"Psychodrama"

Danny presents the bird

Phillip witnesses a murder

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In Short: In a special black and white episode paying tribute to, and sometimes, spoofing the great director Alfred Hitchcock's films, the hospital staff has experiences eerily similar to events that occurred in Hitchcock movies. Dr. Watters, temporarily crippled with a basketball injury, begins playing with his new telescope and witnesses a murder in the building across the street, But when the police try to check his story, all evidence has vanished. Meanwhile, Dr. Austin receives a lovebird from Danny, but the bird wreaks havoc in the hospital and even has an accident in the O.R., in a patient. Dr. Grad thinks she's located her birth mother only to discover that the woman is more than a little psycho. And, Dr. Catera, researching the psychobiology of violent offenders, finds the perfect patient for her study -- the only hitch is that he's Dr. McNeil's brother.
Guest Starring: Kelly Connell (as Dr. Roger Thorn), Jeff Alin (Mason van Damm), Lisa Wilcox (Eden Candle), Todd Allen (as Sean McNeil), Jason Beghe (as Danny Blaines), Christopher Smith (as Al Hitch), Tippi Hedren (as Alfreda Perkins), Paul Bartel, Zaid Farid, Michael Norris, Marte Boyle Slout, Venessia Valentino, Jeff Allin and Sanda Bogan

Story: Patrick Norris
Teleplay:
Directed By: Jennifer Levin

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Watters injures his foot while playing basketball and is forced to hobble around on crutches. He makes his way to his office, where a telescope wrapped in red ribbon, a gift from a traveling Stephanie, awaits. While using the telescope to peer into other buildings, Watters comes upon a mime arguing with a man wearing a brown business suit and a pig mask. The mime pulls out a gun and shoots the suited-man. A blonde ingenue enters the room and strikes the mime over the head with a sculpture. The Pig Man shoots the mime, killing him, then pulls off the mask. Afterward, Watters tells a disbelieving Wilkes that he witnessed a murder.

Grad tells Kronk she located her natural birth mother, Alfreda Perkins, through the Internet. Grad travels to Alfreda's house and introduces herself. The two women stare at one another, emotions swirling. Grad enters the darkly lit dwelling, which is decorated with a variety of freeze-dried pets: dogs, cats, birds, etc. During the conversation, Alfreda explains that she gave Grad away for adoption because she lacked money to care for her.

Catera tells McNeil she has begun research on how abnormal brain function can produce violent behavior. The pair walk into McNeil's office... only to come upon McNeil's brother, Sean, who was recently released from prison. McNeil instructs Sean to leave his office and never return. But Catera is intrigued by Sean and asks him to participate in her study. McNeil tells Catera his brother was imprisoned years earlier after he impales a teenager for borrowing his sleeping bag without permission. Later, Sean tells Catera his father struck him in the head with a two-by-four when he was a child.

Blaines gives Austin a lovebird as a token of his affection. But the bird gets loose and disappears into the hospital corridors. Later, as Austin operates on slasher movie director Rod Brenner, the bird flies over the operating table and defecated into Brenner's open chest. Later, Austin tells Brenner she thoroughly cleaned out the offending matter. Brenner promises he will not sue Austin... but will bring litigation against the bird's owner.

Watters accompanies disbelieving police to the apartment building where the murder transpired. Since there is no evidence of foul play, police wrap up the investigation quickly and leave the scene. Later, the Pig Man, aka Mason Vandamm, is admitted to the emergency room and treated for his gunshot wound. He is soon joined by the blonde woman who struck the mime over the head with the sculpture. The women identifies herself as Eden Candle, Mason's fiancee, an LVN who works at the hospital.

Grad inadvertently bumps into Alfreda as she carries a tray a of lasagna into the living room. Grad makes her way to the bathroom and, as she prepares to enter the shower, opens the medicine cabinet. She notices a vial of Thorazine labeled with the name "Margaret Edgar." Alfreda claims the medication belongs to a friend.

Catera shows McNeil an x-ray of his brother's frontal lobe, which exhibits signs of decreased function. According to Catera, this means that even the slightest annoyance can result in severe over-reaction... such as killing someone over a sleeping blanket. But McNeil dismisses the finding, noting that although his father did a poor job of raising his family, many children from more hostile backgrounds never resorted to violence. Later, Sean angrily erupts at Catera, tossing aside a table, all because his orange juice has too much pulp. He is taken into custody by hospital security. Catera tells McNeil his brother cannot be neglected. Later, McNeil offers his brother his assistance.

