The Checklist: The Equalizer (S3 Ep11) “Christmas Presence”
Welcome to another edition of The Checklist.
This time out I am going back to one of my favorite action series of years gone by, The Equalizer. More specifically the 11th episode from Season 3 that originally aired on CBS on December 16, 1987…
#1. Was this a Christmas episode?
Normally when I do a Checklist, I will randomly select an episode from a series. But with it being just a few days before Christmas I found myself in the mood for a Christmas episode and as the title implies “Christmas Presence” is in fact a Christmas themed episode of The Equalizer. So the better question may be how Christmassy was this episode?
The show opens up with the sound of sleigh bells, the visuals of Christmas lights and skaters at Rockefeller Center, we even get a cameo from a Salvation Army Santa Claus.
The show itself features Robert McCall (Edward Woodward) gifting one of his old cynical spy buddies with the feeling of what it is like to help a person in need and Robert making things good with another old spy friend that he had wronged in the past.
And the episode wraps up with a Christmas party at one of Robert’s favorite spots in New York, complete with a reading of the story of the birth of Jesus Christ and a happy family reunion that some might consider a Christmas miracle. 1/1
#2. Was this a very special episode?
The Equalizer was known for tackling some serious subject matter during its run and “Christmas Presence” highlights the AIDS hysteria of the 1980s. In this case a young boy named Mickey, who was born with AIDS thanks to his drug addicted mother, and the young boy’s grandmother are being harassed by some of their new neighbors who don’t want them in the neighborhood and being shunned like lepers by many others. 2/2
#3. Were there any notable guest stars?
The aforementioned old cynical spy buddy was recurring character Harley Gage, played by Richard Jordan of The Hunt for Red October and Chato’s Land fame. Harley is questioning why Robert does what he does for people when Robert’s new briefcase phone rings and young Mickey is on the line asking for help… and that’s when Robert asks Harley to meet with Mickey to see what he needs help with. The hard hearted Harley quickly finds out why Robert does what he does, especially when he sees first hand the trouble that Mickey and his grandmother are facing.
The head troublemaker in this situation is local bar owner Kelly Stigman, who throws a firebomb in Mickey’s bedroom window and later whips some of his bar patrons in a frenzy and they don masks and break into Mickey’s apartment and trash the place, that includes the Christmas tree and Mickey’s prized possession, his Mr. Manhattan poster.
Stigman was played by Martin Shakar, who I recognized as CIA Agent Adams from another Christmas related piece of action entertainment, Invasion U.S.A. …One of Stigman’s bar patrons was played by none other than Dean Norris. Fortunately for Mickey and his grandmother, Dean Norris was just as successful here as he was in Breaking Bad and the Death Wish remake. 3/3
#4. Is The Equalizer’s ad in the paper shown or referenced?
The newspaper ad became less prevalent as the series went on, but young Mickey cut the ad out of the paper at some point since he apparently was under the impression that The Equalizer and his favorite superhero Mr. Manhattan were one in the same. 4/4
#5. Does Robert’s Jaguar make an appearance?
Robert McCall without his Jaguar would be like Santa Claus without his sleigh, so you better believe the Jag makes an appearance in “Christmas Presence”. 5/5
- Final Score = 5/5 (100%) I feel like I asked Santa for a Christmas episode of one of my favorite 80s action series and that’s exactly what I received when I watched “Christmas Presence”… I will admit I was hoping I’d get a famous Robert McCall meltdown since a young boy was being unjustly targeted, but Robert was so filled with the Christmas spirit, he opted with killing people with kindness over violence.
