Speaker 0: 0:18

Welcome to Steel Watching, which is a podcast for Remington Steel fans. My name is Sarah, and I think so and so did it. I don't know. There's just a lot of that in this episode. Well,

Speaker 1: 0:31

I'm Eric, and I'm here to see Madam about the position of cohost.

Speaker 0: 0:36

Yeah. No. Sorry. The position's been filled.

Speaker 1: 0:40

Good. Lucky escape for me. Not

Speaker 0: 0:45

too much for poor Steele. Yes.

Speaker 1: 0:47

Anyway

Speaker 0: 0:48

And on that note, we are going to be talking about season 4 episode 18, Steele at Your Service. Before we do that though, was there stuff we needed to

Speaker 1: 0:57

Oh, yes.

Speaker 0: 0:59

I thought so.

Speaker 1: 0:59

Yes. 2 things, and we'll take them in in order of how the episodes appeared in the series.

Speaker 0: 1:05

K.

Speaker 1: 1:07

Start with coffee, tea, or steel.

Speaker 0: 1:09

Keeps going You back to

Speaker 1: 1:11

will remember that in that episode, Buff, sorry, Biff, let himself into Laura's hotel room and had gotten a key from the clerk. And we talked about how that would be a bad policy and how no reasonable hotelier would ever allow anything like that.

Speaker 0: 1:31

I think I know where you're going with this.

Speaker 1: 1:33

I think we gave people too much credit for intelligence because Yep. This just came across my desk here this week.

Speaker 0: 1:40

Let me let me guess. Travel Lodge?

Speaker 1: 1:43

Yes. Yes.

Speaker 0: 1:47

I know exactly what you're about to say.

Speaker 1: 1:51

Now so for anyone who isn't familiar with this story, out of Maidenhead, England, there was a 2022 sexual assault case that occurred at a travel lodge hotel. And, of course, it's garnering renewed scrutiny following the sentencing of the perpetrator. The the the perpetrator gained access to the victim's hotel room via hotel staff giving him a room key.

Speaker 0: 2:16

Yep.

Speaker 1: 2:17

He was sentenced to 7 and a half years in prison for the rape of a woman staying in a Travelodge hotel. And according to authorities, he had approached the hotel staff during an early morning hours of the incident claiming that he was the victim's boyfriend and requested a key to the room, which apparently is all you had to do to satisfy the hotel's security check to obtain a hotel room.

Speaker 0: 2:44

It's a horrible story.

Speaker 1: 2:46

Yeah. You know? They they do say that they've changed their company policy to make sure that only the person who's actually the the person who rented the room can give authorization. Of course, they don't say how they're going to verify that information. Presumably, they would ask for ID. But since they don't say that, given their past track record, you can't necessarily assume And also,

Speaker 0: 3:14

when does common sense have to be made policy?

Speaker 1: 3:16

Oh, no. No. No. Don't start bringing common sense into it. But, I mean, seriously, wouldn't it

Speaker 0: 3:24

be common sense to if a if a man comes up or a woman or anybody, frankly, comes up and says, hi, I'd like a key for so and so's hotel room, and they are not so and so, for you to say, I can't give you that, sir or madam, but I can give you give them the message that you were here and and that, like

Speaker 1: 3:44

What part what part of stop applying common sense do you not understand?

Speaker 0: 3:49

Well, and and here's the thing. Okay? And this is my own personal issue with that particular hotel chain because Travelodge I've never stated it at Travelodge, but Travelodge is owned by Wyndham Hotels, the chain that owns like Days Inn and a bunch of others. And let's just say common sense seems to be lacking across the board when it comes to their hotels, because a couple of years ago, we booked a Days Inn in Guelph to attend a

Speaker 1: 4:16

In in what? Guelph. Guelph, Ontario. It's a Is is a disease? No. It's a it's

Speaker 0: 4:24

a it's a lovely quaint little town that has a very nice university, and you can just shush. But anyways so they're in a neighboring town called Fergus, they always have a Highland Games and Festival every August. And and because it's so, like, popular, it's 1 of the biggest Highland Games in North America, you can never get a hotel in Fergus. You always have to get 1, like, in, like, neighboring towns. We got a hotel in Guelph. Okay? And this is booked months ahead. Like we booked this, God, it was April or May for August. Right? So we were like ahead of the game or so we thought. Come the day for us to the day of. Okay? We are about to get in the car. It's 2 hour drive. I'm looking up the address on the internet to like put it in the GPS. Right? Mhmm. I look up the address for the hotel. The website comes up, hotel closed. I'm like, what? What now? So I try calling the hotel. And I am told by the person who answers that the hotel closed a month ago and is being converted into student housing. I'm like, cool. We had reservations to stay there today. We didn't get any no no no email, nothing. No phone call. Nothing to let

Speaker 1: 5:38

us And they didn't transfer your reservation to another hotel, did they?

Speaker 0: 5:42

No. No. And so when I like, the guy was like, well, you'll have to call corporate. So I'm like, cool. I'm gonna do that because they're Like, this festival is booked months in advance. Like, we did get very lucky and they had a last minute cancellation out of Delta somewhere nearby. But I call the corporate office and I give them this know, I tell them the story and they said, Well, some of our franchises are purchased individually and therefore, even though they carry our corporate name, don't fall under our corporate banner. So what they do doesn't really reflect us. But you can have a 10% discount on your next day. And I'm like, I'm not staying at your hotel again. Bold of you to think that I'm ever going to do this again. Like, I'm sorry. That is the worst passing of the buck I have ever heard in my life.

Speaker 1: 6:25

Just because just because they were a franchise doesn't mean that the corporate doesn't have any any control and rules over them because part of the franchise agreement is that you agree to abide by certain standards of behavior. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 6:42

So that that

Speaker 1: 6:42

Which is 1 of the reasons why franchises lose their franchise.

Speaker 0: 6:46

Yeah. Or why they decide to become student housing apparently because, like but after that, I'm like, we're never I am never staying in a Wyndham owned property again. Like that, I won't do it. So when I saw that story and I was like, I I didn't know if Travelodge was 1 of their hotels, but so I looked it up and I'm like, Well, that makes sense. That makes sense.

Speaker 1: 7:06

Yes. So anyway That's horrible. Too much credit for intelligence. Next point is stealing the spotlight. And you remember we were talking about how Dennis, the cameraman, told Laura that next time don't wear whites or narrow stripes. It looks bad on And we discussed it and it popped into my head as we were talking about it. And then apparently, the conversation went elsewhere and I forgot to check my brain and and pull it back out because I knew the I knew what the deal was, but I just forgot to say. Because you were talking about how, you know, they have Stephanie and White regularly on the show and

Speaker 0: 7:45

it

Speaker 1: 7:45

was The difference is that Remington Steele is filmed and LA spotlight

Speaker 0: 7:52

Is

Speaker 1: 7:52

like video. Gotcha. And especially back in the eighties and even somewhat now, although the video technology has improved dramatically to the point where a lot of TV shows and movies are actually shot on video now, not on film.

Speaker 0: 8:08

Right.

Speaker 1: 8:09

But back then, the quality of the the video systems were such that whites would just blow out and all you'd see is this white blob. And stripes would would and even now, you still get some where the stripes will kinda strobe.

Speaker 0: 8:29

Yes. I have seen that.

Speaker 1: 8:30

And that's a video of And so that's that's why Dennis would have been telling her to do these things and why we don't see that as a problem when we're watching the episodes. Yeah. So.

Speaker 0: 8:41

That makes sense.

Speaker 1: 8:42

I knew it. I just forgot

Speaker 0: 8:43

to go

Speaker 1: 8:45

back to it. So my bad. Alrighty.

Speaker 0: 8:48

Are we is that is that all we had to

Speaker 1: 8:51

Yeah. Yeah. Remember?

Speaker 0: 8:53

I don't remember. I don't remember. Okay. So we are gonna like I said, we're gonna be talking about season 4 episode 18, Steele At Your Service, which first aired on 03/15/1986, was written by Lee H. Grant and directed by Rocky Lang. And Lee H. Grant sounds familiar maybe, but Rocky Lang, I'm I don't I think I would recognize that name if we'd heard it before in terms of, like, episode directors. So that's kind of interesting.

Speaker 1: 9:23

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 9:24

Let's see. I went with I have both the TV guide listing and the DVD liner note.

Speaker 1: 9:31

Okay. I'm

Speaker 0: 9:31

trying to remember why.

Speaker 1: 9:33

I sometimes do this. I'm like, why did I do this? But you Oh. You're you're not old enough to have memory problems.

Speaker 0: 9:39

Yeah. Well, sometimes. Anyways, I think I did it because I liked the DVD liner note, but I kinda wanted to criticize the TV Guide listing a little bit because it's a bit over the top. So the TV Guide listing is still becomes a butler to the soap opera ish Wellington's, 1 of whom is suspected of murdering the previous manservant who was threatening to sell his memoirs and expose the family skeletons. Manservant sounds Well, I It sounds like it's a different episode. I realize that is a term that gets used, but why not use Butler? That's what he is. Well,

Speaker 1: 10:19

it's I guess because they wanted to appear appear, you know, snooty. We don't have a butler. We have a Okay. Man

Speaker 0: 10:29

Well, sure. And the DVD liner note, Remington goes undercover as the butler of a wealthy family hiding dark secrets. His predecessor appears to have been murdered, and this time the butler didn't do it. So I like that little thing on the end because yeah. It's a common trope that we see in in mystery, we've seen it once already with it was my fair Steele, wasn't it? Where the butler was responsible?

Speaker 1: 10:55

Yes.

Speaker 0: 10:56

Yeah. So yeah. This time, the butler didn't do it. Totally fine. According to the notes, the house used in the episode was the Arden Mansion in Pasadena, California, which was also used as the Carlton Hotel in Dynasty. And unfortunately, the mansion was destroyed in a fire. I never watched Dynasty. I was a little too young for Dynasty at the time. And then looking back on it, it just isn't really something that would interest me. So No. I never never watched it. But that is a beautiful home, And I can see how it would have lent itself really well to a soap opera. Like that kind of soap opera would have done a really and it kinda reminded me a little bit of there was a school, a private international school for like girls that It was like a prep school. Prep

Speaker 1: 12:01

That I'm not sure sounds what it so sexist.

Speaker 0: 12:02

It was very, very upper class. And you had to have a lot of money to go there in the town that I went to high school. And this was like the cream of the crop, sent their their daughters to the school back in the day. Mhmm. And they'd eventually closed in the late eighties, early nineties, and then it sat vacant for years. And it was the site Actually, they used it for a lot of filming locations. There was even a movie that was filmed there while I was in high school called Mr. Headmistress with, what's her face from, Married with Children? Peggy. I can't remember her name, the actress's name. But yeah, she was in it. It So yeah, it was a filming location. And then eventually it was slated to be demolished, but people were furious about this because it was a gorgeous old building, had a lot of history, and it was argued that it should be preserved as a historical monument and, you know, redone and restored, etcetera. And then unfortunately somebody set fire to it and it burned down.

Speaker 1: 12:59

So You think maybe

Speaker 0: 13:00

it was

Speaker 1: 13:00

the person who owned the property who wanted to redevelop it?

Speaker 0: 13:03

No. Actually, it was a bunch of idiot teenagers that went to the same high school I did. Oh, okay. Yeah. Alma College was what it was called. But, like, if you've seen the pictures of it, it's just a gorgeous building. It kinda reminded me of this house or this estate. The other note in here is that this is Sab Shimono's second appearance. His first was in near Steele, the 1 for me. And, yeah, he plays Kuromatsu in this episode. The other thing I wanted to say, the actor who plays Albert, did you recognize him?

Speaker 1: 13:30

I did, but I couldn't tell you from who.

Speaker 0: 13:32

Yeah. It took me a minute. I had to I had to go through IMDB and like scroll down and find it. But he play because he's a character actor. He's been in everything under the sun. So he's 1 of those guys. He's hey. It's that guy. Right? But if you watched Castle, you'd recognize him as Doctor. Perlmutter. The I think he was the Autopsy

Speaker 1: 13:54

The yeah. The Yeah. ME.

Speaker 0: 13:58

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 13:59

1 of the Emmys.

Speaker 0: 14:00

Yeah. So much older, obviously, at that point.

Speaker 1: 14:02

That was him?

Speaker 0: 14:03

Same guy. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 14:06

You're kidding. No.

Speaker 0: 14:07

I'm kidding. You're not kidding. Because it was it took me a second. When I figured it out, I was like, oh, yeah. That is him. It fills in the blanks, and you're like, yeah. He just has a lot more hair here. But it's definitely

Speaker 1: 14:19

I love Pearl Mutter. He was Pearl so Mutter. Sarcastic and Right? Vince. Was offended about everything.

Speaker 0: 14:25

Yeah. And that's why when I figured that out, was like, oh, if Eric doesn't already know this, he's gonna love this fact. Oh, nice. Yeah. That's who he is. It was driving me nuts as I watched this episode, and I had to figure it out. I was like, I recognize that guy.

Speaker 1: 14:36

I love that. I love that.

Speaker 0: 14:39

So, yeah. That's who he is. So this episode is kind of fun. It it it opens on this front gate at night, and we see in the background, there's this huge mansion estate. And slowly the camera moves closer to the gate and eventually the house. We see a fountain and behind it, this window, the light's still on. The camera continues to zoom in on the window. And then we cut to the inside of the dining room, which we see this scene over and over and over again. You kinda have to wonder because I know for a fact in hearing other podcasts and actors talk about, like, how things are filmed, that they often do, like, numerous takes on a on a scene, not because somebody's getting it wrong, but because they have shoot from different angles to get different coverage of different people. Right? And so that would be par for the course anyway. But you have to wonder how much of those takes were used again in the flashback shots to focus on different characters because they'd already gotten their coverage versus how many more extra takes they would have had to do to do this scene over and over and over again.

Speaker 1: 15:42

Well, you know, the way they shoot a show is that, for example, this set here at the dining room table, they're gonna go through all the script and find all the scenes that take place at this dining table and shoot them all together at the same time.

Speaker 0: 15:55

Oh, for sure. Yeah. That'll

Speaker 1: 15:56

be Just 1 right after the other.

Speaker 0: 15:58

1 day of shooting. But at the same time, like, if they've already got that coverage, they might not have to shoot that extra take simply because, okay, we're gonna focus on Harold here, but we've already

Speaker 1: 16:07

Or they got they generally, I would think, would go ahead and shoot the extra take.

Speaker 0: 16:13

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 16:13

And then the editors would go in and say, I don't like that take. I like this 1 from earlier. And, you know, where where it's just a close-up of them, like, going from person to person to person as as a reaction shot. They can pull those out from different places. And and from what I understand, editors commonly do commonly do edit stuff differently than what the script was. For example Oh,

Speaker 0: 16:38

for sure.

Speaker 1: 16:38

I remember that there was a discussion of an episode in in The Office, I believe it was, where the editors actually went in and switched some things around and and made the episode stronger than it was when it was written in shot.

Speaker 0: 16:54

Yeah. So it I would just love to I would have loved to been a fly on the wall for this 1. The whole thing. Because it's it's such a It's a a very It's a classic mystery in the sense that it's your very classic, like, cozy mystery, locked door, almost a bottle episode, but not quite because we do have some stuff outside the mansion and whatnot. But, like, it just has this feeling of an Agatha Christie novel. So we get this

Speaker 1: 17:20

I've got a different comparison, which I'll bring up at an appropriate place.

Speaker 0: 17:23

Intriguing. Alright. So we got this dining room where the family is seated around this huge table. And, of course, Charles Wellington, chairman of the board of Wellington Oil sits at the head of the table. And he is declaring that Wellington Petroleum will not be taken over by anyone. 1 of the younger men is his son Harold, who tells him that if they mention his name on Wall Street, everybody laughs. He's very, like, insulting towards his father, basically kinda telling him, you're you're past your prime. You're no longer in charge. Then his wife, Catherine, admonishes her son and tells him that's no way to speak to his father. And then, of course, his younger brother, Albert, who is a total kiss ass, tells Harold that you shouldn't talk to father that way. He is still chairman of the board. Yep. Right up right up there. Harold says that I have a question for you before

Speaker 1: 18:14

What?

Speaker 0: 18:14

This might be just random just because of the noises you were making, but what term did you guys use for people that kissed up to the teachers? Was there a term that what was

Speaker 1: 18:24

it? Kiss asterisk.

Speaker 0: 18:27

Okay. Okay. My husband said that in Britain, they called them they used to call them a swat. I don't know why. I'm not really sure where it comes from, but we would use the word browner.

Speaker 1: 18:37

Brown nose?

Speaker 0: 18:38

Yeah. It was just like taking brown nose and then shortening it to browner. So if you did that, you were a browner. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 18:45

Brown nose is a is a term I've heard used too, usually it's kiss ass.

Speaker 0: 18:49

Fair enough. Okay. So there's there's there is how you use those terms through the generations from boomer to gen x to millennial. There we are. So, yeah. Harold says that yeah. Suck up's another 1. Yep. Harold says that's right and calls Albert a nerd to which his brother says, do you hear that hostility? He assures his father that he will never vote to sell the family holdings like Harold. And turns to Cindy, who is his wife, we later find out, and says, right, honey? She tells Albert, sometimes he makes her wanna puke. And I gotta say, same.

