Saving Grace - Don't Mess With My Geepaw

Awwww... cute old people just suck all of the snark right out of me.Grace and her pals are, as usual, whooping it up in the local bar. One thing is different this time, however: rather than being dressed like she just walked off of Brokeback Mountain, Grace seems to have made some sort of effort to gussie herself up. She's wearing a blouse that could pass as fancy (in Oklahoma), and she has also apparently commandeered two chandeliers from the local Apex Hardware store and affixed them to her ears. Grace and Rhetta are playing a game where Rhetta tosses a grape across the room and into Grace's open mouth, cause for the whole bar to cheer. Ham shows up and the whole crew makes bets, mayhem and general mischief. That is, until Grace's sister and two brothers arrive and sit stiffly at the bar. Talk about throwing a bucket of water on the party. "This can't be good," Grace sighs, the front of her shirt stuffed with cash.

It becomes very apparent very quickly exactly why Grace is not a big fan of her sister, Paige. Chica seems to have the worlds biggest stick wedged firmly between her ass cheeks. She Handi-wipes her barstool before sitting down, and fusses about how Grace won't return their phone calls, so they have to come to her. Grace rolls her eyes as Paige describes how she wants the whole family clan to take a vacation together - on a cruise ship. The mere suggestion causes Grace to choke on her beer laughing, and her brothers rib her by suggesting that she bring her angel along. And... oopsie. Seems that Grace probably didn't want her sister knowing about Earl, because she immediately gets all uncomfortable and makes a hasty exit. Paige shoves the cruise brochures into her hand with a "Just think about it."

Apparently by "think," Grace thought that Paige meant "dump in trash can." Because that's exactly what she does with the brochures. Then she starts listening to her answering machine messages, which are all from her sister. They all promptly get deleted without even having been listened to. Right about now (when Grace is doing something mildly naughty and obnoxious) would be when Earl generally shows up. And... cue snarky, hungry angel, right on time! Earl thinks the cruise could be fun. The only boat he's ever been on was the Titanic, and, well, we all know how that one ended up. But a Sunshine Party Cruise?? Sounds A-OK to Earl, who is not a fan of Grace's family estrangement. He figures a vacation would give her a chance to talk, fight, and heal with her sibs. Grace looks like she'd rather lick the bottom of a kitty litter box than follow Earl's advice.

Crime scene time! Horses stand around a clearing in the middle of a brushy field. A rider found an unidentified body, burned and half-buried in a shallow grave. I agree with Ham that it's a pretty yucky scene. The body has a prosthetic leg, and has been buried facedown with an owl feather resting on top. Rhetta smells gasoline. There are no tire tracks, but lots of horseshoe prints. A riderless horse, probably the victim's, stands skittishly nearby and will only let Grace touch him. She gently gives the frightened horse water... in Butch's cowboy hat. And... I have to say it. I'm really sorry. I know it's lame, but I just can't hold it in. Here it is: Talk about a ten-gallon hat!!! Okay, that's out of my system. Ahem. Continuing, Grace believes the well-kept horse will be missed by someone, and hops into a tree to check out the scenery as Butch reminisces about how he and Grace used to ride together in the area. "Oklahoma, man," Grace murmurs, looking around in awe. "So beautiful." At this point, I fight the urge to be even more obnoxious by singing the entire score to the musical "Oklahoma."

The John Doe's body was shot twice before being burned. Ham, Henry, and Butch discuss how the crime was probably an act of passionate hatred, considering the overkill factor. As they talk, I find that all I can think about is that Grace has slept with every single man in this room. Yeesh. At any rate, they're planning to I.D. the body by using the number on the prosthetic limb. Bobby, who is 1/4 Native American, says that the owl feather has some not-so-friendly symbolism to it. Grace has a connection who may be able to help them shed more light on its significance.

Said contact apparently lives in an Airstream trailer and is packing heat, because when Grace raps on the door, we hear a shotgun cock. Grace finds it all hilarious. The man who lives in the trailer finally recognizes Grace, calling her "Champuli," and inviting her in... but not Ham, thankyouverymuch. An amusingly uncomfortable Ham slouches down in a chair outside the trailer to wait. Meanwhile, Grace chats with the Native American man, whom she refers to as "Geepaw." Grace chats with Geepaw about how he's been getting along. She notices that he's left a stove burner on. Hmmmmm. Hmmmmmm. Anyhoo, Grace tells him about the case, and asks if he'll come take a look at the crime scene to help identify the Native American burial ritual that was used.

Sure enough, Geepaw's all over checking out the crime scene. This is Grace's grandfather, the one who taught her to ride, and had her on a horse when she was just three days old. Well, now, let's see. If Geepaw is 1/2 Native American, that would make Grace... (adding numbers in head... square root... carry the 5... dude, I was a French major...) okay, that would make Grace 1/8 Native American, right? I guess I'll buy that, even though Grace is extraordinarily blonde and just about as pale-skinned as they come. Sure. Fine. Whatever! Geepaw thinks there's a restless soul at this gravesite. The killer wanted to murder the victim's soul, and now the angry spirit has taken possession of the place. Ooooh, spooky and deep! Or at least it is until Geepaw totally ruins the mood... by pissing in the open grave. Then he turns around and queries, "Champuli... when did you get here?" Hoo, boy. Seems like poor ol' Geepaw's got a few bats in the belfry, if you know what I mean.

