Quantum Leap: Season 1, Ep. 4: “The Right Hand of God”

Okay. I am determined to keep this going. Tommy, I’m sorry I dropped the ball on our project! The past autumn was seriously a rough time for me. Couldn’t do shit. But I really want to keep going with our Quantum Leap re-caps!

LEAP INTO: October 24, 1974

Al: Who does she remind you of?
Sam: Ingrid Bergman.
Al: No. You and me both – back in the old days when we were trying to raise money for the imaging chamber. We were poring over the blueprints. That was our dream, our chapel. Remember?

Sam Beckett leaps out of the lecherous professor Dr. Gerald Bryant, having (perhaps) saved the love of his life Donna from future misery. He hopes. And of course, because Quantum Leap glories in plopping poor Sam Beckett down into the middle of the action, as opposed to, you know, him waking up in the morning, having some toast, whatever, having time to figure it out … Sam Beckett finds himself in the middle of a boxing ring, staring at a huge fist coming at his face. Pow. And down he goes.

EPISODE 3: THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD

Episode 3 pulls out every boxing cliche in the book. It’s an homage to every boxing film you can think of (how much fun the producers and art directors must have had, putting together these episodes – where not one repeats itself, the period changes, the costumes, even the FEEL of each episode changes.) So we open on a boxing ring, cigar smoke in the air – it’s kind of seedy. This is not Madison Square Garden. It’s a direct reference to the first scene of Rocky – even the LOOK of it. Fun! Poor Sam has been knocked out. He has no idea who he is, where he is, WHEN he is – and he’s in the middle of a boxing match. A guy is shouting at him from the crowd – “GET UP GET UP” … so … yeah … that must be my coach? Why is he yelling at me?? Sam also gets a glimpse of a big fat-cat sitting there, looking displeased and grumpy. This character (Jake Edwards) will be important later in the episode. He’s also important because he’s Guy Stockwell, Dean’s older brother. But for now, Sam is confused, hurt, and has no idea what is going on. Remember, it’s only his third leap! It takes him a while to get the hang of things. It’s always a bit of a start, to find yourself in the middle of a murder taking place, or something frightening – but Sam isn’t as “swiss-cheesed” as the series progresses. He knows: Okay. Calm down. Keep your eyes peeled for clues.

Later, in the locker room, things start to become clear for Sam. He’s a boxer. Obviously. His name is “Kid Cody”. He gets a glimpse of himself in the mirror, and it’s that classic old-school barrel-chested boxer body – not the six-pack-ab bodies of today. You can just tell the guy is down on his luck (a la Rocky Balboa). More clues come. His coach Gomez (played by Alex Colon) thinks maybe Kid has a concussion or something, he seems so out of it. He says to him, “You almost lost our last fight together, kid.”

Okay, so that’s important information. This was their last fight together as a team. There’s a kind of Burgess Meredith in Rocky thing going on here. You know, the crusty guy who believes in you more than you believe in yourself. The one who won’t let you get away with second best – who tells you the truth, etc. Kid Cody (Sam) had actually gone on to win the fight, with a wildly thrown punch that landed his opponent onto the floor. Won by a knockout. The fat-cat comes into the locker room, and you immediately get a bad sense from him, the swagger, the proprietary way he talks to Sam. And let me just say, for the 100th time. how great and specific the art direction of this series was. Every “set” built is so detailed, it feels so right – whether it’s a soda-pop fountain in the 50s or a grimy locker room. To me, nothing ever felt kitschy on this show, the way other “period” shows can feel – where the clothes always look like costumes, etc. Quantum Leap leaps around in time, but I always felt that each episode (even the silly ones) were grounded in some sense of reality. It wasn’t a sickening nostalgia-fest. Where girls wear poodle skirts, but you just know she’s got a belly-ring on underneath, and is openly psyched to play ‘dress up’. You know the kind of acting I’m talking about. Quantum Leap had very little of that. It didn’t condescend to other eras.

Then – what the hell – a flock of nuns come running into the locker room, all excited that he won his fight, congratulating him, and raving about the “knockout”. They’re in full habit. Sam, with his natural modesty (I love that about him – he’s this big huge hunk with a body to DIE for – but he’s quite shy about it) – tries to cover himself up, baffled, and just striving to keep up with the conversation. Who are they?? It becomes clear that Kid Cody’s boxing contract had been left to the church of St. Mary’s, as part of some kind of estate … so the nuns have a vested interest in his success, since much of his winning proceeds will go to building a special chapel that will do outreach in the community. This comes out later. For the time being, Sam is being polite to the nuns, trying to figure out his situation – and more than that: why he is here.

