Photo Gallery 1 (scroll to find correct episode once you get there)

Friends, Family & Guests: Andrea Mann (Doctor), Ken Tremblett (Barry Wells), Kamala Lopez (Marta Penhall), David DeLuise (Stevenson), Tony Dakota (Clavo), Alec Burton (Mr. Penhall), Margo Pinridic (Mrs. Penhall), French Tickner (Priest), Tosca Baggoo (OR Nurse), Sandra P. Grant (Reporter).

Doug is seriously wounded while on a case and while the doctors try to save his life he enters limbo, where the people he meets cause him to reconsider his choice of career.

Opening Scene: In a large city building, Doug, dressed in a fine black suit, loads his gun and asks a lawyer what is taking Stevenson so long. The lawyer says he's nervous. Stevenson comes out of the washroom and puts on a bulletproof vest, saying he wanted to use the front steps and that he's not afraid of mobsters. He's wearing his blond hair in a short ponytail and has huge sideburns. Doug leads them down a hallway, telling Stevenson that mobsters make their point with bullets and then he directs them to an elevator. That elevator takes too long, and Doug decides to use a different one. When they get in, Stevenson complains about the music and puts on sunglasses, which his lawyer removes. Before the door opens, they can already hear the press, and the lawyer says they must have figured out their secret. The door opens, and Doug tells Stevenson to stay behind him. They emerge into the hallway and slowly make their way through a deluge of press, with reporters asking about Stevenson's willingness to be the only DJ to testify at a payola trial. Stevenson says nothing, following Doug. As they reach the back of the crowd, a thin man in a black overcoat suddenly pulls out a gun and aims it at Stevenson, and Doug yells "Gun!" and pushes him out of the way. The gun is fired, and the man escapes as all the reporters fall to the floor. Slowly, everyone gets up - and one of the reporters goes over to Stevenson, who is kneeling on the floor by Doug, who lies still, with blood on his forehead.

**** In the hallway, Doug sits up, a handkerchief to his head. Fuller, all dressed in white, gives him a card and helps him to his feet, advising him to get to a doctor. Doug says he's just winged and would be the first one to tell him if something were wrong. Fuller nods but says not to come into the station today - to relax and go see his kid. Doug says next time the state boys ask for volunteers for temporary assignments, Fuller can just forget his name, and Fuller smiles at him and says "Done." Outside, a car with an official seal of some sort is parked outside of a church, across from Doug's truck. Doug is sitting in his truck checking out his wound in the rear view mirror, when he sees Clavo being led down the sidewalk by a woman dressed in a severe-looking suit. Clavo is carrying a duffel bag and saying that he wants his Uncle Doug. The woman says for him to come with her, and Clavo says that Doug said not to go anywhere with strangers. The woman says she's going to see that Clavo is taken care of, and it's all right. Doug walks up to her car briskly and says "Hey, what's going on? That's my kid!" but she doesn't hear him. She starts the car and pulls off, with Clavo repeating that he wants his Uncle Doug. Doug runs alongside the car yelling for her to stop, but she doesn't stop, and he chases the car on foot but finally has to give up, looking at the license plate. He turns around, realizing that they couldn't hear him.

In a hospital room, Joey is standing with Clavo, and he's holding Doug's hand. Doug is unconscious and on a respirator. Clavo asks what people think about when they're in a coma, and Joey says he doesn't know, but that they said it was a deep sleep, so maybe he's dreaming. "Good dreams?" Clavo asks hopefully, and Joey says sure. Clavo asks when Doug will wake up, and Joey says that's a hard question to answer, looking toward the doorway at the doctor, who has just entered the room. He repeats the question to her, and she says, seriously, "Mr. Penhall, can I speak to you? Privately?" Joey, obviously taken somewhat aback by being called "Mr. Penhall," tells Clavo it's his turn to hold Doug's hand and he'll be right outside. Out in the hallway, the doctor asks if Doug and Joey's parents can be reached. Joey explains that they are both dead and asks why she wants to know. The doctor explains that they removed the bullet in the ER, but subsequent swelling of the brain could kill him, unless they operate. Joey stares at her and says, "So, operate," but she says there is also a possibility that the operation itself could kill Doug. Joey, beginning to get frightened, says either way Doug could die? and he has to decide? She reminds Joey that he is the next of kin and says yes. Joey stammers that maybe he should think about it and asks if he can. She says that if they do operate, she'd like to do it in the next 24 hours. After she walks away, Joey stands there, motionless and obviously stunned.

