Cannibal Recap – Rake

“Cannibal” was the fourth episode (2/13/2014) of Season 1 of Rake. Ben’s father doesn’t make it and Keegan takes over a stomach-turning case. It opens with Kee at Mikki’s place. What initially sounds like dirty talk turns out to be a highly unusual request to make of a prostitute, even if you consider it a close relationship. Kee wants her to pull out his aching molar with a huge pair of pliers. She tries but somehow manages to knock it back in place instead. More on Mikki later.

Then Kee heads over to the funeral service for Ben’s father, betting on sports games on the way. While Ben struggles to eulogize his father, Kee is listening to the game live but somehow manages to lose control of his earphones. Everyone can hear the game. One guy even cheers. After the service, while friends and family gather, Kee helps Ben get over his guilt. Ben’s dad bullied him and made him feel like less than a man. Probably a worse sin, Ben’s dad liked Kee and thought Kee had balls. Kee encourages Ben to let his real emotions out.

This is where Ben asks Keegan to take over the cannibal case. The mayor’s former top economic advisor, Graham Murray, is charged with first degree murder in the death of Paul Wilson, a young accountant. Murray then had the accountant for dinner. Ben assures Kee that even though Scarlet is prosecuting the case, it will never go to trial. Bonus: Murray has great stock tips. The mayor, who already hates Kee, is plenty pissed about the plunge in his popularity over this crazy story, while the reporters are having a field day.

Keegan meets with Murray who doesn’t seem to have a handle on how revolting cannibalism is in our society, but there’s good news. Kee’s secretary, Leanne, has researched the law thoroughly and cannibalism isn’t a crime. If Kee can prove that Murray didn’t murder the guy, he’s off the hook. There is a video on Murray’s phone that proves Wilson committed suicide, but Murray’s wife destroyed the phone. She thought she knew her husband after 17 years of marriage but now he’s pulled the carpet out from under her. Worse — he fed her CPA and told her it was chicken!

A statement by the deceased’s mother on the stand gives Kee a hunch that turns out to be correct. Wilson sent the video to the one relative he was closest to, his sister, Dena. Murray is cleared of the murder charges but the judge still remands him for psychological evaluation. He thanks Kee and reminds him to invest in Australian iron ore (because the Chinese will need steel).

Subplots Galore:

Ben’s Keegan-hating mother, Frances, make a second appearance where she tells Kee exactly how much she loathes him and he says it’s just because she can’t scare him. Frances thinks she does scare him. Kee gets the last shot in as they sit down to the table to eat. He informs everyone that people really do taste like chicken. Stomachs churn.

Mikki decided to quite the hooker trade without even giving Kee a goodbye kiss. Kee goes to see her pimp, Jules, who informs him that it happens all the time. A girl makes her monetary goal and moves on. Kee begs for Mikki’s number but Jules can’t do it. Kee gets a little too insistent and Jules warns him to back off before he finds himself at the mercy of his hungry dogs. Jules tells Kee that Mikki has his number and will call if she wants to, but Kee should be smart for a change. Forget her.

Kee runs into Mikki on a college campus where he was supposed to meet up with an expert witness. He chases after her to a lecture on deceptive trade practices and tells the class that he is filling in for the professor. He then describes what Mikki did to him and she gets up and leaves. When he catches up with her, she shoots down any fantasies that their relationship was anything more than business. She explains that if a man wanted a nurse or a dominatrix, that is what she was. Kee wanted a friend and she played her part, but now it’s over. Kee is dumbfounded.

Roy was on hand to remind Kee that his gambling debt has now soared to $67K and Victor wants half of it by the end of the month. Roy punches Kee hard in the bread basket and Kee asks Roy to punch him really hard in the jaw. That knocks the bad molar out and saves the cost of a root canal.

Kee’s tax evasion trial gets another adjournment because the prosecuting attorney can’t communicate well with the “Bulgarian” mover whose affidavit established Kee’s financial records were damaged after a heavy rain. The mover asks Kee how he did on the stand — in perfect English.

When his ex-wife, Maddie, accuses him of sleeping with Stacy, Finn’s English teacher, Kee has a pretty good idea what his son did with the keys to the man cave, but tells Maddie he can’t help it. He’s a sex addict. Later, he tells Finn he knows and wants Finn to tell Maddie himself so he doesn’t have to. Disappointed that Finn claims to be in love, he’s even more disturbed at Finn’s bad grammar (“her and me, we’re different”). Wow, that’s all we can say. Kee’s agreement to keep Finn’s secret makes this storyline rise to a whole other level of not funny.

Kee was warned by his secretary Leanne somewhere along the line that a rumor is afoot: Kee’s stalker Margaret has been sighted in the lobby where they work. At the end of the episode, Kee returns to his apartment to find Mikki waiting outside for him. Before he can find out why, a car comes careening up the sidewalk while Kee yells “Margaret.”

Cast of Cannibal:
Greg Kinnear – Keegan Deane
Miranda Otto – Maddie Deane
Ian Colletti – Finn Deane
John Ortiz – Ben Leon
Necar Zadegan – Scarlet Leon
David Harbour – David Potter
Bill Cobbs – Judge in Keegan’s tax case
Damon Gupton – Mayor Marcus Barzmann
Annie Gee Byrd – Frances Leon
Denis O’Hare – Graham Murray
Kurt David Anderson – Paul Wilson
Joanne Baron – Anne Murray
Betsy Hume – Dena Wilson
Tom G. McMahon – Cheering Mourner
Nicolas Bechtel – Max
Anna Moon – Denise
Rebecca Tilney – Annie Murray
Cedric Yarbrough – Jules
Bojana Novakovic – Mikki
Jana Williamson – Stacy Mullen
Mae Hi – Mrs. Wu
Peter Chen – Mr. Wu
Kevin Rock – Rick
Murray Trial Judge – Maura Soden
Pizza Kid – Jason David McNichols