Speaker 1: 19:24

Well and and, of course, her her response the verbiage of her response is just so offensive to these people.

Speaker 0: 19:36

Right? She's yeah. Yeah. Well, because they're I

Speaker 1: 19:41

mean, they would say the same thing. They would just say it in a classy way.

Speaker 0: 19:44

Oh, for sure. Yeah. With a pseudo British accent, which isn't really British, but kinda sounds like it could be, you know. Like, Charles, he speaks with this accent that sort of sounds like he could be British, but it's not quite British.

Speaker 1: 19:54

But but they would never say anything so crass is pure.

Speaker 0: 19:58

Of course not. No. Then we have a very well endowed Latino woman in a low cut French made outfit. I'm sorry. Was that outfit necessary for her job? Or was it

Speaker 1: 20:10

Apparently, it was. I gotta think that you

Speaker 0: 20:14

could probably do your job in a little more coverage, but hey, you know. She bends down to take Charles's glass, and he, of course, takes that opportunity to look at her ample cleavage, a little too obviously, because Catherine sharply asks Maria for more coffly. Coffee. Sorry, not coff. Coughly. It's a new drink. She smiles oblivious and says, yes, madam. Then we have Hastings, the butler. He enters, and he and the maid exchange a private look. He approaches mister Wellington and tells him that he has a phone call, which, of course, this is the the chain of events that we will see repeated in various flash connects. Wellington thanks Hastings and reads the note that is handed to him. He stands up saying he's gonna take the call in the parlor and ask someone to draw his bath. This is, again, this is rich people crap. You can't do your own bath. You turn a knob and the water comes out. It's not hard.

Speaker 1: 21:07

Yeah. Well, there there's a couple of things with this. First of all, yes, I I agree. I even have it in my notes. Try your own bath, you lazy sod. But, you know, this whole thing about Wellington Petroleum and I'm not gonna sell my shares and blah blah blah. You know, ignoring the reality of a situation doesn't make it go away.

Speaker 0: 21:28

No. It does not.

Speaker 1: 21:30

And so this whole exchange here about the the shares of the company, I'm sorry, but if the company needs to be sold and somebody else taking charge, do it. I mean, it's either that or go down with the ship. You know? So

Speaker 0: 21:46

Yeah. But that's where you get the the pride and the whatever. Like, I'm not going to sell company. I am that company. It can't survive without me.

Speaker 1: 21:53

Yeah. But he can't draw his own bath.

Speaker 0: 21:55

Yeah. Exactly. He's not he's not capable of turning the knobs. It's always a little too hot or a little too cold. That's right. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 22:04

Concept of balancing hot and cold to get it just the right temperature, that's beyond him. But he can run a multimillion dollar company. Well,

Speaker 0: 22:13

yeah. Logic. So Then he looks sternly at his family and says a few says something along the lines of, if you malcontents can behave, I'll say goodnight. In his bedroom, we see Charles in his bathrobe getting ready to get into the bath. Catherine storms in furious. She doesn't buy the phone call excuse and accuses him of meeting with Maria. He tries to placate her, but she is not having it. She tells him

Speaker 1: 22:36

to I I thought I thought that these upper crust people considered extramarital affairs a normal thing to be not only tolerated,

Speaker 0: 22:48

but expected. Talk. She's she's meeting up at the chauffeur. She's got, like,

Speaker 1: 22:54

Harold. But see, that's different.

Speaker 0: 22:57

Like, okay for me, not for thee. Is that the the logic there? Because like

Speaker 1: 23:03

Apparently. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 23:04

She's the 1 that actually had a kid with the chauffeur. Harold's not there not Charles' son, like

Speaker 1: 23:12

we're not there yet, but yeah. Yeah, I know.

Speaker 0: 23:13

It's a little rich though, to hear her accusing him of playing around with the maid when she's doing the same damn thing. Like, Mhmm. That kind of hypocrisy drives me up the wall. Maybe it was just because he was so obvious about it. Who knows?

Speaker 1: 23:26

Could

Speaker 0: 23:26

Either way. It it doesn't like, you don't get to do that, and then Yeah. She tells him to drop the act, and he and she accuses him of not being able to perform for her. But with the chamber maid, she trails off as she follows him into the room with a huge Jacuzzi. Again, is that why she's playing around? It's not a very good excuse. Like, that's that's crappy. That's she's just a crappy. That's a crappy thing to do. He expresses frustration about not being able to take a bath without her causing a major scene. And he looks at the the tub and something about the jacuzzi seems off. He leans down and in shock pulls out an arm attached to the butler, Hastings, who seems to have died in the tub. He exclaims, Hastings. And like in a game of Clue, Catherine adds, in the bathtub.

Speaker 1: 24:17

Well, you know, his attitude seems to be more about being offended that he was in their tub than by the fact that he Right? How dare

Speaker 0: 24:27

this common person be in my tub?

Speaker 1: 24:30

And since you brought it up, I'll mention it. I was gonna save it for the end because the end especially was. But this movie or this episode has a very Clue like feel to it to me. The the movie I

Speaker 0: 24:44

feel like Clue. Yeah. Yeah. The

Speaker 1: 24:46

movie And especially at the end. At But the

Speaker 0: 24:50

I so did you know that they because they filmed those 3 different endings. Right?

Speaker 1: 24:55

Yes.

Speaker 0: 24:55

And when they released the film, they played 3 different different Yeah. And it was obviously so that they could get people to go and see it more than once because Mhmm. If you saw it in 1 theater and a different theater played a different ending, you would go and so, yeah. It was a good But

Speaker 1: 25:09

but they did the DVD with all 3 endings, which I thought was brilliant. Brilliant. That was great. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 25:17

So It good. And it was 1985. It came out a year before this episode would have aired. So this might have been in their head when they made this episode.

Speaker 1: 25:25

I was thinking that same thing because it is very

Speaker 0: 25:28

It does.

Speaker 1: 25:29

It has very much a feel of of the movie Clue.

Speaker 0: 25:32

It feels yeah. It has a zany feeling, like, kind of, like, zany quality to it. It's a shame they couldn't get Tim Curry to play Hastings or something. That would have been hilarious. But alas, he's he was probably at that point too famous even then, but who knows? So, yeah, we get a change of scenery and it's daytime. And in the limo, we see Laura and Steele driving up to the estate. Steele is excited. He extols the virtues of conspicuous consumption and says, willing to reek of the sweet smell of success. I do like the the juxtaposition of reeking of the sweet smell of success. That's that's a nice little turn of phrase there. Laura, so sounding utterly uninterested, says, I suppose, Steele, not even noticing her disinterest, says, he wonders what the appointment is all about. He speculates that it's some multimillion dollar problem that Wellington Petroleum wants handled discreetly. He's positively gleeful as he calls it a feather in their cap. And again, Laura says, I suppose. And Steele sarcastically tells her to contain her excitement. She admits that she wasn't she was thinking of her college days. Yes. What about them? She says, tear gas. He looks confused and says, oh, yes. Of course.

Speaker 1: 26:45

And then she tells him it was

Speaker 0: 26:46

courtesy of Wellington Petroleum. She explains that a group of them had joined hands to protest an offshore oil spill that they had caused and that Charles Wellington had them gassed and arrested. Okay.

Speaker 1: 26:59

Can I

Speaker 0: 26:59

Go Laura? Go Laura. Well Get down with your bad self.

Speaker 1: 27:05

I mean, here she is complaining that and she goes on to say that that William Petroleum thinks that they're above the law. But her complaint is that while breaking the law, she suffered the consequences of breaking the law.

Speaker 0: 27:21

I don't think protesting is not against the law, is it?

Speaker 1: 27:24

It is if you're on private property And

Speaker 0: 27:27

Well, she doesn't necessarily say that she they were. They could have been protesting outside the office the company office or something.

Speaker 1: 27:33

Well, it would still be on the property. And unless it was out in the street, in which case, Wellington wouldn't have been able to to to have them gassed. The the way this would have happened would have been that they were on the private property. They may have been on the street side of the property, but they were on the legal property blocking access to the the facility. And he said, fine. You know, douse you with tear gas. So, I mean, she's she's complaining about people being above the law and yet by being out there protesting, whether she had a valid reason to be upset, you know, the the cause of the protest is is not the point here. The point is she was I'm above the law. I shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of my illegal action because you are a bad person.

Speaker 0: 28:25

I think it's more along the lines of the fact that she's commenting on how people with money can pretty much like, if she were arrested and there was like, oh, we have a comment, apparently.

Speaker 1: 28:38

Oh, we do. Yes. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 28:40

Yay.

Speaker 1: 28:41

I don't think private companies are off authorized to use tear gas. Maybe. But, you know. Well,

Speaker 0: 28:49

now

Speaker 1: 28:49

wait a minute. Wait a minute. Pepper spray? Where

Speaker 0: 28:52

is it We're

Speaker 1: 28:53

allowed to use pepper spray.

Speaker 0: 28:54

Not in Canada. Well, you

Speaker 1: 28:57

guys are weird. That's But it's not like Yeah. Use pepper spray. Pepper spray is just basically a form of tear gas. So

Speaker 0: 29:05

Could be different in The US. I don't know. But, yeah, pepper spray is not not Yeah. Not a legal thing to carry But I will say, like, I think

Speaker 1: 29:12

too I more

Speaker 0: 29:13

common to if you're camping, you can carry it, but it's not it's not legal to carry for self defense, like, against a person.

Speaker 1: 29:21

Oh, because you're not important enough to defend yourself.

Speaker 0: 29:24

No. Apparently not.

Speaker 1: 29:26

But If you die, that's that's fine. We don't have a problem with it. Just don't use bear spray. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 29:30

I think what she was talking about was more along the lines of how people with money can get out of things far easier than people without because like, if you get arrested

Speaker 1: 29:39

Oh, yeah. I know.

Speaker 0: 29:39

And for protesting, right? Bail might be more than you can pay because you probably aren't or might not have a big high paying job. Whereas if you are arrested and you're a multimillionaire and you own an oil company, that bail is going to be next to nothing. Your lawyers are going to be able to handle it. You won't even feel the Even if you have to pay a settlement, it's not going to ding you. So I think it's more along the lines of how she was kind of commenting on how they could do this oil spill and get away with it and still continue to operate.

Speaker 1: 30:08

Yeah. I'm just find it interesting that she complains about suffering the consequences of her illegal action while complaining about somebody else not suffering the consequences of their illegal action. But, you know, anyway.

Speaker 0: 30:23

Fair enough. So then, where am I?

Speaker 1: 30:29

Dry hands refinery protest.

Speaker 0: 30:31

Yes. Okay. Yes. Steel says, oh, come on now. That was an obligatory part of the curriculum like college, wasn't it? I like that comment because we do know that Laura was in like, that she in what was it called? That episode where Steel

Speaker 1: 30:45

Crazy After

Speaker 0: 30:46

All These Years. Yeah. Steel Crazy After All These Years that she was involved in activism and would have attended these types of protests. Like, this was this is established part of her character. So it's not

Speaker 1: 30:59

We we have another comment. Oh. If Wellington was any kind of muggle, he would have released the hounds.

Speaker 0: 31:03

Exactly. I I think of the Smithers and release Smithers released the hounds. True. But, yeah, we know that this is the kind of thing that Laura was involved with. So it's it's funny in 2 respects. It's funny because this tracks for her character and Steels' response. So if it's an obligatory part of the curriculum in college. Well, I

Speaker 1: 31:25

mean, it's it's it's the same thing about people, you know, or stereotypically, you go to college and you spend 4 years drunk, basically. Yeah. I mean,

Speaker 0: 31:42

he's not wrong.

Speaker 1: 31:44

Anyway But that's part of college, you know? You just

Speaker 0: 31:47

go out

Speaker 1: 31:47

and party all the time.

Speaker 0: 31:48

Yeah. There was 1 night we went out to pub, and we literally drank them dry. Like, they ran out of beer.

Speaker 1: 31:58

Must have been really close to closing time or something. I doubt you drank them out of beer. We did actually. No.

Speaker 0: 32:07

No. No. We did. But to be fair, it was the entire department. We all went out together, so it was a lot of people. It wasn't just, like, 3 or 4 people. It was, like yeah. They ran out. Their kegs were totally tapped. So

Speaker 1: 32:18

Tapped. Yeah. Funny joke.

Speaker 0: 32:21

We see the limo pull up, and Steele gets out and walks around the car to join Laura. She declares Wellington Petroleum an irresponsible polluting colossus. Steele protests that it was 1 oil spill and anyone can make a mistake. Laura, not willing to be so forgiving, says that they think they're above the law, she said. Steele urges her not to let petty grievances interfere with business. They walk up to the door and ring the bell. A woman answers, and as Steele starts to introduce himself, she hastily says around the back and shuts the door in his face. Confused, they begin to walk around the estate. Steele reasons it's a glorious day, and Willington may be doing some paperwork by the poolside. When they reach the pool, he's nowhere to be seen. And that is an awfully tiny pool for an estate that size. I just thought that was It's just that usually when you see like mansions that huge, they have these sprawling pools

Speaker 1: 33:14

and Maybe this is for the help. This is the pool for the help.

Speaker 0: 33:18

This is the servants pool?

Speaker 1: 33:19

Yes. You get the tiny 1. We got the big 1 out on the other side.

Speaker 0: 33:25

My parents had a pool, an in ground pool in there in our backyard, and it was roughly around the same size. Like, this 1 wasn't too much bigger than the pool they had, and and they were not like the Wellingtons. Yeah. Not the same thing. So I just thought it was interesting because it is this is an actual location. So that is the actual pool theoretically. Oh. Well I said theoretically.

Speaker 1: 33:46

Yeah. I mean, that doesn't necessarily have to be the same location, but, you would presume so. But again, you know, how do you how how if if somebody had that kind of money and they had a live in staff

Speaker 0: 34:03

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 34:05

Yeah. I can see them having a small pool for the live in staff because, I mean, after all, you don't want them getting into the main pool and and I mean

Speaker 0: 34:12

Contaminating that with

Speaker 1: 34:14

your with your

Speaker 0: 34:15

servant cooties. Is that what you're saying?

Speaker 1: 34:16

That's right. Pull it to water. We'd have to drain it after every time you got out.

Speaker 0: 34:22

Yeah. That's true. That's yeah. Laura suggests, though, as they continue to wander the grounds that he might be in the game room stuffing a seagull, which is just funny. Like, that image is just funny. Why anybody would wanna stuff a seagull is anyone's guess, but hey.

Speaker 1: 34:41

Well well, it it's it's a oil spill joke.

Speaker 0: 34:45

Oh, okay. I get it. I get it now. It took me a second, but I just thought it was she was referring to, like, rich people having stuff stuffed.

Speaker 1: 34:54

Well, that too. But I mean, it's it's it's that's the Yeah.

Speaker 0: 34:58

That's the

Speaker 1: 34:58

basis for what the reference of the seagull specifically is oil spill.

Speaker 0: 35:03

Steele reminds her that it's the eighties and they're looking at heavy duty fees if they take them as a client. They stop though when they hear someone going, The source of the voice is the same woman and she's beckoning them inside the back door. Steele, still confused, but optimistic suggests they may be repainting the front foyer as they follow her

Speaker 1: 35:19

in. Sure.

Speaker 0: 35:21

Inside, they see a bunch of servants seated at the table. The woman apologizes for the back door, but they have to be careful. She introduces the servants, Vincenzo the chauffeur, Pierre the chef, Maria the downstairs maid, Curamazzo the gardener, and she is Greta Spence and the housekeeper. Steele says they look like a wonderful group, but they're here to see mister Wellington. Greta apologizes and says she deceived them on the phone. They're the ones that need their help. She tells them, now why not just say this is what I didn't get. Why not just call them up? Maybe it was just because they thought they wouldn't take the case, but it just seems odd to call them up and invite them and then like risk Wellington being nearby when she opened the door and and seeing Steele there or something like that. Why not just say on the phone, hey, we wanna hire you.

Speaker 1: 36:06

Well, because as she says, they were concerned that, you know, they would say, your servants, what kind of money have you got? Know? And and also there's the the the thing that if you tell them you want to hire them to investigate this rich family ahead of time. Yeah. Might be, you know, like, well, we don't wanna take them on. But if once you've got them there and you got them hooked, it's harder to say no.

Speaker 0: 36:36

Well, I don't know. If they got Laura on the phone, she would have jumped at it.

Speaker 1: 36:40

Well, that's that's why she wants

Speaker 0: 36:41

to take the But

Speaker 1: 36:43

you can't always count on something like that. So,

Speaker 0: 36:48

yeah. She says she deceives them on the phone. They're the ones that need their help. She tells them that she wants to hire them and Laura asks why. Maria says somebody killed their butler, but pronounces it butler. Steele asks what? And then Kuromatsu says butler. So again, we're laughing at their accents, but it is kind of funny. Greta says, poor sweet Hastings. They found his body in the bathtub. Vincenzo adds that the police said it was an accident, that he drowned after slipping and hitting his head. Steele begins to make excuses, obviously not wanting to take the case, but Pierre interrupts and says that mister Willington has the police in his pocket. Laura interrupts and says, are you implying that 1 of the Wellingtons killed Hastings? Kuromatsu says yes, and Steele urges her to go on saying it's preposterous. Or just sorry. Laura to go saying it's preposterous. Yeah. Because apparently, rich people never kill anybody.

