As the season enters the second half, ‘Perry Mason’ makes rapid progress in the plot, most notably in the personal arcs of all the main characters. The fourth episode focused on E.B Jonathan’s voyage and his untimely fate, casting the rest of the characters, including Mason, in the background. They’d get their chance to shine; E.B deserved all the attention he could get in that show. The fifth episode maintains the emotional component while progressing to the exhilaration of injecting more life into the plot.

Recap of Perry Mason Episode 5

Della discovers E.B.’s body at his home and, with Mason’s assistance, fakes a natural death in order to file an insurance claim. Maynard assigns the case of Emily Dodson to another lawyer, who turns out to be a mole in order to sway the situation in his favour. Della, on the other hand, has different intentions. She begins her quest for a good lawyer for Emily, and just when all hope appears to be lost, she discovers the ideal man to take on the task of saving their penniless client.

Strickland continues his inquiry, delving deeper into Ennis’ work. He discovers that the Charlie Dodson case was originally assigned to a different detective, and Ennis paid his way to get it for himself. When Strickland tries to be the nice man and indirectly blames Holcomb, he becomes more concerned about the sleazy detective. There’s a lot of soil there, and Strickland is willing to help dig it up for free.

Review of Perry Mason Episode 5

The emotional punch of the fourth episode seeps into the fifth, which spends a lot of time talking about sorrow and the drinking that follows, leaving its characters in the dark for a while.

E.B had been Mason’s father figure, thus it seemed only natural that all of his vices would be transferred to the titular character. The most striking parallel he notices between himself and his late mentor is how poor they both were at being the parental figures their children required. Mason is reminded of not making the same mistake with his own son after meeting E.B’s son at the mortuary.

Being buried alone, with no one caring about you, is not a great situation. Having an uninterested son on top of it is plain incomprehensible. It’s also amusing how, despite his disdain for his father, E.B’s son appears to be strikingly identical to him. The prospect of losing his kid due to the distance between them drives Mason to seek out Teddy, who may have Perry as his biological father, but his stepfather is the true father figure in his life. This is also when he had a discussion with his ex-wife concerning the nature of his job. She didn’t know what else to say to Teddy, so she told him Mason is a farmer. The question is, who exactly is he? And at the end of the show, we get the answer.

The finale of Episode 5 was not surprising, but it was the anticipation and excellent execution by the actors that made it so fascinating to watch. Della Street rises to the occasion in the aftermath of Jonathan’s death, using her quick intellect to save the day on a number of occasions. Mason is the story’s protagonist, but Della is its hero, and it’s much easier to root for her than for anyone else. She has already proven herself to be much more than an ordinary secretary, and perhaps her role will not fade back into the shadows after Mason accepts his destiny.

The episode also reintroduces Paul Drake, who is attempting to reconcile what he wants his life to be and what he is compelled to be. There is talk of a revolution at their church, a call to arms to fight for their rights, and Drake is eager to participate but is held back by his wife, who does not want to engage in any struggle that will not result in the intended goal. But, as Drake sees it, we must fight. Though his storey is somewhat unconnected from the broader plot of the programme, it powerfully resonates with the current situation, as the drive to fight for what’s right (legal or not) has taken over the world.

Something happened to Emily Dodson, speaking of right. Sister Alice obtains the bail money for her, and the prospect of regaining custody of her son gives her new life. We last saw her with E.B, debating whether she should fight a case that is almost certainly lost or plead guilty and take the burden of a crime she did not commit. As for Sister Alice, the day of young Charlie’s resurrection is still two months away, which means we may have to wait a little longer to find out if the claims she makes about the deceased child are true. She revels in the idea of the spectacular feat, and it is all pomp and show with her followers, but when Emily questions if they will have to dig up the tomb to bring the boy back to life, she is forced to look at it practically. The encounter with the practical parameter causes her to have a blank expression, which makes us even more curious about how she intends to fulfil her promise.