(rain pattering) (thunder booming) (mysterious music) (car door thudding) (thunder booming) (teen laughing) - Oh my God, freaking me out!

(teens chuckling) (mysterious music) (thunder booming) - Well, n- not so much funny in the conventional sense, but, you know, had elements of irony, which we all know are a powerful component of comedy.

Not funny in the conventional sense, but it had, uh, um, comedy from a Greek word, komoidia.

- (laughs) Komoidia!

Ha, that's good.

That's Greece, that's nice.

Very good!

(laughs) - Greece!

- Very funny!

- Greece of course is the home of the tragedy.

- Greece, yes.

On the meridian 25 degrees east of Greenwich, home of Copernicus.

Mm-hmm.

- Tragic irony, of course, is the root of Greek heroes like Achilles who had problems with his calves.

(group laughing) Heroes like Achilles who... (thunder booming) (mysterious music) - [Teen] No way.

- (gasps) Okay.

- It's okay.

All good.

(thunder booming) - Wait.

What was, what was that?

- What?

(mysterious music) (thunder booming) (teens screaming) (upbeat music) (upbeat music continues) - [Mike] An ECT machine.

Didn't know those things were actually powerful enough to kill anyone.

- [Kristin] Well, whoever was administering wasn't mucking around.

- [Mike] Tricky though, given this building seems to have no electricity.

(quiet mysterious music) - [Kristin] Mike?

- His first or last name, do you think?

- Jakob Deschler.

The ex-superintendent.

There was an article in the "Courier" a few months ago.

He's only recently out of prison.

- How far away is that generator?

We need some more light in here.

- You're not gonna have one of your little chats?

- No.

Let's get Gina in.

(thunder booming) - Somebody demolished the front door lock.

- One of them?

- Uh, no, they said they came in through the back.

There's a loose piece of iron teenagers used to sneak around, looking for a place to, you know, canoodle.

- Canoodle?

- Just using the boss' language.

- I thank you from my chair in the corner of the rest home.

(Kristin chuckles) - This place is a hideout for teenagers.

They come here, play drinking games and- - Canoodle?

- I myself may have visited once or twice to- - Canoodle.

- This place gives me the- - Heebie-jeebies?

- You do speak my language.

(Kristin chuckles) Okay, let Gina do her thing, then lock this place down till morning.

I'll sort the next of kin.

- Hey, check this out.

We use to come here and play spookers, hiding out in different rooms, seeing who could freak each other out the most.

Hiding in cupboards, that sort of thing.

As a man of steel, I, um, always won.

Couldn't be freaked.

(chilling music) Oh!

- [Lulu] I'm not here.

I'm not here.

- It's all right.

We're police, it's okay.

- Yeah, we're here.

(clears throat) We're here to help.

- I need light to study the stiff.

- [Lulu] Just a mouse.

A tiny, tiny mouse.

(thunder booming) (relaxed music) (door knocker thudding) - Fiona Deschler?

- Yes.

- Detective Senior Sergeant Mike Shepherd.

May I come in?

(thunder booming) (relaxed music) - She's barely spoken a word.

All we know is her name is Lulu and she seems to think she's a mouse.

- She's asked to see her doctor, Amy Curnow.

She's on her way.

- You believe she was in the building the entire time?

- Seems that way.

- The teenagers didn't see anyone else arrive after they called in the body.

- Okay.

Talk to me about Deschler.

- Jakob Deschler, 65 years old.

When Brokenwood Downes was closed in 1995 as a state-run asylum, he lost his job as superintendent.

- He left the district for a while, then returned in 2008 and reopened it as a private treatment center.

- It was renamed the Deschler Clinic and touted itself as providing revolutionary treatment for the mentally unwell.

- Check this out.

From an interview promoting his business.

- The sooner we start treating mental illness as we would any other illness, as an infection, the sooner we can get these people back on their feet.

- [Interviewer] Is it true the Deschler Clinic is using electroconvulsive therapy?

- Of course.

If your loved one was ill, wouldn't you want them to have the best methods available?

That and other bespoke treatments.

- The guy was clearly a charlatan.

- And yet many wealthier families gullibly bought into it and brought their loved ones there to find a miracle cure.

- But his practices came under scrutiny when a patient called Tom Somerset died under his care.

- Why do I know that name?

- He's the novelist and poet who wrote "Three Islands Home."

- Right.

Always meant to read that.

- So the place closed down in 2011 and Deschler faced a trial, but was acquitted of manslaughter.

- Though he did serve seven years for a variety of charges, including... - Torture.

- [Sam] He was released four months ago.

- Thanks.

First point, Deschler's wife, Fiona, knew he was going up there.

- He was invited up there last night.

- To Brokenwood Downes?

- The clinic, yes.

- By who?

- He said some journalist wanted to interview him, hear his side of the story, now that he was out of prison.

- Do you know their name?

- No.

- Their publication?

- No.

- Did he receive the invitation via e-mail or text, a call?

Did he say?

- No.

My husband didn't have a phone, nor did he write anything down.

- Unusual for a medical professional.

- After the trial, he decided not to write anything down, believing it could be used against him.

I told him not to go, but he did.

He could be stubborn.

- So Fiona knew he was there.

And this Lulu was potentially there, depending on time of death.

- So, the ex-superintendent of a controversial mental health clinic is found dead.

- Apparently electrocuted by an ECT machine with a baggage tag attached to his foot labeling him "torturer."

- Allegedly invited to a former workplace by an unnamed journalist.

- An ambush to execute a revenge killing?

- Complete with party balloons.

- But how does someone get electrocuted in a building with no electricity?

- I have a team tracking down all local mobile generators for hire.

- Good.

- In the meantime, work up a list of all the ex-patients of the Deschler Clinic, and the family of Tom Somerset, or anyone else who had a grudge against him.

I'll try and track down the journalist.

- Sims?

Amy Curnow.

- Oh, I've got this.

Dr. Curnow.

DSS Mike Shepherd.

- Actually, it's just Amy.

I'm not a doctor.

I'm a psychotherapist.

- My apologies.

Come through.

- Lulu?

It's Amy.

- [Lulu] Lulu isn't here.

Just a mouse.

Just an ordinary little mouse.

- Well, remember, I'm afraid of mice.

Can I speak to Lulu instead?

Do you have any cheese?

- Cheese?

- I'll see what I can do.

(playful music) Just taking the cheese.

- That'll be for the mouse.

- Lulu, do you know where you are?

- Yes.

- And who this is?

- [Lulu] He's a policeman.

- Can he talk to Lulu?

- Yes.

- Lulu, last night you were found up at Brokenwood Downes.

How long had you been there?

- Three months.

- Three months?

- No, six weeks.

No, 2 1/2 weeks.

- Is that mouse years?

That's about four hours.

(chilling music) - Dark Angel came.

- Are you sure?

- Dark Angel killed the man, killed the Cleanser.

- You finish your cheese and we'll get a cup of tea, all right?

(mysterious music) - Mice sometimes, sometimes drink tea.

- So Deschler required his patients to call him the Cleanser?

- It tied in with his quackery.

It was based on the belief that all the many types of mental illness were something that could be cleansed.

- Like a bacterial infection?

- It was really just an excuse for him to exercise his notorious methods.

- And the Dark Angel?

- Supposedly a black-hooded figure that appeared to the patients when it was believed they were holding on to bad thoughts.

- So when Lulu says the Dark Angel killed the Cleanser, she saw an actual person in the room?

- Well, several ex-patients from the clinic tell the same story, and they all suffer from some form of trauma because of it.

- So it could be more a perceived threat than actual?

- The power of suggestion can evoke hallucinations in the minds of people who are vulnerable.

- Do you think we could get that statement now?

- We can but try.

Oh, God.

(tense music) (sighs) This is very unlike her.

- Any idea where she might have gone?

- Detective, do I have patient privacy issues here?

- Miss Curnow, Lulu is a person of interest who needs to be spoken to.

Given she was found at the scene of the crime, the sooner the better.

- I have her home address on a file back at my office.

- Lulu's gone AWOL.

Put out a 10-1 with an approach with caution.

- Roger that.

Potential killer mouse.

(upbeat music) - Okay, what have we got?