Speaker 1: 37:37

Right. No. No. They don't. They don't somebody else do it for them. Well, it's

Speaker 0: 37:41

true. I realize in this case they didn't, but like, come on. Laura disagrees knowing that he doesn't wanna do this because it doesn't involve heavy duty fees. She asks if there were any witnesses or hard evidence. Vincenzo says no, but the night Hastings died, he was outside. He looked up and saw a light on and heard 2 men arguing. Pierre adds that when he took the trash out, he heard a large banging sound upstairs and hits the spoon on the table a couple of times to kind of illustrate that. Laura asks where the rest of them were, and Greta says downstairs, but the Wellingtons are all unaccounted for. Steel, getting fed up, says he hates to perforate their fantasy, but why would 1 of the Wellingtons deign to kill their poor butler? What? He's not important enough to murder because he's poor? That's a little elitist Steele. Well I'm being sarcastic.

Speaker 1: 38:31

I was sarcastic. Poor. It was not meant in the sense of financial sarcastic.

Speaker 0: 38:37

I was being sarcastic. What? I'm not good enough to murder. Is that what you're saying?

Speaker 1: 38:43

That's that's right. You just fire the guy and black blacklist him in the butler's union. And then Yeah.

Speaker 0: 38:53

Pierre says that because they are pigs, Greta has said Hastings was about to retire. He had been writing his memoirs about the Wellingtons and hope to sell them. Kuromatsu says for big bucks. Laura asks if they think that Hastings was killed to pretend to prevent the memoirs from being published. Kuromatsu says correct. And Greta adds that Hastings room was ransacked after the murder. Laura says, it sounds like the killer she says memoir is really funny here. And she kinda sounds a bit like Moira Rose from Schitt's Creek. And that just the way she says that line. And if you've ever seen that show, it's No. Catherine O'Hara, who was a brilliant comedic talent, would emphasize her For that character alone, she didn't do this in every film or whatnot, but for her character she They played a wealthy family. And I have mentioned this show before, they played a wealthy family who have lost all their money and they're like living in this town called Schitt's Creek, which is the only thing they have left. And in order to kind of make her character a bit more ridiculous, she gave her this weird unplaceable accent where she would pronounce the words of or pronounce certain words really strangely. Like she would say memoirs as memoirs. Or she would say the word baby as the bebe. So yeah, Just the way Laura says that here kind of sounded a little bit like her. And here's where my ADHD is on the fritz. We forgot to mention that James Tolkien passed away recently. And it was mentioned in the Steel Watchers group, but he played Norman Keyes. So just worth pointing that out because he was 94. Good on you. Like, that's a nice respectable age. I got the chance to meet him. He was a lovely human. Got him to sign my thing. So rest in peace, Norman Keys.

Speaker 1: 40:39

What thing?

Speaker 0: 40:41

But picture, like autograph photo pervert. Anyway, sorry. That was off topic.

Speaker 1: 40:51

Didn't know you had 1.

Speaker 0: 40:52

Popped into my head and I had to say it. So, yeah. She says memoir is kind of funny here. Maria pleads with them to take the case. Laura's about to answer when Steele asks for a moment of her time and guides her away. He accuses her of having oil spills on the brain, and Laura says that the servants have nowhere to turn and

Speaker 1: 41:09

the Wellingtons have obviously covered it up. Now. Now. Now. Now. Now. That's an unordered assumption. I mean, sometimes bent or simply opportunistic opportunistic police officers will do the cover up on behalf of somebody because they're influential and they think that, well, if I do them a favor, they'll do me a favor, and this could be a good thing. And so they'll just they'll go along. It's not you know, they don't necessarily get asked to do it. They just kind of, I'll do this for you. Just remember, you know, remember me come Christmas. What's kind

Speaker 0: 41:54

of funny about this is that Laura's both right and wrong in the sense that none of the Wellingtons are responsible for Hastings murder,

Speaker 1: 42:01

but they would have been.

Speaker 0: 42:03

Had someone else not gone to it? Like, each and every 1 of them, when we get to that final scene adds, I was gonna kill him, and somebody else got it.

Speaker 1: 42:08

Okay. Which is very clue ish.

Speaker 0: 42:11

It's very much clue ish. But it's just kinda funny how, like, they turn out to be innocent. And at the same time, these are not good people. Yes. Oh, check out the comment there.

Speaker 1: 42:23

Maybe the cops wanna use the tiny pool.

Speaker 0: 42:25

Yep. That's where the police that's where the police office park

Speaker 1: 42:28

is We on got a special pool for the police. Yeah. Come on over. Bring your kids. Have a have a swim. We'll drain it after you're done.

Speaker 0: 42:35

Exactly. Yeah. So, Steele tells her not to be absurd and that this case flies in the face of all tradition. Butler's don't get murdered. They commit murder. Everybody knows

Speaker 1: 42:45

this. I love that line.

Speaker 0: 42:47

That's 1 of the best lines in the whole episode. Laura shoots back that he's being absurd. They have motive, means, and opportunity. They just have to figure out which 1 of the Wellington's has a secret big enough to kill for. Steel asks how she proposes going about investigating 1 of the most exclusive families on their home turf. And Laura smiles, this evil smile. You know that this is just to get back at him for coffee, tea, or steel. If we're going back to coffee, tea, or steel, this is her revenge. This is it right here. Because she had to serve him coffee.

Speaker 1: 43:20

Always putting a target on his back and I love this. Well, just

Speaker 0: 43:26

not just that, but like, the servant role. Right? She had to serve him coffee, and she had to get him his pillow, and she had to, you know, endure getting her butt grabbed. And now, he has to be the butler. When he's usually the butler. Yeah. When he's usually the high flying businessman or what have you. So this is, yeah. Both using him as bait and also getting revenge, which I kind of love. And and how she does, like, she when she's, like, smiling at him like that, she's, like, fixing his lapels as he starts to say no. Right? Because he knows exactly where this is going.

Speaker 1: 44:02

Oh, yeah.

Speaker 0: 44:04

And then, we get a scene change and we see the doorbell is rung. And the door opens to reveal Steele dressed as a butler with this little bowler hat looking extremely unimpressed.

Speaker 1: 44:16

He looks so so uncomfortable and so irritated. So Yeah. He really controlled anger and and just

Speaker 0: 44:24

Yeah. It's it's perfect because it kind of, like, fits the image of a butler. Right? In the sense that a butler is supposed to be just like uninterested in everything around them. They're kind of meant to be almost like human decoration furniture. They do their job. Not supposed to listen in.

Speaker 1: 44:39

But you get this undercurrent of hostility Absolute from

Speaker 0: 44:44

disdain. He is not happy. And then his faux posh accent, Rupert Ruggles to see mister Wellington for the position of butler. He looks really unhappy, but Greta smiles widely and tells him right this way. He comes in. She shows him into the room where Catherine Wellington is sitting, and she introduces him as the butler she was telling him about. Catherine Wellington stands up and says that miss missus Fenson said that he had impeccable references. Steele, in that same extremely posh accent, thanks her and says he tries to do his best. Albert's wife, who is also in the room, eyes him up and down and says, I bet you do. In an appreciative voice. And just like, out of the corner of his eye, he just gives her a look. Like, just this

Speaker 1: 45:32

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 45:33

Uh-oh. Uh-oh. This could be trouble. And I it's just great how it's kind of like, half a second and he's back in character as the butler. Right? Mhmm. So it's just funny. Just then Harold and mister Wellington come in after apparently a game of tennis. Harold is asking their father to give him a break that he won fair and square. Mister Wellington insists that he won because he didn't have his good racket. Harold insists that he won fairly and

Speaker 1: 46:00

You know, there's there's an old saying about it's a poor workman who blames his tool.

Speaker 0: 46:05

His tools. Yes. Exactly.

Speaker 1: 46:07

I I yeah.

Speaker 0: 46:11

But, you know, Charles Wellington comes across as the kind of guy that this is this is who he is. He doesn't listen.

Speaker 1: 46:17

It's never his fault.

Speaker 0: 46:17

It's never his fault. Someone else is at fault. His company's not doing poorly. Someone else is at fault. He's a good CEO. Somebody else is pro you know, everybody else has dropped the ball. Not him. Not Charles Wellington. Right? Like, that that's the kind of person he is. So if if he's lost a tennis game, clearly. Clearly, it's because he didn't have has good

Speaker 1: 46:37

know, he's got a racket. Which explains his wife is also blaming his tool.

Speaker 0: 46:52

Ouch. Maybe his wife just didn't do it for him anymore. You know? She's kinda shrewish, but she's also shacking up with someone else. They're awful people. They are all awful people. Every single I 1 of kind of love it. Yeah. So he's he's he claims it's his racket. And then Harold why would Harold ask Albert to back him up? Shouldn't like, you would think Harold would know that his brother is just gonna stick his head firmly up his dad's ass.

Speaker 1: 47:25

Yeah. You you but, you know, sometimes you just you say things just as as a instantaneous in the moment response without thinking about the fact that, yeah, he's a kiss up and he's gonna stick up for dad. But, you know, maybe this 1 time he'll actually tell the truth about something that was obvious.

Speaker 0: 47:46

Yeah. No. Harold being a little suck up that he is, backs his father saying he didn't have his good racket. Right. Harold calls it bull, and Charles tells him that he can still beat his backside on or off the court. Catherine, embarrassed by the display, tells him all to stop it. And Albert says that Harold started it. Good God. How old are these people? Oh, and Charles, who is also disgusted by his kissing up to him, tells him to shut up. So there's that. That's right. Catherine tells Even

Speaker 1: 48:21

even the person you're sucking up to knows you're sucking up, and they're disgusted by it.

Speaker 0: 48:27

Yeah. And it's funny because you've got these 2 brothers, both of whom are vying for their fa well, actually Harold seems openly disdainful of his father, but both of he's not really his father.

Speaker 1: 48:41

Of course, he doesn't Yeah. Know

Speaker 0: 48:45

they're both despised by Charles for different reasons. Charles despises Harold for daring to stand up to him, and he despises Albert for sucking up to him. Like, there's no way of

Speaker 1: 48:56

winning between.

Speaker 0: 48:57

With either of them. Like, just get the impression that he would be disappointed in them no matter what they did. So

Speaker 1: 49:03

Yeah. You you get the impression he would have been happier if he didn't have them at all.

Speaker 0: 49:07

Yeah. It kinda feels that way. Like, he's not a good person. None of them are good peep I'm gonna say this a lot. But but funnily enough, I like them as awful people in this episode, whereas Bing just made me angry. And I don't have a rhyme or reason for it. That's just where we're at. So Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah. He tells him to shut up. And Catherine says to Steele that she's sorry he had to hear that. And Steele, of course, being the perfect butler says, here, what about?

Speaker 1: 49:41

That's right.

Speaker 0: 49:43

Having passed the test, she looks at him approvingly and tells him she likes him already. She introduces him to everyone as Hastings' replacement. Charles gives an over the top show of sympathy. Poor Hastings. And Harold adds, what a tragedy. Albert insists he was like 1 of the family. Right.

Speaker 1: 50:03

Can can we go back to the, everybody, I'd like you to meet Ruggles, Hastings replacement. Yes. Do these people not do any kind of background check? Do they leave it up to their staff entirely? Yeah. Including the approval process?

Speaker 0: 50:19

I mean,

Speaker 1: 50:20

I I can understand them not personally doing the background check, but at least bring me the report on the background check. Let me make the decision. No. It's it's just like

Speaker 0: 50:31

Well, I think that's what this is, that that Greta has already done the background check and she's bringing him for approval. Because she says that he that Greta said he had excellent references.

Speaker 1: 50:42

So But did she look at them? Obviously not. No.

Speaker 0: 50:46

And if if she did, they fabricated them. So, yeah, they're not I'm not I'm not saying they're bright. I'm just saying that there is there is some some think

Speaker 1: 50:54

I think you have to be smarter in order to achieve dumb.

Speaker 0: 50:59

Fair. That's fair enough. Yeah. They're they're really so self absorbed that they're all kind of idiots for sure. Yes. Catherine says she's sure they will be in good hands with Ruggles and asks Greta to show him to his quarters and also to prepare 2 guest rooms in the East Wing as they are expecting company. Greta says, yes, ma'am. And Harold welcomes Steele saying, here's hoping he's a better swimmer than Hastings. Wow. That is an intense way to greet your new help. Like, let's hope you don't die or that we don't kill you. Yes. Okay. We get a scene change, and we have Greta show steel to his room. He thanks her, and she hovers just a bit, obviously wanting to see more. He asks what it is, and she tells him that you're on a rather limited budget. Asif, he'll hurry. He tells her brilliance can't be rushed, but he'll do his best. He enters the room only to see it's already been trashed. But before he can do or say anything, he is hit for the first time on the head and knocked out, adding yet another concussion to the roster. And this episode should have landed him in the hospital with some like brain scans taking place. Because like, this poor man has been conked on the dog and we really should have had I know we said at the beginning we were gonna take like a poll and count it all up.

Speaker 1: 52:24

And we never did.

Speaker 0: 52:25

Yeah. We didn't do that. And we really should have because it would be really interesting to know just how many blows to the head this poor man has taken. Because it feels like it's almost every episode.

Speaker 1: 52:35

You know, and and American football players have and I I imagine some other Yeah. Sports players as well get repeated going for that. You know, head injuries and it it it affects their mental abilities and capacities. Yeah. And, I mean, it's it's a it's a cumulative thing. It's not just, oh, well, this 1 did it. No. It's all of them combined. He's wearing a helmet and shoulder pads.

Speaker 0: 53:02

This episode alone could be It's it's bad. So yeah. He when he when he comes to the first thing he sees are a woman's legs and heels. And he assumes it's the person who knocked him out. So he grabs her and pulls her down to the ground only to discover it's Maria. He's surprised to see her. And as they get up, she asked him what happened. He's she says she came into his room and found him like this.

Speaker 1: 53:27

Notice she's not offended by the fact that he grabbed her and pulled her down on the floor with him. She's offended by the fact that she found him on the floor in the first place. Apparently, prone on the floor is positioned she's used to.

Speaker 0: 53:39

Or have you seen Steele? I wouldn't kick him out of bed for eating crackers. So just saying. So yeah.

Speaker 1: 53:50

I'm I'm not sure what the appeal of Maria is, but anyway.

Speaker 0: 53:54

I think it's I think there's 2 things that are

Speaker 1: 53:56

appealing Maybe about

Speaker 0: 54:00

3. I don't know. Yeah. Well, there you go. Yeah. So skeptically, he asks if she just happened to be in the neighborhood. She throws herself into his arms and says, oh, you must help me. I am in danger. And he kind of half heartedly attempts to comfort her. He pats her on the back. Courage, Maria. Courage. She tells him he doesn't understand. Hastings was blackmailing the Wellingtons. Steele seems surprised by this. He asks how she knows, and she tells him that that night the night Hastings died, they were going to run off together to Acapulco. Still grinned, surprised yet again that Maria and the butler were involved. You and that old man? She insists it was her chance for the big time, but if the Wellingtons found out they were involved, they would kill her too. She throws herself into his arms again, and he tries to calm her down. He tells her to tell him where Hastings hid the memoirs, but she doesn't know. She tells him that he must help her and presses herself against him saying that she will do anything, anything. Gee, what do you think she means by that?

Speaker 1: 55:05

I don't know. And

Speaker 0: 55:09

of course, he takes advantage of the situation. There, there, there, there.

Speaker 1: 55:13

Yes. Yep.

Speaker 0: 55:15

And I'm fully convinced at this point that when he does this, he's not genuinely hitting on these women. He just enjoys being that in that role, that protector, that, oh, you poor dear. You know? It just I don't know. It tickles his ego a bit. Yeah. So, anyway, we elsewhere in the house, Vincenzo has given Albert back a trophy that I guess has been repaired because we know it was damaged. We'll find that out later on. That he won for debating. He says that he restored it and he hopes he likes it. Albert's thrilled saying it looks like new. His wife, however, Cindy is not impressed saying he should just throw that old thing away. She puts on this fur coat and begins happily twirling around asking them what they think. Steele comes down the stairs and she poses for him and scrumptious, isn't it Ruggles? And Steele doesn't even look at her as he says, stunning madam. Vincenzo pulls Steele aside and asks how it's going. He tells him it's too soon to tell, but Vincenzo asked him to step it up. We're not made of money. Doorbell rings and Steele opens it. And this is the best this this part here, this is it's just perfect that Laura gets her revenge in this way because he opens the door to see Laura and Mildred standing there. They are the guests for that evening. Mhmm. And now he knows how Laura felt in coffee, tea, or steel with the shoe firmly on the other foot. Yep. Yep. Yeah. So Laura announces herself as Laura Giles. Hey, Giles. There's my Buffy reference for the episode because Rupert Giles s is funny, actually, because he like, Steel is going by the name Rupert Ruggles. Is he is is he not?

