Darlings, This "No Exit" Was Not Sartre's!!!!!!!!!!

Girls, the other night, "Law And Order Criminal Intent" ran an episode I had seen once before, but did not have as visceral a reaction to it as now. Maybe because it was so long ago that the Tyler Clementi tragedy had not yet taken place. While the episode deals with suicide, it is not bullying (well, to a degree, but more workplace than social) but guilt, sycophancy, greed and the consequences thereof.

"No Exit" begins with a group of young people contacting this guy, Carmine, who works at a high profile finance company. As they contact him, we see a series of shots, showing each member of the group, getting ready for their evening; they seem as outgoing and carefree, as if going to a party. They pick Carmine up, in a deserted place, and drive to an even more deserted place. This turns out to be on a set of railroad tracks, where, at 9PM each night, a train comes passing by. Slowly, inexorably, Carmine comes to understand that he is with a group who have all made a suicide pact with one another. Only he hasn't. Suddenly, the lights blare in the distance. The sounds pick up, and as the train bares down, we see, a boy and girl kissing in the back (they were in love, and their parents did not want them married), the driver tosses the keys and locks the doors, so no one can get out, his seatmate next to him looks horror stricken, as though having second thoughts, and Carmine is out of his mind, and frantically trying to escape, kicking at the doors!!!! But the train comes--CRASH!!!!!!!--that is it!!!!!!!!

Cut to Goren and Eames at the scene. They point out that this train usually carries gaseous toxics, so not only would the group have offed themselves, they would have created an explosion big enough to take with them a substantial portion of that section of the Bronx!!!!!! It was just fortunate the train that eve was not carrying any cargo, a factor I don't think the suicides were aware of. As they examine the bodies (which, as far as I am concerned, are much too intact, considering the manner of death they opted for!!!!), they deduce by the soles of Carmine's shoes that he did not want to be there; he was frantically trying to escape, judging by the glass shards on his soles.

The victims' parents are called in, devastated, and unable to comprehend how the young adults, who did not really know each other, managed to hook up. One of the parents remains behind, and says his son, Nicholas, he knew for a fact wanted to do this, that there had been a history of depression, and a series of prior suicide attempts. And his girl friend's parents did not want him to marry Eugenie, their daughter. He then shows the detectives a video/email Nicholas made, clearly announcing his intentions, assuring his father he is not to blame and that he loves him. Cold comfort, I say!!!!!!!!

As Goren and Eames work through the case, they come upon more pieces of scum than you can shake a stick at. They first learn that the young people--five-- met via a website called "Terminal Decision", set up to inform people who wish to end their lives the best methods and geographic locations for doing so. One of those mentioned is the GWB, which, when I first viewed this, had no overt meaning for me, but now, in the wake of Tyler Clementi, I felt my stomach tighten at the mention.

The detectives confront the owner of this website, a real sleazoid, who, of course spouts about Freedom of Speech, but, honey, this is pushing the envelope. Just like a pedophile advocate site would. When they go into the postings by the group members, they find these postings, allegedly by Carmine, about how he "sees Edie's shadow" everywhere at work, how he feels guilty about not doing anything about
Edie's situation, which led to her death, also a suicide. Though hers was a solo act, off the top of a building. Edie turns out to be Edie Elverson, who worked at the same firm as Carmine, and whose suicide still haunts the place, because of its mysteriousness. After talking to the Elversons--Edie's parents--who declare Edie never really mentioned Carmine--they add Edie was being harassed by her boss--overwork, verbal abuse, to a point where she was driven to do what she did. That she did not know Carmine tells the detectives that Carmine was set up; someone impersonated him online, and put him in that group car, knowing what it was, knowing he did not--in order to get rid of Carmine.

It gets better. The detectives discover the Elversons were going to file a wrongful death suit against Leonard Timmons and his company, but then dropped it. And as the investigation widens, Mr. Elverson becomes concerned that he is being implicated in the murder of Carmine, which he had nothing to do with.

What tips the scales is a scene we see out of town. Hubert Skoller, (Arye Gross) the sycophantic right hand man to Leonard Timmons, (Darrell Hammond) is summoned to straighten out the mess, surrounding both Carmine and Edie's deaths. Skoller clearly hates what he is doing, but for self-preservation he has gone along, and continued to go along, with Timmons. It seems Edie and Timmons had an ongoing sexual relationship, and when she wanted to end things, the egocentric could not handle it, so he made Edie's work life miserable, to the point where she felt she had no other option, but to end her life. Now, Mr. Skoller sets himself up as the pillar of the firm, kind, humane. Edie had gone to him for advice, and he did nothing for her, because to do so, would curry disfavor with Timmons, and he would lose everything he had. Pig!!!!!!! However, the one point in Skoller's favor is there is some remorse; the whole situation is eating away at him.

So much so, that, as Goren and Eames investigate him, they discover an escalating depression, time too much spent in getting his affairs in order. It becomes apparent to them---they do not know how-- that Skoller is going to commit suicide. As Eames says, in "posing" as Carmine, killing him in the suicide car, writing about "guilt" and "seeing Edie's shadow everywhere," Skoller was writing about himself. The reason he did not do anything sooner was because he was still under thrall to Timmons, holding the carrot of affluent lifestyle security over his head, like a horse being tortured. In other words, Skoller was too much of a sycophant.

Which all comes out in the big showdown in the waiting room. Resentful of having to cover up the affair Edie was having with Timmons, then having to do Timmonas' dirty work, in allowing him to abuse Edie, driving her to suicide, not to mention getting the Elversons to drop the lawsuit, and setting up Carmine to be in the "suicide" car, in order to get rid of him altogether, Skoller finally explodes at Timmons, before being hauled off to the slammer. Timmons explodes back, knocks over a chair, and, while not hauled off, it is made clear he will be facing charges of perjury and obstruction. So these two scum got their comeuppance, deservedly so!!!!!

This episode is disturbing, to say the least. I have heard for years of "The Hemlock Society," but a website that almost encourages its users to off themselves is reprehensible. The sad thing is, there are elements of truth to this, I am sure.

The problem with suicide is that it creates more. It does not just destroy one life, but many. I speak from experience, having known someone who, 23 years ago, took their life, albeit under different circumstances. I have never forgotten the impact it had on his family, and all of us who knew him.

And watch the opening scene very carefully. Just as the train is advancing, we get a glimpse of a young man in front, with wire rimmed glasses. Take a look at the actor's face. It is clear to me he (the character) is having second thoughts, horror struck that at this point there is absolutely nothing he can do. Which, as far as I am concerned, accounts for two murders in the car that night.

Just think if that train had been toxic. Those people would not have killed just themselves, but hundreds in the area. If they made a decision to end it, it should have been with the consideration of not ending the lives of others. Something which the episode makes you think about.

Oh, and darlings, this is the episode where cute Jamey Sheridan wears an eye-patch, which made me want to see him in a pirate suit. The character says he is suffering from Bell's Palsy; I found out it was incorporated into the script, because Sheridan himself was suffering from the very thing.

I am telling you, darlings, this is the most disturbing episode I think I have seen in the 'Criminal Intent' series. You owe it to yourselves to see it. If you know someone who is struggling with the issue of suicide, it will make you do something about/for them!!!!!!!!!!

And if you know one of these Leonard Timmons types, bitch slap him across the room!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The same goes for that repulsive sub-species--the workplace sycophants!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!