There’s a Mother Superior type, and then a younger nun – whose name is Sister Angela (played beautifully by Michelle Joyner). She is overflowing with enthusiasm and excitement about boxing. You love her.

It’s a lot to process. But naturally, Sam has no time to process anything. The next scene shows him outside with Sister Angela in what looks like a vacant lot in a dingy part of town. They’re in Sacramento. Sister Angela, a lovely plucky person (but – as we see later, not at all a cliche – she comes from somewhere, her faith in God comes from a deep personal place, she’s got a past, the stakes are REALLY high for here too) – is marking out in the dirt where the chapel will go. It has always been her dream to build a chapel, that will be open 24 hours a day, so that if someone should need help, or guidance, or prayer – in the middle of the night – it will be there for them. Sam, in dreadful plaid pants that make him look HYSTERICAL, tries to tamp down her enthusiasm, once he realizes that the chapel will only come to fruition if he wins his next fight. He’s not a boxer. He won’t win! He says to her, “Just don’t count on me too much.” She looks at him with incomprehension. She doesn’t judge, she’s not snotty, and her faith is not a blind smiley-face kind of faith. It’s stronger and deeper than that, and much of it has to do with faith in the goodness of her fellow man. So when he talks down about himself, she really does not understand him. She says simply, “But we’re all counting on you. All the sisters at St. Mary’s are.” To quote Sam, oh boy.

This isn’t the first time that the series directly brings God into the picture. “He”, or “the big guy”, or “fate, or time or the universe” (they call him all different things) enters the conversation pretty early on in the series – and it is a great credit to the writers and producers and directors of the show that they rarely played it on the nose – because that way leads to Touched By An Angel malarkey, and we can’t have THAT. The show always had a healthy dose of cynicism in it, which is appealing and is where much of its humor comes from – and also: there’s a mystery at the heart of it. (The very last episode of the series brings it home like gangbusters – because, after all that, you STILL can’t really say: So HE is in control. It’s still unknown. Great stuff.) But that’s part of why the show works. It’s not about do-gooders leaping through time, setting right what was wrong. I mean, yes, they DO do good … but their main purpose at first was scientific, to time-travel. Then they realize very early on (the first episode) that … something went “ka ka” – and what could it be? And why can’t they pull Sam out of it and correct the error? Maybe it’s becomes someone ELSE is in charge. You know. Like God. So … okay. Sam’s journey then becomes (again, without becoming preachy) trying to figure out what God wants. Or “time or fate or whatever”. Why is he here? It is the most existential of television series. Because it’s quite practical, that question: Am I here to win the next fight? Am I here to help Sister Angela regain her faith? Those questions, yes. But there’s always a deeper level – the REAL meaning of the question: Why am I here? In the case of Sam Beckett, and how the series ends up going – and if you remember how it all ends – it turns out that he is not “here” for little do-gooding tasks through the 20th century, helping all of humanity get a bit closer to happiness. He’s here for something that could not be more personal. And when he realizes it … when the realization falls over his face in that last episode (sorry, leaping ahead!) – it is one of the most moving moments I can think of in a network television series. It’s KILLER. He knows. A gear shifts into place. THE gear. Finally. THAT is why I’m here. And his sacrifice will be tremendous. The ultimate sacrifice. But it is the right thing to do. So here, in “The Right Hand of God”, being surrounded by hopeful nuns who believe in him, that faith in himself is tested overtly. They don’t expect him to be a believer. They do not try to convert him. What they need from him is to win his next fight.

No pressure or anything.

While Sister Angela and Sam are talking, Al Calavicci shows up. He is wearing the most ridiculous metallic jacket and metallic shoes known to man. I love this character. He’s such a dandy. But … his style is his own, man. The shoes kill me. Stockwell laughs at the fact that the character’s wardrobe was never addressed, nobody ever found out why he dressed like that – it was never mentioned, or questioned … which is just so brilliant, if you think about it. He shows up in the most bizarre get-ups and it is just accepted that this is how Al Calavicci dresses. He listens to Sister Angela talking, with his customary expression of cynicism, patience, humor, and kindness. I don’t know how Stockwell gets all of that onto his face at the same time, but he does – constantly!! He also does his “gesture”. The gesture that has been with him since he was a 6 year old.

He cups his hand on his cheek, hooking his finger up over his nose. It’s the most adorable gesture, it’s compulsive for him – it shows up everywhere. His thoughtful gesture. I saw him do it repeatedly in Taos, and nearly had a heart attack.