At the Chapel, Hoffs asks about Stevenson. Fuller says he's home with a case of amnesia. Mac says "so he's not going to testify against the mob?" and Fuller says disgustedly, "Like the man said to the state's attorney, what mob?" Mac says Penhall's in the hospital for protecting this guy, and that's not right, and Hoffs resignedly says that they have no case. Fuller says they haven't been able to find one DJ or station manager to testify that payola exists, and he's been asked if he has anyone to place undercover in a college. Mac points out that it's out of their jurisdiction, and Fuller says that's what he told the state's attorney. Hoffs says that they're booked solid with their cases, and Fuller says he told him that, too. Then he stands up and hands them each a folder, asking solemnly, "so when can you start?" Hoffs takes her folder, saying strongly, "Anytime," and Mac does the same, saying "Anywhere." Fuller says quietly, "That's what I told the state's attorney."

Joey goes to speak to a priest in a confessional booth at church. "I've never made an important decision in my life. That's why I buy things in plaid, because I can never decide on one color," he says, adding that Doug always made the important decisions anyway, like when to eat, where to move to and when to put their father in for a dry-out. He says he could use a talk with his old man right about now, and that although his dad was usually so sauced he didn't know who Joey was, he could use his rotten advice now. The priest remains silent, listening. Joey says, his voice cracking, "You know what I'm afraid of right now? I'm afraid that if I make the wrong decision here, Doug will beat the crap out of me in Hell." The priest asks why he's so sure he's going to Hell, and Joey laughs nervously, saying that the priest hasn't heard his other confessions. He asks the priest if he ever hears God in that little room, and if he sits here long enough, will he get the right answer? The priest tells Joey that he must listen to his heart, and Joey says he'd rather listen to God - that he came all this way in cross-town traffic. The priest repeats firmly to listen to his heart, adding that God speaks to us through our hearts. Joey says, "Yeah? Then how come I never heard him?" The priest says perhaps Joey was too busy deciding if he was going to ignore what he heard. Joey looks back into the confessional, and we see that he is crying.

At a college, which actually looks just exactly like the college they were at in the last episode, Mac is playing DJ at WATB, the college radio station, using the sound effects and acting silly. He looks out at Hoffs, who is in another room, undercover as the station manager. A little later, Hoffs is putting some trash in the trash can and a guy introduces himself as Barry Wells, an independent promoter. Hoffs introduces herself as "Ms. Harris." They go back inside to her office, and he compliments a huge flower arrangement behind her desk, and she informs him airily that she gets flowers every day from a big label and they actually think that will make her play their records. He gives her a tape by the "X-Ray Gorillas," and she says she has heard it. He asks what she thinks, and she asks if he remembers that trash she was throwing out. He tries to persuade her, and she says they won't get their start on her station. He asks her to lunch, and she laughingly tells him that her father was a salesman for 20 years, and he's going to have to do a lot better than that. He drops the act and says "Play this tape if you want to stay healthy." She laughs again and says, "Oh, I like that approach!" He tells her he is serious, and that if she doesn't play it, she'll regret it. She tells him to get out of her office, and he says she's making a big mistake. Picking up the phone, she holds the receiver out to him, asking if he would like to tell that to the campus police or just get out? He leaves silently. After Mac finishes giving the Campus Update, they meet each other's eyes through the window, and Mac shoots a toy gun that has a little flag that says "Bang" on it.