Grace, much to her own chagrin, it seems, has invited straightlaced Paige over for a knock-down drag-out brawl sisterly chat. Sis is still pushily pushing the vacation cruise, but Grace wants to talk about Geepaw. Paige already knows that there's something wrong with their grandfather - in fact, that's what she's been leaving Grace all of the messages about. Turns out that Geepaw's in the early stages of Alzheimer's. Aw, man, that blows. I really like Geepaw. He is sweet and friendly and fun and reminds me of my own Grandpa. Boo. Anyway, Paige is all for stashing Geepaw in a home for his own good, but Grace thinks he'd die there. She suggests taking shifts to help him out, and volunteers for doctor duty the next day. As prissy Paige leaves, she discovers the cruise brochures in the trash. DUDE. Grace, you are busted.

The detectives have gotten an ID on their John Doe, who is a recently returned Iraq soldier named Ryan Whitehorse. Bobby actually knew him from a youth group; Ryan and a kid named Chaz Benbrook joined the army together, and Chaz died in combat a year ago. Ryan was an orphan and a smartass, but had never been in any serious trouble. He had spent a lot of time with Chaz's family, and was engaged to his high school sweetheart, Lily. Bobby meets with some of Ryan's pals at the local watering hole, while Grace interviews Lily. They get some suspects out of the deal; Lily and Ryan had called off their engagement, and Lily's brother Ames hated him because he cheated on her. Manny, one of Ryan's buds, is very resentful that Chaz was the one to die in combat rather than Ryan. Yes indeedy. Suspects galore, yo. Later, Grace plays poker with Geepaw and his pals. She seems to have adopted a "let him live while he can" attitude toward her grandfather, encouraging his gambling and drinking. Geepaw's pals say that Ryan was buried facedown so that his spirit wouldn't return, and that the owl feather has cursed him to hell.

Grace and her grandfather lay out and watch the stars. They talk about Grace's childhood, and how he still wears her grandmother "Meemaw's" wedding ring on his little finger. Grace softly says that Geepaw never got mad or yelled at her, no matter what crazy thing she did. "You're a free soul," he says. "A free soul's gotta do what they do." True dat, Geepaw. Grace starts telling a heartfelt story about the dream horse her grandfather created for her, which she would ride when she was asleep to keep away the nightmares... and the story is promptly interrupted by a loud snore from Geepaw, who has fallen asleep. Snooooozzzze. Grace tenderly covers her grandfather with the blanket, and suddenly there's Earl, lying on the other side of the blanket. "Sometimes family ain't so bad, eh?" he comments. Grace is rightfully pissed about Geepaw's Alzheimer's, and Earl says he personally hates that disease. Grace should take her beef up with God. But surprisingly, Grace lets it go, asking where Earl lives. He gives her a line of BS about a suburb of Heaven called Angelville, then tells her that her family wants to love her, but they don't understand the wall she has created around herself. Just then... Snooooooozzzzze. Grace has pretended to fall asleep, too. She clearly fights back a grin as Earl stops talking, then she rolls over and puts her arm around her Geepaw. Awwww.

Grace and Butch are riding horses through the backcountry to some pretty cool music. Grace seems really at home on the horse, like she really knows what she's doing. The whole scene is entirely believable. Kudos, Saving Grace producers. Anyhoo, the two of them revisit the crime scene, Butch reminiscing about some naked horseriding they did back in the day. Anybody else feel like Butch is reminiscing just a little bit too much in this episode for it to be a coincidence? Anyone else? Hands up? I've got no problem with it if Grace and Butch hook up again. The man is Hotttt. With a capital H. Yow. Back to the subject at hand, Grace wonders who knew that Ryan was going riding that day. Back at the precinct, they discuss their suspect list - Manny, the pseudofriend, Lily, the jilted fiancée, and Ames, her resentful brother. Suddenly, Grace is called to the parking lot, where Geepaw is sitting on his horse amidst a crowd of concerned people. He cheerfully says that he's here to pick her up for his doctor's appointment. Then suddenly his face becomes clouded with confusion. "What are all these people doing here?" asks a fuddled Geepaw. Gently, Grace puts her arm around him and brings him inside. My lil' heart just breaks right in my chest, because by this point I've decided that Geepaw really really reminds me of my own grandfather. What a sap, man.

Back inside, Paige has arrived and is chewing Grace out for forgetting Geepaw's appointment and causing him to have to ride downtown on his horse to remind her. They yell at each other about what is best for Geepaw; Paige wants to take away his horse, because, she says, she loves him enough to make the hard decisions. Amidst it all, their brother Johnny arrives and adds his own voice to the fracas. Geepaw and Rhetta wincingly watch the unpleasant scene unfold from a nearby conference room. As the yelling, wild gesturing, and theatrics wrap up, Rhetta heaves a sigh of relief that no blood was shed... and turns around to find Geepaw peeing matter-of-factly in a planter. And to top it off, their boss Perry is watching cynically out the miniblinds, one eyebrow raised and her head cocked sassily to the side. Oh no he didn't! Hee!