Sister Angela finally leaves, and the two are now free to talk. So Sam, in his plaid-panted glory, begins to freak out that he will have to box, and not just box – but win. No way, this is never gonna happen. Meanwhile Al is kind of not paying attention to the issues at hand (one of his greatest charms). First of all, he is apologetic – because Ziggy thought that Sam would be closer to home by now – “Ziggy messed up the calculations …” Big time. But also, Al has some personal problems (what else is new). A new guy has moved in next door and he works on his car all night, vrooming at a deafening roar all thru the wee hours. Al has not had a good night’s sleep in a week, and he is beside himself. He is cranky, distracted – and kind of couldn’t care less about Kid Cody and the chapel and Sister Angela. As a matter of fact, as Sam is telling him the situation, Al blatantly lies down on the ground, and tries to fall asleep. Hahahaha Imagine that your own hope for getting “back home” was behaving in this manner!

The dynamic between the two men is the best thing about this show. I personally think it could have gone on. The strength of their dynamic just got stronger and better as the series went on.

The next scene we see Sam climbing a rickety staircase – he’s obviously going home. I always wonder about that: how does he know where to go? Does he look at the dude’s license? As he climbs the stairs, a shiny car pulls up – and Sam (Kid Cody) is called to come and talk to “Mr. Edwards”, the gangster from before. Sam is reluctant. Not sure what he’s getting into. But he obeys. And now we move into On the Waterfront references (Sam even tries to make a joke about it, it’s that obvious – the joke does not go over well). Kid Cody is in the hands of some pretty shady characters, who want him to throw his next fight. They don’t just want him to, they expect him to. He is on their payroll. The 10 fights Kid Cody had won up to that point had been set-ups, apparently – Mr. Edwards tells him that in his next fight: “I’ll tell you the round later …” meaning, the round he will go down. So the fight today – that Kid Cody won – threw a loop in Mr. Edwards’ plans. He needs to put the pressure onto this kid. He will do as he is told. Oh, and as they are talking – talks of other fights going on come up, and putting money down on this or that person – and the Foreman/Ali fight is mentioned – which, of course, was coming up the next week – October 30, 1974 – in Zaire. But of course it hadn’t happened yet. It was expected that Ali would lose. Naturally, we know now he won – but it was all uncertain then. Sam has insider information from the future. But he doesn’t use it yet. Mr. Edwards tells Kid Cody that he will bet MORE on his fight than on the Ali/Foreman fight. This will become important later.

Sam feels the pressure. The sisters expect him to win – he’s already emotionally involved there, he can’t help it – that’s the kind of person Sam Beckett is. But these guys mean business. They’re mad, they have guns, they threaten to shoot him in the kneecaps if he doesn’t cooperate.

Oh, and another detail: in order to save money on expenses, the sisters of St. Mary’s have asked him to move out of his apartment and into the church basement – where he can train in peace, and not have to pay rent, etc. We don’t know Kid Cody’s situation. Sam doesn’t know it. He walks into his apartment – which is above a bar (and must mention again, and sorry – but it won’t be the last time – the beauty of the set decoration and art direction of this series). You can almost SMELL that apartment. You know how when you go into Rocky’s shitty apartment, it’s like you can get a whiff of the stale cooking smells, the nasty bathroom smells, the roach motels, the mold, the dust – all of it … it emanates off the screen. Kid Cody’s apartment is spare, cheap, but there are signs of a female presence there – you can see them if you look closely, although it’s not apparent at first that he has a girlfriend. There’s a boxing bag hanging from the ceiling. Things look random, you know like furniture dragged off the street. It’s not a dump, it’s clean – as clean as it can be – but you know that Kid Cody is living on the edge of some pretty serious hard times.

And suddenly – he is confronted by what must be his girlfriend – coming at him to kiss him and babble at him about her job, and tell him she’s cooking his favorite meal. She is wearing a pink silk bathrobe. And she is absolutely stunning. I wonder if this actress got any work as a Marilyn Monroe impersonator – because it’s truly uncanny, the likeness.