- The power company are adamant that no power has been supplied to the Brokenwood Downes building in over seven years.

- Of the 40 patients treated by Deschler between 2008 and 2011, 29 reside in secure clinics down country.

- Five are deceased and four reside in the community.

- Lulu, a Barnaby Buchanan, Hopalong Cassie.

- Wait, is that the woman who wears strange tights and wanders the streets?

- Hopping, yeah.

Cassie Seymour.

She seems harmless enough.

- And, no surprises, Christopher Kramer.

Bags not!

- No, too slow.

He's all yours.

- And two others, Jeremy Mannering and Nigel Smythe, have yet to be located.

(phone ringing) - Gina.

- Mike, I am very disturbed.

- I know for a fact you've seen a lot worse than this.

- No, this is not disturbing.

I saw a stand-up comedian last night at the Toad and Lion.

Kiwi humor sometimes is difficult to understand, but this man was not funny at all.

- Where his gastrocnemius and his soleus taper off.

Anyway.

And, and, um, Achilles had his protection suit, worked everywhere except there.

- I had more fun doing autopsy on Russian serial killers.

- Right.

So what do I need to know here?

- Firstly, note the scorch marks on the temples.

- Indicating a massive current?

- Yes.

Secondly, a contusion on the back of the neck, suggesting Mr. Deschler was struck with an object that broke the skin.

- [Mike] Might account for how he got on the gurney.

- You haven't asked me about time of death.

- I know to wait until after the postmortem.

You don't like to guess.

- But perhaps I already know.

Down to the exact minute.

- Okay, so what is it?

- Wouldn't you like to know?

I will confirm after I've had a good look inside.

(playful music) - Yes?

- Long time no see.

- I'm okay with that.

- You were a patient of the Deschler Clinic in 2010.

- I can neither confirm nor deny.

- I know you were there.

- Knowledge is subjective.

You may think you know something only to have it disproved.

- Your name is on the official register.

- Oh, and who wrote that?

- You testified in the Deschler court case.

- My time there was a mistake.

It was an orchestrated conspiracy to shut down my ideas.

- Look, I'm not here to debate that.

Jakob Deschler was found dead last night.

- Oh.

So he dies and you come straight to me.

You know, that is called persecution.

- Um, no, it's called making inquiries.

- Well, it had nothing to do with me.

- Your whereabouts last night?

- I was at the Toad and Lion.

- So the publican, Ray Neilson, would be able to verify that?

- Is Ray Neilson an observant person?

If yes, then I will be shown to be a truthful person who deals in factual statements.

If not, I'll be accused of murder all because of a publican's lack of observational skills.

- I never mentioned anything about murder, just that he was found dead.

- Where were you prior to the Toad and Lion?

At home.

So all this data needs collating.

(radio crackling) Can you hear that?

- What?

- That deep hum resonating from the center of the Earth.

- No.

- I bet Ray Neilson couldn't either.

- I can hear the Brokenwood FM weather forecast.

- [Meteorologist] It's four seasons in one day in Brokenwood, but otherwise fine.

- They're jamming me again.

They're messing with my frequencies.

- I'll be in touch if we have any further questions.

(phone ringing) - Hi, is this Barnaby Buchanan?

- [Barnaby] Yes.

- It's Detective Kristin Sims.

I'm making some inquiries in relation to Jakob Deschler, and I wondered if... (phone clicks) (dial tone humming) (relaxed music) Ah.

- Ah.

- Oh.

Um, Barnaby Buchanan?

- Yes?

- Uh, Detective Kristin Sims.

I called earlier.

- Oh, yes, we must've been cut off.

- Possibly.

- I'm just leaving work.

- Five minutes.

- M- my wife's expecting me, so, and I need to get back before it rains, so maybe we could just do this another time?

- It doesn't look like rain outside.

- But you never know.

- Uh, five minutes.

By all means, call your wife if you like.

- All right.

This is my office.

This is where I work.

- What is your line of work?

- I'm a mathematician.

I have to solve that equation.

- Isn't this the Riemann equation?

- Yes.

It's a tough job, but someone has to do it.

Hi, honey.

Yes, no, no, everything's fine.

And yourself?

Good.

Um, I'm just gonna be a little bit later tonight.

Okay.

All right, well, I'll see you in a little bit.

Okay.

Okay.

Okay, bye.

Now, what can I do for you, Miss Sims?

- A Jakob Deschler was found dead last night.

- I see.

That's, that's bad.

- We're just following up with some people who were under his care.

You went to the Deschler Clinic from 2009 to 2010?

- I was, after a car accident left me with a case of post-traumatic stress.

But that's, that's all, that's all in the past now.

- Would you say that your time at the Deschler Clinic was helpful?

- Absolutely not.

My time there was a mistake.

My family forced me into it.

They overreacted.

Are you sure it's not gonna rain?

- Uh, maybe just a shower.

- Oh, God, I hope not.

- Can I ask you where you were last night?

- (clears throat) Where I was.

Um, I was at the Toad and Lion, uh, watching a comedian.

- What time did you get to the pub?

- Maybe 9:30.

- And before that?

- I was having dinner with my wife.

- So you left work and went home, then you went to the Toad and Lion?

- Betty and I, we took a stroll before dark.

- Okay.

Great.

Do you mind if I give Betty a quick call just to verify that?

- Now?

- Yeah.

- Um...

I... She's probably gonna be in the garden, so she's not gonna hear you.

Um, I need to get back before it starts to rain, so... Hmm.

- Sure.

Um, well, can you just get Betty to give me a call?

- I will pass that on.

- Thanks.

- Well, it would seem that all roads- - Lead to the Toad and Lion.

- I remember Barnaby arriving just before the show started.

He was in quite a state.

He'd got wet.

- I need a towel.

I need a towel, I need a towel!

- Really need a towel.

- [Ray] Chris Kramer was stressing out.

- Look, we're late, but we're here now, all right?

W- we're here now!

- All right.

Take it easy.

He needn't have worried.

This Manders bloke was half an hour late for his own show.

What time do you call this?

- Show time.

(feedback squealing) - Test, testing, testing.

Hi.

Good evening.

My name's Gerry Manders.

Oh, a funny thing happened to me on the way to the show tonight, although, although not, not funny in the conventional sense.

- And I'm confident nothing funny happened to him on the way to the show.

Or anywhere, ever.

Gerry Manders is comedy death.

I've booked him for three nights.

It's a complete disaster.

- I mean, the title doesn't exactly scream comedy.

I've never heard of this guy.

- Well, neither had I, but he called me and said he was on tour.

I checked his website.

Great reviews.

That's the last time I ever trust reviewers.

They must've all been on the wacky baccy.

- But you said Barnaby Buchanan was laughing though?

- And Chris Kramer and Cassie Seymour.

(group laughing) Seriously, it was like "One Flew Over the bloody Cuckoo's Nest" in here.

- And they all arrived together?

- I believe so, yes.

- Can you tell the detective how you came to be locked in the cupboard at Brokenwood Downes?

- Went to a party.

(ominous music) There were balloons.

(door creaking) Then the Dark Angel came.

I had to hide.

(ominous music) - Were there other people at this party?

- My friends were there.

And they left, so I came out.

- Of the cupboard?

- To see if he was dead.

(thunder booming) Then people came.

I had to hide.

- [Teen] Oh my God, freaking me out!

- [Lulu] There was screaming.

I didn't like it.

(teens screaming) - Before this, you saw the Dark Angel?

- But you saw the Dark Angel kill Mr. Deschler?

- [Lulu] Heard it.

Only heard it.

- If you only heard it, how are you sure that it happened?

- Because they said so.

- [Barnaby] He was meant to apologize, not die!

- [Cassie] We have to say the Dark Angel did it.

- [Christopher] They'll never believe that.

- [Cassie] Ding-dong, the witch man is dead!

- [Christopher] They're gonna put us back here!

- [Cassie] Ding-dong, the witch man is dead!

- [Barnaby] Shut up, Cassie!

- They?

Who were these people you overheard?

- Cassie, Barnaby, Christopher.

Nice people.

None of them are cats.

- How did you know about this party?

- I was sent an invitation.

- Do you still have this invitation?

I'd like to read it.