Speaker 1: 56:56

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 56:57

And Laura is Laura Giles. Put the 2 names together. You've got Rupert Giles from Buffy. Buffy's watcher. Just saying. Oh. So she introduces herself as Laura Giles from West Coast Living magazine and Mildred adds that she's the photographer's assistant. Steele looks really unimpressed. Like, he is barely holding his rage together. And she adds, we're expected. Katherine willing to ask who it is, and he says, a pair of journalists, I'm afraid, madam.

Speaker 1: 57:27

Love that.

Speaker 0: 57:28

That's a good dig. Katherine does not share his irritation. She lights up and tells him to show them in. Steel moves closer and says, this way, please. Mildred, loving this turn of events, enters and tells him not to forget the luggage. Mildred's

Speaker 1: 57:45

catch what happens.

Speaker 0: 57:48

What did I miss?

Speaker 1: 57:50

Steel gooses Laura.

Speaker 0: 57:51

Oh, yes. I saw that.

Speaker 1: 57:52

I was about to say that. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 57:57

Yeah. Yeah. That was that was literally in my next part of the notes. But, yeah, he pokes her. Oh, it's it's great. It is great. He's getting his digs in where he can, but it's still pretty hilarious. Especially because Mildred obviously is used to being, even when they're undercover, she usually gets the she's the maid. She's the 1 Mhmm. Cleaning up and serving people at at his apartment and whatever else. And now he's doing the same and get my luggage. So they come in and Laura says she's so glad they called. They did such a or sorry. Catherine says she's so glad they called. They did such a wonderful layout of the Vanderbilt home sprawling pseudo Normandy house that it is. Like, oh my god. This is rich people cattiness. You did such a lovely job on that quaint little mansion, but now you're in our home.

Speaker 1: 58:52

Yeah. It's it's really nothing more than a shack. I mean, it maybe an outhouse really more like, but yeah.

Speaker 0: 58:59

Have have you seen the servant's pool? Oh, to die for. Laura Lassen says that she's sure she will get more out of their stay here. Catherine tells Steele to show them to the room. After they freshen up, they can meet the rest of the family. Laura says, splendid. And this is where he jabs her.

Speaker 1: 59:17

Gives her the goose. Yep. As he says, this

Speaker 0: 59:20

way, ladies. Straight ahead. As they walk into Laura's room, Steele's struggling behind to carry all the stuff. She smiles.

Speaker 1: 59:28

He make 2 trips.

Speaker 0: 59:31

He could. But I think at this point, he's just so ticked off that he's like, I'm doing this once and 1 time only. Which makes it all the funnier because he's like huffing and puffing. It is all about to fall over from the weight of the stuff.

Speaker 1: 59:46

Yes.

Speaker 0: 59:47

Laura smiles and observes that this is how the other half lives. Steel gasping for air tells her, next time to choose a cover with fewer accessories. Laura says this seemed the perfect way to play up to the massive Wellington ego. Mildred enters and gasps saying that she knows what she's talking about. She sits down on the bed and she says they must have used every duck on the West Coast to stuff the comforters.

Speaker 1: 1:00:11

I I'm sorry. I down comforters, down pillows. I

Speaker 0: 1:00:15

No. Thank you. Nope. Allergies.

Speaker 1: 1:00:17

Handle a mic. I get such bad stuff up. I it's allergies or something.

Speaker 0: 1:00:24

Don't know. Allergies. For sure. I'm the same way. No. Thank you. Noticing Steele who still looks exhausted. He says hi and she sorry. She says hi and he manages a tired high in return. She asks him how it's going in the trenches, and Laura asks if he's got a lead. He says several, saying that he checked the murder scene. Steele tells him that Hastings would have had to be a contortionist to hit his head and drown. Excitedly, Laura says, then it is murder. Steele urges her to have a little less zeal, telling her that so far he's been hit over the head, had his room trashed, and enjoyed a tete a tete with Maria the maid who was going to run off with the late great Hastings. Mildred is surprised. Steele says that the man had unexpected vigor in several areas as he was also blackmailing the Wellingtons. Laura says the motive gets better and better. She tells him that she looked into Wellington Petroleum and the company is in deep trouble and vulnerable to a hostile takeover. She adds that it's a real mess because virtually none of the members of the family will vote together. And this is just, I mean, that's how you can tell they're awful people. Because if you would think that if the business that your family has had for, I'm guessing a while. Like I'm guessing this is probably a multi generational business that you'd be so selfish to vote against like, best interest of keeping the company is

Speaker 1: 1:01:47

Well, again, like I said, maybe the best interests of the company and their ultimately, best interest is to sell. Because if your choice is to either sell or lose it all, it's better to have something than nothing. Don't know that If you're responsible for losing it.

Speaker 0: 1:02:09

Yeah. No. You're not wrong. I'm just saying we don't know that that's necessarily the choice. It could be that Harold might have to take over. Maybe the board would have more confidence in him than they have in Charles or even Albert or, you know, appointing somebody else as the, as like, that's not a Wellington to run it. Who knows? But like the fact that they can't agree on anything because they're all so self absorbed is very Right? So Mildred adds that she did a background check on all the Wellingtons and everyone checks out except Sydney Wellington who doesn't show up in the computer at all prior to marrying Albert Wellington. Still amused, woman without a past, Mildred promises to lift a set of her prints and try and trace them. She's gotta have connections in the police

Speaker 1: 1:02:53

Oh, yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:02:53

Apartment. Because there's no other way they're gonna be able to do that. Steel stands up and says, as much as he would love to stay in chat, he has duties to attend to. Laura tells Ruggles that this enterprising reporter has plans of her own. Still grimaces and leaves. So then we have Laura. We see her riding around the grounds in a Jeep that's driven by Charles Wellington. They stop atop a hill point where they can see the estate and Laura agrees that it is a gorgeous view. Charles, attempting to be charming, says that from where he's sitting, it's even prettier. Gross. Ugh. Laura is clearly uncomfortable with the compliment. She gets out of the Jeep and grabs her camera. She tells him that she heard about the butler dying and says it's awful. Laura begins to look through the camera as Charles says, c'est la vie rather carelessly. She adjusts the focus and sorry. Were you

Speaker 1: 1:03:41

I was just gonna say, you you said she's uncomfortable with the compliment. Is it because she recognizes that it's not really a compliment? It's just him being a lech?

Speaker 0: 1:03:52

Well, I think it's I think it's that. I think

Speaker 1: 1:03:54

it's because I don't think it was in since a sincere compliment at all.

Speaker 0: 1:03:58

No. It was just opportunistic. Compliment is maybe even the worst. Not not a correct word for it. It's it's yeah. He's leering at her. But I think it's also because she doesn't like him as a person. Well, I agree. It's not just that he's being alleged. It's also like, this is somebody that she fundamentally dislikes on an ideological level. And so therefore, even if it was a sincere compliment, I think she would be, I don't think that I think she would be kind of grossed out by it. Yeah. Yeah. So, yeah. And he seems totally unimpressed with Hastings dying. She adjusts the focus and so she understands he hit his head while drawing his bath. Charles says he did. And then he adds clumsy oaf. Okay. She continues to adjust the camera, but she's not taking pictures. She's trying to get a better view of the house. She takes a few pictures and then stands up and pretends to have a thought. She says she wonders who turned off the water. Charles doesn't understand it. She adds that his wife told her that the water wasn't running when they found Hastings. He says, so? Laura simply says, she wonders who turned off the water. Charles kind of thrown by the question scrambles and says, well, the hay stings obviously, and that he was through with the bath when he slipped. Laura agrees and says, oh, yeah, silly question. She zooms in again with her lens and catches it's Vincenzo and Catherine that she sees there. Right?

Speaker 1: 1:05:20

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 1:05:20

Okay. It's kinda hard. It was kinda hard to see

Speaker 1: 1:05:23

on my hard tell you.

Speaker 0: 1:05:24

And it looked a bit like Vincenzo and Maria, but then we find out later on that it's Catherine that's having the affair

Speaker 1: 1:05:29

with Vincenzo. It's short hair.

Speaker 0: 1:05:31

So Yeah. Okay.

Speaker 1: 1:05:32

So she sees It's definitely but yeah, you're right. It's hard to tell because it's shot through an add on in front of the Yeah. The lens or or it's processed to look like it's it's being taken through the lens of a camera. And it it the the image is far away to begin with, but then they also added a little bit of it looks like distortion to it a little bit. Yeah. Like like she's like her lens just can't quite resolve the image.

Speaker 0: 1:06:04

I had to go back a couple of times to try and catch it fully. And then it was later that I I okay. I just wrote Vincenzo and Maria question mark because it kinda looked a bit like Maria. But then when it's found out later on he's having the affair with Catherine, I went back and changed it because I was like, oh, that's gotta be who she was seeing. Either way, Steele is clearing the table for Catherine, who is sitting on the patio and he looks over the wall and sees Harold and Cindy kissing. Speaking of people having an affair, here's affair number 2, Harold and Cindy. And this is this is what I

Speaker 1: 1:06:35

Actually, number 3 because

Speaker 0: 1:06:37

Oh, right. Yeah. Because yeah. But this is kind of what I was talking about with insensitive steel when they catch Gerald and Ursula, the queen of touching and feeling, making out on the beach. And it's like, if you're gonna have an affair, why why would you do it where your where your spouse could easily, easily just walk in and see?

Speaker 1: 1:06:59

Well, because like I said, in their level of society, this sort of thing is just routine. It's normal. You accept the fact that I've got this 1 over here, and I accept the fact that you've got that 1 over there.

Speaker 0: 1:07:11

In the case of Cindy, she's a beard. So that 1

Speaker 1: 1:07:14

Well, yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:07:15

But I think the only issue that Albert would have wouldn't be necessarily that Cindy was cheating on him. It's that Cindy was cheating on him with Harold because he hates his brother so much. Because he doesn't have any interest in Cindy in that way. She's just there to make him look straight. But still, it's just funny that, like, these people will and I get it. It's TV. They you have to in real life, people don't just, like, kiss their well, I guess they do, actually. Because the CEO of that company got caught on the kiss can at the Coldplay concert. So I guess And then

Speaker 1: 1:07:49

he blamed Coldplay for it.

Speaker 0: 1:07:51

Yeah. He blamed I was like, I'm I'm sorry, but you

Speaker 1: 1:07:54

took You violated my privacy rights. You took your mistress

Speaker 0: 1:07:58

to a concert and got caught on the kiss cam, my dude. That's hello, consequences of your actions. Welcome. Maybe it's just me and

Speaker 1: 1:08:06

then me. Have You my permission to film me. Didn't need it.

Speaker 0: 1:08:11

I don't think you had your your wife's permission to be there with someone else. So, hey, there you go. Maybe it's just me because I would never have an affair. I Obviously. But if I did, I would be I'd be more careful about it. You know? Yeah. Yeah. Anyway.

Speaker 1: 1:08:28

Try to be. Anyway.

Speaker 0: 1:08:29

Yeah. I wouldn't do it. But yeah. So he sees Harold and Sydney kissing and Catherine says that will be all. He says yes and turns to leave. He's watch him go out. He's just randomly dusting things with his little hanky. He's not really actually doing anything. He's just No. Like, it's just very funny to watch because, obviously, this is what butlers do. As he does, he runs into Albert who calls him a clumsy fool, literally runs into Albert. Yes. Deal apologizes, brushing him with a ring.

Speaker 1: 1:08:56

He's just But you know what? Albert is just as responsible for not paying attention because he was reading the newspaper while he was walking. So, really, it's Albert's fault.

Speaker 0: 1:09:04

But you are forgetting

Speaker 1: 1:09:05

Albert should be apologizing to Steele.

Speaker 0: 1:09:08

You're forgetting 1 thing, though.

Speaker 1: 1:09:09

I know.

Speaker 0: 1:09:09

Albert's rich. Help. And Steele is the help. You don't apologize for the help. No. So, yeah. They but I do like, I love the way he just kind of like brushes him with the with the little hanky or whatever it is. And then or the rag and then he says it won't happen again. Annoyed Albert says, see that it doesn't. And he walks off and then steel butters twerp. Yeah. I don't know what it is about that particular insult, but anytime anybody uses it, film or television, it gets me because it's just such a like that in twit. Because it's just

Speaker 1: 1:09:44

such a like, I don't know.

Speaker 0: 1:09:46

It's can't explain it. Love it. Torp. He is a Torp. He comes into the room only to find trashed again. But before he can do anything, another knock to the noggin. Poor man. Here's head injury number 2. For those of you playing the home game, do not do this as a drinking game. You will be drunk.

Speaker 1: 1:10:07

Absolutely.

Speaker 0: 1:10:08

Yeah. When Steele wakes up, Pierre, the chef is staring at him saying, which means how are you? I realized there weren't any subtitles, but that is 1 of the first phrases that we in Canada learn in French. Like, that's, you know, hi. My name is yeah. Anyway.

Speaker 1: 1:10:27

Yeah. What you said.

Speaker 0: 1:10:29

Yeah. So he asked how he is and Steele gets up and Pierre says he thought he had bought the vineyard, so to speak. Which is a very funny turn of phrase on the bought the farm expression. Mhmm. Steele says it was merely a down payment and asked what he want. Don't know if I can say this next line with a straight face,

Speaker 1: 1:10:48

but I'm gonna do my best.

Speaker 0: 1:10:50

I'm gonna do my best. This is probably 1 of the funniest lines that's ever been delivered on this show. And Pierre says it perfectly. How goes your private dicking? He just looks horrified by what? Your work. The private dicking.

Speaker 1: 1:11:16

Especially when he finds him sitting there flat on his back. Flat on his back. What's he been doing?

Speaker 0: 1:11:21

Yeah. He says, we're paying you good money, but here you are flat on your back. Steele tells him someone hit him and Pierre says that that's his fault, not Pierre's. He has they should get credit for other off their bill for his time off. Oh, yeah. Because, you know, he was just taking a nap.

Speaker 1: 1:11:38

That's right.

Speaker 0: 1:11:38

Steele tells him to get out. Pierre insists that he's only being reasonable, but Steel stands up and tells him to leave. Pierre agrees and says he only came to tell them tell them that madam wanted him to know that they're having a Texas barbecue this afternoon. Oh, and this is just adding insult to injury because this next scene with him dealing out the food.

Speaker 1: 1:12:01

You missed something here.

Speaker 0: 1:12:03

Oh, what I missed?

Speaker 1: 1:12:04

And I had a question about it because he kicks Pierre out of the room. And as Pierre walks out, he slams the door behind him. But then the door bounces back and hits steel.

Speaker 0: 1:12:14

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:12:15

And I I was wondering, was that planned or was that just an accident that happened while they were shooting it? And they they said, that's great. We're we're gonna keep that 1.

Speaker 0: 1:12:26

Yeah. And actually, that was the next line of my notes. I just I hadn't gotten there yet. But, yeah, Steele tries

Speaker 1: 1:12:31

to send you You already started talking about Steele at the barbecue and the hat and such. So how was I supposed to know you were I was just saying

Speaker 0: 1:12:38

that it sucked for him to be doing that. But yeah. I wonder that I wonder that too if it was if it was intentional or if it was, like, just a happy accident because it is very, very funny.

Speaker 1: 1:12:48

Yes. It is. Now, are you done?

Speaker 0: 1:12:51

Yes. Yes, I am. Now, we're at the Texas barbecue. See old fashioned wagons, hear country music, people wearing, I guess, the rich people's version of what they think country and western gear is.

Speaker 1: 1:13:05

I guess.

Speaker 0: 1:13:06

Because it's funny. It this reminded me of Back to the Future part 3. Right? Okay. Have you you've seen that?

Speaker 1: 1:13:14

You know, I I haven't. My wife insists that we have, but I I only remember I ever watching the haven't seen the second as far as I can remember. I haven't seen the first as far as I remember. So either my memory is really bad or my wife has such a great memory that she's remembering things that never happened.

Speaker 0: 1:13:34

We need to do a podcast where I get where we get each other to watch movies so they get their impressions because, like, these are classics of my childhood. Anyway, there's a scene where Marty has to do that.

Speaker 1: 1:13:44

I watched the first 1. I saw that 1. I saw it in the theaters.

Speaker 0: 1:13:49

You gotta see all 3. You gotta see all 3.

Speaker 1: 1:13:51

Well, I've I've got them, but I just like I said, my wife didn't wanna watch them because she says we've watched them. And I'm but You can watch a movie 1 more time.

Speaker 0: 1:14:00

You're allowed. How I how can

Speaker 1: 1:14:01

I say I watch them if I don't remember them? But that's my memory.

Speaker 0: 1:14:08

Reminds me of, like, in the third movie, Marty has to go back to the Old West to try to help the dog. Right? And so he's dressing up in what he thinks they would have worn in the Old West. And the doc's like, no, no, no, no, no. And he puts him in this like 19 fifties approximation of the Old West. So he's in like this bright pink shirt with like tassels and things like that. And it looks ridiculous. And when he but the funny part is when he does go back to the Old West, they're they're like, what the heck are you wearing? They give him like, basically Clint Eastwood's outfit in Fistful of Dollars. So and he ends up calling himself Clint Eastwood.