I’ll talk about her a bit later – her name is Teri Copley – and it looks like she doesn’t work anymore. I hope she’s happy with whatever she is doing. I LOVE her. She’s got a little breathy baby voice, the platinum hair, the Marilyn Monroe look in her eyes – but somehow, she manages to create a real woman here. Not a caricature, not a stereotype. You just love her. She’s a type of woman that I have met before: the girl who, for various reasons, works in a strip club – but has serious plans for the future. She puts money away. And she’s a one-man woman. Monogamous to an almost pathological level. She makes her money dancing naked for the drooling masses, but at heart, she’s a traditional girl. Old-fashioned. I know girls like that. That’s who Dixie is. She establishes her character within 2 seconds – we know just who she is from how she greets “Kid Cody” – totally supportive, excited, and then – dismayed because he is going to move into the church. She doesn’t like that. They have a “nest egg” of money – which they keep in a pocket in one of her pillows – and they are saving up to buy a donut shop. That is their dream, as a couple. Sam is just playing catch-up here through this scene, trying to get information, and not “let on” that he’s basically a messenger from the future, NOT her boyfriend. He’s also shy about sex (as we learn time and time again) – so to have this beautiful half-dressed woman kissing him passionately throws him for a loop. He kisses her back, but still. In later episodes the sex thing becomes a moral issue for Sam. He doesn’t think you should sleep with someone unless you love that person. So … how does he justify sleeping with these women, if he happens to be their husband – or boyfriend? Al, naturally, has a different take on such “problems”. He’s like: Who CARES if you love her?? A beautiful woman is ALREADY in your bed and you are ALREADY married to her – so what’s the problem?? This is the first time, though, that we see Sam in something like that situation – a man who is part of a couple. How do you handle it? Sam Beckett is old-fashioned. He knows Dixie loves him (Kid Cody) – but still: he’s NOT Kid Cody. I love him for having those dilemmas. And I love Al for NOT having those dilemmas. It gives the series a real spark. Great stuff.

A dude shows up at the door – and you get the hint that they know him and that Dixie doesn’t like him. He must be a bookie – and he’s collecting money from them? Can’t remember. Anyway, Dixie is NOT having any of it. “Roscoe,” she says to him, “you come between us and the jelly-glazed with sprinkles on top one more time, and I’ll bust your nose.”

Next scene we see Sam moving himself into the church basement. There’s a gym over to the side, some stained glass windows, a single bed … and you can hear someone singing “Amazing Grace” in the building. It’s a bit much, as far as I’m concerned. Too obvious, too on the nose. Also, I don’t know – I have nuns in my family, I grew up around nuns – “Amazing Grace” isn’t a real convent-type song, although now, of course, some Catholic nitpicker will show up and give me the history of the song, and inform me that it was composed in 1425 by a roving band of Benedictine nuns, or something. I have been going to Catholic Church for my whole life, never heard “Amazing Grace” during mass. Not once. So maybe it’s Sister Angela singing it by herself, just as a ruminative type thing. I still think it’s a bit too much. The scene would have been better without it.

Sam lies down on the narrow cot, listening to the singing … and suddenly realizes that someone is snoring – and loudly – beside him. He glances off the bed and sees poor sleep-deprived Al Calavicci, curled up on the floor, snoring. That’s another question I have. In later episodes, we actually see the imaging chamber – and what it’s like – what the process is like for those back in the present. It’s not like you can just zap into the imaging chamber from anywhere – you have to be at the headquarters, and be buzzed in, and blah blah blah … so maybe Al has a room in the back of the office where he tries to catch some sleep – and so that’s how he is able to roll into the imaging chamber in his pajamas, on occasion? I never heard anything about Al having a PRIVATE imaging chamber in his house so that he could “visit” Sam whenever … it all seemed a bit more formal than that, like it happens during the working hours, etc. Anyway, just a question I have. So Al steps into the imaging chamber, and maybe as he waits to get quantum-leaped to Sam, he falls asleep? So when he is transported, he is in a sleeping state when he arrives? This is where my mind goes. Of course it’s also just a funny bit – that the guy who is in CHARGE of your project, who is in charge of getting you HOME eventually – shows up in a deep snoring REM state. You know, what a vote of confidence there, Al! Also, just to add to the ba-dum-ching nature of the moment, Al is talking in his sleep – and he’s obviously embroiled in some adulterous brou-haha, he’s cheating on Tina, his girlfriend – and imploring some other woman to hide in the closet. Sam is rather judgmental about all of this (he always has been, he rolls his eyes at Al’s lecherous-ness, and his apparent lack of morals) – Al finally wakes up and Sam scolds him about monogamy. Al couldn’t care less. He is a desperate man – because Muffler Man next door has still been tormenting him. It is ruining his life. He can’t sleep! He is at his wit’s end!! Sam tries to get Al to FOCUS. Not on his romantic life, but on the issues in this particular “leap”. How on earth is he going to learn how to box? This won’t work! It’s amazing that this particular quality of the show did not get tedious – because it so could have! Sam has to learn how to split the atom! Be a ballerina! Have a baby! Build a nuclear warhead! How will he figure it out??? Instead of being tedious, it is usually quite funny – and Sam has to be very resourceful, and really commit to this other person’s life – rather than his own. He doesn’t WANT to train to be a fighter … he wants to go HOME … but … oh well, this is the nature of quantum leaping, so here goes! Sam Beckett is a wonderful character. Al reveals that he was a boxing champion when he was a kid (of course he was! That’s one of the running jokes of the show – as Al reveals more and more about his life – he was in the circus! He was a POW! He was an actor! He can speak Italian – you realize: who the hell is this guy? And it’s not really realistic, but it works anyway. Stockwell makes it work. He keeps Al’s cards close to his chest. Al isn’t a guy who lets people in easily, even though it seems like he’s an open book. The guy has depth. Secrets. Hidden pain. Al says HE will train Sam – but of course that won’t work, because when sparring, Sam would punch right through the hologram that is Al. Sam decides okay, he needs to take this seriously – he’ll talk to his coach, and see if he will train him – even though they are no longer working together, strictly.