- I ate it.

(chuckles) It said to eat it.

Mice eat paper.

- What did this invitation say?

- There'd be a party.

Jakob would apologize for all the bad things.

I knew he had that in his heart.

I loved him.

Very much.

- How can I be sure that that is true and not a fantasy?

- With Lulu, that's as good as it gets.

- Is there something else?

- When people come to me, they talk in confidence.

- Well, what about when they're a mouse?

- Miss Curnow, I'm dealing with a homicide.

- Lulu wasn't simply an ex-patient.

She was Deschler's ex-wife.

(upbeat music) (phone ringing) - Detective Sims.

- [Caller] Yes, hello, this is Betty Buchanan.

- Oh.

Hi, Betty, thanks for calling.

- Yes, my husband was with me last night until about 9:00 PM.

Then he went to a show, bye.

(phone clicks) (tense music) - According to Lulu, an actual party took place at Brokenwood Downes.

This is perhaps verified by the decorations.

- She says the party included, uh, Barnaby Buchanan, Cassie Seymour, and our old friend Christopher Kramer.

- Both Chris and Barnaby were seen at the Toad and Lion.

- And both said prior to that that they were at home.

- Lulu is also, as verified by Amy Curnow, a fantasist.

Her notion of a party could simply be informed by the presence of balloons rather than anything she actually experienced.

- But why would there be signs and balloons otherwise?

- Perhaps she put them up herself.

- Fingerprints got nothing off any of it.

- What about mouse prints?

- I mean, this whole pretending to be a mouse thing is a little convenient, don't you think?

- Species dysphoria.

Apparently it's real.

- It's a type of clinical lycanthropy.

Amy Curnow is not the only one with a psych degree.

- Hopalong Cassie was also seen at the Toad and Lion.

- But, interestingly, she hasn't been seen wandering around the streets lately.

We can't locate her.

- I'll put out another 10-1.

- Of note also, Lulu is Deschler's first wife.

- Prior to Lulu being treated at the clinic, she had no existing mental health issues.

- Why was she committed?

- Deschler had found a companion in his new favorite nurse, Fiona.

It was his way of getting her sidelined.

- Oh my God, they gaslighted her.

- Set her on fire?

- No, gaslighting is the process of making someone believe they're crazy when they're not to such a point that they do actually go mad.

- Gives her a strong motive.

- Did Gina confirm a cause of death?

- Electrocution, which again raises the issue of a power source.

- Someone got some serious voltage into that building.

- And at precisely 8:26 PM.

- You know this how?

- I can confirm time of death was 8:26 PM.

- That's very precise.

- It stopped when the massive charge fried the battery.

Don't mention it.

(relaxed music) - Let's cut to the chase, Mr. Buchanan.

Your wife called me last night verifying that you were at home prior to going to the Toad and Lion, and yet a witness has you up at Brokenwood Downes.

So can you clarify exactly where you were and when?

- A- a witness?

Hmm.

Who?

- I can't say.

- I- I think it's very unlikely that my wife called you.

- Because?

- She's very shy.

Uh, because her English is so bad.

It's a second language, if you will.

- Then how do you explain that I received the call at 5:20 PM, and the call came from your phone?

- Mm.

- Perhaps you made the call posing as your wife to mislead me into thinking you were somewhere you weren't?

- (chuckles) I think that's a bit odd.

- It might explain it.

- Or perhaps I was just simply translating what she was trying to say to me.

- Yes, that, yes, actually, I think that is what happened.

- Okay, Mr. Buchanan, I do need to speak to Betty in person, so can I have your address, please?

- We live out on Burkes Line.

- And the best time to catch her?

- Now.

She'll, she'll definitely be home now.

- Thank you.

(playful music) - Christopher.

- Detective.

- Gerry Manders.

Detective Constable Breen.

- Detective.

That's funny.

- Why is that?

- I'm a comedian.

- Yeah, no, I'm aware.

- Well, I was in the park, and I met this man who was at my show, and then now you turn up.

As a comedian, I'm acutely aware of raw elements of comedy when they arrive.

- Out of the ether.

- From where all elements originate.

118, to be precise, on the periodic table.

- So, do you two know each other?

- No, we met today in the park.

- Today.

- Just today.

- Yep.

- Well, um, I feel some new material coming on, so thank you for the inspiration.

There's two detectives walk into a bar, and the camel says, "So why the long face?"

- Mr. Manders?

Your orange.

- I don't like oranges.

- Okay, do you want to rethink your whereabouts before the Toad and Lion?

- Why?

- A witness has you up at Brokenwood Downes.

- Been there from time to time, and that doesn't mean anything.

- Were you there?

- My research takes me up hill and down dale.

I follow the meridians and the humming.

- Okay, well, did the meridians take you to Brokenwood Downes that night?

- I may have passed there on the way to the Toad and Lion, but if anybody saw me, it would have been in the context of my research.

- Yes or no?

- I can't be sure.

(calm music) (knuckles rapping) - Hello, Elizabeth?

Mrs. Buchanan?

It's Detective Kristen Sims, Brokenwood CIB.

(phone ringing) Mike.

- Busy?

- Oh, yes, I'm currently very busy, wasting my time chasing after Barnaby Buchanan's phantom wife.

- Meet me at Brokenwood Downes.

(gentle mysterious music) The team found a brick just here by the door with traces of a blood type that matched Deschler's.

- [Kristin] So the offender was improvising?

- Or familiar with what was on hand at least.

- [Kristin] Well, whoever picked the lock certainly went the extra mile.

- Deschler had these in his pocket.

He must have expected the door to be locked.

(gentle mysterious music) - [Kristin] These are patient files.

- So much for privacy.

- I'm guessing they had to jump ship in a hurry once the Somerset death occurred.

- No way anything's coming out of there.

(gentle mysterious music) (gentle mysterious music continues) - Okay.

Going back to what you said before about the heebie-jeebies.

- Deschler's?

- Uh.

Well...

They're certainly not well worn.

- Is this where you found Lulu?

- No.

(mysterious music) - Do the honors?

(door thuds) (door creaks) So much for being locked in.

- You think she was lying?

- With Lulu it's hard to know what to think.

I'm sorry.

It's an unusual party theme.

- Do you think the offender was apologizing to Deschler for killing him?

- Courteous approach to murder.

Certainly novel.

(footsteps thudding) (footsteps thudding) (gentle mysterious music) (gentle mysterious music continues) - Hi.

It's Cassie, isn't it?

I'm Detective Sims.

This is DSS Shepherd.

- Hello, Cassie.

- Oh, the shepherd.

The shepherdess.

And the lamb.

(delicate classical music) Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker."

The Marzipan suite.

- Cassie, how did you get in here?

- There's a hole in the wall.

Hole in my pocket.

Hole in my head.

You're not her.

- Were you expecting someone?

- The nurse.

She brings my medicine.

- Does this nurse have a name?

- Fiona.

- Fiona Deschler?

- Mm.

Whoops.

Here we go.

(relaxed music) - When I came to inform you of Jakob's death it was close to midnight.

You were still up.

Had you only recently got home?

- I'm a shift worker.

I work at Sunset Manor in the dementia unit.

- That must be rewarding.

- What?

- Nursing.

- It's a dementia unit.

It's work.

Since Jakob's takedown, needs must.

- I understand you previously worked at the Deschler Clinic.

- Yeah, if you had the chance to work with a genius, wouldn't you?

- An ex-patient mentioned your name today.

We found them in the abandoned building, awaiting medication.

- Who was this?

- I'd rather not say.

- Cassie Seymour.

- Do you meet her at a designated time?

- Of course not.

- Yet you're aware of it.

- Her therapist contacted me.

Cassie had been talking about it, and she wanted to know if it was true.

- But it's not?

- It's the figment of an injured mind.

- When was the last time you were up at Brokenwood Downes?

- I haven't been back since it closed.

- Did Jakob maintain any contact with his first wife?

- Lulu?

Not that I'm aware of.

- Even though she was a patient?

- No relationship that wasn't professional, and that was a long time ago.

Even Jakob's talents had their limits when it came to healing.

- Oh, one other thing.

Your shift at Sunset Manor, what time did it start?

- Midday.

- And finished?