Early in the morning, across the street from Roosevelt Grammar School, Clavo says that he was never late until today. His hair is sticking out every which way and has been sprayed or moussed that way. Joey takes his hand and walks him across the street, saying he's sorry and that he'll call the teacher and explain. Clavo says Doug always gets him there early, and Joey says he didn't know it was so hard to make that left turn. Clavo, refusing to let up, says that Doug takes the back way. Joey drops the argument and asks if he has his books and pencils and tells him to get to class and tell the teacher it was his fault. Clavo turns to him and asks to go to the hospital, but Joey says no, that Doug would want him to go to school, but if he decides for Doug to have the operation, he'll come and get him, and Clavo makes him promise. Joey affectionately says "Now get in there." Clavo says that's not what Joey is supposed to say. Joey runs his hand back frustratedly through his unkempt and unwashed hair but remains patient, asking what he was supposed to say. Clavo says he's supposed to say "Study hard. Be good." Joey says it and then turns him around, swatting him gently on the butt as he sends him off. He turns around, walks back to the truck and opens the door - and Clavo yells "No, that's not how! That's not how!" Joey slams the door shut and goes to Clavo, asking him what's the matter now. Clavo explains in a small voice that Doug watches him till he gets inside the school, and then he gets into his truck. Joey, kneeling down to be on Clavo's level, apologizes, saying that he's got a lot of things on his brain. His voice is cracking, and it's easy to see that he understands that Clavo is whining because he is so frightened about Doug, but he's about to lose it himself. He explains that he should have waited - there weren't any teachers. He says "I don't know about the things that you and Doug do - I wish I did. I wish I could be half the guy for you that he is, but I'm not. And if something happens...to Doug...do you understand what I'm sayin' here?" He watches Clavo intently, and Clavo's lip trembles as he nods. Joey tries in vain to smooth Clavo's hair down a little bit and says "If things don't turn out the way we want them to, you're just gonna have to be more patient with me? Okay...Spanky?" Clavo says okay very softly, and Joey, about to cry, says okay and gently cuffs Clavo's face. Clavo cuffs him back, surprising him and making him laugh, and he turns him around and sends him to the school, watching him until he goes inside.

**** At the hospital, a nurse spreads a blanket over Doug, and the camera focuses on his face. He wakes up, in his suit on a hospital bed in the middle of a huge grassy field. He gets up and walks around, bewildered. Fuller is there in a suit. Doug says he is glad to see him. Fuller says everyone always says that and asks how his head is. Doug says he thinks he was more than just winged, touching his head gently. He asks what they're doing here and where is here? Fuller says he asks too many questions and tells him to relax and enjoy it. Doug asks how he can enjoy anything when Clavo has been taken away, and then he asks if Fuller can help him with that. Fuller says he's not Fuller, he's the club manager here. Doug says, "You're Adam Fuller. Jump Street? Roll call 7:00?" Fuller says he's Peter, actually, Saint Peter, but he hates to brag. Doug looks around, grinning and asking where the camera is, because he thinks it's a prank. Fuller says when he's finished walking the grounds, he can find him at the clubhouse. Doug says "what about the kid?" and Fuller says if he does what he says, he'll find out. A guy yells "Fore!" and repeats it, swinging a golf club over and over. Doug sees that the man is in a sand trap and then recognizes him - it's his father. He says, "What the hell..." and Pop says that it's not Hell, it's Purgatory. Doug asks how he can be talking to him - he's dead, and then he asks, sounding like a little boy, "Am I dead? Am I in Purgatory?" Pop, true to form, says, "I got my own problems" and continues trying to hit the golf ball. "Just like when you were alive," Doug says. Pop agrees that he was selfish and he's had a lot of time to think about it, adding that Doug should let that be a lesson to him. Doug asks quietly, "Who are you to give me lessons in fatherhood?" Pop, in what is probably the funniest line of dialogue I've heard a guest star say all season, says, "There has to be some reason I'm here, apart from the sheer repetitive hell of it!" He continues swinging the club. A horn beeps, and Penhall sees Marta driving up to him in a golf cart. Going over to her in ecstatic disbelief, he takes her hands and gently tells her how much he missed her, joking with her. She kisses him, shushing him with one finger and asking him to get in the golf cart with her. He tells her that she looks good for having been dead two years, and she responds with "You were supposed to be taking care of Clavo." She drives him to where a man is watching a woman pushing Clavo on a tire swing. Clavo, totally dejected, is clinging to the rope and not moving at all. Doug says that he tried, but they couldn't hear him, and Marta says she doesn't mean now and tells him to watch. Doug asks who the man is, saying that he doesn't like the looks of him. The woman stops the swing, and the guy pulls Clavo off - and we see the letters "INS" on the back of his jacket. "Immigration!" Penhall exclaims. He calls after them that Clavo can't go back to El Salvador because his aunt was an enemy of the government and they killed her. His head is gripped by a sharp pain, and he falls to his knees, still yelling. Marta rushes to him, comforting him and telling him that it will all be over soon.

