01x04 - The Bird, Man

[bunniefuu]

Richie Fife was last seen in a blue van.

We have Highway Patrol at checkpoints starting at five miles out, and a child abduction alert statewide.

So we need you to help us comb...

Penny! Kim.

... of the forest, lake, and road.

The Fife family is counting on us to bring their boy home.

So, let's move.

Richie!

Is that Richie's?

My mom found it.

Matt.

Let's go look at zone two.

Penny, Sam. Come with us?

Sam.

Sam. Coming?

Come on, Matty. Stay close.

Dad always makes breakfast on Saturdays.

I want eggs.

I know, but Dad's not here.

Don't worry, Ginny. Mom and Dad will be back soon.

God, what's wrong with you? You're like a raccoon in a skirt.

I'm looking for clues.

Ew.

I knew it.

They would k*ll me if I didn't pick up. Why aren't they picking up?

Hi, um, it's me.

Just we found some B-L-O-O-D-Y paper towels, and just... wanted to make sure you're okay.

Oh, no, no, no, no.

I can make eggs.

How do I open them?

How bad is it?

Uh, what?

Oh, well. I'd... I...

Yeah, I'd call it a five.

Five? Yeah, point five.

Great. Now you're making fun of me.

Nice.

Okay, in my defense, I have just had my ass kicked, so I don't think we need to do that.

Why did you go there?

To provoke him?

Look, I wanted him to admit that he lied.

And did he?

I...

So this is what we're modeling for the girls now?

You don't get what you want, you just punch 'em in the face.

No, of-of course not.

It's Izzy. She's called 12 times. No, don't answer it.

I don't know what I'm gonna tell 'em, okay?

You should've thought of that before you decided to be such a meathead.

Mom? Hey.

What happened? Are you guys okay? Who's bleeding and why is the VHS tape in the trash?

No, it's fine. Everything's fine. Your dad just had a small accident.

We're getting him patched up.

Well, is he okay? What kind of accident?

Does he have a concussion?

You know what? You have to talk. Is he in a coma?

No, no. You are talking to them.

Hey, guys.

First of all, I'm-I'm fine. Okay?

And second of all, Hilde, you are absolutely not reporting on this.

What do I have to report on? You're not telling us anything.

Everything's fine. I'm fine.

You guys keep on using the word "fine."

You told me that when people say the same word over and over again, that usually means they're lying.

I love that you remember that.

I love it a little less that you're trying to use that against me, but look, you know, we're gonna be home soon, so you can inspect me yourself.

You will see that I'm-I'm all good. I'm-I'm f... fantastic.

I'm good. Can you stop?

Okay, I'm passing you back to your mom.

Okay? I love you guys, bye. Bye, bye, bye.

Hey. Give me the phone, Hilde.

Mom, I have that movie thing with the kids from school.

I'm sorry, Iz. We won't be back in time.

Can you stay with Ginny?

Iz?

Uh, yeah. It's fine. I get it. I'll take care of it.

'Kay, I'll talk to you soon. Bye.

She okay?

Hey! Ow!

No, no, no, no, no!

Hilde.

God, it was one thing when Dad was sad. Now he's coming home wasted.

And having accidents. Mom seemed really mad at him.

Do you think they're gonna break up?

I don't know.

I don't want them to break up.

Me either.

Come on. We can fix it.

How's that gonna fix it?

We just need to make things nice for them. Okay? Easier.

So that they don't have to worry about cleaning or laundry and food and us.

So that they can just be together.

No, put this away.

This is how we fix things.

Something happened to Dad. Something bad.

That's why he was so obsessed with the New York case.

That's why he's hiding things from us.

If I could...

If I could just find out what happened to Richie Fife.

Okay, but what could you figure out that the Sheriff's Department couldn't?

That Dad couldn't?

This tape is new. They didn't have it 30 years ago.

Okay, so what?

So, if I can find who filmed it, where it came from, and where it was 30 years ago...

I could find out what happened that night.

Hey, Matt!

Matt! Open the door!