At 8:00 PM.

- After that?

- I was with a friend.

- Could I know their name?

- Why don't I get them to contact you?

(door thuds) - I like your clothes.

- Yes.

I am a ballerina.

(delicate playful music) - Oh.

I did ballet too, as a kid.

- I danced at the Bolshoi.

- Mm, okay.

That's impressive.

I guess every little girl wants to dance at the Bolshoi.

- No.

It's not good.

I had an accident.

I have a hole in my head, see?

- Fiona Deschler left work at Sunset Manor at 8:00 PM.

She had time to get to Brokenwood Downes.

- Does she have an alibi?

- I'm waiting for it to be corroborated.

- Well, Cassie Seymour is asking for Amy Curnow.

- Leave it to me.

- Oh, she's my witness.

I don't mind doing the grunt work.

- No, I can do it.

(tender music) - My, my.

Mike is very keen to work with Amy Curnow.

- That's interesting.

- I know.

Is love in the air?

- Is that Gerry Manders?

(phone clicks) (dial tone humming) "Comedy Monthly," "The Daily Joke," "Laughlines," all these publications from Gerry's reviews?

None of them exist.

- No wonder he wasn't funny.

None of these quotes are true?

- None.

- He had a shocker last night as well.

- And a box only has six sides, you know?

A thing is only the sum of its parts.

But the parts of not themselves are not a thing, you know?

- Hardly comedy gold.

- I've tried ringing him and he hung up.

Do you know where he's staying?

- No idea.

But when he turns up for tonight's show, I'll be showing him the door.

Fraud.

- Before you do, can you give me a heads-up?

- Are you gonna arrest him for crimes against comedy?

- It's, uh, something else.

- Detective Sims.

Long time no see, eh?

Um, you know my uncle's brother's cousin?

- We have met.

Hello, Kahu.

- So much for finger on the pulse, bro.

- A lot has happened since you've been away.

- Yeah, yeah.

Obviously.

- What are you up to?

- I'm just heading up to Burkes Line to talk to a witness.

- Burkes Line?

Out near crazy Barnaby Buchanan's place?

- How do you know Barnaby?

- Everyone knows Barnaby.

- Well, obviously not everyone.

- AKA the Rain Man.

- He's terrified of the rain.

I did some work up on his house once.

Hey, mate, are you sure there's a leak?

I can't find it.

- Drip, it's incessant.

- Okay.

I'll do another test.

(water splashing) - Oh, oh!

Oh, no, no, no!

No!

- Word is it all stems from his time at the Deschler Clinic.

- You know about him, right?

- Meaning?

- His wife died in a car accident about 10 years ago.

- His first wife?

- No, I'm pretty sure she was his only wife.

- (chuckles) Okay, because I'm heading there to talk to her.

- The thing is, that's when he lost his marbles, 'cause she didn't really die- - In his mind.

- He talks about his wife in the present tense.

He talks to her on the phone.

- Yeah.

- Barnaby thinks she's still alive.

- But currently in a different form.

- Thing is, Barnaby's wife, Betty- - Is actually a horse.

(Jared imitating horse) - [Kahu] Yep.

- [Mike] Thank you, Cassie.

That was most enlightening.

- Could we have a word?

- Karla, could you get Cassie a seat?

- Come through.

- Mr. Shepherd, I don't mean to be rude.

- Mike.

- Mike.

But, well, I deal in straight talking to get to the heart of things.

- Of course.

- I can't just drop everything every time these people need advice.

- I deal with vulnerable people and I have a full diary.

Rescheduling my kind of client can cause unnecessary upset.

- I understand.

- The thing is, with the likes of Lulu and Cassie is that they begin to rely on me when they need to learn to just wait and breathe and, where possible, think for themselves.

- Even when they think they're a mouse?

- Well, the more Lulu is empowered, the more chance she has of rebuilding her true sense of self.

- Point taken.

- You're being defensive.

- No.

No, I'm not.

- Well, then unfold your arms.

Look, Mike, forgive me if I'm wrong, but do you find these people threatening, or am I reading it wrong?

- Ah, I don't think so.

- Well, you have my card.

If you ever want to talk about yourself, just...

I will find a way to slot you in.

(tender music) - Talking to animals isn't unusual.

People do it to pets.

- Yeah, but generally people don't believe their pets are their spouse.

This has got to be a sham.

- Okay.

Incoming.

- Can I help you?

- Mr. Buchanan.

I'm, uh, here to talk to your wife, Betty, about the other night.

- Well, she's just there.

You're welcome to ask her.

- Okay, here's the thing.

- Look, I didn't choose for my wife to become a horse.

It's just one of those things that life deals you.

- I- I've learnt to handle it, but if you can't, then that shouldn't be my problem.

(horse whinnies) And, yes, honey?

(horse neighs) Yeah, she doesn't want to talk to you anyhow.

You, you, you've been here a while, and it's, it's making her uncomfortable.

So if you've finished making fun of us, you should go.

- I'm not here to make fun of you.

- I know a conspiracy when I see one.

I've called my brother already.

- And your brother is a... - My lawyer.

Dennis.

Dennis Buchanan.

(upbeat music) - (sighs) Unbelievable.

- Detective Sims, huh?

We meet again.

- Dennis.

- It's important, Detective, that in situations like this we just deal with the facts.

- Suits me.

- My brother was involved in a motor vehicle accident some 10 years ago.

A car versus car.

Plus a horse float.

(car alarm blaring) (Barnaby breathing heavily) - Elizabeth?

Honey?

Elizabeth?

(Elizabeth breathing heavily) Baby?

Betty?

We need to... We need to, we need to get of here, okay?

Betty?

(Elizabeth gasps) (somber music) - In that moment, my brother saw the soul of his wife leave her body, and into that of the horse.

And during his recovery he became obsessed with locating the mare to the point where my parents, God rest their souls, had him committed to the Deschler Clinic.

- In the hope of a miracle cure?

- Which was a mistake.

That place was clearly a torture chamber.

But when it was closed down, I took his recovery into my own hands.

You see, my parents left him a trust fund, with a caveat that he must work.

Your new office.

- Does it leak?

- So Barnaby goes to work and then comes home to Betty every day?

- He's like most men on the planet.

He does a fair day's work for a fair day's pay, and then five o'clock it's, "Hi, honey, I'm home."

I'm off!

Hey, ah, why don't you and Betty come 'round for dinner on Sunday night?

- Sounds good.

- Um, sorry.

You're having them over for dinner?

- Yeah.

Oh, relax, Detective.

They never come.

Barnaby always makes an excuse at the last minute.

- What, that his wife has to go to the blacksmith?

- Most people write Barnaby off as crazy.

His condition, however, is one of post-traumatic stress not dealt with correctly at the time and compounded by his stay at that clinic under the evil regime of Jakob Deschler.

Look, all right, granted, my brother is eccentric, but he is also completely harmless.

- Look, at the time of Deschler's death, your brother's whereabouts can't be verified.

He tried to pass himself off as Betty on the phone.

All I want is a straight answer.

- When not working, my brother spends every waking hour with his wife.

It is true love.

So if he wasn't at work, he would have been here.

- And yet he said he went for a walk.

- A man and his wife, an evening stroll.

Where's the harm in that?

- Therefore it's possible that he went up to Brokenwood Downes.

- Why would he do that?

The place is a cesspit of depravity.

Brains Matter, Detective.

- What?

- Mental health awareness charity event tomorrow.

I hope to see you there.

A sunny day, spot of cricket, couple of Pimm's and lemonade.

What's there not to like?

Now squash!

(mellow music) - Nigel Smythe was repatriated to Australia and is now incarcerated in Brisbane's secure unit.

- Jeremy Mannering?

- Lives at large in the city.

The team down there are trying to locate him, but I might have a lead on that.

- Which leaves the family of Tom Somerset.

- Drawn a blank.

Apparently his wife Tina was American born.

She and her daughter Lisa moved back to Boston after the trial for Tom's death.

- Okay, I'll get Hughes onto it.

- Tina Somerset, wife of Tom Somerset.

Okay, got it.

I'll get the international boys to talk to Interpol.

- Thanks.

- "Three Islands Home."

He was a great loss to the New Zealand literary landscape.