At the hospital, Doug is being wheeled to the OR. Joey bursts in, carrying Clavo and asking them to wait. The doctor says she told him when he left that he couldn't be in there, and he explains that the principal made him sign for Clavo. She says he's going to have to leave because he's contaminating a sterile area. Joey says that Clavo wants to say good-bye, and she finally relents. Clavo clings to Joey quietly, staring into the distance and then down at Doug's closed eyes. Joey leans over, and Clavo kisses his own fingertips, touching Doug's forehead with them gently and then gravely saying "okay." Joey shifts Clavo on his hip and leans the other way, so that his lips are close to Doug's ear, saying he was just getting to know him again. He stands up, and they wheel Doug away. Joey holds Clavo and rocks him back and forth in the empty hallway, and they watch Doug until the doors shut. Meanwhile, Mac's playing music at the radio station, and Barry gives him a tape, saying he'll bring the money by on the next swing through. He congratulates Mac on his greed, saying it is so much like his own. Mac shakes his hand and says he's touched, truly, and that he'll see him when he has the rest of the cash. Barry leaves, and Mac swallows hard. Hoffs comes in, and Mac says he took the bait and asks if she's heard any word on Penhall. Hoffs says she unsuccessfully tried to reach Joey at the hospital. Mac asks if she wants to go to the hospital when they're done, and she says, "Sure, and then we could..." Her face falls, and she says that she was going to say, "Why don't we pick up Penhall on the way?" Hoffs tells Mac that she has worked with Doug for so long, five years, and it's hard for her to think of him being..." Mac looks down at his hands and back up at her, clearly also upset. She repeats her last sentence, saying it's hard to think of him not being here. Mac softly agrees with her. Back at the hospital, Clavo tells Joey that he wants to go home. Joey kneels to talk to him, pointing out that Doug might wake up. Clavo repeats "I want to go. I want to go home." Joey clearly thinks this is a bad idea, but he says he'll see what he can do. Clavo wipes away a tear. In the OR, Doug is bleeding quite a bit. The doctor asks for his blood pressure, and it suddenly falls, and his pulse speeds up. The doctor says she doesn't like that and tells them they need to step up the pace. They pull a bright light down to shine directly on his forehead.

**** Doug walks toward the club house. Fuller says he can't let him through the gate, and Doug says he needs to use the phone, that Immigration has Clavo. Doug gets mad - he's sick and tired of this place - everyone is giving him flak, and his head is killing him. Fuller says he's sorry, but he has a list of all new members, and Doug's not on it. Doug says, "So, you're saying Heaven is a clubhouse, and I can't get in?" Fuller points out that some people walk around and never get in. Doug asks if he's going to Hell. Fuller smiles charmingly and says that he's asking all the wrong questions. Doug asks Fuller to talk to "Him" and tell "Him" that his kid needs help. Fuller takes his arm and leads him away, telling him to walk around and remember everything he sees. Doug pleads that Clavo needs help, and Fuller says all the more reason to remember everything he sees, and then he vanishes. Doug sees a woman sitting on the grass and clipping it. "Rough job," he says to her, and then she turns and smiles at him, calling him "Douglas James." He recognizes her and says "Mom?" incredulously, continuing with "Greens-keeping with cuticle scissors - let me guess - this is your hell for bailing out when you had two kids to raise." She stands up and walks to him, saying that the hell was being away from her boys, and this is so she doesn't go crazy thinking about it. She says gently that he's gotten quite a mouth on him since she saw him last, and he apologizes, adding that it was either that or let Pop walk all over him. She says she's glad he got the mouth, caressing his forehead and asking if he hurt himself. He says yes, today at work, and she says he's gotten so tall, touching his shoulder and chest softly. He says a lot has happened and she should have stuck around, and she nods sadly, saying that he has a right to be angry and adding, "just don't make the same mistake with your boy." He says that suicide is not really an option for him, and she says, "There are many ways to lose your life" and smiles, pointing out that sometimes you even get a warning. He says he's not going to die. She asks what he thinks he's doing there - vacationing? She points over his shoulder and says that his body is back on Earth, close to dying. He turns to look and then turns back to her, asking how she knows this. "How should I know? It's your coma," she replies pleasantly. A sharp pain grips his head, and she places both hands on his forehead. He gasps with pain, and everything spins, and then his bloody bandage is gone, with no wound at all. "How did you do that?" he asks, but she recedes away from him, her arms outstretched toward him and smiling. We hear his heartbeat.

