The Equalizer Winter Premiere Recap: Oh Brother Where Art Thou?
The Equalizer viewers have come to know Mel as a no-nonsense, butt-kicking aide to Robyn. But during the CBS show’s winter premiere, which aired Sunday, she’s the one in need of support.
The situation is a little awkward, given that Robyn is still angry that Mel trained Delilah behind her back. But there’s no time for tough conversations; Mel’s brother, Edison, is missing. Read on for a recap of “He Ain’t Heavy.”
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We learn of the predicament as the episode opens: It’s nighttime, and Mel is pointing a gun at a man in an alley, demanding to know Edison’s whereabouts. Just moments before, she’d had received a call from her sister, Ruby, who witnessed Edison get carjacked outside of a coffee shop; a man took off in the car with Edison inside. Luckily, Mel tracks down the other man involved. But her luck runs out when he slips away, gets hit by a car and dies.
Distraught, Mel runs to her bar to drink, but Harry persuades her to enlist Robyn’s help. Robyn also is thinking about Mel, but for a different reason: We see her confiding in Dante about her friend’s betrayal the next morning.
Meanwhile, Delilah is feeling down about the situation, but forces herself to focus on helping Aunt Vi, who has entered an art contest at a local gallery. Vi’s girlfriend, Trish, is also there to provide support.
Robyn meets up with Mel and Ruby to help find Edison, who is a hedge fund manager. Tensions between the two sisters are hard to ignore; Ruby, a mother who takes care of their parents, disapproves of Mel’s decision to own a bar among other life choices. However, she doesn’t know about Mel and Harry’s secret duties as two-thirds of Robyn’s vigilante operation.
Later, Harry finds footage of the carjacking and discovers that the thief is a career criminal who has been targeting Edison, likely due to his job managing high-stakes financial transactions.
Mel has a tough time of her own after visiting Edison’s apartment, which has been ransacked. But no one needs to keep Robyn calm as she visits Edison’s job, where she learns that some employees are jealous of Edison’s recent promotion. She secretly downloads files from a computer and sends them to Harry. He discovers that $20 million was transferred from one of Edison’s corporate investors’ accounts to an anonymous account in the Cayman Islands. Upon hearing the information, Mel is defensive at first, but gradually admits that it looks as if her brother is laundering money for the Colombian mob, whose boss has ties to the corporate investor.
The always-resourceful Dante finds Edison’s car at the bottom of the river; Mel is relieved when they do not find a body inside. Meanwhile, Harry spots Edison in traffic-camera footage.
Mel eventually tracks her brother down at the bus station, just as he is about to skip town. He proclaims his innocence, and she believes him. He says he believes one of his investors is a front for a crime syndicate, and someone at the firm set him up. He was able to escape his carjacker, but he’s been on the run ever since.
Mel hides Edison at one of Robyn’s properties, but they aren’t safe for long — after Edison gives their location to Ruby, she is followed on her way there. Much to Ruby’s amazement, Mel fights the attackers, but is unable to prevent them from kidnapping Edison.
Figuring the mob wants Edison to transfer the money back, Mel and Robyn make their way to Edison’s job. Robyn takes down a few men (seriously, what is her body count at this point?), and she and Mel rescue Edison. Mel nearly beats Edison’s carjacker to a pulp before Dante shows up to arrest him.
Despite their teamwork, Robyn admits she is still upset with Mel. And the day is not yet saved as they still haven’t identified the person who set Edison up. No matter, Harry is already on the case. Through more of his tech wizardry, he proves the culprit was one of Edison’s colleagues, whom Dante promptly arrests.
Newly reunited with their brother, Ruby and Mel make amends. Ruby apologizes for underestimating her sister and admits her life isn’t perfect. Both she and Edison have questions about Mel’s double life but agree to keep it from their parents.
Back at the McCall residence, Robyn chides Delilah for lying to her, but allows her to continue working with Mel.
Now it’s your turn. What did you think of the episode? Hit the comments and let us know!
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