When we left Episode 1 of the second season of Boss, shots had just been fired at the groundbreaking ceremonies at O’Hare. Both Mayor Tom Kane and his wife Meredith Kane went down. Mayor Kane was unhurt. But Meredith’s status wasn’t known, other than she remained down.
A lot happens in Episode 2, called Through and Through, but the overall perspective is that lines have been drawn, forces are gathered, and sides are chosen. This episode begins with Mayor Kane still having hallucinations. A butterfly flutters against a window, and if this has some significance, I can’t say what it is. We will see this again reprised later in the show. At this point we meet the doctor giving Kane the news but we don’t hear the words. It’s like Kane is in shock, or whatever, but he’s not comprehending much. He recalls the terrifying events in his head, the shooting, the chaos, then with the ambulance carrying Meredith arriving at the hospital with the Mayor’s cars right behind them.
Later we will find out that Meredith had been shot in the chest with her right lung taking the brunt of bullet’s force. Meredith will survive.
Rather than giving a linear recap, I’ll work through this via some of the situations/characters.
Kane: Still has the Lennox Gardens vote to deal with. He experiences hallucinations. He has bouts of stress and extreme anger and frustrations. Ezra ‘Stoney’ Stone continues to appear in the hallucinations along with scenes in the desert, snakes, and visions of being helpless in a building with 4 corridors, one in each direction.
Alderman Ross – Stepped right into the spotlight at the press conference about the shooting. As head of the operating committee of the city council, Ross oversees that plans are in place to keep City Hall functioning. Ross also tells Mona Fredericks that he intends to do what ever it takes to make sure the Mayor will not be able to wrestle Lennox Gardens out of the Housing Authority’s control. He intends to bribe other council members. Fredericks is shocked by this.
The Zajacs – We now see that the command power of Ben Zajac isn’t his political acumen. Rather, it is his good looks. The real person directing the power of the Zajacs is Zajac’s wife. She’s the one calling the shots. Against the wishes of Ben’s campaign manager, the Zajacs intend to make capital out the shooting tragedy. They’ll show up at the hospital to offer the Mayor support, but really, they’re there for the exposure and publicity.
Kitty O’Neill – She drives in from Winnetka, a Chicago suburb, and meets the Mayor’s Press Secretary who tells her that he cannot keep her in the loop. When he asks if she was fired or did she quit?, Kitty says, ‘I don’t know. Maybe both‘. Later she goes to the hospital but is pointedly ignored by Tom Kane.
Mona Fredericks – She’s upset at Alderman Ross’s tactics. She didn’t think that Ross had access to the kinds of money ($25,000 a pop) that Ross is giving out to control the Lennox Gardens vote. When she questions him about other revenue sources, he says ‘Welcome to Chicago, and you wouldn’t be in this position if it wasn’t for my generosity‘. In short, a suggestion that she shut up.
Ian Todd – He seems young, but he is way too savvy to be where he is without having some sort of history. Kane wonders how Todd got the job. Kane says, ‘You couldn’t have gotten the job if fucking wasn’t involved – in either sense of the word‘. Todd admits that this is the case.
Emma Kane – She’s still in jail, but is resistant to being furloughed out to visit her Mother in the hospital. Ian Todd visits her, and is able to convince her that house arrest might be better and safer than remaining in the city lockup.
Sam Miller – the new Editor-on-Chief of the Chicago Sentinel. His work load is immense, and the pressure is severe. One of his staff had tracked down Dr. Ella Harris, Kane’s neurologist. Miller will meet with Kitty O’Neill too.
Dr. Harris – she’s back in town. Miller still can’t get any info from her. I think that she will prove to be a weak link. Kane had her relocated to Arizona, then brought her back. He probably feels he needs the doctor on hand (as in minutes away) but this doesn’t mean she isn’t a risk for him, but it is a different risk than taking up with a new doctor.
Alderman Ross – at the City Council Meeting, he is going public about defeating Kane’s proposal. At that moment Kane arrives, and gives a short speech. ‘Nothing is irreversible, and nothing is irrevocable‘. In short change is good, mistakes (at Lennox Garden) can be corrected.
Tom Kane: His words at the city Council receive thunderous applause. The entire City Council is on their feet cheering, everyone except Ross and Fredericks who grudgingly have to stand. He calls for the City Council to vote.
Alderman Ross – sensing he is not going to be able to change the vote, he leaves.
Mona Fredericks – Before the vote, she approaches Kane to give one last plea, that Kane see it from the viewpoint of the Lennox Gardens residents. She tells Kane that tearing down the projects, will only displace the people, but the problems will go with the people to wherever they are relocated to.
Tom Kane – To answer Fredericks, he offers her a job. She can replace Ezra Stone as his advisor. Kane tells her, ‘You want change, why not work for change from the inside. The offer expires as I go through the door‘. Not unexpectedly, Fredericks accepts. Kane will later offer Ian Todd a permanent position. He will be replacing Kitty O’Neill.
Summary:
Kitty O’Neill is on the outside. Out of a job and pregnant. Miller has already tried to develop her as a source. He didn’t get a thing out of her, but now she has an axe to grind, so she might be in a position to ‘sing’ to Miller down the road.
Alderman Ross – Fredericks has left him, so he has opening. Look for Trey Rogers to go to work for him. Both Rogers and Darius were conspicuously absent from this episode. Speaking of Darius, we still don’t know if he was the triggerman of the assassination attempt on Kane. But while we haven’t been given any more info, it remains a possibility.
Emma Kane – according to Ian Todd, Emma will not have a choice about the house arrest. Once she is out, Todd could be an issue for her. And if that happens Darius could be an issue for Todd.
Meredith Kane – when she regains consciousness, the first thing she asks Tom Kane is. “Did you do this to me?“
As I said at the top of the page, a lot has happened, and in just a short amount of time. As the episode ends, it is only the next night after the shooting. Kane has now hired Fredericks and Todd, Emma Kane will be out of jail. Alderman Ross will be out looking for another way to ‘defeat’ Kane. Meredith’s health will improve, and Kane’s hallucinations will get even more severe. Ian Todd’s role will expand. Watch for Zajac and his wife to have a more prominent role.
See you next week.