Died a day after his daughter's 30th birthday, as I recall.

Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow.

- Why is that?

- I'm coming up for Brains Matter.

The charity cricket match.

- Oh, right.

- You doing okay with all this?

- Yes, I'm fine.

See you tomorrow.

(gentle mysterious music) - How did things go with Amy Curnow?

- Ah, good.

She really knows her stuff.

- Yes, but did you get anything useful out of Cassie Seymour?

- Useful?

I'm not sure.

Certainly interesting.

I've never had someone dance their interview before.

(delicate mysterious music) - I think that's the Dark Angel.

- The Dark Angel appeared?

- And killed Mr. Deschler with?

- The buzzy machine.

And then... (delicate mysterious music) - Sorry, Cassie, I think you've lost us.

- The Dark Angel drove away.

- They drove away?

- Yes.

- Do you remember what sort of car they had?

- Not a car.

A hovercraft.

A black hovercraft.

(Cassie imitates hovercraft whooshing) The Dark Angel has gone.

- Okay, he was meant to apologize, not die!

- We have to say the Dark Angel did it.

- They'll never believe that!

- Ding-dong, the witch man is dead.

- They're gonna put us back here!

- Ding-dong, the witch man is dead!

- Shut up, Cassie!

- So we have further verification Chris Kramer and Buchanan were present.

Firstly, Lulu said she heard them say exactly that and now Cassie says she was in the room.

- (sighs) But are these witnesses reliable?

I mean, Lulu thinks she's a mouse, Cassie thinks she danced for the Bolshoi, and Barnaby Buchanan thinks his wife is a horse.

- Except Cassie did dance for the Bolshoi.

- What?

- According to Mrs. Marlowe.

- Oh, she truly was a wonderful ballerina in her day.

- [Mike] You saw her dance?

- Oh, yes, at the local hall as a young girl.

I knew her mother, of course.

Oh, they were so thrilled when she won a scholarship to study at the Bolshoi.

And then there was the accident.

- That caused her brain injury?

- Oh, it was such a shame.

They were rehearsing "The Nutcracker" when the male dancer, by the name of Dimitry, he dropped her on her head.

That was the end of that.

- Okay, so that much is true.

- So does this mean Buchanan's wife really is a horse?

- Look, we're dealing with challenging witnesses here.

- Challenging or impenetrable?

- Within all madness, there is a kernel of truth somewhere.

Cassie also mentioned that she received an invitation.

Again, like Lulu- - She destroyed it?

- As per the instructions on the invitation.

- Which conveniently means that we can't verify these invitations ever existed.

- Exactly.

- So can we assume that this mystery journalist is the same person as the Dark Angel?

- Possibly.

Or there was more than one offender.

But what we can accept is that there were four ex-patients, were most likely present at Brokenwood Downes at the time of Deschler's death, 8:26 PM.

- So it was no coincidence.

- And possibly this invitation is part of a collective alibi.

(phone ringing) - That is my lead.

I will catch you guys tomorrow.

- Ray?

- Yep.

- [Sam] I'm on my way.

- What do you mean you're canceling the show?

- No more, fella.

I'm done.

- We, we agreed to three nights.

- I booked a comedian.

You're about as funny as the Old Testament.

- What about my audience?

- What audience, man?

It's 9:00 PM, this should be a full pub, not a mausoleum!

- You're racist.

- What are you talking about?

- This is racial discrimination!

- Since when were comedians their own separate race?

- [Gerry] I'll sue you!

- What the hell?

- Hey, oi, oi, oi!

Hey, hey!

That's enough.

- Keep him away from me.

I'm gonna burn this place down with a variety of combustible goods including, but not limited to, kerosene and other flammable liquids!

And, and two detectives walk into a bar with a camel.

It's a Bactrian camel.

Two humps.

Why the long face?

Why the long face?

Aah!

- Gerry?

I need you to come down to the station with me.

- Why?

- Because I'm arresting you for disorderly conduct and for threats against property.

Do you understand?

Do you understand, Gerry?

Would you prefer Jeremy Mannering?

(gentle mysterious music) Ready for that chat now?

You were a patient at the Deschler Clinic, is that correct?

- Well, that, (clears throat) that depends.

- You either were or you weren't.

- (clears throat) I don't want to talk about it.

- We need to talk about it.

- My mum put me in there to sort out issues that, that weren't issues, um, you know?

Uh, we talked, I said, "Mum, I'm okay.

Uh, I just see things differently to you."

She didn't listen.

But it's okay, I, I sorted it out.

She's dead now.

That was a joke.

- Right.

- It was comedy.

You probably thought that I killed her.

- Well, no.

- But I didn't.

- I'll take your word for it.

- I wanted to.

She was a frustrating person.

Anyway, in the long run, the Deschler Clinic was my salvation.

- In what way?

- Well, it's where I discovered my, my talent for comedy.

When I left the place, I, I had a, I had a focus, a calling.

- (sighs) That's my favorite pen.

My girlfriend gave it to me.

- Uh, it's when I get, um...

I... Do you want me to- - It's all right.

I'll do it later.

- I'm not supposed to do that.

- Yeah, well, I'll get another.

- Well, it's a pretty common model.

Not too loud.

Plenty of them around, you know?

- Okay, fire it up.

(engine rumbling) Yeah, not too quiet either.

- Well what do you want it for?

- A theory.

- Oh, yeah?

Well, I've always found theories go better with a vino.

- [Mike] Wait, is that a- - Yeah, I found it when I was digging out the generator.

It's from your first vintage, a Copperfield, 2013.

- That might be a bit rough around the edges.

- Oh, there's only one way to find out, eh, Mike?

(cork squeaks) - How else would you get 600 volts into a building that's not connected to the grid?

- Is this about dead man Deschler?

- Mm.

- Yeah, remember, it's not the volts that kill you, it's the amperage.

So, 0.1 to 0.2 amps or 100 to 200 milliamps, yeah, that'll do it.

- You know about this stuff?

- Well, I've always had a passing interest in electrical engineering.

(sniffs) Whee-hee!

There's some rambunctious elements at large in there, Mike.

Phew, very boisterous.

Hey, um...

I'll take a look in the morning and see what I can come up with, eh?

- It's good to have you back.

(glasses clinking) - Back at you.

- Mm.

(coughs) - So before your first gig at the Toad and Lion, you were meditating?

- Yes, to focus the humor.

- In your car?

- Yes.

- A witness says you were late, about 30 minutes.

- Yeah, well that's the nature of meditating.

You lose track of time.

- When were you last in Brokenwood?

- Um, 2011.

- So having been away for over seven years, you just happen to be in town the night Jakob Deschler is killed?

- Yes.

- It's an incredible coincidence considering you haven't been back to Brokenwood since your release from the Deschler Clinic.

- I guess it is.

- We have witnesses who say they arrived at the Toad and Lion at the same time as you.

- Oh, yes?

- Curiously they were all ex-patients of the clinic too.

- That is curious.

- And guess where they'd come from?

- Bangladesh?

- Is that a joke?

- No, you asked me to guess.

- No, not Bangladesh.

Brokenwood Downes, the place where Jakob Deschler was killed, precisely 8:26 PM.

- Okay.

- Cassie Seymour, Christopher Kramer, Barnaby Buchanan, they were all at Brokenwood Downes at a party.

- Did they say I was there?

- No, they didn't.

- There you go, then.

- But they did say the Dark Angel was.

You know who the Dark Angel is?

- Yes.

- Coincidentally, the Dark Angel, being a hooded figure, their identity is obscured.

Can you see where I'm going with this?

- Bangladesh?

- Not Bangladesh!

Bangladesh is not the answer to any of my questions, Gerry!

All right?

- See, that, that's the thing with coincidence, it's, it's one of the basic platforms of comedy.

- Gerry, I am not interested in your philosophy on the nature of comedy.

All I'm interested in is your whereabouts in the hours before your first gig at the Toad and Lion!

- I was in my car.

- Meditating?

- Yes.

- That's Jeremy Mannering?

- AKA Gerry Manders.

Conveniently back in the district after seven years and yet to verify his whereabouts at 8:26 PM.

- What's his alibi?

- He was meditating in his car.

