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Profiler Season 3 Episode 10

Ceremony of Innocence

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Episode Summary

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AIRED: 1/9/99

One of Sam's first profiles resulted in a man being sentenced to death. Ten years later when the man is about to be executed, murders begin happening that match the m.o. of the prior killings. Ballistics evidence proves the same gun was used for all the crimes. Sam, feeling culpable for what might have been a deadly mistake, reopens the investigation. Evidence leads to a lowly bicycle courier who is mortally wounded when he resists arrest. Once the dying man is in custody, the death row inmate is released from prison. Though a wrong seem to have been righted, Sam still feels something is amiss. A chess set is found in the prisoner's cell helps her to realize that the whole thing was an elaborate ruse. The man originally convicted was indeed the first killer. The second killer was only a pawn doing his bidding. Sam, Bailey, and the team re-arrest the now pardoned killer at the hospital bed of his wounded puppet, just as he attempts to kill the only loose end in his elaborate plan.moreless

Fan Episode Reviews (1)

A welcome return to form - good but not great.

7.0

By glendenb, Aug 22, 2010

After two lackluster episodes, Profiler throws itself into a strong procedural episode. The premise is simple - with 24 hours before he is to be executed, a murderer's MO is copied almost exactly. The VCTF team throws themselves into an investigation to determine if the man on death row is actually guiltly. Broadly speaking, the episode follows a straightforward arc - the team examines the crimes, compares them to the crimes committed years before and traces the victims backwards to the killer. Dramatically, the countdown to the execution works well enough; it provides the episode enough dramatic tension to keep it moving forward while also preventing the story from bogging down. The idea of the surrogate Creatively, the episode falls into the cliched territory of treating the serial killer as some sort of manipulative genius who pulls the strings of everyone around him. The ruse Sam and Bailey use to get into his cell to collect evidence struck me as transparent but effective enough. The resolution in the hospital room - where Pfizer confessed to his crimes - was a bit over the top but probably necessary.

Hovering over the episode is the question of the death penalty. Sam and Bailey represent opposite sides of the debate, as do George and John. The idea of guilt and innocence and the necessity of the state executing criminal are all touched very lightly; the question of innocence - that many innocent people have been set free - is also mentioned. Sam's relationship with the question is presented as deeply personal - she sees Pfizer's conviction as a result of her profile and therefore her doing. If the wrong man is going to die, she must intervene to stop it. Creatively, refusing to answer those questions is a good idea and avoids moralizing.

All in all, a good episode.moreless
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Cast & Crew: STARS

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Ally Walker	Dr. Samantha "Sam" Waters
Julian McMahon	Det. John Grant
Peter Frechette	George Fraley
Robert Davi	Agent Bailey Malone
Roma Maffia	Grace Alvarez

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Cast & Crew: RECURRING AND GUESTS

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J.C. Murad	Young Officer -- costar	Guest Star
Gary Anthony Williams	Father Earl Stevens	Guest Star
Alonzo Bodden	Guard #2	Guest Star

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- International Episode Titles:
  Czech Republic: Hra na nevinného (Playing the Innocent)
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