"Because I'll Destroy You": Conspiracies and Double Crosses on "Damages"

Once again, FX's Damages managed to surprise the hell out of me. No mean feat, that.

This week's episode ("Hey, Mr. Pibb!"), written by Aaron Zelman, found Ellen and Tom traveling down to West Virginia (and listening to some bluegrass) in order to locate journalist Josh Reston (Matthew Davis) as Patty attempted to use her resources to track down Christine's ruby ring in order to free Daniel Purcell from prison. Straightforward, no? The truth is that the episode was anything but, offering several reveals that made me question my knowledge of characters' motivations and histories as well as shattering one alliance that seemed to underpin the entire season.

You've already read my advance review of "Hey, Mr. Pibb!" but now that the episode has aired, we can discuss everything together.

The Visitor. I'm now referring to Ellen's mystery guest in the chair as The Visitor until we're more fully aware of this person's true identity. This week, we gained a valuable clue to that end as we were treated to a split second shot of The Visitor sitting down in the chair opposite Ellen, a shot that revealed a patterned skirt. So The Visitor is apparently a woman then and my theory is that Ellen's victim isn't Patty (too obvious) but Claire Maddox. Whoever it is brought a suitcase full of money with them to the meet at Ellen's apartment and, after shooting him/her, Ellen dashes off with the money in hand. Interesting... Could it be part of a payoff to silence Ellen about Ultima or is it a personal matter, as it would seem from Ellen's line of questioning in "I Lied Too."

Daniel Purcell. After seeing this episode, I am now more than ever convinced that Daniel did kill Christine. Despite the dream sequence at the episode's beginning, in which a dish-washing Daniel sees a hooded attacker sneak up behind Christine, the flashback with Purcell and Darrell Hammond's chapstick-wearing mystery man, and Kevin Walker (the stringy-haired blonde guy) seem to indicate that he did kill Christine. After all, Purcell had the cut on his forehead and we clearly saw him and Christine arguing the night of the gala. Did he accidentally kill her in one of his violent rages, freak out, and call Suttry's people for help?

We now know that The Deacon (a.k.a. Chapstick Freak) took the ring off of Christine's hand, hired Kevin Walker to pawn the ring and got him to get himself arrested in order for Purcell to ID him in the lineup, and told Purcell to go back inside and call 911. They also arranged for a large sum of money (likely millions) to be deposited in Purcell's bank account after he testified on the record that they had not falsified the toxicity report... and blindsided Patty. Was all of it payment for making the murder go away? It certainly seems that way; hell, Purcell faked fleeing just so he could be arrested and have the set-up seem more convincing. It even seemingly convinced dogged Detective Huntley (Tom Noonan), who had serious doubts about Purcell's innocence. (Although, consider the scene between Huntley and Patty in a different context: did he drop by personally to see HER reaction to the news?)

Still, I did not for a second expect Purcell to dump the water sample that Josh Reston had managed to steal and that Ellen managed to smuggle out of West Virginia. Nor did I expect him to double-cross Patty on the witness stand in her motion against Ultima. I'm not entirely sure why Patty would ask Purcell to run the test on the water himself instead of having an independent third party test the sample. As for Purcell, he's made his choice, to provide for his daughter Erica's future, even if it means letting people die in West Virginia as a result of Ultima's toxic runoff. Was it payback for the botched custody case against Patty for their son Michael? Patty did say that she would destroy Purcell if he attempted to face her in court, so was it revenge?

Patty. It was interesting to see a softer side of Patty in this week's episode, as she weighed the consequences of telling Michael that Daniel Purcell was his father. The scene at dinner, in which Michael analyzes Phil's dream (one of two dreams in this episode, it's worth noting), was a fantastic way to show Patty's idealized domestic life, a scene of true familial happiness, and a reminder that she had kept this secret from Michael for far too long. Echoing that scene is the shot of her on Purcell's balcony as she watches her son and the father he never knew walk together on the dock. Because Patty so rarely removes her armor, this betrayal is really the cruelest cut.

Stomping down those courthouse steps (in a fantastic scene of simmering rage), Patty knows that she's been used from the start by Purcell and Ultima and been discredited in the process. The look of absolute malice exchanged between her and Daniel Purcell in that courtoom is a signal to let the true game begin. She once promised that she would destroy Daniel and I have a feeling that she will follow through on that pledge.

Claire Maddox. Despite being romantically involved with Purcell, she's clearly keeping things close to the vest. I loved the scene in which she confronted Walter Kendrick (John Doman) about whether Ultima was involved with Christine's murder and advised him to sever ties with Wayne Suttry as soon as possible. Something tells me that Kendrick won't be doing that and that not even Claire is entirely aware of just what is going on here. Still, the smug look on her face when Patty was blindsided by Purcell's testimony was priceless. After all, not all cats--even ones who look like they've eaten a canary--have nine lives when Patty Hewes is involved.

Kevin Walker. Clearly, he got involved in this massive conspiracy for the money which his strung-out wife Liza is claiming she needs for medical bills. And, sure enough, there was no happy ending for Kevin as he's stabbed to death in prison. Now that the conspirators got the end result they wanted, there's no reason not to tie up some loose ends. Buh-bye, Kevin, courtesy of Mr. Kendrick.

Ultima. It's clear that Ultima's runoff is toxic and it's affecting not only the livestock (showing a 30 percent increase in fatalities near the coal plants) but the residents of this backwoods berg as well, who are showing triple-digit increases in leukemia rates. The town, including the police and the newspaper, are clearly under Ultima's heel and it's only a matter of time before Josh Reston gets killed investigating this story. But at least now we know why Purcell suddenly stopped taking Reston's calls: he flipped sides.

I'm curious to see what you all thought of this week's episode. Were you surprised by the reveal about Daniel Purcell's involvement in the conspiracy? Do you think he killed Christine? And was it an accident? And just how will Patty enact her revenge? Discuss.

Next week on Damages ("I Agree, It Wasn't Funny"), Patty questions Ellen's motives for returning to the firm after David's death; Patty tries to stop a corporate merger that she thinks is connected to the murder of Christine Purcell.