What Avon ultimately has done to get Tilghman out of the way.
- Graceful Loser: Downplayed. Burrell is quick to laugh and concede to Daniels' demands when Daniels argues for choosing his own team for the career making-or-breaking detail, rather than get sent a bunch of humps.
- Hypocrite: When Nick realizes Frank knows about what he and Ziggy stole, Nick accuses Frank of this, pointing out he stole things off the crates back in the day; Frank responds they never had to worry about work back in the day.
- The Lad-ette: Kima proves she hasn't lost her street toughness when, against Cheryl's wishes, she pulls a drunken frat boy off of the SUV he's dancing on.
- Lethal Chef: Nick and his father Louis apparently consider Joan to be one, or at least when she makes tuna surprise; when Nick tells his father that's for dinner, Louis pretends to keel over.
- Married to the Job: Both Kima and Cedric are conscious Cheryl and Marla, respectively, see them as this.Kima: (after Daniels invites her to work on the detail) Shit, Lieutenant, I promised.
Daniels: You think my little woman's gonna give a great big cheer when she hears about it? I was out the damn door.
Kima: You don't know Cheryl.
Daniels: You don't know Marla.
Kima: (after Daniels offers her the desk job and she rejects it) I'll tell your wife if you tell mine. (they both chuckle) - Oh, Crap!: Bubbles when he realizes that the copper he was about to steal was actually bait from Omar.Omar: Snitchin' Bubs. You be askin' for me?
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Horseface.Bunk: How'd he get the name?
Beadie: You need a close-up? - Persona Non Grata: McNulty, as far as Rawls is concerned.Daniels: That bad, huh?
Rawls: He quits or he drowns. That's the only two things get him off the fucking boat, so help me God.
- Running Gag: Three guesses as to what picture Ziggy downloaded onto Maui's computer and two of them are wrong:
- Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Subverted: Daniels wants to do this (and had talked about doing it in earlier episodes), but when Burrell agrees to his conditions, he takes the detail.
- Slave to PR: The prison authorities are forced to strike a deal with Avon to uncover the source of the spiked drugs. The captain of the guard recognizes that Avon is behind the entire scheme in an attempt to reduce his sentence, but the D.O.C. Commissioner points out that they can only prosecute what they can make stick.
- True Companions: Herc asks Daniels if Carver can be part of the detail as well.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: Frank vomits in the sink when he realizes Homicide is investigating the dead women (and that they were murders, not accidental deaths). We only see his back and a little spittle on his chin.
