Donkey's Years

"Donkey's Years"
Season 1, Episode 6
Release date	February 13, 2015
Written by	Jennifer Ames & Steve Turner
Directed by	Roxann Dawson
Episode chronology
← previous "Mama's Boy"	next → "Lost Boys"

"Donkey's Years" is the sixth episode of the first season of Bosch. It premiered on Amazon Instant Video and LOVEFiLM on 13 February 2015.

The episode derives its title from an idiomatic phrase meaning "a long time; years and years."

Summary

Teaser

In room 3 of the Harvard House Motel, Waits watches a news broadcast regarding the search for him before muting the television and calling Detective Bosch on his cellphone. Bosch answers the call as he returns to his home, and Waits asks the detective what his options are; Bosch insists that Waits can wait until the police capture him, after which he'll spend the next twenty years in prison before the state executes him, or he can kill himself. Bosch recommends suicide, though Waits declines, and Bosch offers a third option: Waits can reach for a weapon when the police attempt to arrest him, after which the police will kill him.

Bosch disconnects, and Waits hangs up before leaving the Motel.

Act One

Later that night, Detective Rider oversees the Harvard House Motel crime scene as Lt. Billets instructs Bosch to concentrate on the bone case; Bosch turns over the envelope of Polaroids he recovered from Delacroix's trailer earlier that night, explaining that the girl in the pictures is Samuel's own daughter.

At the police station, Bosch returns to interview Delacroix again, insisting that Samuel did not, in fact, kill Arthur. He then confronts Samuel with the Polaroids and theorizes that after Christine left, Samuel began molesting Sheila, who in turn physically abused her younger brother, Arthur, as an outlet for her own misery. The detective surmises that Samuel never reported Arthur missing, because he believed that Sheila killed the boy, and that he confessed to killing Arthur in order to protect his daughter. Delacroix admits that Bosch is correct but claims that he is responsible for every bad thing that happened to his family. Bosch refuses to allow Delacroix to admit to a crime he didn't commit.

The next morning, Edgar and Bosch visit Red Studios Hollywood and interrupt a casting session to inform Sheila that her father is no longer being charged with her brother's murder. Sheila admits to beating Arthur. She blamed him for all of her hardships and claims she didn't stop him from running away, because she wanted him to go. Bosch and Edgar encourage Sheila to file charges against her father.

At the police station, Bosch theorizes that Arthur was murdered on the hill in Laurel Canyon, guessing that the boy joined up with his skateboarding friends after running away from home, and Edgar agrees to research the name that Arthur's father gave them: Johnny Stokes. Inside, Bosch examines the evidence board and map, while explaining to Billets that none of the sightings of Waits are located near Echo Park, where Waits was arrested. Billets orders Bosch to take a few days off and visit his daughter in Las Vegas; Bosch finally relents.

Act Two

At a jewelry store, Brasher helps Bosch shop for a gift for his daughter, and they settle on a bracelet before Bosch receives a phone call from Waits, who claims to have other options and warns Bosch that he steals souls.

At a hardware store, Bosch, Rider, and Johnson review surveillance footage of Waits purchasing Christmas lights, moth balls, and a sump-pump before shooting and killing the cashier with Detective Moore's gun; on the tape, Waits steps behind the counter, picks up the phone, and places the call to Bosch as he waves at the camera. Bosch examines the crime scene until Lt. Pounds arrives and orders Bosch out of the store. He then demands to know what Waits said to the detective, and Bosch assures him that he'll give a report of Waits's phone call to Billets.

On the road to Las Vegas, Bosch receives a call from Edgar, who explains that John Stokes is currently on probation due to a lengthy criminal record. He tells Bosch that he will speak with Stokes's parole officer the next morning and agrees to call Bosch after the meeting.

In Las Vegas, Bosch parks in front of Eleanor's residence but finds the house empty. He visits the Aria Casino, where he asks after Eleanor and is directed to her tenth-floor suite. Bosch heads upstairs to find Eleanor in a private poker game, and she tells him to visit the house the next morning to see his daughter. Eleanor's husband beckons her back and greets Bosch before he and Eleanor return to the game.

Outside, Bosch calls Brasher and leaves her a message before heading into Circus Circus.

Act Three

The next morning, Bosch returns to Eleanor's residence, where his daughter greets him enthusiastically and invites him in. She shows him around the house until he offers to make breakfast. Bosch makes pancakes as Eleanor and Reggie wake and prepare for their day, and Maddie agrees to spend the day with her father. Outside, Bosch explains the Waits case to Eleanor, who surmises that he wants her to profile the killer, and Eleanor reluctantly agrees to look at the case file that Bosch brought.

At a shooting range, Bosch instructs his daughter on how to properly aim and fire a handgun, and Maddie shows proficiency by hitting her target center-mass several times.

In Los Angeles, Edgar meets with Stokes's parole officer to get the parolee's current address.

In Las Vegas, Maddie explains to Bosch that she initially wanted to be a veterinarian, but now she wants to be a police officer. She then admits to researching her father on the Internet, and Bosch explains the verdict in his recent trial before Maddie asks about her father's mother. Bosch insists that she was a good person and admits that she was murdered. Maddie then asks if Bosch will Skype with her after he returns to Los Angeles, though he clearly doesn't understand what she means.