Speaker 1: 1:14:43

Yeah. I mean, it's it's definitely Hollywood version of the Old West or or, like you said, rich people's version of the Old West.

Speaker 0: 1:14:51

Yeah. Exactly. Oh, and our comment here says the Wellington's do Dallas. So, yeah, that's basically what it is. So, yeah, there's a pig roasting on a spit and and we see all the Wellington's kind of like, you know, interacting with 1 another, hobnobbing, etcetera. And then there's Steele standing there, rigid as a statue. He's got his little ladle in what looks to be just slop. He's standing there, ketchup, pickles, handiwipes, in a comically large cowboy hat.

Speaker 1: 1:15:21

Handiwipes, handiwipes, handiwipes. Yeah. I got KFC, formerly known as Kentucky Fried Chicken, used to always give you handiwipes anytime you remember bought anything. That. Now you've gotta ask for them and they've got them hidden back behind and they gotta go and get them and it's like, okay, here's 1. I need about 3. Have you ever eaten your chicken? It gets all over

Speaker 0: 1:15:43

the I mean, just Right.

Speaker 1: 1:15:44

Finger licking good. Remember? Yeah. Okay. Here's another 1.

Speaker 0: 1:15:48

Maybe that's it. They expect you to lick your fingers. Like, that's that's the point.

Speaker 1: 1:15:51

Well, you do, but then you have to wipe wipe your hands to clean your fingers from never mind. Anyway.

Speaker 0: 1:16:00

Yeah. So he looks like he would rather be dead.

Speaker 1: 1:16:02

Oh, yes.

Speaker 0: 1:16:03

And it's it's it's brilliant. Laura approaches under the guise of taking pictures Mhmm. And tells him she loves the hat. He says he's not in the mood, and he asked where Mildred is. Laura says she's looking, at the report on Cindy. From behind, Steele hears someone calling his name, and he turns, and it's mister Kuromatsu calling him. With a sigh, he says duty calls and goes over to talk to him. Kuromatsu hands him a broken tennis racket and tells him it's mister Wellington's number 1 racket. We found it and he found it in the trash. He thinks it's a good clue, but Steele says it's either bad or he had a wicked backhand. He tells him to hang on to it and turns to walk away. Steve goes back to the table.

Speaker 1: 1:16:42

Yeah. We get a better better view of Laura's outfit. And granted, it's it's fake western, you know, but it it looks good.

Speaker 0: 1:16:51

It looks good. I'm not yeah. She always looks good when she's kind of dressed down like that.

Speaker 1: 1:16:55

Oh, yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:16:56

And and I think the same is true for him. I like to see him in in just like, you know, denim shirts, flannel, etcetera. I think it looks nice. And and it's a change of pace because we normally see them in their business clothing. So but yeah. He he goes back to the table where he's dishing out what looks

Speaker 1: 1:17:12

like slop. Mildred comes over It's beans.

Speaker 0: 1:17:16

Oh, gross.

Speaker 1: 1:17:19

You don't like No.

Speaker 0: 1:17:21

No. No. Nope. My husband does because, of course, beans on toast is a thing in Britain. And so, like, they have their beans all the time, and I'm just like, blah. No. Nope. Can't do it.

Speaker 1: 1:17:35

You know, baked beans. No. You know, like Yeah. No. You just don't know. Oh, can't remember the brand name. Bush's. They've got bourbon beans. No. You don't know what you're missing.

Speaker 0: 1:17:54

I do know what I'm missing. I do.

Speaker 1: 1:17:58

Anyway. I would I would love this menu. I mean, yeah, I'd be there chowing down.

Speaker 0: 1:18:06

Not me. I'd be Steele. I'd be like, take your slop. Mildred comes over with a yeehaw and tells Steele to pile it on. So she's obviously having a good time. She then tells Laura, the Prince and Cindy were rap sheet city, former Vegas call girl with a record a mile long. Laura is scandalizing. Albert married an ex hooker? Oh, Laura, sweetie, you better hold on to that outrage. Because in a couple of episodes, just saying. You just keep that in maybe that gave him the idea. Maybe this is how he thinks to, like, call Clarissa later on when his immigration trouble start coming up. I'm just saying. This is this is not good. Steele, I had said she's an ex hooker who seems to be on better terms with Albert's brother than with Albert. Mildred says she bet Hastings put that in the memoirs. Laura says it from Charles Wellington's reaction that afternoon. She's certain he had something to do with the murder. Based on what? I mean, I get that he his reaction was callous and indifferent to the death of his his employee, but he's a rich dude who literally doesn't care about anybody, including his children. Right.

Speaker 1: 1:19:17

But his his response to her question about who turned off the water was it it was a little bit off for somebody who

Speaker 0: 1:19:31

That's fair.

Speaker 1: 1:19:32

Who who didn't have anything to do with it.

Speaker 0: 1:19:35

Yeah. Okay. Fair enough. I just obviously, there for Laura, she wants him to be involved. And they don't go too hard on that in this episode, which is good because it it wouldn't have really fit, I don't think. But Mhmm. Yeah. Steel points out that Kuromatsu found his battered tennis racket in the trash. Laura says great, but points out that it appears that Catherine prefers her chauffeur's company over her husband's. Steele appears mildly scandalized by Catherine and Vincenzo, and Mildred says it's disgusting that everyone appears to have some deep, dark secret. Her eyes light up, and she says she loves it.

Speaker 1: 1:20:09

Yeah. Of course. She, she was she was Sarah before Sarah was Sarah. Oh, wait. She she loves Yeah. She loves the

Speaker 0: 1:20:19

That they're all awful. Yeah. Because if it's not my family, I'm fine with it. Steele sees Katherine out of the corner of his eye and pointedly asked Mildred if that will be all. Because obviously, he doesn't wanna be seen being too non butler y. Mhmm. Katherine asked Laura to take a picture of them all up on the hay wagon. Laura says it's a great idea. So Steele goes back to serving as Laura climbs up on the wagon.

Speaker 1: 1:20:42

Pickles, anyone?

Speaker 0: 1:20:43

Anyone? Handy wipes. And we see Vincenzo is standing there tending to the horses, which obviously is relevant because of what ends up happening. Laura whistles to get everyone's attention, telling them to say pork and beans. Sorry. They do, and just as they do, someone spurs the horse, which we find out is Vincenzo, who rears and takes off Laura in the wagon. The horses make a run for it. Laura can't get out. The wood, bit connecting the wagon, I don't know what to call that, breaks. Do you know what to call it?

Speaker 1: 1:21:18

What's the name for it? I don't know. Off the top of my head, I should know.

Speaker 0: 1:21:23

Yeah. You should. You dropped the ball.

Speaker 1: 1:21:27

You're fine. I it's it's probably in there somewhere. I just have to rummage around. The place is a mess. It needs cleaned up.

Speaker 0: 1:21:38

I can bring

Speaker 1: 1:21:38

my brain, not just my room. Figured.

Speaker 0: 1:21:40

Figured. Causes the wagon to tip over on top of Laura as the horses run off. Steele approaches her to see if she's okay. She stands up dazed and tells Steele, thank you, Ruggles. That will be all. So, you know, she doesn't have a concussion because she obviously sticks stays in character.

Speaker 1: 1:21:58

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 1:21:58

Charles Wellington tells Steele he'll take it from here.

Speaker 1: 1:22:01

Yeah. I'm sure he will.

Speaker 0: 1:22:03

Right. And he orders someone to call the paramedics. Laura tells him not to, insisting she's fine. Mildred gets Steele's attention to show him the part of the wagon that broke, which has clearly been cut. She asked him what he thinks and Steele tells her that he thinks

Speaker 1: 1:22:16

Okay. Someone wants

Speaker 0: 1:22:18

I'll believe you. I have no idea.

Speaker 1: 1:22:22

Anyway. Yeah. Okay. Yes. What you said.

Speaker 0: 1:22:24

But either way, we in the stable, we see Vincenzo whistling as he puts the saddles away. And Steele comes in furious, grabs him, shoves him up against the hay. And this is 1 of those moments where you're like, yes, this makes perfect sense that he would do this. It's reminiscent of Red Holt Steele when he grabs what's his face and shoves him up against the post. Right? He tells him that his associate almost took her last hayride thanks to him. He shakes his head again or he shakes him again and asks him how Mrs. Wellington is. He accuses him of telling her who they are. Vincenzo admits that he was trying to scare them off as he didn't want them to find out about 2 of them. Steele asks if Hastings did as well, and he admits that he knew that. And he trails off, and Steele asks him what he's, what it is, pointing out that he could build a convincing case against him right now. Vincenzo wearily admits that Harold is his son. Steele is surprised, and Vincenzo continues saying that all these years only Hastings knew, but he didn't kill him. He swears it, saying that Hastings promised to tell no 1. Well, okay. If you swear you didn't kill him, I guess I have to believe you.

Speaker 1: 1:23:27

That's right. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:23:30

Steel tells him and Catherine to keep their lips sealed until they're through. He turns to go and looks back and with a flash of anger once more tells him to stay away from his hold. So we see him walking down the hallway of the house, comes to a doorway that's partially open. Looking inside, this is the parlor, he can see Charles Wellington placing things into a wall safe. He continues onto his room, which is dark as he enters. This time, he's now a fool. Anticipating an attack, he shoves the door back and finds there is indeed someone waiting for him.

Speaker 1: 1:23:59

Yep.

Speaker 0: 1:24:00

A struggle ensues in the dark. He throws him over the bed, turns the lights on, and is shocked to see Albert there. Albert accuses Steele of attacking him, and Steele, careful to maintain his butler's deference, begs his pardon, but the master attacked him first.

Speaker 1: 1:24:14

Yes.

Speaker 0: 1:24:15

He asked him what he's doing in his quarters. Albert begins going through his drawers. Like, this is a man like, these people. These people. Right? These effing people. He's in this man's room. This man has been hired to be their butler and live in their home. And he's in his, basically, what is his home, his small space that is supposed to be his private space. Yep. And after being in his room without invitation and then, like, being called on it, he just starts going through his drawers. Like, ah, I hate these people.

Speaker 1: 1:24:51

I also love these people, but I

Speaker 0: 1:24:52

hate these people. They're awful. It's great. So, yeah, he's just going through his stuff. Steel ass if he's looking for something, which he guesses to be Hastings memoirs. Irritated, Albert says, butlers are all alike. They know everything. Yeah. Pretty much, actually.

Speaker 1: 1:25:09

That's that's the thing is that so many people, they dismiss whether it be staff like household staff in in this case or employees. They especially when they hold those people in such contempt, they don't realize that those people know a lot more about what's going on than Yeah. You may want them to know, especially when you're doing something underhanded. I have a story. I'm not gonna well, I I want appropriate story here. I I wonder if I should tell it. I see you twiddling your fingers okay. This is so good. Tell me. Tell me.

Speaker 0: 1:25:50

You can't you can't just say that and then not tell the story like

Speaker 1: 1:25:54

this 1. I once worked for a guy, and this guy was a real piece of work. In fact, his wife was a piece of work too. Yeah. 1 time I had to go to his house to pick up something for work for for a because it was a computer company and I had to pick up a a part for something that needed to be done. And I was at the house waiting for him and he finally showed up and he asked me if my wife, if his wife had taken care of me because she really likes to take care of people. And it's like, at that point I knew, okay, this is weird.

Speaker 0: 1:26:30

Wow. Okay. That's something.

Speaker 1: 1:26:33

And after a lot of stuff had happened and and he lied to customers about me with me standing literally a few feet away from him.

Speaker 0: 1:26:45

That would drive me nuts.

Speaker 1: 1:26:47

Yeah. Oh, he never gave me those messages. What do mean I never gave you the messages? I gave you a dozen messages and you told me flat out you didn't wanna talk to this person. And the only reason you're talking to him now is because they happen to catch you on the phone. Well, I happen to know a little bit about his finances. And he had been using the company business card for personal purchases like all kinds of stuff at at souvenir stores in Hawaii and bought 2 sets of of office furniture, 1 for the office, 1 for the house because he wanted some at the house. And somehow copies of his credit card statements wound up in the hands of the Internal Revenue Service, but I'm not gonna say how.

Speaker 0: 1:27:28

Whoops. It's a mystery. It's a mystery. That's that's that's brilliant. That's good.

Speaker 1: 1:27:38

But yeah. I mean, you you especially when you're looking down on people in contempt. Yeah. You're you're making a huge mistake because they know more about you than you really want them to know.

Speaker 0: 1:27:50

Yeah. Well, I have a a somewhat somewhat similar story, not quite the same, but I worked at Zeller's, which was a department store very similar to Walmart.

Speaker 1: 1:28:00

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 1:28:00

And I was a cashier and occasionally had to do floor shifts and whatnot. And 1 time we had this patio furniture on sale, and it was a really good price. And there was a limit on like how many chairs and stuff that you could get. Right? Well, the mayor of my city at the time, her husband owned a restaurant. And I guess he had decided that he wanted those chairs for his restaurant. So they wanted to buy like all the chairs. So she's there, like she's lined up outside our store waiting to get in. Right? And she's got all her friends and family with her and they're all like going to try to buy because I think it was a limit of 4 or something like that. Right? So they come in and they start grabbing of all these chairs. And 1 woman who was not with them manages to get her hands on a couple of like, a set of 4 chairs. And the mayor, this woman, turns and she's like, I need those chairs to this other customer. And this woman's like And she's already breaking the rules by having all of her relatives all buy the chairs Technically when

Speaker 1: 1:28:56

not, but

Speaker 0: 1:28:58

You know what I mean, though. She's Yeah. And and this woman had, fair and square, gotten herself some chairs. Right? And she she's like, I need those chairs. And this customer's like, I'm sorry, but I'm buying these chairs. And it turned into a little scuffle. So I intervened and I'm like, excuse me, can I help you? And she says, do you know who I am? I'm like, the minute somebody says that to me, I'm just like, yeah, an asshole. I didn't say that out loud, but like in my head, that was, you know, my reply. And I said, no, I'm sorry, I don't. Which I think made her even angrier.

Speaker 1: 1:29:26

Because I did Oh, know

Speaker 0: 1:29:27

who she was. I absolutely knew who she was, right? I'm the mayor and I need these chairs. And I'm like, I'm sorry, ma'am, but there is a limit of 4 and you have your 4. This woman, you know, so she was so angry. She bought Like, they bought as many chairs as they could. They stormed out. They're like, come on, we're gonna go to the other locations. Right? I called every other Zeller's and told them, hide your chairs. When she comes in, you're out. From what I understand, they did. So, yeah. I I was just like, I'm sorry. No. You're not gonna look at me like I'm a piece of dirt under your shoe when you're trying to buy like other people want this patio furniture. What anyway. So yeah, Albert kinda does that too.

Speaker 1: 1:30:08

Oh, that that oh, you're do you know who I am? And you say no. There there was a Dick Van Dyke episode where Mel Cooley comes in and and they had hired a writer to replace Buddy. I won't tell tell the rest of the story behind that. But Mel comes in and test tells this new guy, do you know who I am? And he says, no. Don't you?

Speaker 0: 1:30:32

Yeah. It's just like, I'm sorry. And it's always the person that's, like, not really that important. And I don't I don't mean important, like famous that says, do you know who I am? Really famous people don't need to say that because everybody does know who they are. You know? Yeah. And and usually, obviously, there's, there's everybody's different. But like most of the time, if you're that famous, you don't need to say, do you know who I am? And try to like throw your weight around. Yeah. I'm not saying some don't, but we've got Albert going through his stuff. Right? And he says, butlers are all alike. They know everything. Assuming Steele is already aware, Albert admits that fine, I'm gay. He admits that Cindy has a beard and that he paid her to marry him and sneers at Steele asking, what are you going to do about it? Steele says very little. So he managed to find Hastings memoirs. And this is probably the only shred of sympathy that I have for any of them in terms of Albert. Because obviously, being in a family like that, the wealth and the power that they have in the eighties, especially at the height of what would have been the AIDS epidemic, being gay would not be possible. Like his father hates him as it is. Finding out that part of him would just make it infinitely worse. Mhmm. So there's you can sort of understand Albert's desperation. He's I'm not saying what he does is right because he admits he would have killed Hastings. Everybody admits

Speaker 1: 1:31:57

he would have killed Hastings. So,

Speaker 0: 1:32:00

like, they are all horrible people. But I guess his motivation is probably the only 1 that I can sort of understand because, like, his entire sense of safety is wrapped up in keeping that a secret. So yeah. But, yeah, no. They're all they're still awful people. Yes.

Speaker 1: 1:32:19

All of them.

Speaker 0: 1:32:20

Yeah. So he, frustrated, he says no. When threatens that a steel breathes a word of this to anyone, he will make sure he never works as a butler. And steel, not Oh,

Speaker 1: 1:32:29

I beg you anything but that.

