"Death Watch" is an episode of JAG that first aired on March 31, 1998. Written and directed by Donald P. Bellisario, the show's creator.
Reviewing letters and postcards Lt. Diane Schonke (Catherine Bell) wrote to him, Lt. Commander Rabb finds an unsigned draft of the letter she wrote to Commander Holbarth (Ben Lemon) complaining about his failure to handle her sexual harassment complaint.
Rabb is completely convinced that Holbarth killed Schonke to shut her up about the matter and set up her most recent lover as the fall guy, but at the same time knows the evidence is inadmissible in court. So Rabb intends to go to the harbor where Holbarth's ship has just docked and confront him with the draft letter and a gun.
Major MacKenzie (Catherine Bell) shows up at Rabb's apartment and learns of her belated Doppelgängerin and Rabb's intent to confront the alleged killer. Mac tries to go along with him but he ditches her in the rain.
Mac goes to JAG HQ and calls Lt. Roberts in, who gives her further information about Schonke (at first describing her as more "fun" and then as less "squared away" than Mac, and also saying that the two women's voices and personalities are very different).
Because of the rain, Mac's civilian clothes are soaking wet. Roberts gives Mac Sims's spare uniform (with ensign's shoulder boards). Mac shows up at the pier just after Rabb has given Holbarth the draft letter and pulled a gun on him. Holbarth, thinking that he's seeing Schonke's ghost, walks backwards and falls into the water, and is then crushed to death. Rabb kisses Mac but Mac declares that he was kissing "her," meaning Schonke.
Thus the storyline that was Left Hanging in the show's switch from NBC (see "Skeleton Crew") to CBS (see "We, the People") is finally resolved.
Tropes
- Cryptic Background Reference: Rabb and Mac were supposed to meet in Rabb's apartment to discuss the Murphy court-martial. There's no explanation as to who Murphy is, what Murphy's charged with, what plea deals have been offered or why Rabb and Mac couldn't discuss it during work hours.
- Doppelgänger : Mac learns about her dead Doppelgängerin.
- Recap Episode: A slight variation; the bulk of the episode is made up of scenes from "Skeleton Crew", being retold in Flashback by Rabb (and later Roberts) to Mac.
- You Look Like You've Seen a Ghost: Holbarth after seeing Mac in a Navy uniform, and, with different results, Rabb.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: The cliffhanger ending of the original episode, where Rabb is charged with Schonke's murder and arrested by Turque, goes completely unmentioned and unresolved. How did Rabb clear his name? As he himself might have said, "We'll never know."