At Eleanor's residence, Bosch apologizes for taking Maddie to the shooting range without clearing it with his ex-wife. Eleanor admits to looking at the Waits file and explains that she believes "Raynard Waits" to be an alias based on the character of Reynard the Fox, who hides in a castle and waits to strike. She theorizes that Waits has a French background of some kind and surmises from the items he took from the hardware store that his lair is somewhere underground. She further theorizes that Waits's murderous rage is fueled by having been raped himself as a child, and that the break in his pattern indicates he's in his endgame.

At a restaurant, Bosch has dinner with Maddie, Eleanor, and Reggie before excusing himself to make a phone call to Edgar, who explains that Stokes is working at a carwash but insists that Bosch stay in Las Vegas with his family. After Edgar hangs up on him, Bosch returns to dinner and claims that he has to return to Los Angeles, but promises to return on Christmas day. Eleanor gives Bosch an early gift--a smartphone--before he leaves.

That night, in Los Angeles, District Attorney O'Shea meets surreptitiously with Deputy Chief Irving, who leverages his copy of the video file of Waits's escape to convince O'Shea to back down in his criticism against the Police Department. In exchange, Irving also offers to endorse O'Shea for mayor within the black community, and O'Shea suggests that once the current Chief of Police is gone, he should be a native of the city who has risen through the ranks of the Department, implying that Irving will be given the position.

Act Four

The next morning, Bosch and Edgar observe Stokes at his work, before Bosch calls the watch commander for back-up. Mankiewicz agrees to send Officers Edgewood and Brasher. After the officers arrive, Bosch and Edgar approach Stokes, who flees along with most of his coworkers after spraying Bosch in the eyes with cleaning fluid. Edgar pursues Stokes into an alley before Stokes ducks into an apartment complex, and Bosch catches up with Edgar as they search a parking garage.

Inside, Bosch hears Brasher ordering Stokes to stop. Stokes' hands are clearly on the wall he's facing, but Brasher's hands are not visible. A gunshot rings out, and Brasher topples onto the Ground. Bosch rushes to arrest Stokes and finds Brasher shot in her flak jacket. Moments later, Edgewood arrives, finds Brasher shot, and brutally attacks Stokes before Edgar arrives and pulls Edgewood off the suspect.

Later, Brasher is taken from the scene in an ambulance, and Bosch advises her to speak with her union representative before saying anything to anyone about the incident. Bosch tells Edgar that he'll talk with the Force Investigation Division at the station after getting Stokes to safety, and then instructs Stokes not to speak with anyone but him. Stokes agrees, and an officer drives him and Bosch back to the police station.

Production

Credits

Cast

Starring

• Titus Welliver as Harry Bosch
• Jamie Hector as Jerry Edgar
• Amy Aquino as Grace Billets
• Lance Reddick as Irvin Irving
• Annie Wersching as Julia Brasher
• with Sarah Clarke as Eleanor Wish
• and Jason Gedrick as Raynard Waits

Guest-Starring

• Scott Klace as John Mankiewicz
• Mark Derwin as Captain Harvey Pounds
• Steven Culp as DA Richard O'Shea
• Troy Evans as Detective Barrel Johnson
• Jenica Bergere as Sheila Delacroix
• Pat Skipper as Samuel Delacroix
• Rose Rollins as Detective Kizmin Rider
• Hoon Lee as Reggie Woo
• Madison Lintz as Maddie Bosch
• and Shawn Hatosy as Johnny Stokes

Co-Starring

• Gary Kraus as Frank
• Christina Ferraro as Coroner Investigator Andrada
• Deji Laray as Officer Julius Edgewood
• Jonathan Ahmadi as Armin
• John Eddins as Sergeant Wash
• Kent Shocknek as Kent Shocknek
• Bryan Lugo as Worker
• Jesse D. Goins as Turman
• Donald Li as Charlie Lui

Crew

Opening Credits

• Laura Schiff, CSA - Casting
• and Carrie Audino, CSA - Casting
• Jesse Voccia - Music
• Rachel Rusch - Producer
• Patrick McKee - Producer
• Tom Smuts - Supervising Producer
• William N. Fordes - Consulting Producer
• Diane Frolov - Consulting Producer
• & Andrew Schneider - Consulting Producer
• Pieter Jan Brugge - Co-Executive Producer
• Mikkel Bondesen - Executive Producer
• Jan David Frouman - Executive Producer
• Henrik Bastin - Executive Producer
• Michael Connelly - Executive Producer
• Eric Overmyer - Executive Producer
• Michael Connelly - Based on the Novels by
• Eric Overmyer - Developed for television by
• Jennifer Ames - Teleplay
• & Steve Turner - Teleplay
• Roxann Dawson - Director

Closing Credits

• Patrick McKee - Unit Production Manager
• Ken Collins - First Assistant Director
• Francesco Tignini - Second Assistant Director
• Patrick Cady, ASC - Director of Photography
• Chester Kaczenski - Production Designer
• Elba Sanchez-Short - Editor
• Catherine Adair - Costume Designer
• Erin Scotto - Associate Producer
• Terrill Lee Lankford - Co-Producer
• Jennifer Ames - Executive Story Editor
• & Steve Turner - Executive Story Editor
• Joe Gonzalez - Staff Writer
• Blake Leyh - Music Supervisor
• Tim Marcia - Technical Consultant
• Mitzi Roberts - Technical Consultant
• Rick Jackson - Technical Consultant

Reception

The episode has received 40 ten-out-of-ten ratings and 30 nine-out-of-ten ratings (out of 119 total ratings) on IMDb for an average rating of 8.5 out of 10.

Episode

• "Donkey's Years"