Speaker 0: 1:32:33

It's just oh, please, sir. Beg you anything but that, sir. Goodbye. Good day. Goodbye. So I release that's the you know, I won't let you work this mean this menial job that you hate ever again.

Speaker 1: 1:32:47

Oh, gee. Really?

Speaker 0: 1:32:48

And again, I go back to my time at Zeller's when customers would say, I'm never shopping here again. Oh, darn.

Speaker 1: 1:32:55

Yeah. Really? Break my heart, would you?

Speaker 0: 1:32:58

I don't own the company. Do you think this hurts my feelings?

Speaker 1: 1:33:01

That's right.

Speaker 0: 1:33:02

You know? If you wanna if you wanna really stick it to write write an email to the CEO, and even then, they probably

Speaker 1: 1:33:09

They

Speaker 0: 1:33:09

don't make so much money that your loss is not going to make any sort of difference. Not

Speaker 1: 1:33:13

only that, but the CEO isn't ever gonna read it.

Speaker 0: 1:33:15

No. They're not. Their assistant or secretary will read it and then send a 1 of those, like, rote replies that they send to everybody. It's, like, computed. You know?

Speaker 1: 1:33:24

And we we had a comment here. Fight the power.

Speaker 0: 1:33:27

Yes. Indeed. Yeah. So He he leaves and Steele oh, no. Please, no. Please, no. He grabs the garbage. He begins to clean up the glass on his floor, and that's when he notices something in the bin. And he pulls out and this is 1 of those, like, oh, here's a core memory from my childhood.

Speaker 1: 1:33:45

Because he pulls out those

Speaker 0: 1:33:46

For those of you who don't know kids, when we used to have printers. We used to have actual printers in our home that came with the computer. Nowadays, we we just buy a laptop and, I don't know, finds usually, we just get something scanned on our phone. We don't even need to print anything anymore.

Speaker 1: 1:34:02

But Well and if we do, it's on a typically an inkjet printer.

Speaker 0: 1:34:06

Yes. Exactly. Because back in the day, they had these extremely slow printers with these perforated edges of the paper and it would take forever. So, yeah. He pull and then he had to peel the edge off the paper once it printed. So he pulls out the the edges and he seems excited to see it. He sneaks up to Laura's room and knocks on her door, calls her name, but she doesn't answer. So he opens the room and goes inside. It's dark. And we've seen this. We we know how this goes.

Speaker 1: 1:34:39

Yeah. You know, at at some point, you gotta say, will you ever learn?

Speaker 0: 1:34:46

The poor man needs to, like, just go in, like you said, with a helmet at this point. Like, into any room. That's right. Or something over his head. Like, he turns on the light. He can see it's been trashed. And as of knowing what comes next, he says, oh, no. Oh, no. Of course, someone hits him from mine. This is hit number 3. And it would have been number 4 had he not managed to to get the jump on Albert.

Speaker 1: 1:35:09

So That's right.

Speaker 0: 1:35:10

Yeah. This poor man's head. He wakes up to see Laura and Mildred looking at him. Mildred worriedly asks if he's okay. Laura tells her to get a towel and some ice, so she helps him up. She sits him down on the bed and asks if he saw who it was. Steel says, no, but that's not unusual. Yeah. Really? It's just such a matter of course now. It's like, oh, no. That's no. It's how it goes. Just how it goes. Mildred comes back with the ice pack and comments on the mess. Steele asks if anything's missing and Laura says a couple of camera bags. Mildred suggests it might be Vincenzo trying to cover up his affair with Catherine. Steele says he doubts that. He tells him he had a chat with Vincenzo and that Hastings knew that Albert only married Cindy to cover up the fact that he wasn't the marrying kind, which is a very delicate way of putting it. Laura realizes that's why Cindy can't keep her hands off Harold. I mean, I wouldn't say that.

Speaker 1: 1:36:05

Yeah. There there's other ways of dealing with those issues.

Speaker 0: 1:36:09

Yeah. And I mean, Harold is not exactly, I guess he's got money, but he's kind of an awful human. So they're all awful humans. But anyway Yes. Steele adds that Vincenzo admits that Harold is his son, not Charles's. Mildred is thrilled by the gossip, and Laura asks what he was doing in their room. Steele thinks that he figured out where Hastings hid the memoirs and pulls out the printer edges. Laura takes them and says, of course, the household computer. That's cute. Ain't that cute that they're so rich they only have 1 computer? Yeah. Well,

Speaker 1: 1:36:38

you know

Speaker 0: 1:36:39

I just mean in the eighties, that that would have been like

Speaker 1: 1:36:42

well In the eighties, 1 computer is I mean, you you think about the price of computers back then. They were not cheap.

Speaker 0: 1:36:49

No. I know it. I just mean compared to now, that's cute.

Speaker 1: 1:36:53

Oh, yeah. Oh, 0, okay. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:36:55

Yeah. You're mean. Well, and again, not to bring it back to Back to the Future, but there's that scene in the first Back to the Future movie where he goes and he's sitting down in 1955 with his grandparents.

Speaker 1: 1:37:06

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 1:37:06

Right? Or I'm sorry, Lorraine's his his in laws, Lorraine's parents. And they're they've got the TV set, their first TV set working. And they pull it into the living room and they put it on and they start watching. And Lorraine's mother says, it's our first television set and asks if he has a TV. And he says, yeah, you know, we've got 2 of them. And then the younger brother's like, you have 2 television sets? Wow, you must be rich. And she's like, don't be silly. Nobody has 2 television sets. And so this is kind of like what I thought of when I saw the Oh, of course, the household computer. And it's like, yeah, because in the eighties, that's pretty much like we got our first computer late eighties, early nineties. It was, yeah, it was the computer. Everybody used that computer. And then now in our apartment alone, I've got my work laptop, my personal laptop. I've also got another Chromebook that I bring to work because I don't want to bring my regular laptop. I've got 3. My husband has his work laptop. And we've also got a Chromebook that Carrie uses. That's 5 laptops for 3 people.

Speaker 1: 1:38:10

Plus you've got, if you've got a tablet.

Speaker 0: 1:38:13

Yes. We have a tablet as well.

Speaker 1: 1:38:14

That's a computer. You got a phone. That's a computer. You've got more power in that phone.

Speaker 0: 1:38:20

Oh, I know.

Speaker 1: 1:38:21

No. They had in this computer in their household. In fact, you've got more actually, I was gonna say, you got more com power in that phone than NASA had when they put men on the moon. But they have more power in this household computer back in the 19 eighties than NASA had when they put people on the moon.

Speaker 0: 1:38:38

Crazy. It's crazy.

Speaker 1: 1:38:39

And now they can't even get a spaceship to stay in 1 piece and keep the toilets working.

Speaker 0: 1:38:46

But yeah. So the household computer is where the memoirs might be kept. And I think that's a pretty stupid place for him to keep the memoirs personally because and and why did none of the Wellingtons think to look?

Speaker 1: 1:38:58

Because see, that's the that's the what's what's the word to to describe it here? That's the lack of understanding and knowledge and ignorance of today's people who use computers. Because back then in the 19 eighties, they would have been using a text based operating system like DOS or CPM. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:39:28

Of course.

Speaker 1: 1:39:28

Okay. Oh, well, no. No. You say that like it's of course.

Speaker 0: 1:39:32

Well, I remember DOS c colon backslash.

Speaker 1: 1:39:34

No. But you don't you don't understand the significance of that statement because you could hide directories. You would never see them unless you knew that they were there or you knew the the DOS level commands and command line switches necessary to reveal those directories. They were hidden from site under under normal operations. And so agree

Speaker 0: 1:39:59

with you.

Speaker 1: 1:40:00

It's perfectly fine for him to have it on the computer because the Wellington's don't I can guarantee you, they don't know enough about the computers to type DIRSpaceStartUpDotStarForward slash

Speaker 0: 1:40:16

Memoirs?

Speaker 1: 1:40:16

What was it? I think h. Yeah. H to reveal hidden directories.

Speaker 0: 1:40:20

Well, it's not that though. Like, I I wonder why they're, like, not even trying to look on the computer. Like, I I

Speaker 1: 1:40:27

don't think realize that there was a computer in the household. They hadn't seen it.

Speaker 0: 1:40:30

That that would track. It's the servant computer. It stays in the kitchen.

Speaker 1: 1:40:34

Well

Speaker 0: 1:40:35

It goes with the servant's the servant's pool.

Speaker 1: 1:40:38

You know, they they use it for running the household, but that doesn't mean that Steele or Holt had or even Mildred had seen it anywhere. So but yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:40:48

But Mildred, she's eager now. She says, now you're talking my territory. Steele says it's a shame about Laura's camera. The film would have come in handy. Laura goes over to her wardrobe and reaches underneath and pulls out a cowboy boot. She reaches into it and pulls out

Speaker 1: 1:41:01

yep. Go ahead. Finish. I jumped the gun. I jumped

Speaker 0: 1:41:05

the gun. Go ahead finish. Canister of film and she says that she's going to pay a visit to a photographer she knows. And Steele says In

Speaker 1: 1:41:12

between her pulling that out and saying she's gonna visit a photographer she knows. In the script, Laura says, I wasn't born yesterday. And Steele says, Judy Holiday, Broderick Crawford.

Speaker 0: 1:41:25

Fair.

Speaker 1: 1:41:27

Which is a a secret movie reference because it got excised from the the shooting script or at least from the finished product.

Speaker 0: 1:41:36

Fair enough. So I just like Steel's next line. He's going to visit a wall safe he knows. Yeah. Right. It's funny. She tells him to take care. And with any luck, she will see to it that he's fired tomorrow. He seems very pleased with this idea.

Speaker 1: 1:41:53

Can we leave it late?

Speaker 0: 1:41:56

Now we've got Laura inside a dark room with a man who is asking her if this couldn't wait until morning. We find out his name is is it Benny? Benny?

Speaker 1: 1:42:04

Bernie, I think.

Speaker 0: 1:42:05

Bernie, sorry. He says he's not complaining, but it's only been 5 months since

he asked her out and waited until 12: 1:42:10

25 tonight to hear back. Oh, ouch. Ouch. And at first, I thought to myself and I had a weird, like, little, I don't know, journey in my brain here. Because at first, I thought to myself, it's kind of, like, crappy for Laura to use these guys that she's Mhmm. Run into to get information from when she has no intention of ever dating them and then sort of string them along. But then I realized Steele does the exact same thing. And it's charming for him, but for some reason, for her, it comes across as as kind of a jerk move.

Speaker 1: 1:42:44

I kinda thought, I

Speaker 0: 1:42:45

wonder I mean, why that

Speaker 1: 1:42:48

it's it's a jerk move for him too.

Speaker 0: 1:42:51

Well, it is. But I just mean, like, it's supposed to come off as charming. People are supposed to see it as charming for him when he does that. Like, when he's in the when they're in the premium steel in the newspaper office and he basically, like, hints that he wants to take what's her face out on a date with a horrible sweater. Mhmm. And she in order to get the copy of the coroner's report. Right?

Speaker 1: 1:43:13

Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 1:43:14

He has no interest. He's he's got no intention of dating her. But if the scene is played comedically and we laugh because it's funny. But Laura, I I this is more about how my mind sort of interpreted this because I'm watching this going, well, that's kind of not cool. But then I'm like, why am I not supposed to find this funny too?

Speaker 1: 1:43:31

Well, I I think in in premium steel, it was funny because she was just falling all over herself.

Speaker 0: 1:43:40

Well, so is he. I mean, this man waited until like, 5 months.

Speaker 1: 1:43:44

But what no. But what I'm saying, though, is that her reaction was funny in kind of a not a laugh sense, but funny as in humorous. But his his behavior in that was not that that was kind of scummy. And it it felt that way at the time. I think in the same situation, it's it's a little bit different because Bernie isn't he isn't the old googly eyed, I'm gonna follow all over my tongue type thing to to try to to hit on you like the blonde was in in premium steel. This is more about him being he he's a little less goofy, I guess, would be a way to say it. He's a little more serious about this than than the the blonde was in premium.

Speaker 0: 1:44:48

I think he's a little less obvious about it. But if you answer the phone from a girl you asked out 5 months ago at Mhmm. After midnight and then immediately open up your dark room so she can do whatever the heck she likes, that's fallen all over yourself. It's maybe not as obvious as as Yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:45:03

I mean, it's it's desperate, certainly.

Speaker 0: 1:45:05

Yeah. So I I I just think this

Speaker 1: 1:45:08

is I guess in that sense, that's why it's different is because it's sad in his case. In Juan's case in premium steel, it's it's like watching a cat chase its tail. You know?

Speaker 0: 1:45:22

I wonder too if it's kind of and I don't think this is intentional, but I wonder too if societal's if if our societal expectations play a role in it because we expect Steele to be the charming man, to be the guy that flirts, the guy that they're they're overly dramatic when, you know, a woman throws herself at him. That's what he does. And we find it funny. But if Laura utilizes her own wiles, I guess you'd call it, we're less programmed as a This is just a theory. As a society to see that as acceptable. I'm not saying either 1 of them is acceptable, but like we're more willing to forgive when Steele does it because it I don't know. I think it's just the idea of her using a man versus him charming a woman.

Speaker 1: 1:46:19

Does that make sense?

Speaker 0: 1:46:21

Like that's how we perceive it as a society. That's maybe how I perceived it. And that's why I kinda went, wait a minute. Why is it okay for him to do it? Not okay for her to do? Like

Speaker 1: 1:46:31

Yeah. I mean, because you expect a man to be a horned dog. I I guess where I have a little bit of an issue with it is kind of the same thing, but from a different perspective. Expect men to behave that way. And, you know, I've always been you know, if if a woman why is why is it if if a man can use whatever assets he has, his looks, his brains, his money, or whatever to to advance his position. Why can't a woman use whatever assets she has? And if that means, you know

Speaker 0: 1:47:25

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:47:26

Dressing up and and looking sexy and kind of flirting with a guy to get him to go along with what she wants. Why is that criticized

Speaker 0: 1:47:35

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:47:36

When it's okay for a man?

Speaker 0: 1:47:38

No. I know, that's

Speaker 1: 1:47:38

And it's and it's it it just it just, I mean, use whatever if you've got a tool that will help you accomplish a job Yep. Why is it wrong to use it? Yeah. Guess.

Speaker 0: 1:47:52

No. I agree with you. I I agree with you. And that's kinda just it was my own internal monologue when I was watching it. So I was like, woah. That was kinda crappy of her to do that. But then I realized Steel would do the exact same thing. And and it would be filmed in a way that makes it more comedic. And we would see it differently as a as a as an audience. Right? So

Speaker 1: 1:48:08

Yeah. I think myself, I think that kind of manipulation is is a little bit sleazy It's

Speaker 0: 1:48:13

sleazy no

Speaker 1: 1:48:14

matter who you are. But Yeah. But I mean, if you're gonna excuse it and make Yeah. And allow it and accept it from 1 group of people, you know, for men, why are you criticizing a woman when she does it? And you know what's the most annoying and pathetic thing about that is it's usually other women who are criticizing the woman for using the assets that she's got.

Speaker 0: 1:48:37

Well, yeah. Because it there's usually a jealousy factor at play there.

Speaker 1: 1:48:39

Well, okay. You said it, not me.

Speaker 0: 1:48:42

But either way, she's got this Bernie. She's got a this poor guy asked her out 5 months ago. She calls him at midnight, and he's like, yeah, sure. I'll open my dark room to you. Oof. Ouch. Frustrated, she looks at the photo and she says, nothing. The man says or Bernie says, it's not 1 of her better shots. She looks up and quotes the film blow up. David Hemmings, Vanessa Redgrave, MGM 1967. She then wonders, or was it 1966? Bernie's, what are you mumbling about? And she says a certain friend would be proud of her right now. She leans closer to him and this is where she's like really heaping it on. I mean, you could give a little bit of plausible done I ability with the phone call just like, oh, she was just calling up a contact. But no. No. She knows exactly what she's doing. She leans in with a seductive tone and she says she touches the collar of his shirt and he grins thinking that he's in. And she says, I'm gonna need blowups. Poor Bernie. Womp womp. Back at the Wellington mansion, we see Mildred sneaking downstairs into the kitchen. The light is turned on and she sees Pierre is already there. He's surprised to see her and concludes and, concludes that she also couldn't sleep. He says, domage, which means shame, and offers her something fantastic. Mildred insists that it's not necessary, which she wants to get rid of him, obviously. And he says, well, he insists. He tells her for someone so lovely a vision, he will make something light and delicious. So Mildred decides she's gotta get rid of him somehow. So she goes, a dag would. I'll help. I had to look this up. Did you did you figure out what a dagwood is?

Speaker 1: 1:50:21

Oh, I already knew. I just I just looked it up so I could get a Yeah. More professional

Speaker 0: 1:50:26

Well, I mean, I looked it up too, I had never heard this expression before. So

Speaker 1: 1:50:30

yeah. Dagwood. I'll I'll just read it because it's written so much better than I would say it. A dagwood sandwich is a tall multilayered sandwich made with a variety of meats, cheeses, and condiments. It's named after Dagwood Bumpstead, a central character

Speaker 0: 1:50:44

in the

Speaker 1: 1:50:44

comic strip Blondie strip. Who is frequently illustrated making enormous sandwiches. Right. According

Speaker 0: 1:50:50

to Dean

Speaker 1: 1:50:51

Young, son of the strip creator, Chick Young, his father began drawing the huge sandwiches in the comic strip in 1936. Although the exact contents of Chick Young's illustrated dagwood sandwich remain obscure, it appears to contain large quantities and varieties of cold cuts, sliced cheeses and vegetables

Speaker 0: 1:51:10

Got it.