Joey is asleep in the chair with his Walkman on as Doug sleeps in the hospital bed. Doug slowly wakes up and moans Joey's name, raising his head. He removes the oxygen tube from his nose and says softly, "Thanks for waiting up for me." Joey continues to sleep. Doug yells "Joey!" a little louder, and Joey begins to wake up. "Hey, little brother," Doug says, and Joey jumps in his seat, fully awake and startled, yelling "Doug!" He gets up and says "You're here!" Doug asks why, and Joey tells him he got shot at. He says he thought somebody took his kid, and Joey tells him that Clavo is fine and home with the sitter. He asks if Doug needs anything - food? water? video games? Doug asks again where Clavo is. Joey, frowning, says he told him, he's home. Doug says something is wrong, Clavo would be here. Joey says again that everything is fine. Doug says that Joey has never been able to lie to him, and Joey reluctantly admits that Clavo won't come - he's afraid Doug will die. "He doesn't want to see you, even if you live," Joey adds, his voice low. Doug, knowing there's more, says "And?" Joey says that Clavo saw an ad about foster parents and has asked Joey to find him a new home. Doug lies there, stunned, saying he can't believe it, looking out the window up at the sky.

Later, Doug is in a robe, his head is bandaged, and he has a walker. Joey helps him get out of bed and sit in the chair, and Doug says not to let Clavo see him like this. Joey says he told him to wait down the hall with the nurse. Doug tells him to go get him and let them have some time alone, and Joey leaves, griping that he said he would and he didn't realize he'd be sick of Doug so soon. Doug reaches behind the chair and pushes the walker so that it can't be seen. Clavo comes to the doorway but doesn't come in. Doug asks how he is, and Clavo shrugs. Doug thanks him for coming and says he knows how uncomfortable Clavo is with him right now. Clavo says he's not. Doug gently asks, "So, it's okay if I just go off and get shot at?" Clavo says that everyone at school says that Doug's a hero. Doug smiles thoughtfully and says that's okay for the other kids - he can be a hero to them because they have moms and dads at home, and then he says that he would be angry at his pop if he went off and got shot at his job. Clavo, wide-eyed, asks, "You would? Honest?" and Doug explains that people usually gets the most angry at the people they love. Clavo finally enters the room, coming up to him, smiles slightly and says "I'm really mad at you." Doug grins and pulls him onto his lap, saying it's good that he's mad at him. He says he has some news, and he begins to tell Clavo about it. The scene cuts to Joey, out in the hallway with a can of soda, and then he comes to the doorway. The top part of his hair is tied back in a ponytail. Doug tells Clavo "that's what I'm prepared to do." Joey says they look a lot better and says, "Is this a happily-ever-after ending story or what?" Doug says he thinks so, and Clavo agrees.

Back at WATB, Mac is acting silly on the radio again. Hoffs activates a reel-to-reel tape. Mac finishes talking on the air and swings the mic back out of his way - just happening to position it between himself and Barry, who has returned with the money. Mac asks, "now, where were we?" and Barry says "I give you the money, you play my song." Mac says, "500 bucks, right?" and asks for a grand. Barry says to take the $500 or something very bad is gonna come his way, that it's $200 more than he originally offered him. Mac says nothing, and Barry starts to leave. Mac says to chill - he was just doing a little bartering. Barry says "not in the building," and Mac says that his song will play next. They walk outside to conclude the deal, and Barry hands him the money in an envelope, commenting that it was actually a waste of money because the song's going to be a hit with or without this station. "You really think so, Barr?" Mac asks. "Let me tell you the truth. I've got a recording that's better than the one you gave me. Hoffs comes out and shows him the reel-to-reel, and Mac shows him his badge. Hoffs says that they're going to call it "Payola," and doesn't he think that's a catchy title? He says they're messing with the wrong people, and Mac gets aggressive on him, grabbing his collar and demanding a name. Hoffs tells Mac to chill, but Mac continues gripping the guy's lapels and saying that Barry knows who shot Penhall. Hoffs tries to cuff Barry, but Mac is shaking him around too much, and he says that Barry's resisting arrest. Hoffs says, rolling her eyes, "Always gotta go ballistic, always." Mac excuses himself and releases Barry, grabbing Hoffs and pulling her aside to say if they take him in clean, they won't get a name. Hoffs says dramatically, "I'm not bringing in another battered arrest, I'm just not." Barry asks "what?" and Mac asks for just five minutes alone with him. Hoffs asks if he's going to break any bones. Mac bargains for four minutes. Hoffs says, "Look, if you disable this one, I'm taking my name off the collar." Barry gives up the name of the shooter - Levinson. They come over to him and ask, "Levinson what?" Barry says he doesn't know - he just knows that he's from Miami. Hoffs warns that if he's lying, she can't control Mac next time. A police car drives up, and Hoffs says that they timed their act perfectly. Barry asks "Act?" and Mac claps him on the shoulder, saying, "The oldest one in the book, Barr!" He thanks him for giving them the name. A crowd has begun to gather, and Hoffs & Mac both lean back and laugh a crazy triumphant laugh, shaking their shoulders, and then they stand up, trying to regain their dignity and laughing.