Open this door, Matt!

That's the weird guy.

Look at his face. Did he b*at up Dad?

Matt! I want the original.

Open the door, Matt!

Open this door, Matt! I know you're in there.

The original tape?

He's gone.

We can't tell Dad about this.

I gotta get there first.

Wait, no, Hilde. You can't go back out there.

What are you doing?

Fixing things.

Don't tell Dad where I went.

I got myself dressed.

Hope you can clean in that.

You realize you're gonna have to actually explain this to the girls at some point.

Uh, yeah, I was hoping we were gonna skip that part.

The man I married doesn't run away from the truth, and he doesn't get in fights.

Okay. He was spying on us, okay?

I had to draw a line.

I've seen you draw lines plenty before, but with words, which I feel like you always said were your greatest weapons.

So...

What... What's happening?

I don't know.

I see him, and it's like I'm 11 years old all over again.

Sorry about the room. It's a full house today.

No, it's okay.

You don't remember me, do you?

I'm Lucy.

Richie Fife's sister.

What's the tree for?

I'm granting Penny Gillis' last wish.

Yeah, what was it?

That's between me and Penny Gillis.

What are you guys doing here?

We really, really, really need a copy of the original tape.

Okay, it was nice talking to you.

We know you have it.

Lieutenant Briggs was just banging on Hilde's door.

He wants the original.

We think he's trying to destroy all the copies.

I know you're mad at us for calling Sam Gillis in the library.

You can give us detention for a whole year, but please let us see the original.

Ms. Collins?

Kim?

Please? Hello?

Uh-huh. Okay, I'm coming.

I'm guessing this fire alarm at the school is not a coincidence?

Come on. Get in the truck.

And don't call me Kim.

Uh...

Yeah, you know, your dad must be proud that you followed in his footsteps.

Well, he's not one for praise.

But I do think he's secretly stoked.

How is the good mayor?

And I saw he's running unopposed for, what, the seventh time?

Eighth. Good thing there are no term limits.

Honestly don't know what he would've done with himself if...

It's good he's staying busy.

And he has certainly had his hands full with all the corrections officer business your daughter stirred up.

You guys should come to the clambake tomorrow night.

Get reacquainted with everybody.

A "clambake"?

Yeah, it's a Q and A with the candidates.

Matty will tell you it's just a formality. Everybody runs unopposed.

All anybody goes for is Mary Wesson's clams, boiled in Old Bay and beer.

Well, that sounds delicious.

Yeah, w-well, we should probably check in with the girls, all right?

Yeah, they have a... It's movie night.

Yup. So...

Well, bring them. Your daughter could cover it in her little paper.

I'm gonna meet you outside. Okay, sure.

You-You have any kids?

A daughter. Jessica.

I think she might be in one of your girls' classes.

And it is all I can do not to lock her up at night.

I'm sure you know what I mean.

We told you we'd get her.

I just had to make sure you’d come to help me.

You do know it's an actual crime to pull a false fire alarm, hmm?

I'm sorry, but Lieutenant Briggs b*at up my dad last night.

My parents won't admit it, but I just know.

Wait, he what? Why?

I don't know, but... he smashed the tape, and he b*at up my dad.

It was really bad. He's at the clinic now with my mom.

Can we just make a copy of the tape to make sure it stays safe?

Wait.

I can't do this.

I can't give it to you.

I just can't.

Even just to record it?

Mm-mm.

So, you all have ten minutes to leave.

Excuse me. I need to go do this thing I need to do.

Hmm?

We need to make lots of backups just in case, okay?

Okay, we got this.

Who's that? That wasn't on the copy I saw.

Wait.

I know that face.

I knew I recognized him.

Holy crap! That's-That's Birdman.

Oh, my God.

Who's Birdman?

Okay, you want me to open up more?

Yeah. Yeah? Okay.

You see the rec center right there? Yeah.

Yeah, that's where I broke the rafters when me and Richie were trying to jump into the pool from the ceiling.

Yeah, Coach Larson punched me for that.

What?

Yeah, he got fired too.