There’s an interesting moment at the end of this scene. Sam goes back to his bed, and Al is left in the shadowy gym, lights off – and he dances around by himself, throwing punches – then it’s like he remembers his age. He stops, kind of sucks his belly in a bit – and pats his paunch – there’s a bit of regret there, in the gesture – it’s simple, beautifully played – then he says to himself, “I was good, too.”

And that, folks, is an actor. It says it all. It’s quiet, private, simple – not overdone … but his whole life is in that moment. And we’re only in the third episode of the series! But he’s all there already. Stockwell didn’t need time to build that character. He didn’t need to develop him over the course of the series. He was THERE, from the beginning. Bakula said that at the audition, Stockwell came in “complete”. Al Calavicci was alive, already.

The next scene has Sam and Gomez sitting in a bar. Gomez says he doesn’t want to get into the training racket again. “I’m tired of training fighters who take a dive,” says Gomez. There’s a very Rocky-esque feel to this scene: the trainer with failed dreams himself, who once was a fighter himself, of great promise. And Kid Cody is a good fighter. But he’s in with the wrong crowd – the gangsters – he doesn’t really want to win – he is willing to take a dive if the price is right. But the scene ends with Gomez saying what the hell, let’s go to it. He agrees to train Cody.

First day of training, Kid Cody gets into the ring at the church with Father Muldooney, the priest at the church who also has done some boxing himself. The ring is surrounded by cheering nuns, holding towels, throwing punches. It’s hysterical. Sister Angela is beside herself with excitement and has to be told to get out of the ring, please. In the first couple of seconds of the fight, Father Muldooney knocks Sam out. Everyone crowds around, scared. A bucket of water is thrown on Sam’s face. The nuns all look disappointed. Nervous. It looks like their guy is a loser.

And now we have the Rocky montage, complete with music (not exactly the Rocky theme, but close enough). The montage at first shows Sam not doing well, really struggling – unable to punch the punching bag in that flowing way that professional boxers have … struggling with pullups, drenched in sweat, Sister Angela hovering nearby, supportive. Then comes my favorite scene in the episode. Sister Angela rides her bike, and Sam runs along beside her holding two bricks in his hands (a la Rocky Balboa). Sister Angela means business, she is a tough taskmaster. She pushes Sam to keep going – they’re going up a hill, and Sam is DYING. He begs for a rest. Just a couple minutes! She relents. As they stand there, he asks her why the chapel is so important to her. She tells her story.

It’s not a happy one. A little all-night chapel was there for her when she needed it most – she had been living on the streets, she was an orphan … and it saved her life. God saved her life. She wants to create a place like that for others. Now – it’s a cliched story, and I certainly could have watched it being utterly unmoved. Seen it all before. But the way she plays it is just lovely. The emotion that comes up in her feels organic, as though the story (even though well-known to her, since she lived it) still has the capability of taking her by surprise. She does not weep and wail, she does not go for the drama – she just turns her back on Sam, to get some privacy, and quietly tells him what happened to her. It is the LEAST condescending type of acting imaginable – and the supporting actors on this show that come in for guest spots like this are universally excellent in that regard. I love her performance. It could have been over-the-top cheesy. It is not at all.