The next day, at the 7 AM briefing, Doug says to Hoffs and Mac that he heard they got his shooter, and Mac, who is holding a bagel absolutely slathered with cream cheese, says it was a sweet collar. Fuller, holding new case folders, asks if Joey slept in this morning. Doug says softly that he's in the locker room and he's not having a very good day. Fuller opens a folder and begins, but Doug interrupts him, saying "Before we start, I'd like to say something. Something I thought that I would never say." They all fall silent and look at him. "I'm retiring from the force," he continues, taking out his gun and unloading it. "It's nothing personal. It's just something I gotta do." He lays his gun on Fuller's desk and says "Here's my weapon," and then he lays down his badge, saying, "and my badge." He says softly, "It's been an honor serving with you. You are truly the finest." Everyone stands there, shocked into silence, and Fuller gently says he's glad any time one of his officers can leave here alive. But he has one rule - no good-byes. Then he says he's going to take an early lunch, his voice shaky. He stops in front of Penhall, and they shake hands. After he leaves, Mac says it's been great serving with him, he just wishes it was a little longer. Doug points out that Mac has a little bit of cream cheese on his mouth, and it breaks the tension a little. Mac asks if he's going to be okay, and Doug says that there's a guy he went to the academy with who wants him to go in with him on a 32 lane bowling alley. They shake hands and then slap hands. Mac leaves, and Hoffs stands behind Fuller's chair, watching Doug. He comes over to her, and she says, "It's okay - it's your life." He says that the two of them have been through a lot together, and he's not just talking about the busts. She grins and asks if he remembers that she didn't even like him the first day they met, and he laughs and says "You were this skinny little girl telling me how she was a cop." She asks about his head, and he says he feels a lot better. They joke about how he can't program his VCR and he still misses all his favorite cartoons, and Hoffs laughs, though she's about ready to cry. "On the worst day, you could always make me laugh," she says, and then she says, "I really hate you for leaving. I hate you." He pulls her close and hugs her tightly, saying "Yeah, I know, I hate you, too." She clings to his collar.

Upstairs, where the lockers are, Doug comes upstairs, and Joey is matter-of-factly removing clothes from Doug's locker. "This, and this, and this! All your crap!" Joey says, shoving it into Doug's arms. He holds Doug's right arm and smacks his left arm, saying, "Take it. Hit the road." Doug asks what his problem is. Joey says that Doug always said that he (Joey) ran out, and that he quit, and "look at you!" Doug says that he's got a responsibility to the kid, and what if the bullet doesn't miss next time? Joey says he'd take care of Clavo - they did all right. Doug says, "I love you, Joey, but you could barely keep the two of you in clean socks." Joey looks up at him and pleadingly says, "You can't leave - you're my brother." Doug says "Grow up - be a man. The kid needs me." Joey doesn't comment, just looks away briefly, and then he says, "So - you're gonna leave all this to work in a bowling alley in Bumblerock, USA." Doug says it's half-ownership and that it's in Philly - Joey can drive down on weekends, adding, "between commendations" and grinning at him. Joey says heatedly, "I'm sorry, you know, we've been apart five years, and you can do whatever you want, but I felt like I was just getting to know you, and you're the only family I got." Doug says, "I'm always going to be your brother." Joey asks how his head is, and he says gently that when Joey's not driving him crazy, it's okay. Clavo runs up the stairs, shouting, "Uncle Doug!" and Joey looks over at him, almost resentfully. Doug thanks Sam for bringing Clavo, and picks him up, saying that Joey's no longer the second-best cop on the force, he's now the first-best. Joey laughs in spite of himself but remains upset. Doug tells Clavo to kiss Joey, and he kisses him on the cheek. Joey teasingly calls Clavo a little punk and asks if he's supposed to kiss Doug now, too? "Don't be a knucklehead," Doug says, and he puts Clavo down. They stand, facing each other, and Doug sighs and says, "Okay. Eat right." Joey looks up at him and says, "Drive carefully." Doug turns as if to go and then stops, removing the necklace he has always worn around his neck. He turns back to Joey, saying, "I want you to have this, okay?" Joey laughs and says no, and Doug says it's good luck, and that he wasn't wearing it when he got shot. He presses it into Joey's hand, saying, "Mom would have wanted you to have it." and they continue holding hands as the scene closes.