Speaker 1: 1:51:10

Separated by additional slices of bread. A whole small fish, presumably a sardine, is usually visible. An olive pierced by a toothpick or a wooden skewer usually crowns the edible structure. And dagwood sandwich has been included in Webster's New World Dictionary. And dagwood, referring to the sandwich, has been included in the American Heritage Dictionary.

Speaker 0: 1:51:32

Okay. And the minute you said that, I was like, yes. I remember that comic strip. I remember the it just it was and I've never heard the expression with regards, like, outside the comic to Mhmm. A sandwich.

Speaker 1: 1:51:42

Oh, it's it's I mean yeah. And I mean, obviously, the comic strip is where it it got its origin, but I've heard that used yeah. I mean, it's not commonly used, but I've I've heard it used outside of the strip in in various references.

Speaker 0: 1:51:58

I can't say I've ever heard I I have, but maybe I have and I just didn't realize. Mhmm. You know what I mean? Like, just Yeah. Flew over my head.

Speaker 1: 1:52:04

It's just basically a sandwich with whatever you find thrown And in

Speaker 0: 1:52:08

that's literally what it she goes over the fridge. She pulls everything bread, mayonnaise, mustard, ham, salami, lettuce, tomatoes, pickle, peanut butter. Why is peanut butter in the fridge?

Speaker 1: 1:52:18

That's where you keep it so it doesn't You go

Speaker 0: 1:52:22

don't have to keep peanut butter in the fridge.

Speaker 1: 1:52:23

Sure you do.

Speaker 0: 1:52:24

No, you don't.

Speaker 1: 1:52:26

Yes. No, you don't.

Speaker 0: 1:52:28

I'm googling this to make sure that I haven't been doing it wrong all these years,

Speaker 1: 1:52:31

but Especially if it's especially if it doesn't have any preservatives in it. If it's a natural peanut butter. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:52:37

Only but but conventional processed peanut butter, safe in the pantry.

Speaker 1: 1:52:41

No. I'm not even so sure about that.

Speaker 0: 1:52:43

Mean According to this, I've just found

Speaker 1: 1:52:46

Well, are you gonna believe Google that would also tell you to put white glue on your pizza to keep the cheese from falling off?

Speaker 0: 1:52:52

I'm gonna believe Martha Stewart. Martha Stewart says it's okay. To be fair, I don't like peanut butter, so I don't eat it. But oh, and and our a commenter has said as well, they're backing me up here. Peanut butter does not need to be refrigerated. Someone else, I keep mine in the cupboard. So No. No. I'm sorry.

Speaker 1: 1:53:14

You are all you are all

Speaker 0: 1:53:17

This is not just me.

Speaker 1: 1:53:17

Needs to be refrigerated. Oh. No. No. No. No.

Speaker 0: 1:53:24

No. Just enjoy Eric being wrong. I I do enjoy Eric being wrong.

Speaker 1: 1:53:35

Everything is if it comes in a jar, it needs to be refrigerated, which is it's too hard to spread Yeah. From the

Speaker 0: 1:53:45

it's if it's like Kraft peanut butter, you don't have to put Kraft peanut butter. Yes. If it's homemade, if it's something that's like yeah. Maybe, I guess. I don't know. I've never had natural peanut butter. But Kraft, like the crap you buy from, you know, Sobeys or wherever it is you shop, that stuff does not you can keep that. We always kept that in our cupboards. I never ate it because I don't like peanut butter, but it was always in the cupboards.

Speaker 1: 1:54:08

Fine. Whatever.

Speaker 0: 1:54:09

Anyway, they're they're rich, so they probably do have natural peanut butter because they're Yes. They're like yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:54:14

Yes.

Speaker 0: 1:54:15

So she and she then pulls out cheese and tuna fish. She tells him it's gonna be 1 hell of a sandwich. Yeah. That's 1 word for it. Here.

Speaker 1: 1:54:28

Yeah. Maybe a really bad case of indigestion the following day. Not to mention many, many hours spent on the porcelain throne.

Speaker 0: 1:54:37

Yeah. Exactly. And Pierre is obviously offended by her clear abuse of culinary arts, tells her that he is suddenly very sleepy and then says, bonsoir. He leaves and she runs over to the computer and turns it on. So, yeah, that was clever way to get rid of him is to offend his sensibilities when it comes to cooking. There's a scene change. Steele, meanwhile, has snuck into mister Wellington's parlor. He goes over to the safe and pulls out a flashlight leaning in to hear the clicks. He opens it, pulls out an envelope with the cashier's check inside made out to Winston Hastings. Before he has time to look at anything else, the lights are turned on, and Charles along with the 2 sons and Cindy come into the room. Charles is pointing a gun at him and tells Steele he better have a good explanation or he is 1 dead butler. The servants then come running in and Greta tells them that he has an excellent explanation. Maria adds that here's the thing. He could have like well, I guess, I don't know how you would. Oh, another comment says peanut butter should not be on a dagwood. We can agree on that.

Speaker 1: 1:55:40

Okay. I will agree with that.

Speaker 0: 1:55:42

Yes. I don't think there is any way Steele could have turned this around, but Greta just completely

Speaker 1: 1:55:48

Oh, yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:55:49

Outs him here. Right? She says, Maria sorry. It's Maria. She adds that Remington's steel, and then Pierre says private investigator extraordinaire. Greta says that he is about to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that 1 of them murdered Hastings. I don't know how any of them keep their jobs after this episode.

Speaker 1: 1:56:07

Well, you know, blackmail is True. Pretty powerful.

Speaker 0: 1:56:16

They do have a lot of they do have a lot on the on the Wellington's. That's for sure. And then Steele, she's she looks over at hey, Steele, and she's like, isn't that right? And Steele kind of grins weakly because he's got nothing. So and this is probably, like, where the episode really kind of, like, finds its feet because this this next sort of sequence of events is Steele doing what he does best, which is stalling, acting like he knows what he's talking about, and trying his best to

Speaker 1: 1:56:48

And this is where it to me, it becomes very much patterned after those those multiple endings of Clue.

Speaker 0: 1:56:57

Yes. Absolutely. And this I I give it credit because usually these kinds of episodes annoy me, like, where they have the same flashback shown from different perspectives. Mhmm. I don't typically enjoy that, but I enjoy this because it's just

Speaker 1: 1:57:12

Well, even visually though, because as we get into it, you know, they're going along and and we're seeing this flashback happen. And then you hear, but wait.

Speaker 0: 1:57:22

But wait.

Speaker 1: 1:57:22

And everybody freezes and looks at the camera. It's just just

Speaker 0: 1:57:25

like low. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:57:27

Yeah. Just like in clue. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 1:57:29

It's great. It really is good. Charles says he's gonna call the police and steel turns him saying, not so fast. After you hear what I'm about to say, you might not be so eager to make that call. Yes. He and this is like, this man should have been in the theater. Right? Like, if he hadn't turned into a con man, he would have been on at home on the stage because he is a drama queen. Tells them that he will now prove that Hastings death was not an accident, but and he draws out the tension before saying, Like I said, he knows that the only chance he has is to stall, so he's gonna be the theatrical little drama queen we all know and love. Albert scoffs. Catherine says, not so, and Charles deems it preposterous. Steele says, it may seem so to the untrained eye. He says, but to a private investigator, and then he trails off as Pierre cuts right to the chase saying, who killed him? Steele pauses knowing that he has to draw it out. He says, fair question. But before I answer that, I was first asked the question, how was Hastings killed? Albert irritated, must we? Steel goes on to say that Winston Hastings was a beloved butler to some, but an insidious blackmailer to others. He tells them that he had written memoirs that cut to the quick each and every Wellington. Memoirs so dark, so evil, so heinous that each 1 of them was driven to murder Hastings. He's really enjoying this at this point. And then Catherine interrupts, you have the memoirs? Steele's taken aback by that question and tells her another interesting question. And he says he will produce them in a moment. And Charles tells him that if he's bluffing, he will have his license. Sure. That yeah. Okay. Oh, he meant his private And

Speaker 1: 1:59:23

we'll sue.

Speaker 0: 1:59:24

Yeah. And just like Mildred runs into the study and says she found it. She's holding papers in her hand that may just be the memoirs, but I'm sorry. I have some questions about this in a minute.

Speaker 1: 1:59:34

Okay.

Speaker 0: 1:59:35

Steele pretends to have been expecting her and tells him that his assistant, just as he expected with the memoirs. Frazzled, she tells him he doesn't know she doesn't know what she had to go through or he doesn't know what she had to go through to get them. Recipes, wine list, guest list. He cuts her off asking for the memoirs. She hands them to him. He looks at the front page and reads life with the Wellingtons. Catchy little title, lifts the page. Confused, he reads the life of a butler is and then he stops. Greta urges him to go on, but he can't because there's nothing else there. Utter his breath, he mutters to Mildred. That's it. That's only half a line. Why did she bring him a stack of blank papers then? Well, she's got, like, a whole stack of papers.

Speaker 1: 2:00:16

That's good Why she brought them to him if there's only 2 pages? Maybe he sat there and just hit the anarchy and kept adding lines to the the document. And so even though there's only 1 line written, the document has all these different lines in it, or maybe the printer you know, it wasn't unusual for printers to print out extra pages.

Speaker 0: 2:00:41

It's just really funny to me that she that she And even if it did print out extra pages, why would she bring them all? Why not just bring the 2 that have that are relevant to the investigation?

Speaker 1: 2:00:54

It looks more impressive this way.

Speaker 0: 2:00:56

I guess so. It was just kind of funny because I was just I'm looking at it, like, there's only 1 line there, why is she holding this? And it's not even a big enough because like, if you if there were really memoirs there, the stack should be bigger.

Speaker 1: 2:01:08

Well, it seems that would been the, like, first chapter. Just the first chapter. Yes.

Speaker 0: 2:01:14

Yeah. So Mildred concludes he must have found a writer's book. He's urged to reveal what's in the memoirs, but he stalls saying, we'll get to that. But first, let's go back to the night of the murder. Charles correctly concludes that he's bluffing and still am I? Even points out that he was told that Charles supposedly received notice of a phone call from a business associate, but it wasn't reality arranging a meeting with Hastings. Albert excitedly says, it's true. I saw the note.

Speaker 1: 2:01:40

Now now we go from kiss up to CYA moment.

Speaker 0: 2:01:44

I will yeah. And he will turn on him the second yeah. Charles disgusts and says, shut up, you pipsqueak, and we all cheer. Steele holds up the check and calls it exhibit A, cashier's check for a $100,000 made out to 1 Winston Hastings, dated the day of the murder. And this is where we have the scene going the screen going blurry. And we flash back to the first scene where Charles received the note, and we hear Steele narrating his version of events. He says, Charles got the note from Hastings and asked Hastings to draw his bath. Clever excuse to meet. Then he tells everyone he's going to get the phone call, when in reality, he went to get the cashier's check for Hastings. We see the scene play out as if it happened, and Steele again continues to narrate over it that meanwhile, Hastings waited in the bedroom, counting down the hours until he would be on his way to a fun filled Acapulco with beautiful Maria and spending his misbegotten fortune. But Hastings didn't have the memoirs. We see him get agitated as Steele says they argued and Hastings refused Charles' demands. We see him storm away as Steele narrates that no 1 refuses Charles Wellington. Steele continues to narrate that he grabbed his favorite tennis racket, snuck up behind Hastings, delivered a smashing, that's where they freeze because a voice cuts through the narration, Charles' voice saying, no. We go back to the study where Charles is insisting that's not the way it happened. He admits to going to meet Hastings, but when he got there, he found him on the floor, and his tennis racket was beside him. He was being set up. He says he had to act fast, so he dumped the racket in the trash, put Hastings' body in the tub, and waited for his wife to turn up to provide an alibi for him. Catherine looks surprised as he insisted it's the truth. And, of course, that just destroys Steele's theory completely. So he

Speaker 1: 2:03:26

Yeah. And and he says precisely as if to say, ignore everything I just got done saying.

Speaker 0: 2:03:33

Yep. So he pivots. Of course. Of course. Which brings to the us to the next important question. Who framed him? He turns around, and Mildred asks under her breath, what are you doing? And he says, I believe it's known as winging it. He then says, on the night of Hastings' death, who was the 1 other person who saw Hastings note to Charles? As he said this, he's literally leaning over Albert. And he's like moving so close. He's almost on top of him. And he's so close to his face that he says, it's Albert by his own admission. And he framed his father. Then we go back into the flashback, and we see Charles get the note with Albert watching, and Steele narrates that he knew he was meeting Hastings, which was the perfect opportunity to kill 2 birds with 1 racket. Hastings, who was blackmailing him, and his father whose contempt and domination he could no longer abide. And I will give Steele credit for not it seems that, Charles already knows that Albert's gay, but whether he does or he doesn't, he doesn't verbally out Albert here, which is

Speaker 1: 2:04:32

That's true.

Speaker 0: 2:04:33

It's pretty cool of him. He just comments

Speaker 1: 2:04:35

about He says he was being blackmailed.

Speaker 0: 2:04:37

Yeah. Yeah. He was being blackmailed and that his father had contempt for him and he didn't care for him. We see Albert in the hallway watching his father go into the safe and still narrating that he's saying that he made sure his father was in the parlor so he could get to Hastings first. We then see Albert go to Hastings' room, grab the racket as the voiceover says, he lifted it to deliver the final crashing. Again, it freezes. And Albert's voice cuts in saying, no. Wait. Back in the parlor, Albert admits it's true. Hastings was blackmailing him, but he didn't kill him, although he wanted to. In fact, when he knew Hastings was upstairs, he went to get his gun. Why do you admit this? Why would you admit that you were going to kill him?

Speaker 1: 2:05:15

He didn't kill him.

Speaker 0: 2:05:16

Well, sure.

Speaker 1: 2:05:17

Because he figures it's it's okay to admit that I was going to because I didn't actually do it.

Speaker 0: 2:05:23

Yeah. Oh, sure. Okay. But, yeah. In fact, when he knew Hastings was upstairs, he went to get his gun. He says that when he entered his room, Hastings was on the floor dead with a broken debating trophy lying next to him. Albert insists that someone was trying to frame him. He looks at Charles and says he thought it was his father who never wanted him as a son, so he dragged Hastings into the room, smashed the tennis racket, and left it lying next to the body. Charles, irritated, says he ruined a perfectly good racket.

Speaker 1: 2:05:49

Yeah. Yes. We must be concerned about the important things here. The murder of a guy. You know

Speaker 0: 2:05:59

Like, but That's incidental. How effed up is your family when you find your dead butler on the floor in your room and you know you're being framed and your first thought is, well, yeah, naturally, my dad did this. So I'm a go frame him back. Like, how and then the dad, well, upon hearing this, just is annoyed that his racket got smacked. Wow. We are all sociopaths. They are all horrible, horrible people.

Speaker 1: 2:06:25

They are.

Speaker 0: 2:06:26

Just terrible, terrible human beings. Steele says, well, that would explain the banging noise Pierre heard earlier, and Maria interrupts impatiently saying, who is the killer? Vincenzo agrees. They wanna know now. A chorus of people agree. Mildred, starting to look nervous, suggests they call a cab and still butters that it's worth considering. He then steps away and compares a murder case to an onion, saying that 1 must peel back the endless layers of contradiction and confusion. And so the process brings them to the 2 people who would stand to gain the most from killing Hastings and framing Albert, Cindy and Harold. Both look surprised that he's accusing them. Harold says he's crazy, and Steele once again says, am I? And goes into the flashback. We see Hastings get the note again as Steele narrates from Harold's point of view that here was a chance to get rid of both Hastings and Albert because Hastings knew about Cindy's past and was threatening to destroy her 1 ambition, to make it in high society. Arguably, though, she already had. If she had married Albert and they were to get divorced, she would be entitled to

Speaker 1: 2:07:27

something. Not necessarily. I mean

Speaker 0: 2:07:30

Unless there was a prenup. Unless unless she's not a prenup. Yeah. That's a good point. And if they're that wealthy, she probably did. We see Charles get up, and Steele's voice over continues telling Harold that Hastings knew his unbridled passion for Cindy, if publicized, would ruin his bid to become president of Wellington Petroleum. We see Harold and Cindy race upstairs and duck into a room, then grab Hastings as he walks by with Steele's voice narrating that they waited for Hastings and ambushed him. Steele says they pulled him into Albert's room, grabbing Albert's debating trophy and waiting for the right moment too. And just as Sydney is about to hit Hastings in the flashback, they freeze, and we hear her voice saying, you're out of your gourd. We go back to the parlor, and Harold says, they didn't kill Hastings. And Cindy says, well, we were going to with Harold's army knife. But he's this poor man was marked for death no matter what he did. He had there's 2 people freely saying, yeah, we were gonna kill him, but someone else got there first. Yeah. Hastings was already dead. Harold adds that it was in his bedroom, so that's when they dragged his body into Albert's bedroom. Sydney concludes that that's when she broke his stupid trophy and made it look like the murder weapon. Steele looks exhausted from all the red herrings. He's like, exactly as I deduced, which leaves only 1 more suspect. He looks and points dramatically as he says, Catherine Wellington. And it's worth noting that the pathetic fallacy happening, the storm going on outside, is very much for ambiance. And it's very, like, used really well here. Because every time he makes a big pronouncement or there's a big announcement or whatever, the thunder crashes, the lightning flashes. And LA, from my understanding, and correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think LA is known for these kinds of storms that happen all that frequently.