As the drama unfolds at the office, Bobby has a talk with Chaz's father Mr. Benbrook. Mild-mannered accountant-type Mr. Benbrook says that Ryan almost became a part of their family, after having stayed with them when his parents died. Chaz, he says, died in service to his country. Mr. Benbrook hadn't seen Ryan since he had returned from Iraq. The boys may have been described as "great soldiers" by their commanding officers, but they were just kids. As the men chat, Paige drives off in her giant-ass gas-guzzling Soccer Mommy SUV with Geepaw. Rhetta talks with a subdued Grace, gently trying to tell her that some old folks homes can actually be kind of nice, and that Geepaw really shouldn't be on a horse. As is typical when people try to broach a serious subject, Grace evades the conversation, poking fun at herself and steering the conversation in the opposite direction. Rhetta, honey, you've gotta stop her from doing that. It's just not healthy.

The crew goes over Ryan's timeline again, and Grace lets Ames and Lily go, since their alibis check out. Conversationally, Butch asks why Geepaw calls Grace Champuli, and she replies that it means "Sweet One" in Choctaw. She asks what Butch is doing later. Next thing you know, Butch, Grace, and Geepaw are having a good old-fashioned cowboy-esque gallop through the countryside. "Yee-haw, Champuli" hollers Geepaw. "Yee-haw, Geepaw!" Grace hollers back. He goes riding off at a frantic gallop, and Grace watches with unrestrained joy at how much her grandfather loves to be on his horse. But suddenly, Geepaw's horse rears up, and he's thrown violently to the ground. He lies still, his eyes closed, as Grace frantically gallops over and kneels beside him, and Butch calls 911.

Geepaw lies bruised and bandaged in his bed in the Airstream, as Paige cleans up in the background. Paige strikes me as the kind of person who sort of annoys everybody until there's an emergency. And then she's absolutely the first person you call, because you know she will be strong and able to handle anything that's thrown her way with a cool head. She's the responsible one. Also, Paige is what Grace might look like if she didn't lead such a rough-and-tumble life. But I digress. A remorseful Grace kneels at Geepaw's bedside, and he gently gives her Meemaw's ring from his little finger. "This is my fault," Grace mutters. Paige sighs that she will stay with Geepaw tonight; they'll figure out what to do in the morning.

Grace goes home as Earl talks with Butch at the bar. I think it's so funny how Earl's always chatting with Grace's friends and acquaintances without her knowing about it. It's almost like he's doing informational interviews to learn more about her. Butch admits that he still has a thing for Grace, but that so does another friend, and that she's dangerous. Said dangerous woman is at home, looking over the case's information (as she often does) which is spread out around her living room. Back at the bar, Bobby and Butch talk with Manny, their last original suspect. Manny blames Ryan for Chaz's death, and is angry about how happy Ryan was to be home. He mentions that Ryan was planning to go see Mr. Benbrook the day he went out for a happy-fun horseback ride. Butch and Bobby exchange a glance that screams, "Oh really because Mr. Benbrook just told us he hadn't seen Ryan in months."

Mr. Benbrook is back in the hot seat. He claims that he didn't answer the door when Ryan came over to see him. But Grace has found that a nearby stable has a record of Mr. Benbrook checking out a horse for a ride on the day that Ryan was murdered. Mr. Benbrook breaks down. He was furious at Ryan for leading Chaz to join the army, and for giving the order that put Chaz on the truck that struck an IED. Ryan didn't deserve honor in death. He apologizes tearfully to Bobby before being led away. Later that evening as the sun goes down, Bobby does a dance and shakes rattles over Ryan's new grave, hopefully freeing his soul.

A silent, intensely drunk or high (or both) Grace sits in her living room, solemnly regarding photos of her and Geepaw when she was young. She pulls out a lighter and goes to burn a photo, and a male hand comes abruptly into the screen and stops her. It's Butch, looking hella hot in a pair of boxers and not much else. She turns away from him with a tortured expression on her face, and he holds her hand and kisses her tenderly. Butch pulls the ring off of her finger as though it is somehow causing her pain and anguish over Geepaw, and Grace takes it from him and flings it away. He grabs her, and she tries to fight him off, twisting in his arms. But he holds on, kissing her. It's almost like they're dancing, as they struggle, but finally she gives in and they kiss passionately. He flings her over his shoulder and they rip off each others' clothes. Dude, man. That was... kind of disturbing and yet kind of hot at the same time.

Later, Grace lies on her couch by herself, looking small and vulnerable as she sleeps. Earl walks into the room and again regards the thin scar on her shoulder blade. He looks down at her with compassion, then picks her up baby-style and carries her in to put her to bed.