Life on Mars Episode Recap: "Things to Do in New York When You Think You're Dead"
It's butterflies and angels as Sam Tyler and the 125 Precinct investigate the death of a 9-year-old girl while quelling racial unrest 1973 style. How will Sam's present and past intersect and will he be any closer to going home?
Sam Tyler's latest case is to solve the murder of 9-year-old Keisha Davis. She was an African-American girl who was allegedly pushed from a residential building by a Puerto Rican named Angel Ramirez. Tyler, Skelton and Carling chase Angel down to a local church where a priest is giving him safe haven. Reluctantly, the priest gives Angel up asking them to be fair to him. The most interesting comment comes from, Carling who refers to the priest as a penguinee.
As they take Angel away in handcuffs an African-American man tosses a homemade bomb towards them. Carling and Tyler, trying to protect Angel, get injured. Angel, seeing this as his only way to escape, takes it, leaving the cops.
There are now citywide protests and temperatures flair with possible race wars as Angel continues to be free. As Tyler walks through his office he ponders his miraculous survival. A mysterious angel-like passerby says maybe he's already dead. This is certainly an interesting hypothesis to consider.
At first mistaken for a thug, Fletcher Bellow, a Bronx detective, enters with two handcuffed men. Tyler immediately recognizes Bellow as his 2008 boss and mentor. Tyler assumes a close relationship but Bellow's 1973 self has no idea who Tyler is. He's brought with him two BLA leaders — that's the black liberation army — a TV substitute presumably for the Black Panthers. Through some quick intimidation tactics they admit to setting the bomb as revenge for Keisha's death. Another blast from the past comes in the form of legs that just won't quit — Denise Watkins. Before Tyler can intimate a friendly relationship, she berates both Tyler and Bellow. She's the lawyer defending the BLA members. As the rest of the precinct goes off to calm local citizen temper, Tyler convinces Bellow to hunt down Angel before anyone else gets to him.
Through an interesting exchange between the local priest and Tyler, Bellow finds he has something in common with Tyler — that both had fathers who deserted them early in life and both became cops after getting into a spot of trouble. More interesting is Tyler's connection to Bellow. He became a cop after being arrested by Bellow who turned him around. Suddenly, they hear a radio report that Angel is hiding in a back alley. They head over only to be confronted by the BLA and are taken hostage.
Suede, the BLA leader, plans to exchange Bellow and Tyler for Angel once the cops find him. Tyler informs him that the cops will probably kill Angel first to which Suede replies then there's no reason to keep them around. A few bravados later, Tyler is freestyling Vanilla Ice to save Bellow. Denise Watkins reenters the picture releasing them to meet him. He's funky she says.
Tyler and Bellow are brought to meet radio personality Brother Lovebutter played by Whoopie Goldberg in the funkafied flesh. She's impersonating a man to get her point across the 1973 airwaves. She pontificates a bit before Tyler and Bellow convince Brother Lovebutter that everything will end badly if Angel isn't apprehended properly. Despite the desire to do the right thing and with racial unrest escalating, she gives them 24 hours to find Angel.
The initial plan to bring Angel out of hiding by pleading with him on the radio backfires until Angel calls in and they decipher his location — the Port Authority. It seems the rest of the 125 detectives figured that out as they all arrive to apprehend Angel. Unfortunately they find his pregnant wife trying to get on a bus and escape to Michigan. She finally confesses that he is planning to attend the vigil for Keisha later in the evening.
Tyler and crew arrive at the already crowded vigil covered with candles and signs. Tyler picks up a newspaper off the ground only to see it's 2008 not 1973 and it's got information about a recently killed cop. Putting that together with the erratic flashes Tyler suddenly has, we presume he's at his own vigil — another piece to the puzzle that could have Tyler actually dead — a reasonable explanation of the time travel to 1973. Step 1 — Bring closure. Step 2 — off to heaven.
Snapped out of the flash trance, Tyler and crew see Angel on the fated roof that Keisha was allegedly thrown from. As they all race to catch him, Lieutenant Hunt and Carling want to kill Angel while Tyler and Bellow want to arrest him. A standoff ensues with guns pointed on each other.
Cornered, Angel explains what really happens to Keisha. She was running after a butterfly and before Angel could catch her, she fell over the edge. Unfortunately, with angry crowds below, a simple story will not quell their anger so Lieutenant Hunt shoots his gun. The crowd below hears the shots and disperses thinking Angel has been killed — their justice served. Unbeknownst to the crowd, the secret plan was to fake Angel's death and get him on the first bus to Michigan with his wife.
Returning to the church, Tyler meets up with the mysterious man who prolifically told him he might be dead. Flash to a church full of people, including his crying wife Maya, a casket and an NYPD wreath. Sam reluctantly opens the casket only to find his mentor and substitute father, Fletcher Bellow, lying there. The mysterious man turns out to be an angel as he escorts Keisha down the aisle. The interesting idea is that Maya tells the woman sitting next to her that it's too bad Sam wasn't able to say goodbye. The question left open is where is Sam Tyler then? In the hospital? Possibly dead?