Speaker 1: 2:09:15

I don't know.

Speaker 0: 2:09:16

But they I'm sure they happen because hurricanes happen and stuff like that. But I I'm thinking that this

Speaker 1: 2:09:21

is Hurricane Lorraine?

Speaker 0: 2:09:23

Yeah. This is used more often for effect when it comes to, like, these types of scenes on on Remington deal because the only time we use

Speaker 1: 2:09:30

a That was a home improvement.

Speaker 0: 2:09:33

Yeah. He made a home improvement reference, I get to make a Buffy reference. That's the rule.

Speaker 1: 2:09:38

No. You already did.

Speaker 0: 2:09:40

I commented that Rupert

Speaker 1: 2:09:42

and I'm Charlie did. Sorry. You did.

Speaker 0: 2:09:44

You did. You did.

Speaker 1: 2:09:47

Doesn't I'm just getting mine.

Speaker 0: 2:09:49

Anyway, Catherine tells him that she's sorry to disappoint them, but at the time of the murder, she was planning the menu of the barbecue with missus Fenson. Greta confirms that she is telling the truth. And this is kind of funny because Katherine's pretty much the only 1 that doesn't have like a, well, was gonna kill him, but I didn't. Just like, yeah, no,

Speaker 1: 2:10:08

I was, I was,

Speaker 0: 2:10:09

I was planning the menu. Like, I don't, I don't know what the rest of you were doing, but I was actually, you know, working on households.

Speaker 1: 2:10:15

Because she's got an alibi, so she doesn't have to admit that she was planning to kill him and and True.

Speaker 0: 2:10:21

She's just like, yeah, no, I'm I'm good. I I have a new excuse. And 1 of the comments just said, I didn't get the home improvement reference for the best, I guess. Anyway, credit Shame on you. Telling the truth. And this is where Steele really starts to sweat. He says, of course.

Speaker 1: 2:10:41

She she would likely want to have Hastings on the spit. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 2:10:46

That's true.

Speaker 1: 2:10:47

That's not a big yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 0: 2:10:49

Yeah. So, yeah. Steele is really panicking now, of course, which means the murderer is he points he puts a steadying hand on Mildred's shoulder as he says, somebody else. He leans in and Mildred's like, do you wanna make a run for it? He's about to agree when Laura comes in and like a starving man who just spotted a 5 course meal, he exclaims, ah, wonderful. My associate, miss Holt. Yes. Laura is surprised.

Speaker 1: 2:11:13

Or actually like a starving man who just spotted a single McDonald's French fry.

Speaker 0: 2:11:17

Yeah. Like a chicken McNugget on the ground covered in dirt. He is that

Speaker 1: 2:11:20

weird to

Speaker 0: 2:11:22

like, you know, not that Laura is a chicken McNugget on the ground covered in dirt, but you know what I'm saying. Yeah. She is surprised, she says, what's going on? And Steele tells her he was just concluding his summation. She looks kind of confused. You've solved the case uncomfortably. He says, yes, in a way, I've eliminated all the suspects. Yeah. So, yeah, sure. Nobody did it. The look on Laura's face suggests she figured out as much, but Charles has had enough. He says he's calling the police, but Steele dramatically yells, wait a minute, Wellington. Or in a minute, Wellington, everyone looks at him and he says, to review. And everyone just rolls their eyes. But he presses on saying the motive for Hastings murder was and Laura interrupts and says, stocks.

Speaker 1: 2:12:11

Precisely.

Speaker 0: 2:12:13

Yeah. And I like that this is the red herring because the entire episode, we've been led to believe it was these memoirs. And that's what everybody's looking for. All of the characters that had reasons for killing Hastings but didn't. They want to get their hands. And the funniest thing was he never wrote them, which, you know, if that's not the very definition of a writer, I don't know what is. Like, somebody saying, I'm gonna write this thing, and I'm writing or I'm writing this thing. And sure, they wrote a sentence or a paragraph, but they don't finish It's yeah. Like Or, know, this is like George R. R. Martin promising, I'm definitely gonna finish that Game of Thrones series 1 day. Sure, George. Sure. So, yeah, in this case, they were completely off base. The motive was stocks. Steele, grateful that she knows more than he does, points and says precisely. Invites her up and tells her not to let him hog the the limelight. Laura tells him that they all know Wellington Petroleum was in dire financial straits. Few knew that a corporate takeover was in the works, engineered by someone on the inside who had access to a vast holding of company shares, which he was willing to sell out. Harold immediately jumps up and calls Albert a rat and starts to strangle him. And Laura just calmly says, it wasn't Albert. Charles demands to know who it was, which he already knows, but whatever, and threatens to kill him. Laura tells him that someone already beat him to it. Steele, shocked, exclaims, Hastings? Everyone looks at him in surprise, and they, oh, good. Good. Good. Good. I knew all along. Yeah. Proceed. Laura tells him that Hastings had amassed a large amount of shares over the years using every eavesdrop conversation to his advantage. Charles exclaims that he's a swine, and Laura says that he accumulated enough shares to give someone in the family decisive control over Wellington petroleum. Charles asks what she's talking about. Laura says, he is, the 1. She says the night of the murder, he was willing to pay Hastings a $100,000 for the privilege of buying back his shares. Wellington insists it's a lie, and he dares her to try to prove it or prove that he got a single share of stock. Laura admits she can't because Subuku Limited, a Japanese firm trying to take over the company, had a secret operative among them. Katherine demands to know who it is. And I'm I mean, at this point, I would think that would be obvious. I mean, maybe not, but like

Speaker 1: 2:14:28

Well, that would be a bit presumptuous, but okay. I mean, but yeah, you would your first instinct would be to to to suspect the Japanese guy.

Speaker 0: 2:14:39

That is employed with yeah. I don't know. That's Steele tells Laura not to keep them in suspense any longer. Laura tells them that an MIT graduate and securities analyst who after serving some time for fraud supposedly retired to the contemplative life of an estate gardener, 1 Sam Kuromatsu. Everyone gasps in shock and looks at Sam. Sam looks at her coldly and just says, prove it. Laura holds up the picture of him talking to 2 other men in suits and says, it's the photograph he thought he destroyed. Albert says he doesn't get it. And Pierre asked what really happened. Laura says, let's go back to the night of the murder. Steele takes his cue and jumps up saying, allow me. I've got some experience with this sort of thing. And we go back into the flashback as Steele narrates that Charles receives a note from Hastings. Albert sees the note. Charles leaves the room. Hastings follows, soon to be followed by Albert, Sydney, and Harold. This is kind of all going in, like, a little bit faster. Like, as if they're fast forwarding through. Right? Mildred asks

Speaker 1: 2:15:37

Again, similar to the ending of Clue, where he's just running frantically back

Speaker 0: 2:15:42

and forth. It's so perfect, that ending of Clue. It's just so funny. Mildred asks, where was Karamatsu? And we see the image shift to Sam eating something in the kitchen. Laura says he was in the kitchen and that he made a deal with Hastings to buy his stock, but Charles had just made him a better offer. We see Hastings come into the kitchen. Karamazu following yeah. Following him as Laura says he stops Hastings on his way to Charles's bedroom. He tells Hastings he wants to make a counter offer. We see him grab a heavy candlestick. And again, this is very clue because like in the, you know, in the room with the candlestick. He grabs a heavy candlestick, goes into Harold's room where Harold is waiting or where, sorry, Hastings is waiting as Laura says, Hastings agrees. We then see the attack and Laura's narration tells us that Kuromatsu kills Hastings in Harold's room, which explains the struggle Vincenzo sees from outside. Kuromatsu then steals the signed stock certificate and runs off to contact Subuku Limited. And we see the action play out as we remember with Steele narrating that it's simple. Now they know why Harold and Cindy arrived to kill Hastings. They found he was already dead. We see them drag Hastings into the other bedroom, and Steele concludes that then they framed Albert. But Albert, who also wanted to kill Hastings, finds the butler's body and summons enough courage to frame his father. Christmas dinner this year is gonna be awkward. He's gonna be awkward. Hey, dad. Remember that time that you, or Hey, son. Remember that time you tried to frame me? Hey. Remember that time you tried to frame me? Remember that? My god.

Speaker 1: 2:17:09

How how do you like the taste of your turkey there, son?

Speaker 0: 2:17:12

Right? Yeah. I wouldn't be eating anything anybody served me at that house ever. Yeah. We see Albert dragging Hastings out as Steele continues his narration saying that Albert dumps Hastings body in Charles' bedroom, smashes his racket to complete the frame. We see him do that, and it's so funny to watch it like in in sped up because he's like, having trouble smashing the racket. You see, if you that

Speaker 1: 2:17:37

Tennis rackets would be hard to break.

Speaker 0: 2:17:39

No. I know. But it like, the fact that it sped up a little bit kinda just makes it even funnier. Right? We see him do that in Runoff with Laura continuing saying that a moment later, Charles finds the body, realizes he has to do something. We see Hastings pick up the racket. The steel continues that he jumps Hastings in the tub to make it look like an accident. Laura says, good work, mister Steele. He says, you too, miss Holt. We switch back to the parlor, and now the lights have gone off. Thunder crashes outside as Mildred yells like Kuromatsu has flown the coop. Laura and Steele run outside in 2 different directions. Steel stops by a hedge, and Kurobatsu pops up behind him with a chainsaw.

Speaker 1: 2:18:15

No. It's it's a it's a hedge trimmer.

Speaker 0: 2:18:18

Oh. 0, okay. I thought it was because he has a chainsaw later on. I just thought it was

Speaker 1: 2:18:21

Yeah. No. This is just the hedge trimmer.

Speaker 0: 2:18:23

Okay. So but what's funny about it is that he attempts to bring it down on him. He misses, but he sort of continues hacking away at

Speaker 1: 2:18:30

the at the at the hedge. Mhmm.

Speaker 0: 2:18:33

And Steel Hut could could run, but he just sort of stands there.

Speaker 1: 2:18:37

You know, that's the kind of thing if I talk about something and I think we've talked about it too. Yeah. You know? Somebody's chasing you. You're running down the road. Why don't you just run off the side of the road?

Speaker 0: 2:18:48

Right? Like, he's he's just standing there as this guy's coming on with this hedge trimmer. And it's Laura that comes up from behind and just unplugs it. Mhmm. Yeah. Really? To which he then throws it at Steele and runs. And we get we see that his jacket actually has been torn. Mhmm. Steel and Laura begin to check the other buildings. They open the doors of what looks to be a tool shed, and they walk in. It's empty, but then it this is a chainsaw. Chainsaw suddenly comes through the wall behind them. Laura and Steel get out of the way as Kuromatsu burst through the wall with a different, like, with a portable chainsaw in his hand, and he starts swinging it at Lauren Steele, which she notices a leaf blower next to her. He says goodbye, mister Steele, as Laura turns it on, and I guess the dust that comes out of that thing implies that it hasn't been used in years.

Speaker 1: 2:19:35

I got a comment. Bonsai. Yeah. Exactly. Right.

Speaker 0: 2:19:41

But the dust that comes out basically disorients Kuromatsu who Steele then punches. He looks at himself and says this tailor is gonna kill him. Laura suggests they call the police first. They turn to go out of the shed, but it is now bucketing rain outside. Steele says, he doesn't feel that eager to go back to the house.

Speaker 1: 2:20:00

Well, I wouldn't either. I mean

Speaker 0: 2:20:01

No. No. I mean but I mean, it's funny because Laura's like, well, we can't stay here. And Steele pulls her in and starts kissing her. Why not? She kisses him back and then pulls away sneaking a glance at Kuromatsu and says, what about him? He gives her a wicked smile, pulls the the doors closed, and scandalized. Laura says, what will people think? And still replies, what else? The butler did it.

Speaker 1: 2:20:23

That's right.

Speaker 0: 2:20:24

And then we freeze. And it's funny because I always this is another 1 of those episodes where I enjoy it. It's a good episode. It's maybe not the best episode of the season. Mhmm. It's definitely not gonna crack my top 5, but it's fun. And I kind of forget it exists until I rewatch it. And then I'm like, oh, no. This is funny. This is funny stuff. It's zany. It's comedic. It feels a little reminiscent of season 1 and that, like, Steele trying to give the speech where he's revealing the murderer, actually has no clue what he's But talking about kind of you're right. It does feel very much like Clue. And I I really wish that we had some way of knowing if there was any inspiration because that movie would have been very recent Mhmm. To this episode. So, I mean, it's possible, even if it wasn't intentional, that it was like in the in the popular subconscious enough that it ended up being part of the episode. I don't know. But it's it's it's a lot of fun, this episode. Yes. It's cute. Any other thoughts? Because we kinda

Speaker 1: 2:21:25

No. I mean, it it is. I I like you, it's not going to probably be in my top 5, but I do love the Clue feel to it because I love that movie. Yeah. It's a great movie. Yeah. And I I just yeah. I love the comedic zaniness of it.

Speaker 0: 2:21:45

Yeah. Steel getting knocked on the head repeatedly.

Speaker 1: 2:21:48

That and and then, of course, at the end where but wait.

Speaker 0: 2:21:53

You know, it's just like

Speaker 1: 2:21:54

everybody freezes and it's just like,

Speaker 0: 2:21:58

Or the whole Steele having to endure the degradation of being the butler when he usually gets to play the glamorous parts. It's it's the whole thing is put together really well. It's filmed really well. It's directed really well. And I think this is again why I know that there's some differing opinions on season 4, but for me, season 4 is so consistently good that even the episodes that are not super standout episodes are still enough fun that I'm not Mhmm. You know, the only 1 I would skip, as we know, is Steel spawning. The rest of them are all really enjoyable.

Speaker 1: 2:22:33

Well, in this 1, even if it's not the greatest episode of the season, it's got a lot of great little moments.

Speaker 0: 2:22:40

Oh, Yeah.

Speaker 1: 2:22:40

Steel goosing Laura's rear

Speaker 0: 2:22:42

end. Yes.

Speaker 1: 2:22:44

He walking into Laura's room and it's Yeah. Oh, no. Oh, no. You know, just before he gets back.

Speaker 0: 2:22:49

Did you see who did it? No. But that's not unusual. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 2:22:52

I mean, just little things like that just Yeah. Peppered throughout the whole the whole episode. Just a lot of great little moments.

Speaker 0: 2:23:00

They all understood the assignment. Like, from everybody, from the script writers

Speaker 1: 2:23:03

to the

Speaker 0: 2:23:03

actors to the like, they got it. They, you know, the door getting the last word, someone just commented. Yes. Yeah. The physical comedy is top notch in this episode. So I I gotta say it's a lot of fun. And that's pretty much it for me.

Speaker 1: 2:23:18

Me too.

Speaker 0: 2:23:19

On the website, www.steelwatching.com, we've got show notes, links to Amazon US and Amazon Canada. You can buy us a coffee or, support us with a donation either monthly or just 1 time donation. There's merch links in the show notes as well.

Speaker 1: 2:23:36

Oh, and somebody somebody somebody Oh, bought some some stuff from bought a shirt and coffee cup, I think.

Speaker 0: 2:23:44

Yay. So, yeah. Thank you. There are also social media resources and links such as?

Speaker 1: 2:23:50

Links to the official Steel Washi Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages. A link there so that

Speaker 0: 2:23:58

Oh, is what the person commenting. They they bought it. Sorry. Yay.

Speaker 1: 2:24:04

You look as cool as us. Yes. Links so that your friends can subscribe if they're not already following the show. And then also links to the Steel Watchers fan group. And we have had we have had a few people follow the podcast because of the mentions in the fan group, and we've had some people join the fan group because of mentions in the podcast. So Yeah. It's all real cool. It's called synergy.

Speaker 0: 2:24:31

That sounds like 1 of those business words that they're like, synergy, circle back, you know. Anyway. Yep. That's about it for us. The next episode is another 1 that I really enjoy, Steel in the Running.

Speaker 1: 2:24:45

So Yes.

Speaker 0: 2:24:46

Looking forward to that. And I don't know about you, but I would question any man that would wanna run 26 miles without being chased.

Speaker 1: 2:24:52

I wonder about anybody who wanna run 26 miles without being chased.

Speaker 0: 2:24:57

Exactly. Alright. Thank you for listening, and bye bye.

Speaker 1: 2:25:02

Bye bye, everybody.