- Kind of original.

- [Simon] Morning, all.

- [Mike] Simon.

- Sir.

- Sir.

- So, four of these were present when Deschler died?

- Uh, still verifying.

- Potentially five.

I picked this guy up last night.

There is a strong possibility that he is the Dark Angel.

- Okay, well, added to that, Interpol tracked down Tina Somerset.

She is still in Boston, remarried in 2014.

She fell out with her daughter Lisa, who didn't approve and always held her responsible for letting her father be committed to the Deschler Clinic.

Now, she took off to Honduras to do relief work and hasn't been in touch in over four years.

Ah.

Something a bit different to all those lyrics about death, divorce, and riding on the range.

- Thanks.

- That accounts for all ex-patients and family members.

- Good.

Time to get some runs on another board.

DC Breen, are we keen?

- Gear's in the car.

- I'm gonna stay here and hold the fort.

- Ah, no, you go.

I'm keeping an ear to the ground.

I've got a few inquiries to make.

- All right, let's do this.

- Lulu, what the detective needs to know is if you can recall hearing a certain sound that night.

You understand?

Does she really need to get into the cupboard?

- For the test to work, yes.

- You're risking retraumatizing her.

- Well, only if she wants to.

(door creaks) - Lulu?

- [Lulu] Can't hear anything.

- Okay, fire it up, Jared!

(engine rumbling) - Too loud!

Too much!

Too much.

Small ears.

- Okay, that'll do.

- Not a fit.

- A couple of car batteries with a condenser and a booster might do it.

Hey, um, can I take that machine?

- Go for it.

(gentle music) (mellow soul music) ♪ Crazy ♪ - God, the horror of it.

I have to get Lulu back.

After that, I have time for coffee, if you'd like.

- Sure.

Why not?

(upbeat music) - Ah, Reverend Greene, Mayor Bloom.

The church and the state.

We are honored.

(chuckles) - Good morning, Dennis.

- Hey, well done on bringing this all together for another year.

- [Dennis] Ah, Brokenwood, a sanctuary of sanity.

That's the aim.

(Kristin clears throat) - Any reason Mike didn't come?

- You need to ask?

- Uh, yes.

- Well, let's just say all this might be a bit close to home.

(tender music) - You're not at the Brains Matter charity match.

- No, I'm around it all day.

Sometimes it's nice to leave it to others.

Aren't the police fielding a team?

- They are.

- But not you?

- No.

- So are you any closer to finding a culprit?

Am I allowed to ask that?

- Yes.

And no.

- How does that make you feel?

- Frustrated.

I admit, our witnesses provide an added set of challenges.

- You can call them quite loopy.

I won't hold it against you.

- What's your opinion of electroconvulsive therapy?

- There are studies that in some cases it is mildly beneficial, but never when it's used punitively.

Do you know someone who experienced it?

- Ah, no.

Well, possibly.

My ex-wife was... She suffered from... - Almond flat white and long black.

- Oh, ta.

You two know each other?

- Nah.

Yeah.

Maybe?

- I'll just grab some sugar.

- You don't need to say anything, it's fine.

- Yeah, no, it's personal.

- That's fine.

- Okay.

When I lost my mate, you know, in that hunting accident.

- It's okay to say it was murder.

- Yeah, exactly.

So I got a bit of the depressions.

I mean, just a bit.

I mean, quite a lot.

So I had some sessions with her.

She's awesome, man.

She really knows how to make you open up.

Are you two, like... - Uh, just having coffee, Frodo.

- It's so good to see you.

- [Amy] It's nice to see you too, Frankie.

- Enjoy.

- So, you were saying?

- Oh, I was just wondering how the cricket was going.

(energetic music) - Did Mike mention time of death?

- Yes.

Yes, he did.

- He is not coming?

- No, he's at the office holding the fort.

- So you came instead.

- Yeah.

- You could have volunteered to stay and let him come.

He works hard.

He needs to relax sometimes.

- Well, I did offer.

- Obviously not hard enough.

- Asparagus roll?

- I don't mind if I do, Jean.

They're iconic.

- (chuckles) Oh, you're too kind!

You got home all right, then, the other night?

- Yes.

Good, okay.

- [Jean] I would've been more than happy to drop you home.

It was pouring.

And I'm sure Betty would've been fine until morning.

- Not at all.

- Howzat!

- Well, that's me.

(audience applauding) - Uh, Jean, what were you referring to?

- Oh, Dennis?

- Mm.

- Oh, I was heading home from tae kwon do the other night, and I saw him walking along leading his brother's wife.

(gentle playful music) Mr. Buchanan, would you care for a lift?

- Ah, no, I'm good thanks, Jean.

- Are you sure?

It's teeming!

- Really?

Hadn't noticed.

- Oh, all right, then.

Hello, Betty.

You're looking very well, dear.

Of course, she's not really his wife.

She's a horse.

(chuckles) But it's best to play along.

- Mm.

When exactly was this?

- Oh, the night of the storm.

(audience applauding) - Hit a six!

- Ooh!

(grunts) (energetic music) Wowee.

That hurt.

Whew!

Ah.

Ooh, I'm good.

It's all good, I'm okay.

I'm okay, it's all good.

Ooh.

- [Neil] Dennis?

Dennis, are you with us, mate?

- Forget about the bloody horse.

- [Neil] What?

Sorry, what?

- Barnaby, just get the hell out!

(relaxed music) - [Kristin] He's awake.

- Not really.

He's actually unconscious.

This is a state known as waking sleep.

It's a way for his brain to heal.

- And who's he talking to?

- No one.

He suffered a massive concussion and his brain is downloading information that his subconscious believes is unnecessary, like cleaning up the desktop of your computer, if you like.

- Almost like a form of Tourette's?

- In a way, I suppose.

- Do you mind if I have a word?

- You won't get any sense out of him.

- Well, you never know.

- Keep it brief.

He needs to rest.

And tell him to get off the phone.

- You're an idiot.

(calm music) - It's Detective Kristin Sims.

How are you feeling?

- Nurse, I'm on the phone.

Your Honor, can I suggest a more liberal interpretation of the word legal.

No, Barnaby.

Do not tell me what you did.

I do not need to know.

- Dennis, are you talking to your- - Because, Your Honor, prison is inappropriate for my client because of acute claustrophobia.

- Sorry, Dennis, can you just- - Nurse, shh!

(Dennis sighs) Listen to me very, very carefully, because this is what is going to happen.

(Dennis exhales slowly) (Dennis snoring softly) (gentle mysterious music) (Dennis snoring softly) (Dennis snoring) (phone ringing) - Mike?

There's been a development.

- I was at the Toad and Lion.

- [Kristin] And before that?

- As I said, I was out taking a stroll with my wife.

- Can you be specific as to where you walked to?

- Down some roads.

- Well, your brother seems to think that you were somewhere else.

- Did you call Dennis in a state of distress around 8:35 PM, from, say, Brokenwood Downes perhaps?

- Will that be all?

Anxious, Betty gets anxious if I'm, if I'm gone too long.

- Barnaby, we have a witness who saw Dennis walk Betty down the road away from Brokenwood Downes around 10:00 PM.

So, do you have anything to say about that?

- I demand to see my lawyer.

- And as I've said to you, Dennis is in hospital.

- Well, I want my therapist, then.

- Okay, and who's that?

- [Barnaby] Amy Curnow.

- I'm really sorry about this.

- No rest for the wicked.

I thought you were calling to finish your story.

- Another time perhaps.

I have your card.

- And you're not afraid to use it.

- What made you go up to Brokenwood Downes that evening?

- Did you, by any chance, receive an invitation?

(Barnaby breathes heavily) - Barnaby, the sooner you answer the detectives' questions, the sooner we can all go home.

- Yes, to a party.

Jakob Deschler was having a soiree to apologize for his past actions, and I was very keen to attend because he had a lot to apologize for.

- Can we see the invitation?

- Unlikely, because I followed the instructions on the letter and I ate it.

- You ate it?

- Yes, like this.

See?

All gone.

- That was police property, but that's fine.

- Barnaby, Jesus.

Can we have a minute?

- So, they all got invitations and they all destroyed them.

- Developments?

- Barnaby says he got a invitation too.