It is essential we understand the stakes for her, and how specific they are. It’s not just a generalized “I love God, I want to share that love with others” thing. When, later in the episode, we see that her faith has been shaken – we really GET what that means for her. This is a girl who has had a tough life. She feels betrayed all over again. Life is a wilderness without God. God came into her life and saved her. And now … she can’t believe anymore. Without that quiet scene where she tells her story to Sam, the impact wouldn’t be as great. We really get what all of this means for HER (another reason why the show works so well: EVERYONE has high stakes. On all different levels. We all want something. We all have needs. These needs conflict. That makes for interesting drama, if it’s done well. Sister Angela’s journey with her faith is part of the whole – it’s NOT just about Kid Cody winning the fight. We’re all connected, everything is interwoven with everything else. None of us are an island.)

Then we get a second montage. Sam has been training hard now – so he’s doing better. This is the SECOND Rocky montage, when Rocky makes it up the steps of the museum, and leaps around in triumph at the top. Sam is in the zone now. Doing situps, pullups, punching … there’s a hysterical moment where we see Sam punching the little punching bag, and he’s going so fast it’s a blur – and the music is pounding – and as the camera pulls around, we see Al standing there right next to him, in a blazing white suit, smoking a cigar, and kind of dancing (hard to explain – but it makes me laugh out loud every time I see it) to the beat of the punches on the bag. He’s “cool” about it, he’s not gyrating around – just watching Sam’s fist fly, and kind of twitching his body back and forth, in time. hahahaha Well, it’s really a visual joke – so if you have the DVD or plan on getting it, keep an eye out for it.

Sam and Al have a conversation in the ring. Sam has been so involved in training that his focus has been elsewhere – and it’s interesting, you can see that Al feels a little bit left out. There’s a strange distance between the two friends now, and Al … hm. Well, I think Al – even with his crusty hard-nosed personality – needs to feel needed. That is his whole THING. And he doesn’t feel needed here. None of this is spoken. It’s not in the script. It’s all in Stockwell’s acting. He’s kind of cranky. Probably because of the sleep-deprivation problem, but also … because Sam seems more focused on the training than on HIM. He needs Sam to step out of that for a moment and listen to him! He tells Sam that in the real history, Kid Cody was knocked out in the first round of the fight coming up – on October 29, 1974. He lost. And so Sister Angela never got her chapel. There is not a chapel in Sacramento in the present-day like the one Sister Angela dreamt of. You can see Sam’s dismay at hearing this. How can that be? Now that he has gotten to know Sister Angela a bit, and been welcomed by all the nuns – you can see that their dream has now become, in part, his. He is not BLASE about them. “Oh well. They didn’t get their chapel. What am I supposed to do about it?” No. Sam is into it now. He’s turned the corner.

The fight approaches. Gomez and Sam sit in the same bar from before – and they’re watching the news. We can see a report going on on the upcoming fight of Foreman/Ali in Zaire. Mr. Edwards comes up to Sam in a menacing way and says, “Nick says you’re training for real.” This is not part of the deal. Kid Cody is supposed to LOSE, not win. Why is he training? Mr. Edwards has it all planned: he needs to be knocked out in the first round. Sam, feeling stronger now, more able, stands up to Mr. Edwards and refuses. There’s a standoff. Inspired by the news report on TV, Sam challenges Mr. Edwards to a bet: 20 to 1 on what round the Ali/Foreman fight will be over.

Sam has to then break the news to Dixie about the bet – they might lose everything – and she flips. Of course Sam knows that this is a GOOD bet, since he knows how it will turn out … but she can’t see that. The jelly glazed dream is even more unattainable now! She’s already upset, because he’s hanging out with Sister Angela all the time. It seems like the nuns have more say in his life than she, his girlfriend, does. I like this one exchange – it makes me like Sam Beckett even more. She refers to herself as a “tramp” – and he gently takes hold of her arms, stares down at her, and says, “Dixie, you’re not a tramp. You’re a stripper. That’s a profession.” I just love him for that.