Yeah, and right here. Larson starts fishing every day.

So, he'd leave his trout in a cooler right by the door.

And when he was drunk, me and Richie would, uh, steal his fish.

Of course you would.

And one time, uh, Richie, he got a dead fish...

And he wedged it right up underneath Larson's car.

And it must have been there for weeks' cause it... I mean, it stank.

I mean, it to-totally stank.

And there were, like, flies buzzing around and everything.

Yeah, it was... it was funny.

Richie was pretty funny.

What do you know about Birdman?

What was Birdman like at school?

I heard everyone thought he was a freak.

Was he a video-head? Did he film a lot of stuff?

Did he know Richie Fife?

We need an editorial board meeting.

We need to find Birdman.

If I'm not home by dinner, my mom's gonna k*ll me.

You guys, be quiet. It's Hilde.

Hi, Mom, I need to sleep over at Spoon’s so we can give the Richie Fife case our... undivided attention.

Bridge, come on. When was the last time she had any friends? Come on.

Okay, but say "please" and "thank you," and no true-crime TV.

Okay?

Okay.

Hil... Hil...

She hung up on me.

What is going on in here?

Did somebody call a cleaner?

Oh, my...

And what a big helper you are. Come here.

Hey, do we have to pay for this service?

Your face is all messed up.

Hey. Yeah, I know, sweetie. But I'm okay.

Iz. What did you do?

I am going to take the littlest for ice cream.

Iz...

Come on.

Bon appétit.

Okay, so what have we got?

Mr. Sipple didn't teach Birdman, 'cause one day he just disappeared.

Meena said he was homeschooled.

Rumor is Birdman was caught mutilating birds.

And others said he had a whole freezer full of dead birds in his house.

Hence the nickname.

Harming animals, first sign of a serial k*ller.

That's why they took him out of school.

Danger towards himself and others.

I found this on the microfiche at the library.

What's a "microfiche"?

It's like the Internet, but it's older and slower and way harder to find things. Look.

He was arrested for damaging a bulldozer at a construction site.

Why would someone do that?

Anger management problems?

Or a tendency toward destructive behavior.

The biggest headline, Birdman had bad blood with Richie Fife.

What kind of bad blood?

Like Birdman kicking the crap out of Richie one day after school.

Nobody knows why.

No, the biggest headline is that Birdman's still alive.

And he works at the creepiest place in town.

I'm worried about her.

Which one?

The one that hides in plain sight.

Dad.

Mom.

The ceiling's leaking again.

Hey.

The ceiling's leaking again.

You know, this feels like one of those moments where whatever I say is probably not the right thing to say.

I miss Brooklyn.

And black-and-white cookies and running around Prospect Park.

You know, I miss riding the F train above ground and watching the downtown skyline.

What about Murray's Bagels?

God, I miss that place.

Fried-egg sandwich with salt, pepper, ketchup. Salt, pepper, ketchup.

I know, I know.

Look, you can't...

You just gotta make the most of where you are.

All right? And not be thinking about where you were.

You know? You gotta embrace the new.

Come on, try and fit in.

"Fit in"?

I know. It sucks.

It sucks, but maybe you could find some new things to do here.

Yeah, well, I was trying to do that yesterday, but someone ended up at urgent care.

Yeah, okay. That's fair.

God, this place sucks.

Are you sure he's here?

My intel tells me he works off-season security here.

The graveyard shift.

I can't do this.

I have fear hives.

Yeah, that's not a thing.

How'd you know how to get in here?

I couldn't afford a ticket so I figured it out.

But that's illegal.

You have a very strange relationship to rules.

Wow.

Whoa.

Are you okay?

Okay, let's split up and find him.

What?

Come on. It'll be character building.

Turn on everything. Maybe we can lure him out.

Okay.

Maybe it's the power. Try again.

Holy crap. It's alive.

Come on, let's go.

Al Wergeles.

Al Wergeles!

Birdman!

Birdman!

Birdman!

Birdman!

Birdman.

Birdman, wait.