Cyndi Glass: Definitely thought-provoking, and for once we get a decent farewell scene (Booker only said good-bye to Fuller, and Hanson, Ioki, Rocky and Garrett simply vanished). The only flaw in this otherwise excellent episode is the external shot of the Chapel near the end, which, of course, shows all the old cars from Season 1. As you can tell by the length of the summary and this commentary, this is another favorite of mine, and it got to me several times - when Joey held Clavo and watched the doctors take Doug away for life-threatening surgery, when Clavo wanted Joey to find him a new home and Doug talked gently to him and convinced him to stay, when Hoffs and Penhall hugged and said good-bye, and when Doug gave Joey the pendant necklace he had been wearing since the beginning of Season 1. TPTB, including Peter DeLuise (Doug Penhall), who directed the episode, took a big chance with this one - departing far away from the reality-based premise of the show to send Doug, while in a coma, to meet with his deceased mother, father and wife. Is it Purgatory, as he is told? Is it a hallucination or some type of vision brought on by the drugs he is being given in the hospital, or by his unconscious state? We aren't told. Once again, we learn more by what happens and the timing of events than by what is actually said. We see Doug and Joey saying things that, taken at face value, could sound cold, or even cruel, but, combining the facial expressions and body language that the actors use, Doug's past compassion with others and Joey's other scenes where we see how he really feels about Doug, we can tell how much both of them are hurting and how much affection they feel for each other - covering it all up with jokes and insults as usual.

It's a very complex episode, ably written and directed, with just enough mysticism to make us ask: is this real? Hard to say. It would be easy to say that everyone Doug saw in Purgatory was a natural extension of Doug's perceptions of them and they don't ever contradict those. During Doug's childhood and adolescence, he wasn't able to depend on his father, and he still can't. We've heard a lot about Pop Penhall over the years, and this one lives up to our expectations, not really doing or saying anything to help Doug at all except to let it be a lesson to him. As for his mother, Doug has shown us his rage and sadness over his mother's suicide throughout the series - but, being Doug, he feels sympathy for her as well, and he also needs her comfort and love - when he sees her, she reinforces all of that - she apologizes and makes no excuses for herself, and it's easy to see her joy over seeing him again, along with her healing touch and regret over killing herself - all things Doug would naturally want desperately out of her. Additionally, Doug feels guilt and anxiety over Clavo, and Marta could personify that, as he promised her at her gravesite to take care of Clavo as if he were their own son. Marta was slightly affectionate with him but seemed distant and annoyed with him for putting Clavo's fate in danger. Finally, Captain Fuller, as the central authority figure in Doug's life, is personified as St. Peter - another authority figure whom Doug naturally turns to for answers. When Doug returns to his body full of the conviction that being in a job where he "gets shot at," as he puts it to Clavo, would be tantamount to his mother's suicide, we can see how what he has seen and heard while unconscious has led him to that conclusion. We know, from watching previous episodes, how Doug's mother's suicide, when he was six years old. has affected him, and we can easily understand how Doug sees Clavo as being in the same situation he was, at just about the same age.

