The Bridge - S1E11 - Take the Ride, Pay the Toll

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Previously, on The Bridge: “Old Friends”

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Tampa Ray

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We start this week’s episode with Tampa Ray disposing of Tampa Tim’s body via The Tunnel. Upon arrival at the criminal clubhouse Tampa Ray discovers the bodies of 3 people with gunshot wounds to the head. There is a blood trail in the floor. A fourth body. He spots a gold gun on the table loads the chamber, a chubby man reveals himself they both shoot, bullets ricochet. The other man is dead and Ray happy to not play the role of Swiss cheese. Being the criminal genius that he is, Ray drags Tim’s body into the room and places him directly across from our chubby friend, places the gun in Tim’s hand and shoots. That takes care of that. On his way out he picks up a package with scorpion label. Marijuana? Cocaine? Who knows but I’m sure Ray should have left it in the clubhouse.

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The Standoff

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Back in El Paso, night has fallen and David and Marco are making their way Cross The Bridge.  They are at the security checkpoint and David rehashing how his wife died instantly in the  the accident six years ago. David stops the car in the middle of The Bridge, approximately where his wife and sin were struck and killed.  Orders Marco out of the car. Marco is repeating his mantra: Why? And where is my son? David ignores his pleas and begins talking about how Caleb died. ” His ribs were crushed and he drowned in hi  own blood. He was alone in a cold place, waiting for me to save him”  David Takes off his members-only jacket and reveals a vest that is chock  full of explosives. Well damn, David is not fucking around.  Marco tells fellow travelers to clear The Bridge. David as a remote and hits a switch that turns off all the rights on the bride. The emergency lighting on The Bridge activates. And Marco is instructed to open the trunk. Out pops a bound and gagged DANIEL FRYE.

At the precinct Sonya’ s spidey-senses are tingling. She is washing her hands and popping pain killers, flashing back and forth between her current location and uncle George’s house. Wade is trying to persuade her to go back to the hospital and get property treated. But our dear Sonya is a pitbill she is not letting this go, she must find Gus. She recalls a copper pipe running across the ceiling I. The lines house. She tells Wade they need to go back to the house.

Simultaneously the call comes in that David is holding Daniel and Marco captive on The Bridge are on.  Wade sends Sonya and pornstache, I mean Tim to the house. Wade and Adriana head to The Bridge. Gus is shown struggling in the tank.

Marco, Daniel and David are understandably tense.  David has engaged the vest and moved himself, Daniel and Marco out if range of the arriving El Paso SWAT team. David tells Marco that Daniel helped cover up the accident. He uses Daniel as an example to what ails Juarez, the drugs, the violence, the prostitution.  He orders Marco to shoot Daniel. Shoot the problem.

Marco insists: I’m not like you! David with an eerie sense of calm: You will be like me before this is over.

The desperation in Marco’s voice is heartbreaking and he is visibly torn between wanting to believe that David will tell him where to find Gus and that he will be found alive and the moral struggle with making Daniel in cold blood to get this information. Marco throws the gun at an unsuspecting David, who turns and shoots Daniel.

Sonya and the team are retracing their steps and trying to follow the plumbing that may lead then to a suffering Gus. They find themselves back in the garage with the deep freezer. Sonya hears water running, then finds new plaster dust. There is false wall. Tim shows up like Thor and breaks down the wall with a suspiciously convenient sledgehammer. They find and open the rapidly filling basin. We get a POV from inside the tank as Sonya reaches into the tank screaming Gus’ name.

David has removed his vest and is begging for the snipers to shoot him on The Bridge. Marco is asking about Gus and insisting he and David aren’t the same man. Sonya shows up at The Bridge. David sees Sonya running towards them, looks at his watch and tells Marco that Gus is dead. Sonya can be heard calling Marcos name!  Distraught and confuse and armed, he asks Sonya repeatedly if his in is alive. She answers yes. You can hear Marco losing faith after each retort. David calls her a liar. Marco asks for the truth: “IS HE ALIVE?” Sonya is silent. Marco aims the gun at David. Sonya shoots Marco then David.

There is silence as everything slows down. Sonya cradles a wounded and devastated Marco. David is detained and handcuffed.  Gus’ body is being sealed in a body bag.

The next day Sonya visits Marco at the hospital, she brings him a bag of clothes. Marco wants no part of her and her friendship. He is heartbroken and dismisses her in English and Spanish. Even in Sonya’s stoic face you can see that sting. Adriana visits a gravely injured Daniel, who miraculously managed to survive the fall.

Marco dresses and visits his son in the morgue. It’s the first time we hear his full name Gustavo Ruiz.  Marco places on hand in his heart and the other on his son’s, he says a silent goodbye. Marco departs the hospital and walks into the horizon.

I’ve gone back and fourth about how I feel about this episode. It was better than the last 2 but it’s still not quite hitting the marks. There is an emotional aspect to this show that is lost because of lack of character development. There wasn’t enough of an emotional connection for me to be but so broken up about Gus’ death. Diane Kruger gave a very convincing performance tonight, but there was something too over the top about most of the other performances. With two episodes remaining I am not sure they can turn it around.