After the confrontation with Dixie, Sam goes back to the church and finds Sister Angela praying by herself, near a bank of candles. He tries to talk to her, and he can tell immediately that something is dreadfully wrong. She is near tears, yes – but there’s something else. A coldness, a hardness. He is alarmed. She was his greatest champion. What’s going on? He tries to talk with her. She can’t even look at him. She tells him that “a Mr. Edwards” stopped by, and left a message for him: “He thought it over. He wants to call the rounds, not you. Take a dive in the first.” She is devastated. Sam isn’t too happy either. He has a plan (which he hasn’t revealed yet) to get around Mr. Edwards … but it has to be a secret. Sister Angela believes the worst of him. He can’t defend himself. And she, being who she is, with her struggles, her life story behind her, does not take such things casually. Life has not been kind to Sister Angela. There’s a fragility there. She says, “I thought God sent me a champion, but he sent me a cheat.” She says, “I don’t think I can believe in anything anymore.” (Now this actress says that potentially cheesy line with utter reality. I’ve said stuff like that before, and I’ve meant it. I said it the other night, come to think of it. And I haven’t moaned it like Oedipus on a massive Greek stage. I’ve said it simply, and meant every word. That’s how she says it.) And Sam, sensing this in her, her faith being shaken … is torn up. He needs her belief. It’s selfish, yes – but her belief in him helped him get through this training period. To be believed in like that makes all the difference. They are left unresolved. She is crushed. He is scared. Scared that he had hurt her, that he cannot defend himself, and also scared about the upcoming fight. How will he get through it without Sister Angela cheering like a maniac? He knows the stakes are high: the chapel did NOT happen … he is here to MAKE it happen, to change history.

Now comes the fight. Sister Angela, knowing of the treachery of Kid Cody, is suspicious, waiting for something bad to happen. If he takes a dive in the first round, then she will know he is a cheat. She waits. Sam keeps glancing over at her, worried … the fact that she’s not “in his corner” emotionally is just wrong, for him. He misses her. He’s also looking for Al. Where the hell is Al? Because of that strange distance between the two men in the last scene … we wonder at the slight cooling-off between them. Sam had asked Al, “You coming?” And Al had been kind of diffident, shrugging his shoulders. So that’s another issue for Sam. He’s all alone out there.

And we have shots of Mr. Edwards, sitting in the stands – with a transistor radio to his ear. I put it together later – he’s listening to the Foreman/Ali fight at the same time. It’s a big day for Mr. Edwards. Sitting near Mr. Edwards is Dixie, all dressed up and dizzyingly excited for her baby up there in that ring. (If you see the episode a couple times, you might notice some of the things I missed: that there’s a fragment of a news program shown in one of the scenes where the “streaking fad” is being discussed. Then, during the argument with Dixie – we come into the middle of it, and she says something like “I bet you wouldn’t ask Sister Angela to streak!” But I didn’t really put it together – I’m slow like that. Obviously, Sam has a plan – a way that he think he can get around his “promise” to Mr. Edwards that he would take a dive in the first round.) Anyway, Dixie sits out there – in a green trench coat, and seriously – LOOK at the woman. Is there a more supportive face on the planet? Don’t you love her? You can see Mr. Edwards in the background, hovering over his transistor radio.

Then comes the dreaded moment: Sam gets knocked out in the first round. Sister Angela, already beside herself, just sits there, shaking her head to herself. So. It was true. Kid Cody was a cheat. He lies on the floor, face crushed into the ring … disoriented … all he can see is Sister Angela’s disappointed sad face. He can’t take it – and starts to struggle up to his feet. Mr. Edwards is distracted by the radio broadcast, but he is aware that something is going up there in the ring … Sam gets to his feet, not steadily, but he’s there – then he looks over at Dixie, and gives her a nod. She stands up, drops the trenchcoat, and streaks naked through the stands, causing an enormous commotion. Mr. Edwards is totally distracted, watching her go by – turning all the way around to see her naked little booty running off – and in that moment, Sam punches his opponent in the nose – and down he goes. POW! It is at this auspicious moment that Al decides to show up. He is wearing bright red trousers, red suspenders, and a little red hat. He looks like a lunatic. He chomps on a cigar, relishing in the moment. Obviously he has gotten a good night’s sleep finally! No more cranky Al! He loves the fights. He’s here to have a good time, and to help Sam win. Tiger Joe (Sam’s opponent) staggers up to his feet, and you can tell by the rage on his face that Sam is not out of the woods yet. Tiger Joe is PISSED. The fight that follows is intense. Sam has to pull all of his training (yeah, from his ONE WEEK of intensive training) out in order to just survive the assault. And Al the hologram helps too – shoving his hand through Tiger Joe – telling Sam where to place his punches, etc. It’s a team sport, apparently! It takes two!

And finally .. finally … Sam lands the punch that knocks Tiger Joe out for good. I love how Al stands there, right beside the action, watching him fall, with a huge grin on his face. The win is very exciting. There’s a funny shot of Sam hugging Al – only we see it from the nun’s perspective – so it looks like Sam is embracing nothing, throwing his arms around AIR. But it’s a big moment, lots of celebration. Nuns screaming, clapping, jumping up and down, everyone going nuts, Al dancing around in his ridiculous outfit, it’s a huge triumph.