- As did Deschler.

He thought he was being interviewed.

They thought he was apologizing.

- The mystery journalist.

- Who doesn't exist.

- Lures them all up there.

- And poses as the Dark Angel.

- Get them all in.

Time to get their story straight.

- So, I received a letter.

No.

- [Christopher] It was an invitation to an apology from Jacob Deschler.

- [Cassie] Dimitry said sorry too.

- The letter and the envelope were made out of rice paper, which was, was very considerate.

- It said he would only do it if I kept it a secret.

- I have no problem with secrets.

You know, most of humankind doesn't know what's really going on.

- Mice keep secrets best.

- And there were balloons, which I thought was a nice touch.

- [Christopher] We were scared, man.

It wasn't easy going back there.

(ominous music) - You have no idea what went on in that place.

- No, no.

Please, no more!

Please, no more!

- See, every drop is a negative thought dissipating on the skin.

Do you have thick skin, Barnaby?

- No, uh, yes!

Yes, yes!

- Do you have thick skin?

Thick skin repels the bugs of lunacy.

Well, say it after me.

- [Group] Thick skin repels the bugs of lunacy.

- No, no!

No!

(group clamoring) - Quiet!

What?

That is how we heal.

You will all get a turn.

(patient screaming) - Chinese water torture?

My God, no wonder he's terrified of rain.

- Even the most irrational things have a rational explanation.

- So messed up.

- Right, Gerry Manders next.

No doubt I will be schooled on the art of comedy once more.

Gerry?

What the hell?

- I'm sorry, sorry, I didn't mean to.

I, I got to give it up, I know, It's just I...

I was just interested in the way, in the way that it works.

- [Sam] Where'd you get the screwdriver?

- It's, um, in my sock.

I always carry one just in case.

I'm sorry, I'm...

I'm not dangerous.

Here, you take it.

- Come on, let's find somewhere else.

- I was there.

- Brokenwood Downes?

- When he died, I wasn't there in the room.

- You were at Brokenwood Downes, just not in the treatment room?

- No, I was, but after he died.

- I, I was late.

(thunder booming) Oh my God, I thought he came here to apologize.

Is he... - Yeah.

Where were you?

I got held up.

But is he... - Dead.

The Dark Angel did it.

- So where were you, man?

- Never mind that!

What do we do?

- This is nothing to do with me, I'm out of here.

I, I've got to do my show.

- We should go to his show.

- [Christopher] Yeah, brilliant.

- I can't make it without getting wet.

- We stay here, it's a cone of silence.

- We have to go in.

- No, we just stay in the car!

- It's our alibi.

We need to be innocent or they'll send us back there, and they'll take Betty away.

- All right.

(exhales sharply) All right, all right.

Okay, one, two, three, go!

I need a towel.

I need a towel, I need a towel!

- I take it you received an invitation.

- Yes, the day of my show.

(playful music) - You still have it?

- Yes.

It said I should, um, deconstruct it.

- I know who killed the Cleanser.

(foreboding music) Fiona.

- What makes you think that?

- Because I heard.

- [Jakob] Fiona?

Enough, woman.

Get out!

- Lulu, why didn't you mention this before?

- Because Jakob is dead.

- Yes.

Jakob Deschler is dead.

- I'm not afraid anymore.

(calm music) - Thanks for coming in.

- Well, you got me at a good time.

I'd just finished work and I was off to see my friend.

- Is this the same friend I'm yet to hear from?

- He's been calling.

- I don't think so.

- Perhaps you haven't been open to hear his message.

- Can I at least know his name?

- Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

- And all these ex-patients said that the Dark Angel was there?

- Yes.

- Well, I very much doubt that.

- Because?

- As I said, I wasn't there.

I haven't been back at the clinic since it was closed.

You see, I was the Dark Angel.

That was one of my roles, to appear to the patients as a specter.

It was used to pacify them.

They were taught to believe the Dark Angel could inflict pain.

(ominous music) - Remember, the electricity acts like an antibiotic.

It surges and purges those negative thoughts and it ousts them from the body.

Lulu has been having negative thoughts.

(Lulu whimpers) - ECT was and still is a legitimate form of treatment.

Though stigmatized, it remains a useful tool.

- Did the patients know it was you who posed as the Dark Angel?

- No.

That would've diminished the mystique.

- On the night in question, one ex-patient distinctly recalls hearing Jakob referring to you as the Dark Angel.

- Then they were mistaken.

Why would I want to kill my husband?

- I waited seven years for his release.

I have no axe to grind, unlike others.

Can I ask where Lulu was during this ordeal?

- Hiding in a cupboard.

- How convenient.

Tell me, was the cupboard locked?

As I said, some had an axe to grind.

- Fiona posed as the Dark Angel during the Deschler regime.

She admits it.

- Why do that when it's incriminating?

- It doesn't add up.

- Well, neither can she confirm where she was after 8:00 PM.

- Other than hanging with her main man JC.

- Who else is connected in every way to the clinic?

The patients, Deschler.

She knew what they feared.

She had access.

Perhaps the phantom journalist was her ruse.

She knew where the ECT machine was stored.

She waited for the partygoers to arrive.

- I don't see a clear motive, especially with Christ in her heart.

- If indeed He is.

- Are we discounting Gerry Manders?

As corroborated by the other ex-patients, he was at Brokenwood Downes, but, and this is by his own admission, he arrived after Deschler was killed.

He's shown a tendency towards violence.

What else was he doing if not posing as the Dark Angel?

- But who else knew about these ex-patients?

Dennis Buchanan.

Mrs. Marlowe said she saw him walking away from Brokenwood Downes that night.

He knows all these people through his charity work.

He certainly has motive in taking retribution for cruelty to his brother.

- Let me bring Gerry in again.

I'm sure he'll crack.

- Yeah.

And I'll push Dennis, if he's up to questions.

(phone chimes) - All right, we have a big day tomorrow.

(mellow music) You two have been busy.

- Yeah, I can get 400 volts and 1.5 amps.

Or enough to do some damage.

(electricity crackling) - The watermelon lives.

- Not necessarily.

(blade thudding) - Whoa!

Cooked.

- So, that could've done it.

It's not very portable though, is it?

- Oh, I don't see any other way for delivering enough constant current.

- Aside from a diesel or petrol generator.

- Witnesses are adamant they didn't hear one.

- Hmm.

(gentle music) - Is it possible that you were the Dark Angel?

You had reason to despise Deschler, you took a call from Barnaby at the time in question, and you were seen walking Betty away from Brokenwood Downes.

- Now I'm wondering who actually took the knock to the head.

- Do you deny walking Betty back from Brokenwood Downes?

- No, I don't.

- So where were you prior to that?

- The Toad and Lion.

I was hoping to see Gerry Manders.

I like a good comic.

Same again, Ray.

- Don't where the bugger is.

He's supposed to be starting in 20 minutes.

Barnaby.

- Uh, yeah, hi.

I, yes, so it's raining, and I, um, I don't have my umbrella.

- No, slow down.

No, I don't need to know.

Just get the hell out.

- So you were in the bar at 8:35?

- Yes.

Look...

I know you, you see me as this wily, ruthless lawyer put on this Earth just to frustrate your day, but really I am simply a man with a brother who needs looking out for.

We're not always the face that we present.

- Well, now you sound like your brother's therapist.

- Yes, well, I never thought much of her.

- Psychotherapy, it's like a flash word for mumbo-jumbo.

You know, in order to be a psychotherapist, all you need is the patience of a saint and the ability to spout a catchphrase.

- For once, Dennis, I think we agree.

- I'm feeling much better!

♪ Winds were calling ♪ ♪ And falling ♪ ♪ We were out there on our own ♪ - Fiona Deschler is indeed a devoted member of the parish.

- A recent convert?

- Very.

A few nights ago, she turned up here for the first time, most distressed.

- He won't listen to me.

- The Lord is always listening.

- No, my husband.

Don't go.

- But this journalist is prepared to hear the truth.

- That Tom Somerset should never have died, that we made a mistake.

- There was no mistake!

It was his weakness that killed him, not the treatment.

Time has weakened you, my dear.

- I have to go to work.

- Yet only yesterday she was saying to me that they'd done nothing wrong.

