Juliet is Bleeding is the seventh episode of Due South's second season.
Storyline: Ray Vecchio chances upon Frank Zuko's sister Irene, a high school flame, at an Italian restaurant. The meeting rekindles a relationship to which the mobster is strongly opposed.
Original Air Date: February 2, 1996
Written by Jeff King and Kathy Slevin
Directed by George Bloomfield
Synopsis[]
Newly promoted to detective first grade, Raymond Vecchio takes his friends, Benton Fraser, James Huey and Louis Gardino, out to dinner at a high-class Italian restaurant. There they find that Ray's arch-nemesis, Frank Zuko, is celebrating his birthday, despite the news of a smashed-up coffee bar that has been paying protection to Zuko's crime family. Also in attendance is Zuko's sister, Irene Zuko, a childhood girlfriend of Ray's. When Ray asks her to dance, Zuko orders his "business associate," Michael Sorrento, to put an end to their rekindled romance. Sorrento calls Ray a "pig" to his face, resulting in a brawl.
Lieutenant Harding Welsh receives news of the fight and suspends Ray, ordering him to make amends with Zuko. That same evening, while stepping out for coffee, Gardino goes to retrieve his coat from Ray's car - which thereupon explodes in a massive fireball, killing Gardino. When bomb fragments are discovered (along with a strangely intact piece of plastic-coated wire), Ray, Huey, and most of their fellow officers are convinced that Zuko is responsible for the attempted hit on Ray, and obtain a search warrant for Zuko's house. Only Fraser is skeptical of Zuko's involvement, in spite of the discovery of more bomb components under Zuko's tool shed, leading to his arrest.
After Gardino's funeral, Ray goes to Zuko's house to see Irene, who vehemently denies that her brother had anything to do with the bombing. Fraser's suspicion grows as well when the incongruous evidence is combined with a statement from one of Zuko's neighbours, who saw Zuko at home at the time of the bombing. Zuko is thus released; ostracised by the Chicago P.D., Fraser further examines the intact piece of wire found at the bomb site. After a brief conversation with Sorrento, he subtly deduces that Sorrento planted the bomb, only the latest in a campaign of violence aimed at putting Zuko out of business and allowing Sorrento to take over his syndicate.
Fraser makes haste to Zuko's house, which is being staked out by Ray and Huey; their surveillance reveals that Irene is getting ready to leave the house over her brother's violent objections. Ray attempts a rescue but is halted by Fraser, who warns him of the severe consequences of his actions. When Sorrento arrives - admitting to Zuko that he is responsible for the attacks - Ray ignores Fraser's warning and runs in to retrieve Irene. They are intercepted by Zuko, who demands at gunpoint for Ray to leave her alone; in the ensuing confusion, Fraser thwarts Sorrento's attempt to shoot Zuko. Meanwhile, Zuko fires on Ray, but instead fatally wounds Irene. In despair, Ray refuses to declare that the shooting was deliberate.
Cast[]
- Jim Bracchitta as Frank Zuko
- Carrie-Anne Moss as Irene Zuko
- Hannes Jaenicke as Michael Sorrento
- Sherry Miller as Cmdr. Sherry O'Neill
- Lee Purcell as Louise Saint Laurent
- Louis DiBianco as Charlie
Notes[]
Juliet is Bleeding is a follow-up to the Season 1 episode The Deal in which we are introduced to mobster Frank Zuko. These darker episodes were written in part out of actor David Marciano and writer Kathy Slevin's efforts to make Ray Vecchio a better, more believable character.