About Angela Wilson
Location: Midwest
Occupation: Web Producer/Freelance Writer
Bio: I love to read - and write - and surf. My FAV genres include mysteries, romantic suspense and thrillers. I'm finally working on my own thriller (under a pen name) and writing a book on marketing/PR for authors. I blog about writing at www.wickedwordsmith.com, and have accounts on various sites. You can find me on MySpace, Facebook and more by visiting www.angelawilson.net.
Posts: 222
More from this author
The 10 men who volunteered to help construct windmills to generate power in Jericho return – minus Eric Green. He’d told friend and farmer Stanley Richmond he was still mourning his dead wife and baby and needed some time away. But something is amiss, and Jake won’t ignore his instincts.
He enlists the help of newfound ally Robert Hawkins. When they arrive at New Bern , they find themselves at a heavily-armed blockade. They aren’t going to get through until one of the town’s deputies, a man named Perkins, recognizes Jake and escorts them through.
Phil Constantino greets Jake. He is the sheriff and now mayor of the neighboring town. Johnstone Green’s friend seems harder, somehow, edgier than when he was first introduced on the show. He tells Jake Eric was missing for three days. At a factory that survived a brutal attack on the town by Ravenwood, they meet up with Ted, one of Heather’s friends, who tells Jake and Hawkins that Eric and Heather left that morning. They decided to go without the convoy, which is a big no-no in the new dog-eat-dog post-nuclear society.
Ted slips Jake a note when they shake hands. It says to meet at a trailer park. They sneak back into town – after being escorted out. Perkins is watching Ted’s trailer – not a good sign. They take down Perkins and interrogate him after finding out that Ted was forced to lie.
Perkins says that Eric and Heather tried to sabotage one of the machines at the factory. Hawkins and Jake know they would not have done that without a good reason. An order to shoot on site is issued. Heather is killed. (She was also killed early on in a character elimination game on the official Jericho site.)
They handcuff Perkins to the sink – instead of killing him – and head out. There are dirty dishes in the sink, so of course you know that Perkins is going to pick the lock in a similar fashion Hawkins used in the last episode with a paperclip.
The factory was evacuated as Jake and Hawkins left earlier. They were told it was because a machine overheated. The plant is still deserted when they get there. They find a detailed list of Jericho ’s assets and a map listing the salt mine, farms and other important resources.
It’s a map of war.
They also discover that the plant isn’t just for making windmills. Workers are making explosives. Hawkins says they need to leave and tell the people in Jericho so they can arm themselves. Jake says they need to destroy the factory – now. He runs out of his hiding place. Hawkins stays behind. Good thing, too, because Perkins chooses that moment to run through the building with a posse. After a brief chase, they capture Jake.
They don’t know Hawkins is there.
Jake finds his brother, beaten up, in jail. Guards eventually come for them. During a speech, Constantino tells the townspeople that Jericho was, in fact, going to betray New Bern by not paying for the windmills with the promised crop share. Jericho , he says, was going to destroy the factory and take New Bern’s livelihood. His proof? The presence of Jake and Eric Green.
Constantino works them up into a mob mentality while Hawkins watches from a safe distance.
Not all the people of New Bern want a war. They were friends of Heather.
Skylar, the love of Jericho trading post owner Dale, wants to cut a deal with Russell, one of the few good guys in New Bern . He wants a piece of mine to sell along profitable trade routes. She’s keen on the idea, but Mayor Gray Anderson nixes it. They argue. Russell tries to intervene, but Gray is selfish and won’t back down. Russell tells him he is trying to save Jericho . This agreement would show “good faith” to New Bern . But before he can tell Gray that much, the fanatical mayor sends all his troops to the salt mine to protect it.
This leaves Jericho vulnerable for attack – perhaps just the way Constantino planned, with Russell acting as an unknowing pawn.
New Bern had show signs of fraying at the edges in earlier episodes. Those 10 “volunteers” from Jericho ? Well, they really didn’t have a choice. New Bern wanted hostages just in case Jericho recanted its agreement to provide 10 percent of the spring crop as payment for the energy-generating machines. They’ve been attacked by Ravenwood and blame Jericho for not warning them – though how they would have done that with limited communications, I don’t know. Jericho is an easy target for their rage and anxiety and with a dictator like Constantino ruling with his hate-filled speech about townspeople he used to consider friends. He’s fueled rumors that have grown into envious rage among the people of New Bern , and has nicely established the mentality needed to take over Jericho.
When Jake and Hawkins arrive, there are children begging on the streets, which are virtually clear of adult residents, unlike Jericho , where people try to take care of each other and the refugees that are now part of their home.
Stanley still has that tank in his barn, so he’d better start learning to drive it. Jericho is going to need the firepower for the ensuing battle.
This episode defines the human condition in a way that makes great television. Jericho residents like the Greens and Stanley Richmond show goodness and keep people from cheating one another when they can. In New Bern , dictator Constantino uses the anxiety and uncertainty to create a position of power to make him a major player in the politics game.
Aptly named - Casus Belli means an act used to justify war - this episode was fast and held everything an episode of Jericho should: tight story, intense suspense, excellent character development. There was just the right amount of subplot with Stanley, Mimi, Bonnie and Bonnie’s idiot boyfriend, Sean, who moved in while big brother Stanley was away. Johnstone and Mary, Eric’s girlfriend, have some bonding time as Gail languishes in the past.
While we didn’t see anything of the possible mover and shaker behind the bombings, viewers can see how Constantino’s thirst for power will bring him into a bloody war with much bigger powers than tiny Jericho in future episodes.
After all, Jericho is out of all the nuclear fallout areas. (Remember the maps in Hawkins’ house that Jake found? The ones about nuclear fallout?) Many people will find the town suitable – and I can guarantee the man who orchestrated the attack on his own country is going to have the smarts and firepower to squash Constantino like a bug.
With only three episodes left – and as slow as the show as been thus far - this event will likely be the set up for the finale, with the major wars falling next season.