- What we say in public and what we share with God can initially be very different things.

- What day was this?

- Wednesday night.

I was closing up just before that God-awful storm.

(mysterious music) - Reverend?

Thank you.

(thunder booming) - You'd say it's a 15-minute drive to Brokenwood Downes from here?

- Give or take.

- Thanks for your time, Reverend.

(thoughtful music) (knuckles thudding) (window humming) - Gerry, we need another chat.

- I don't think I can.

I'm feeling very flat.

- It won't take long.

- I don't want to go anywhere.

- All right, we'll do it here.

(thoughtful music) - Gerry, the thing is- - I'm sorry.

I'm sorry, I can't do this!

I want, I want this over with!

- Hey, whoa, whoa!

Gerry.

- You think I killed the Cleanser.

My comedy career is over.

I have nothing left.

- I never said that.

- You didn't have to.

It was written all over your face.

"Crazy Gerry did it."

- I never said you were crazy.

- I will die with my innocence.

- Gerry, give me the screwdriver.

- I'm serious, I'm done.

- [Frodo] Nice car, man.

Way of the future.

- Yeah, it gets me from A to B.

- More than that.

400 kilowatts of power, nice lines, quiet as.

- [Driver] Yeah, thanks.

(car lock chirps) (car whirring) - That'll do it.

Damn it.

Hey, Frodo, can I borrow your phone?

It's urgent.

- Sure, man.

- Choice.

Hey, great coffee, by the way.

- [Frodo] Thanks.

(phone beeps) - Frodo, there's no credit.

- Yeah, no, I'm out.

- Yeah, well, then, why did you... Ah, never mind.

- Hey, Gerry, who's your favorite comedian?

- What?

- Your favorite comic.

Your inspiration.

(phone ringing) - Don't answer that.

I'm serious!

- Okay.

- I will do it.

Put it on the dash.

- Breen, where are you?

I need you back here ASAP.

Ah, yes, that's right.

A Somerset, Lisa.

- Kristin, can I speak to Mike?

- Jared, now's not a good time, and Mike's not here.

- Well, can I use your phone?

I figured out the power source.

- Yep, Karla.

- [Jared] Yes!

- Yep, I'm here.

- Thank you.

- Thanks.

- We know that Lulu was there and that she had reason to frame Fiona, but what I can't see in her is violence.

- Are you asking me if I think Lulu is capable of violence?

- I guess I am.

- The answer may lie in her condition.

With species dysphoria, what people see themselves as is no accident.

- Perhaps if she was violent, she would see herself as a lioness or a shark more than a mouse.

- And Barnaby Buchanan?

Is there violence underlying his condition?

Or Gerry Manders?

- Jeremy's not my patient.

Look, off the record, are these people deranged?

Yes.

Can they be helped?

I believe so.

Should they be committed?

Yes.

Treated the way they were by Jakob Deschler?

Absolutely not.

But they are unpredictable.

All of them had good reason to hurt Deschler, but it doesn't mean they did.

Then again, the thing with mice is if they get stuck into your wardrobe, they can do serious damage to your underwear drawer.

But I'm sure you know the answer to all these questions.

Why are you really here, Mike?

(gentle music) - I felt I never explained what I meant the other day.

- About your ex-wife.

That she suffered with psychiatric issues.

- I never said that.

- You didn't have to.

Do you want to tell me about it?

- Still not answering.

- (sighs) Text him.

(telephone ringing) Detective Sims.

- Interpol have a lead.

Sims?

- Yes?

- If you're right, well done.

- It's a very simple reason our investigation is focused on you.

Because you can't explain where you were before you walked into the treatment room and found Jakob Deschler dead.

- I was late.

- Yeah, you said.

- I mean, I was, I was on time, 8:15, like the invitation said.

I got late.

- Because you were dressed as the Dark Angel?

- No!

I got distracted.

(horse whinnies) (door creaks) (door creaks) (quiet mysterious music) Ooh, so complex.

(quiet mysterious music continues) (quiet mysterious music continues) (ominous music) - Why didn't you mention this before?

- I mustn't do it, I mustn't do it, I mustn't do it.

- You mean dismantling things?

It's called punding, isn't it?

- And if I don't do it, it means I'm better.

- But, Gerry, it explains why you couldn't have killed Deschler.

- Really?

- Yeah.

If you were waylaid at the entrance, you couldn't have been in the treatment room.

- Could've been worse.

I could've been in Bangladesh.

- Nice.

- What?

- You made a joke.

- Did I?

- Yeah, you did, Gerry.

- I've still got it.

- Can you give me the screwdriver?

- Sorry about that.

It's just cheap metal with a polymer handle.

And then polymers, it's a composite of four different things, each with their own molecular structure.

Essentially, though, it's just a- - Shh, Gerry?

- It's just a thermoplastic.

- That's enough.

- Four years.

And which passport?

LN 516 021.

Okay, thanks.

- Anything?

- I always thought it would sort itself out.

But I know I was busy, focused on other things.

- You made work your escape.

- I guess it was.

I can see that now.

- Your excuse not to deal with it, perhaps?

- You like country music?

- Mm, I can take it or leave it.

- She was the one who got me hooked.

I'd come home, and she was always playing the same Willie Nelson song, "Crazy."

Great song, no doubt.

And I thought it was ironic, tongue in cheek, you know?

About our marriage, but... Then I realized it was... - A cry for help?

- Yeah.

That I didn't hear.

- I imagine with your work, you spend a lot of time looking at other people's problems and never your own.

I have a book in my car that you might find helpful, "False Grief."

Give me a moment?

(Mike exhales sharply) (thoughtful music) (thoughtful music continues) - [Simon] Died the day after his daughter's 30th birthday, as I recall.

(gentle mysterious music) - [Phone] Message received.

- [Jared] Yeah, Mike, it's Jared here.

An electric car battery, run an extension off a DC adapter through the window, and I think that'll do it, yeah.

- [Cassie] A black hovercraft.

(Cassie imitates hovercraft whooshing) (phone ringing) - Talk to me.

- Mike, there's no record of Amy Curnow studying at Victoria University.

She reentered the country four years ago.

She is actually- - Lisa Somerset.

- The murder of Jakob Deschler has been a long time in the planning.

- Here we go, "False Grief."

- Ah.

Um, I see you have a copy of my favorite New Zealand poet, Tom Somerset.

This is his best volume.

- I agree.

Got that in a book sale.

- Personally signed by the author and dedicated to his daughter.

It's a lucky find.

- Yeah, I saw that.

Um, think of it as a permanent loan.

I think you'll find it helpful.

- Uh, I'm curious.

If Gerry Manders wasn't your patient, how did you know his real name was Jeremy?

- Oh, Gerry's short for Jeremy.

- Right.

From a psychotherapist's view, what would you make of a daughter that discards a book from her own father given to her on her 30th birthday, the day before he died?

- Perhaps they weren't close.

- A father wouldn't make that sort of dedication unless they were close.

I'm wondering if the opposite might be true, that the daughter and father were very close.

Devastated by his death, she and her American mother returned to the States.

Over the next seven years, she changes her name by deed poll in Honduras, gets a new passport in Panama, and then leaving via Ecuador she returns to a place, three islands home, where her father was effectively murdered.

She then waits for his killer to be released, and then she makes contact.

(ominous music) And subjects him to the same grisly death her father suffered.

(ominous music) (electricity humming) (electricity crackling) (chilling music) (Amy sobbing) (thunder booming) Ring any bells, Lisa?

- Shame.

I thought we had a real connection.

- I can understand you wanting to avenge your father's death.

But why subject his fellow patients to brutally killing Deschler in front of them?

- That monster being out of prison, what did that do?

Terrified them.

At least now they have a chance to heal.

I liberated them.

(cheerful music) (cheerful music continues) ♪ Crazy ♪ ♪ I'm crazy for feeling ♪ ♪ So lonely ♪ ♪ I'm crazy ♪ ♪ Crazy for feeling so blue ♪ ♪ I knew you'd love me ♪ ♪ As long as you wanted ♪ ♪ And then someday ♪ ♪ You'd leave me for somebody new ♪ ♪ Worry why ♪ (cheerful music fades)