Oh, what a tangled web we weave
When first we practise to deceive!
—”Marmion,” by Walter Scott
Walter Scott’s poem is apt as Monday’s episode of Shoot the Messenger tightened frayed ends of stories and brought everything into focus for Mary, Simon and Daisy. “Strange Bedfellows,” written by Carol Hay (Murdoch Mysteries) intersected with the real-life controversy surrounding the late mayor of Toronto, Rob Ford. Like Ford, a video threatened to take down someone in high office; in this case it’s Sam Charles.
Simon uttered the phrase from “Marmion” as he and Daisy went old-school with photos and string, tying the relationships between Judge Reeves, Orlandio, Sam Charles, Glen McAllister, Khaalid and Eric Lawson together into a sordid stew consisting of a super jail, government funds, sex, power, corruption … and a young lad named Harry that Daisy and Lutz were both hot to hunt down.
Harry and Khaalid, it seems, were a couple and the former went missing the same day the latter was killed. Clearly, there was a connection and Daisy aimed to find it. Thing is, Lutz had sniffed out the same information; the two converged on Harry’s home at the same time and learned (from the gardener) that Harry is in rehab. After driving there, Daisy decided to take Anthony’s advice and told Lutz about her drug-fueled past. He was certainly shocked but didn’t recoil from her. In fact, he was downright understanding and even gave her a peck on the cheek at the hotel. Good on both of them for not sullying their tentative partnership by hopping into bed.
Daisy, Mary and Simon figured out what viewers have already been largely privy to: Sam is standing in the way of Lawson’s super-jail being built and Lawson is feeling the economic squeeze. Everyone wants to get their hands on the Sam-Khaalid video Hassan has, and Hassan wants $50,000 from Daisy to hand the video over to the newspaper.
And though “Strange Bedfellows” didn’t reveal anything as shocking as two weeks ago, it did advance the plot and continue the momentum into Shoot the Messenger‘s final three episodes.
Shoot the Messenger airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on CBC.