Using his telescope, Watters spies Eden Candle carrying a black plastic bag into the hospital. He searches through the hospital's incinerator room and finds a severed arm — on which is wedding ring. Thorn promises to identify the victim via fingerprint records. Kronk and Grad search through Alfreda's high school year book... only to discover a photograph of the real Alfreda Perkins. "Alfreda" admits that Grad's real mother is deceased. Later, Grad and Kronk visit Alfreda's grave.

An excited Thorn enters a hospital elevator and tells Watters that he identified the arm as belonging to a George Kaplans. Unfortunately, Eden overhears the conversation and races out of the elevator. Watters places a phone call to police, but his conversation is interrupted by an armed Vandamm, who is searching for "his arm." Wilkes suddenly enters the room, bashing into Vandamm and dislodging the gun from his hand. Just then, Eden enters holding a gun and demands the ring. Watters gives it to her, and she and Vandamm beat a hasty exit. Soon after, they are arrested by police.

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Here is an overview to all (let's say those I found ;-) the allusions in this episode:

Danny presents Kate a bird (Birds = in the movie these are love birds), here it is a cockatoo.

Watters get's injuired and has to walk on crutches (Rear Window = Jeff (James Stewart) is confined to a wheelchair after an accident. To shorten his time he watches the people in the house opposite to his through a camera lens)
Watters receives a telescope from Stephanie. The postcard shows the picture of Mount Rushmore (North by Northwest = (Roger (Cary Grant) and Eve (Eve Marie Saint) are fleeing down "The Presidents")
Watters watches a murder through his telescope (Rear Window) and like in the original no one believes him.
Mason van Damme (James Mason played Philip van Damme in North by Northwest) is brought to the hospital and Phillip recognizes him. His fiancée Eden Candle (Eve Marie Saint played Eve Kendall in North by Northwest) accompanies him.
Phillip watches through the telescope that Eden is bringing a black plastic bag to the hospital. He is getting curious and finds out that in the mortuary (where the dead bodies are burned) are a lot of those bags. In one he finds a hand - with a ring still on its finger. (Shadow of a doubt = Charles (Joesph Cotton) presents his niece a ring which is going to be his ruin).
Later in the elevator Dr. Thorn gives Watters the ring under the eyes of Eden and all attempts from Watters to stop him are failing. (North by Northwest = Roger (C. Grant) is with his mother in the elevator and with them are two men who want to kill Roger and all his attempts to warn her are failing).

In the murder scene Phillip watches a pantomime get killed. (Saboteur = to hide from the police who is following him Barry (Robert Cummings) flees to a circus).

After Eden has watched Thorn and Watters in the elevator and knows that she and Mason have been discovered, she comes into Phillip's office with a gun because she wants to get rid of the confidant. The scene recalls the final scene from North by Northwest when van Damme discoveres that Eve is a secret agent.

Meanwhile Diane finds out about her real mother and decides to visit her. First allusion is to The Birds - a bird is sitting right on her sideview mirror. Then entrance Tippi Hedren (with a stuffed animal under her arm , the whole house is filled with those = Psycho = in the hotel the walls are decorated with stuffed birds). While they are talking, Alfreda spills a glass of juice (Suspicion = John (Cary Grant) brings Lina (Joan Fontaine) a glass of milk and the big question is: is it poisoned or not ?) all over Diane's blouse and then she takes a shower. (Psycho = Tippi Hedren's name Alfreda Perkins (Anthony Perkins who played Norman Bates in this movie) and of course the famous shower scene). Only that this time there is no murder, it's Billy who was worried about Diane after talking to her at the phone. Billy looks at the yearbook that lies at the table. (Dial M for Murder = Margot (Grace Kelly) and Mark (Robert Cummings) are looking at the yearbook - in it is the picture of Swan Lesgate (Anthony Dawson) the man who is hired by Margot's husband to kill her).
Diane discovers the hole in the wall behind a painting (Jamaica Inn = Joss Merlyn (Leslie Banks) observes his niece Mary (Maureen O'Hara) through a hole in the wall which is also covered by a painting).

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