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Pizzas and Promises is the fifth episode of Due South's first season.

Orginal Air Date: October 20, 1994

Storyline: After a pizza delivery guy's car is stolen, Constable Fraser and Detective Vecchio go undercover as used car salesmen to retrieve it.

Written by David Shore

Directed by George Bloomfield

Synopsis[]

Teaser[]

Hanging out at Fraser's apartment one evening, Ray has ordered a pizza, intending to get it for free based on the pizza parlour's promise to have it delivered in a half hour. The delivery boy, Lenny Milano, prevails upon him (via Fraser) to pay the full price. But just as Ray is coughing it up, a loud crash from the alley below alerts them to the theft of Lenny's car. Fraser orders Diefenbaker to pursue, while he, Ray, and Lenny also give chase; eventually the car outpaces all but Diefenbaker, who continues in hot pursuit, to Fraser's despair.

Act One[]

Ray calls in the theft, but Lenny is less than optimistic; he reveals that he has served time in juvenile detention for working in a chop shop, and his parole is now in jeopardy. Determined to help Lenny, Fraser tracks Diefenbaker by tracing the scent of his urine, while a grumbling Ray follows. At first light, they come upon a used car dealership and spot Diefenbaker next to a 1977 Mercury Comet which is almost identical to Lenny's, except for its bright yellow paint job. Fraser, however, compares paint samples to determine that it is in fact the same car, but Lieutenant Welsh is skeptical and refuses to allow them to pursue the case. Fraser attempts to vouch for Lenny with his parole officer, but the soulless P.O. smugly tells Lenny that "you lose your job, you lose your freedom."

Act Two[]

Snapshot from Pizzas and Promises

Fraser decides that the only way to save Lenny's job and freedom is to go undercover at the car dealership. Though he appears terribly incongruous in one of Ray's garish suits, he and Ray manage to get jobs as car salesmen from the proprietor, Tex Markles. Tex's wife, Tammy, resolves at once to put the moves on Fraser when she gets the chance, as she is dissatisfied with her marriage. Whilst circulating around the dealership, Fraser and Ray work out that Tex and his employees are repeatedly stealing and reselling cars that they have already sold, replacing the paint jobs and vehicle identification numbers each time. Ray comes up with a scheme to locate the VIN-plate stash whilst Fraser distracts Tammy, but he himself is distracted by the theft of a car outside her office. Lenny has taken matters into his own hands and tried to steal his Comet back, but Fraser stops him by jumping directly into his path. Lenny slams on the brakes moments before the police arrive and return him to incarceration.

Act Three[]

Lenny's despondence prompts Fraser to enlist the aid of Ray's sister Francesca in a sting operation, in spite of Francesca's misconception that she is finally getting a date with him. She infuriates Ray by agreeing to pay $600 of his own money for Lenny's car. On the way home, Fraser notes that they are being followed; Ray abandons his plan to set a tracking device and instead hides in the trunk of the Comet. Watching from across the street, Fraser and Francesca observe one of their tailers driving off with the Comet and follow it, keeping in radio contact with Ray. Eventually the thief - one of Tex's top salesmen - stops at an industrial waterfront where Tammy is waiting. Ray's attempt to pop out of the trunk goes awry, and the thieves decide to get rid of him by rolling the car into Lake Michigan with him still trapped in the trunk.

Act Four[]

Fraser and Francesca arrive after Tammy and her partner have flown the coop. While Francesca dithers about trying to find the keys to the Comet, Fraser jumps into the lake and forces the lid of the Comet's trunk to rescue Ray, who has nearly drowned. They drop Francesca off at home and hightail it to the dealership, where Tammy is emptying Tex's strongbox. Before Tex can shoot her, Fraser and Ray arrive; just as Fraser identifies Tammy as the one responsible for Ray's near demise, her partner shows up and holds them at gunpoint. Tammy throws the entire situation into chaos by attempting to shoot Tex, making a run for it as Fraser and Ray give chase. Fraser once again throws himself into the path of a speeding car, but before Tammy can run him down, Ray intercepts her with another car. Fraser and Ray have a pointed discussion about changing plans without notice as they place Tammy under arrest. The episode closes with Ray being forced to protect Lenny's job by using his car to deliver pizzas.

Memorable Quotes[]

Ray: Oooh nooo, you're sniffing piddle?!!


Ray Vecchio: Is she dead?
Tammy Markle: (groans) I hate men.
Benton Fraser: No, just disappointed.


Ray Vecchio: (trying to get Diefenbaker to stop) Un-mush, un-mush!


Ray Vecchio: First dirt-tasting, now piddle-sniffing...I don't wanna be around when you start listening to dung!


(Fraser sniffs a bush and then starts back the way he came)
Ray Vecchio: Where are you going?

Benton Fraser: Stupid rookie mistake. These last two blocks, I've been tracking a Lhasa Apso.
Ray Vecchio: You've been tracking a Lhasa Apso?!
Benton Fraser: I know. If word of this gets back to the Territories, I'll never live it down.
Ray Vecchio: Mounties can be so cruel.

Benton Fraser: You can't imagine.


Benton Fraser: Cliffs are for climbing, Lenny; that's why God gave us grappling hooks.


Tex Markle: What an employee! That's what I need! More salesmen who are prepared to throw themselves in front of a car for me.


Benton Fraser: When I was a young scout, anxious to earn my ecology badge, I insinuated myself into a hunting party to catch a baby seal killer.
Ray Vecchio: What happened?
Benton Fraser: Well, I was clubbed repeatedly, Ray.

Cast[]

Notes[]

Ray Vecchio's car license plate is LCV 705. The infamous license plate RCW 139 is used on Lenny's car at the beginning of the episode and is called in by Ray over the phone.

When Fraser is running on a rooftop in the beginning of the episode, a lit-up "Canadian Tire" store logo can clearly been seen in the background. There are no such stores in the United States.

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