Episode
Wiseguy: Last of the True Believers
Overview
Knox Pooley realizes Calvin is insane and kicks him out, causing Calvin to go off the deep end and take a famous black leader hostage. Richie becomes disenchanted when he realizes Pooley was only in it for the money. Paul Beckstead takes over as director of OCB when Daryl cracks under the pressure and is dismissed for making obscene phone calls.
Details
- Series
- Wiseguy
- Season
- Season 2
- Episode
- Episode 4
- Air date
- 1988-11-16
- Runtime
- 60 min
Episode context
Last of the True Believers is Episode 4 in Season 2 of Wiseguy. It aired on 1988-11-16. The runtime is 60 min.
Previous / Next
Episode 3: Revenge of the Mud People
Unbeknownst to Vinnie, his car was used in the robbery where an off-duty cop was killed, leading to his arrest and brutalization at the hands of the NYPD. Frank bails him out, then reluctantly lets Vinnie continue his pursuit of Knox Pooley. Vinnie tells Ritchie he's a cop and asks him to help him gather evidence against the Pilgrims. Vinnie goes to a Pilgrim rally and stumbles across the truck that was used to kill Pete, then agrees to a meet with Stan in the hopes of tying Pooley to it, leading to Stan and Ritchie's arrests.
Episode 5: Aria for Don Aiuppo
Vinnie is questioned about his connection to Don Aiuppo, thus learning his mother is dating the retired mobster. Checking into it, he finds Rudy and Carlotta were in love as teenagers, then is stunned when Rudy proposes and she accepts. Mark digs up information showing that Rudy is in the country illegally and sets him up to be deported, not knowing it means that Carlotta will leave, too. At the last minute, Rudy changes places with his brother, Tito, who wants to return to Italy.
More episodes from this season
Episode 2: School of Hard Knox
Vinnie hesitantly goes back to work for the OCB under the promise they will help find Pete's killer, but Daryl is more interested in getting his star agent to work on a ""real"" assignment. Ritchie digs himself in deeper with the Pilgrims of Promise when he uses Vinnie's car to help rob an armored car. Depressed over Pete's death, Vinnie turns to Angie for consolation, but they both agree they don't want to risk their special friendship by becoming lovers. Vinnie talks Daryl into giving him weapons to sell to the Pilgrims, then he throws the bust when he sees they have Ritchie with them.
Episode 6: 7th Avenue Freeze Out
When garment manufacturer Eli Sternberg cannot get a loan to bail out his business, he turns to mobster Ricky Pinzolo for the money. David goes to the OCB for help when he finds out Eli is in debt to the mob. Vinnie meets with David, then reluctantly agrees to take the case, running into opposition from Eli, who doesn't want a hood working for him. Pinzolo demands that Vinnie keep him apprised of everything going on. Vinnie wins Eli's trust when he gets a delayed shipment released from customs.
Episode 1: Going Home
After resigning, Vinnie returns to his old neighborhood to try and get some peace after his life undercover, but is distressed to find white supremists are stirring up trouble. Daryl Elias is promoted to OCB director and orders Frank to either bring Vinnie back to work, or in for debriefing. After a synagogue is trashed, Pete speaks out against the white supremists and is then murdered in a hit and run accident, making Vinnie rejoin the OCB to find his killer.
Episode 7: Next of Kin
Eli impatiently awaits news from Sri Lanka, where a terrorist's bomb exploded at David's hotel. Vinnie is hit by a taxi, and Frank talks John Henry Raglin into taking over the case when he learns that Vinnie can't return to work for awhile. Eli speaks out against Pinzolo at a fund raising dinner. Pinzolo visits Vinnie in the hospital and Vinnie suggests his partner can take over for him, opening the door for Raglin.
Episode 8: All or Nothing
Raglin follows Pinzolo's crooked trail into Chinatown, where a garment-worker's strike has snarled an important order for the Sternbergs. Meanwhile, Eli's niece Carole sews up her alliance with Pinzolo. Raglin tries to get Maxine Tzu to realize the strike isn't helping, and they end up in a tryst. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)
Episode 9: Where's the Money
Raglin uncovers evidence that Carole is working with Pinzolo to bankrupt Eli. David confronts Pinzolo and forces him to take him to the bank to give him the money he cheated Eli out of, culminating with David getting killed as a suspected robber. David's death sends Raglin into a tailspin, digging up memories of a past case where another innocent bystander was killed. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)
Episode 10: Postcard From Morocco
Raglin pursues a lead that David left him about Pinzolo's murderous past, but they can't find the body. Eli offers Raglin money to kill Pinzolo. Raglin urges Frank to get Carole to testify against Pinzolo, but she has been killed. Revealing that the reason he quit undercover work is because he was tortured into giving up two fellow agents, Raglin vows to bring this case to a successful conclusion. Deciding things are getting too hot for him in the States, Pinzolo plots an escape to Morocco. Raglin confronts Pinzolo at the airport, and when Pinzolo figures out Vinnie is a cop, Raglin kills him. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)
Episode 11: Stairway to Heaven
Frank shows up at Vinnie's house in the middle of the night and states than his wife is dying and he can't afford the liver transplant she needs to save her life. Vinnie leaves a box containing a million dollars on the front seat of Frank's car. Frank confronts Vinnie about the money and Vinnie confesses it's money Roger gave him as a ""parachute"" in case he ever needed to bail out of undercover work. After arguing with Vinnie about the ethics of using the money, Frank finally decides he'd rather save Jenny's life, so he pays for the operation. Frank and Vinnie turn themselves into Paul for using the money, but Paul dismisses it when he can't find any record of Roger or the money in his files. After Jenny recovers, she tells Frank that their stale marriage is what almost caused her to die, so she insists he move out before she gets home from the hospital. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)
Episode 12: White Noise
Concerned that Vinnie is addicted to the pain pills he's been taking for his leg, Frank calls in Paul Beckstead, who orders Vinnie to undergo a routine physical exam. At the hospital, Daryl Elias is undergoing therapy and, holding Vinnie responsible for his downfall, he accesses Vinnie's file and orders that he be held for psychiatric evaluation. When Vinnie resists, he is sedated and locked up against his will. While in his drug-induced twilight zone, Vinnie's worst nightmare comes to life in the form of Sonny Steelgrave, who blames Vinnie for his death. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)
Episode 13: Dead Dog Lives
Frank exchanges Pinzolo's jet with the DEA for a small record company, then allows Vinnie to run it. Bobby Travis talks Vinnie into hiring him by promising Vinnie he'll teach him all he needs to know about the business. Getting caught up in the glamour, Vinnie decides he's going to revive Diana's career by having her cut a record. (source: http://www.plasticcow.com/wiseguy)