TV Review: The Bridge 1.4, "Maria of the Desert"
rating: 4
While journalist Daniel Frye and Detective Marco Ruiz are en route to the drop point for the ransom money he surmises the killer's readiness to let Maria perish by saying, He killed nine Mexicans, what's one more? This is why there's actual suspense as to whether this woman will live or die because despite the killer's clear message that action needs to be taken to improve the conditions surrounding the citizens of Juarez, he's absolutely willing to sacrifice those whom he's theoretically trying to help (which is probably why he was rejected from Ni Una Mas). The audience is invested in the story because even if the territory looks familiar it's being realistically tread, viewers know that the stakes have been legitimately raised, and the perpetrator is as skilled as he is unpredictable. As for the million dollars in cash, the point of the ransom was to demonstrate how much more difficult it is to produce funds for a non-American citizen than an American one, thereby illustrating the inhumanity of national distinction and subsequent inequality, and to incriminate the four wealthiest men in El Paso, but it was unclear whether the money was to come from them or be paid to them. I originally thought it was to be paid to them thereby making them profit from the hostage's suffering, but 250 grand each may not be much to such wealthy men, which is why I suppose the cash was to come from them thereby making them responsible for the hostage's life, and why there was a drop point at all, which slightly confused me at first. The million dollars in cash was actually provided not by the rich white men or the feds, but by the head of a drug cartel. Fausto Galvan, a man scary enough to openly challenge the woman responsible for killing Charlotte's horse, wants the killer to have what he thinks the killer wants, the money, so that he'll stop killing people along the border and reduce police presence so as to allow his business to continue unhindered, but Marco accepts the cash because he has no confidence in the likelihood of the feds procuring it themselves. During the aforementioned conversation with Frye, Marco defends the violence in Juarez to a point saying that the murder Frye witnessed was probably just cartel business. Obviously Marco doesn't condone drug cartels ruling his home, but he realizes they have more power than his government, and in this case are of more efficient assistance than the feds. His compliance comes from a place of reluctant practicality and necessity, but it's also a demonstration of the status quo to which the killer wishes to call attention. So if it wasn't made abundantly clear already that the Bridge Butcher isn't murdering for money or his own sadistic pleasure (though clearly you're a bit of a psycho once you've racked up eleven murders) then it most certainly should be now as indicated by the cash left at the scene along with Gedman's decapitated prostitution loving head (Johnny Crowder looked weird without his beard anyway). But you know who I'm glad isn't a psycho killer? Steven! Just as I predicted, Steven Linder was in fact doing what he could to deliver Eva Guerra from her life of prostitution and whip enthusiasts to a healthier life on a religious farm. Bob may not be Steven's brother, but he's better than Hector. Although I'm thrilled that Steven is the upstanding, albeit less than immediately charming, secular moralist he's turned out to be, now that we know he's not the Bridge Butcher I wonder where his story will go. I liked the bits of backstory we got on Sonya and her sister's mysterious death. Apparently she knows her sister's killer and where he resides though despite wanting to confront him she's been unable to do so. Her scene with Hank while searching for Maria was as impressive as Kruger's portrayal has been since the premiere and it's a pleasure to watch unfold. Maria of the Desert continues to solidify The Bridge as a series which takes familiar situations and does them so well you hardly notice you've seen it done countless times before. The episode centered around the hostage of a serial killer who's ultimately saved by the quirky detective's tenacity amid corruption, incompetence, and even the requisite interfering federal agents. However, each element of this plot has a distinctive spin: the serial killer isn't primarily motivated so much by his abusive childhood or religious fervor, but a twisted humanitarian political agenda; the detective isn't merely quirky, but actually experiences Asperger's syndrome, the challenges of which are portrayed with accuracy and pathos; the minor yet tell-tale clue everyone else overlooked wasn't arrived upon via some overwrought, Goldblumian string of logic which magically gift-wrapped the resolution, but a long-shot which required nothing more than determined trial and error (though the oil pump was definitely not present in the original shot of the hostage at the end of the previous episode); and the federal agents weren't jerks simply for the sake of being difficult (well, maybe a little) or even corrupt in that they took a bribe, but the loudest fed was revealed to have been a client of the prostitute whose body was used in the killer's initial crime. While clearly I admire Maria of the Desert for spinning a tried and true formula in fresh and authentic ways, the episode works in large part due to how well its basic premise and characters were developed.