Back in the locker room, Dixie – now covered up – runs in, all excited – to tell him that Ali won! They had put everything they owned, their whole nest egg, on Ali knocking out Foreman in the 8th round. And Ali just did it. And so they are owed a ton of money (20 to 1 type money) from Mr. Edwards. Enough to buy an entire chain of donut shops. She’s going to run off and get their money – and just before she reaches the door – Sam says, impulsively – “Dixie!” She stops. Turns.

And look at her. God. LOOK at this woman.

She loves him so much. And it’s a great little moment because I think Sam has fallen in love with her a little bit, too (I mean, who wouldn’t? She streaked through a rowdy boxing crowd for HIM) – but it’s a great moment because I think Sam knows it’s over, he’s going to leap any moment. Obviously he won the match, the sisters are going to get their chapel, and everything has worked out. His time “here” is limited, now – maybe he has a minute or so … so he probably won’t see her again. This is it. So he can’t just let her fly out of the room without one last moment between them. But he doesn’t even have anything to say to her. Not really. All he can manage is, “Hurry back.” And Dixie, with eyes full of love, and that Marilyn Monroe glamour girl smile – nods happily and click-clacks off. Leaving Sam alone.

Sister Angela comes in. She is overwhelmed. She is filled with shame that she had doubted him. And that she had doubted God, too. How could that have happened? She thanks him, Kid Cody, for winning … for getting them their chapel … but most of all, for giving her her faith in God again.

They shake hands – and as they do so – you can see Sam start to grin, ruefully – to himself. The leap is here. He shivers into blue lightning … and vanishes …

Only to find himself … wearing muddy overalls and galoshes – wrestling with a filthy screaming pig in a paddock ….

Quantum Leap recaps
Overview
Season 1, Ep. 1: Genesis – part 1 of re-cap
Season 1, Ep. 1: Genesis – part 2 of re-cap
Season 1, Ep. 1: Genesis – part 3 of re-cap
Season 1, Ep. 3: Star-Crossed – part 1 of re-cap
Season 1, Ep. 3: Star-Crossed – part 2 of re-cap

Tommy’s posts:
Quantum Leap: an overview
Episode 1: Genesis
Episode 2: Star-crossed

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8 Responses to Quantum Leap: Season 1, Ep. 4: “The Right Hand of God”

  1. Karen says:

    I think the story of Guy Stockwell is interesting, and even rather sad. It can’t have been easy being Dean Stockwell’s less-famous brother.

    In his youth, Guy was a strapping specimen–six feet tall, slender, with a huge, deep voice, curly hair, and a face a lot like Dean’s. He had several leading roles in the 60s, but his career never took off.

    I really wish they had gotten a scene together in this QL episode, but since Al was a hologram who could only talk to Sam, that would have been a little difficult to arrange. It may even be a coincidence that Guy was cast, not a case of Dean arranging a job for a relative. Guy had appeared on Magnum, PI, so presumably Don Bellisario knew him and thought he was right for the part.

  2. red says:

    Karen – yeah, he was great in the part! A rough-talking scary gangster guy – he did a great job!

  3. Harriet says:

    Yay, it’s back! I had the library buy the first two seasons of QL, so now I can follow along with you on these.

  4. Tommy says:

    Eh…life gets hectic.

    Think I need to dig out the DVDs….

  5. Ken says:

    I have no idea why I remember this, but I recognized Teri Copley’s name from some galactically awful Silverman-era four-episode-and-gone NBC sitcom (I am deliberately not looking it up, We God It Made or something). I know/knew nothing about her beyond that bit of trivia (now I think about it, maybe I remember it because Copley, Ohio is near my home town of Barberton), but I am somehow gratified to read this review. Good for Teri Copley (for whatever that’s worth), says I.

  6. In keeping with the general air of shallow elitism in this joint:

    I’ll be posting my next Quantum Leap re-cap tomorrow. Season 1, Episode 4: How the Tess Was Won. Here are the other re-caps, for those of you who are into this whole re-cap thing!…

  7. Quantum Leap: Season 1, Ep. 4: “How the Tess Was Won” – Part 1

    LEAP INTO: August 5, 1956 Tess: If there’s a man on this ranch who can keep up with me for one week – I’ll marry him. Sam Beckett leaps out of boxer Kid Cody in the 1970s and into…

  8. Quantum Leap: Season 1, Ep. 4: “How the Tess Was Won” – part 2

    LEAP INTO: August 5, 1956 Part 2: We left Sam at the moment he decided to ride Widow-Maker, the ferocious horse who threw him before….

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