Elia Katz and David Stenn pen Intestinale Fortitude from a story by Steven Bochco, Jeffrey Lewis, and David Milch. It first aired on 10 January, 1985.

LaRue (Kiel Martin) is less than thrilled to find that he and his partner, Washington (Taurean Blacque) have been assigned undercover work with Belker (Bruce Weitz) as garbage collectors. It seems a neighbourhood is being strong-armed by the Intestinale family, read as mafia. Belker is very aggressive in pursuing the arrest, and they go deeper and deeper undercover.

Mayo (Mimi Kuzyk) complains about how she keeps getting undercover assignments as hookers, but it’s her role that helps resolve the main narrative of the episode. It seems someone has assaulted and raped a seventy-two-year-old woman, but when he’s Mirandized during his arrest, it seems he only read his rights in English, not Spanish. So the argument is made that the arrest is at fault, and he’s released.

Mayo bumps into him later as she’s working a bar, and he attempts to pick her up… in English.

Renko (Charles Haid), Goldblume (Joe Spano) and Hunter (James Sikking) are all in the running for a political position in the union, and Renko is very anxious about it, as he’s not making enough money to support him and his wife.

It’s an episode that is filled with lots of melodrama, but I do like how the rape narrative plays out, and Mayo proves that she’s not only a great cop but a great shop. It’s a pretty solid episode.

Of Human Garbage was written by Lewis, Milch, Mark Frost and Jacob Epstein from a story by Bochco, Lewis and Milch. It was first broadcast on 17 January, 1985.

Fay (Barbara Bosson) comes to Furillo (Daniel J. Travanti) to let him know that she believes she was sexually assaulted while under anesthesia at the dentist, so Furillo sends Mayo end.

The run-off for the position continues with Hunter and Renko both vying to be the last man standing while Belker, Washington and LaRue continue their undercover work inside the mafia arm of garbage collection.

The main narrative has us checking in with Perez (Tony Perez) who previously had some problems when he ending up killing a young child that was classified as a clean shoot. This time, he seems to be a hero, he’s rescued a family from an apartment building fire, but when a snitch shows up, he suggests that Perez may have paid him to set the fire.

Perez has a really rough time of it, I don’t think we check in with Belker enough in this tale, and one of the guest stars in that story thread is character actor John Quade who is one of those actors who has been in everything!

And hey, Joyce (Veronica Hamel) is offered a chance to jump over the fence from Defense Attorney to Prosecutor!

Lots going on!! Let’s see how things play out, but until next time, let’s be careful out there.