We wanna talk to you.

Guys?

Birdman? Shh.

Clear your mind. That's it. Arms up.

Okay. And spread your arms like...

Come on. What, you never saw that movie?

No. Come on, what?

I must have failed as a parent.

Head up, and just keep going forward.

Look forward. Yeah, okay, Dad.

I get it. It's a metaphor.

Oh, you got that? Okay. Good. Good for you.

You got it.

Man, we-we used to come up here all the time.

Yeah, Richie and Frankie and me. A whole bunch of us.

Why don't you ever talk about them?

I don't know. I g...

I guess not much of my time here was-was so happy.

'Cause people were mean to you?

Kinda, yeah.

You know what, but I got out. I left. I reinvented myself.

And I never looked back.

Hey, maybe you could do that.

You know, reinvent yourself.

I like who I was in Brooklyn.

Yeah.

Oh, God.

Those kids giving you a hard time?

Man, just-just ignore them.

Look who it is. Broken, volume one and two.

Get lost, Matt.

Nobody wants you here. Get off the bench.

Hey. Hey!

You know, I heard on a podcast that being a stuck-up little sh*t means you're six times more likely to get cancer.

Sucks for you!

"Podcast"?

Yeah, yeah. It was something like that.

God, can I just be in college now?

What? What did you just say?

No, you cannot!

You cannot go to college! Why? No!

I'm gonna shove you down! No!

And I'm gonna keep you small and cute and little, and my baby girl forever. Yes! No! No, it's too late for that!

No, no, it's not.

Yes. No, don't tell me that.

Don't tell me that.

Oh, God.

Has this been going on a while?

Yeah?

Mm-hmm. Why didn't you tell me?

'Cause it's fine.

You know, I can handle it.

Hey, look, you know what I said before? All right?

About fitting in?

Uh-uh, no way. Screw that.

You do your thing, Iz.

Okay? You be you.

Okay?

Yeah?

It just...

It makes life hard. You know, being me.

Well, if it's hard, then you talk to me.

You know, pretending to be someone else... burying who you are, what you know, keeping secrets...

In the end, all that stuff, it just, it burns a hole in you.

Believe me.

Why did you smash that bulldozer?

Well, they were gonna bulldoze my favorite bird-watching tree.

Effing loggers. I had to do something.

Stand up for what's right.

You know, it was your dad started calling me Birdman.

What's up, Birdman?

I'm sorry. I didn't know.

That's okay.

I mean, I hated it at first, but eventually, well, it's what I am.

Why did you set up that camera? Were you spying on people?

I never watch people.

Birds are just much more interesting.

Oh! A red-tailed hawk!

Why didn't that tape ever see the light of day?

Why didn't you give it to the Sheriff's Department?

I did.

Hey! Ow!

Get off Richie!

This shows the abduction.

I thought it could help Sam and Richie.

So Sam doesn't have to go away, and Richie can come back.

Why'd it take you so long to turn it in?

I just found it.

I thought Richie was just messing around.

That he wasn't really missing.

Well, this is an open case, so you can't tell anybody about this.

You hear?

Or you could be brought up on charges.

Obstruction of justice or worse.

Here.

There you go, son.

It's a little reward for your trouble.

Forty dollars. That's how much it cost to ruin Sam's life...

And mine.

Missed text from Hilde.

Oh.

What?

It says, "Don't tell Dad."

Oh, well, now you gotta tell me.

What?

I don't know. She's gonna find some guy named Birdman.

Birdman?

Give me your bird, man!

How can I help you?

Mr. Gillis, I am so sorry about your sister.

I can't take the thought that she d*ed protecting me.

Are things better now with the CO gone?

As good as they can be... for now.

What do you want? I wanna get you out of here.

I've heard that song before.

My husband is haunted by what happened to you.

And now I am too.

I'm not a person who can sleep at night when I feel like justice hasn't been served.

So, yes, I am doing this for me, but I'm doing it for you too.

Please tell Hilde "thank you"... for finding out what happened to Penny.

Hilde!