Doug makes two decisions here. I think that the decision to leave active police duty was inevitable for Doug Penhall - a decision that probably began to take root back when he chose to break the rules and leave Ioki alone without backup to go to the ER and take care of Clavo (#80 "Everyday Is Christmas) at the end of Season 4. We must also, though this is never explored in the series, remember that his best friend, Hanson, has talked often about his disillusionment with police work, and while Doug has always defended it and tried to get Hanson not to quit, some of it may have sunk in. Most of all, it is dangerous work, and if Doug wants to be there to raise Clavo, it's only logical that he should remove himself from it, so I do understand this decision. The other decision, the one that I don't understand, is that he decides to leave town and open a bowling alley with someone. There was so much potential material between Doug and Joey Penhall, material that was never explored. Not only that, but this decision was glossed over and never really explained all that well. It's almost cathartic when Joey finally starts asking questions in the closing scene - questions that the audience members must have wanted to ask themselves. Why did they make Doug leave town? They could have made him quit the force and open a bowling alley in that town, so why some other town? Or he could have gone back to desk duty. Or become a police academy instructor. He could have remained at Jump Street, done paperwork and advised the other three on their cases. Anything. But no, he basically deserted Joey exactly the way Joey deserted him, which I think is way too spiteful for the Doug Penhall we know. Are we supposed to infer that the short amount of time they have spent together has been too emotionally overwhelming for Doug and he wants distance from Joey again? We don't know - their relationship in these five episodes has been shown to us primarily through Joey's comments to others. Is Doug afraid that some of his previous busts will come back to haunt him if he stays there? I have to say it - could there be truth to the speculation that the "police academy buddy" that Penhall is going to run the bowling alley with is none other than Tom Hanson? Sure - they didn't go to the academy together - but they were ordered back to the academy at the same time in #25 "Fear & Loathing With Russell Buckins." Now THAT would have made sense.

And why isn't the option of Joey going with Doug and Clavo presented? It's just assumed that Joey will stay. Why did he? He has no reason to stay there now that Doug has left, though I confess I'm glad he stuck around as long as he did. When Doug replies to Joey's pleading questions with "Grow up. Be a man - the kid needs me," I can see how much Joey, too, needs Doug, and I'm surprised Doug can't see it - or chooses not to see it - especially since just four episodes ago Joey was ready to join a cult when Doug didn't want anything to do with him. It's all handled very subtly; we see Joey's emotions about Doug only when he is with other people - the priest, the doctor, and Clavo - never one on one with Doug until the very end when Doug doesn't really respond very well to them. We're never shown Doug's emotions about Joey. That's why, at the end, though we have watched Doug for four years and know his character so well, it's Joey's pain we understand. At the end, when Doug gives Joey his necklace that we have seen him wear ever since the beginning of Season 1, he's passing on the good luck that it has brought him in his now-ended police career, and when he says that their mother would want him to have it, we see that Doug is aware that Joey's still in this dangerous career and might need the luck. He does say he loves him, but we never once, in the five episodes they are together, see them hug.

As for the others, Fuller is a bit cheesy in Purgatory, but it lends a bit of humor to an otherwise tense episode. Mac and Hoffs' scenes at the campus radio station are also quite funny - Mac quite obviously has NO idea what he's doing, and Hoffs gets a chance to shoot her mouth off - and don't miss the arrest scene at the end when they play good cop/bad cop and then laugh with each other. Clavo's cuteness lets him get away with a lot, and he manages to convey that Clavo is scared, not just demanding. Joey is by turns determined, intense and frustrated by what is happening. The Purgatory concept was kind of strange, and I'm not going to discuss it here because I don't want a bunch of flak if I get it wrong (I'm not Catholic). I'm not sure if we're supposed to think that he actually died for a while and went there and went back because there were things he needed to do to protect Clavo, or if he hallucinated all this while unconscious (his father, who drank himself to death, and his mother, who killed herself, were both there. Marta, who was killed by soldiers in El Salvador, but then we see Captain Fuller leading him around - and Fuller's not dead, though he explains this by saying he's really St. Peter). The closing scenes are enough to make you cry, as Doug mentions almost offhandedly that Joey's not at roll call because he's having a bad day and then we find out why as Doug softly announces his resignation and turns in his weapon and badge. We can see how important this is in the other characters' reactions - it's 7:00, and Fuller's so bothered that he is incapable of working and leaves, Mac cuts out the jokes and says it's been an honor, and then he is left alone with Hoffs, who cries and hugs him in a very well-written and performed scene where Hoffs says good-bye to the only other original Jump Street officer. The last scene, with Joey, is equally heartbreaking. All in all, this is one of the most complex episodes of the series and one of the most significant.

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