Scout! Where are you?

Hilde!

Hilde!

Scout!

She's gone.

What do you mean "she's gone"?

Hey, what did you do to her?

Hey, hey. She left. She-She went to the clambake.

Why do we call him Birdman?

'Cause he's in love with a bird, man.

Why is he in love with a bird, man?

'Cause it's the only thing that'll love him back.

Go get it, go get it.

Hey! Give it back!

Look, Al...

I-I just wanna say I'm sorry, man.

You know, for all the stuff we did to you.

You didn't deserve that.

I think that's the first time you've called me by my name.

Thanks, man.

There's no nail file hidden inside.

Do you think I'm gonna give someone a fatal paper cut wound with it?

Thank you.

Hi, I... Hi.

Just... Here. Okay.

I'm not sure if it's because you're my... husband's ex or my girls' principal, or another woman in this town who hates me, but does it have to be this awkward?

Um, no. It doesn't.

Maybe I can try and be one person at a time.

Which one are you right now?

Penny's best friend.

I'm here to see Sam about her final wish.

Maybe we can help each other.

Then we can go right back to being awkward.

Cool?

Cool.

Well, good luck. Thanks.

So, this next guy needs no introduction.

He has served Erie Harbor for the past three decades.

His clearance rate speaks for itself.

He's made our little town one of the safest and most desirable places to live in the state.

He's brought in new business from Strata Tech down the road.

I mean, heck, he's doing such a good job, he's running uncontested.

Again.

Uh, no, but I have to ask as a formality.

Are there any questions for my pop, Sheriff Briggs?

Yeah, sure, I got a question. When do we eat?

All right, get in line before Rick, everyone.

Well, so good to see you all. Thank you all for coming out today.

I got a real question.

What happened to the tape that showed the abduction of Richie Fife?

Well, no such thing exists.

Yes, it does. I have a copy.

It shows that your son's testimony was a lie.

Well, that's enough now.

What is that saying?

"Kids say the darndest things"?

Dad, Dad! Stop.

What are you gonna do?

You know, we're not fitting in anymore.

Remember?

She has the right to ask a question just like everyone else.

Dad.

It's a Q and A, isn't it?

So, let's Q this A.

Ask him, Hilde.

Sheriff Briggs, why didn't you submit that tape into evidence?

What the hell is she talking about?

I have no idea.

Deputy.

Did you force your son to lie on the stand, Sheriff?

Okay, this is ridiculous.

Fake news. Lies.

Just answer the question, Sheriff.

I mean, did you or did you not force your son to perjure himself?

You piece of sh*t.

Deputies. Get off of me.

All right, get off of me.

Hey, Hilde, don't back down, okay?

Just get off of me, okay? I'm walking.

The truth will come out!

You said I could inspect you.

Yeah, you're right. I did.

Okay, come on, then.

You be careful though, okay?

I will.

It's up here, right?

Yeah, careful, careful. I am.

You're not fine.

Yeah, well, I will be.

I saw Briggs.

It wasn't an accident.

No. No, it wasn't.

Why did you lie?

Well, I-I didn't exactly lie.

Then what was it?

Well, it was more like an omission.

Hey, and you did it too, by the way.

Yeah, we left things out.

We shouldn't do that anymore.

Ah, you're right.

You're right. We-We shouldn't.

Hey, you know, your mom wants me to tell you not to get in fights.

What do you wanna tell me?

Well, I wanna tell you that... if you do get in a fight... that it's for the right reasons.

You know, 'cause what you do now, y-you gotta make sure it's something that you're proud of.

You know, 'cause in this moment, I mean, who you are right now... it's gonna follow you.

It's gonna follow you for a long time.

So, you make it count, okay?

Hey.

Do you smell something?

Oh, sh*t.

No, no, no, no, no.

No! No, no, no, let it go. Let it go!

Daddy!

I need to report a fire.

Sylvester Lisko's place. It's okay.

It's okay.

Izzy, get the fire extinguisher.

It's okay.

Daddy, who would do this?

I don't know.