Eileen (Hilary Swank) is out for a run when she encounters a local Alaskan native, a moose. She quickly retreats and heads to work. At the local restaurant Rita’s, the morning crowd has filled the business and Claire (Meredith Holzman) is amazed by the hostility of some diners.
Back at the newsroom while celebrating Yuna’s (Ami Park) first front page story, the staff is shocked to learn that Rita’s has been sold. The loss of a local institution is a surprise to everyone. Stanley (Jeff Perry) is more concerned with an upcoming lunch meeting. He needs Eileen to have lunch with him and the publisher of the paper.
Claire digs into the story behind the sale of Rita’s. She quickly learns that a large fast food chain, Big Burger, has bought the property and plans to set up shop in town. When she tries to meet with the owner, Rita, Claire is shut out.
The cold case of Gloria Nammac is starting to expand with Eileen and Roz (Grace Dove) pursuing a friend of Gloria’s. Eileen and Roz are starting to agree on a course for the investigation and learn that their lead is getting ready to start work on a crab boat out of Kodiak, Alaska.
Returning to the paper from lunch with Stanley and the publisher, Eileen is accosted by the same stalker as before. A concerned citizen has called her at the office, and when she tries to confront him in the parking lot, Eileen is left wondering who the unknown ‘fan’ is.
Eileen and Roz may know where their lead Toby is but to get to Kodiak is a challenge. Thanks to her one-night stand with Jamie (Joe Tippett) Eileen and Roz hitch a ride with Jamie as he flies supplies to the town. Toby tells the two reporters that Gloria went to an after party on the night she died with someone named Skeeter.
The fight for Rita’s Diner continues in the town. A town meeting is set to discuss the incoming Big Burger. While some people at the meeting are in favor of the change, many are angry about the loss of their beloved diner. A fight breaks out and Claire is left wondering what is going to happen.
When Rita’s diner goes up in flames, the pieces fit together, and Claire uncovers the truth. Rita has had enough of the hostility and resentment at her restaurant. She had the opportunity to sell so she did. The possibility of the sale being prevented, forced Rita to burn down her own business.
Roz and Eileen agree on the approach to the Nammac story, and the two seem to come together on the next steps. Tragedy strikes, when the lead from Juna’s front page story commits suicide, leaving the young reporter in anguish.
While Claire is writing up the story of a loss of civility and the casualty being a beloved business, Eileen is left alone at a local bar, texting Jamie, only to be ignored.
Bill’s Perspective:
The meat of this show is the Gloria Nammac case being investigated by Hilary Swank and Grace Dove, but I love the fact that Alaska Daily is willing to devote time to side stories that flesh out the town and the people. Who would have thought the arson of a business would be connected to the changing landscape of how we treat each other.
Meredith Holzman gets to shine in this episode, and she is brilliant. I like Claire and hope to see more of her.
While Joe Tippett’s Jamie may have ignored Eileen, I highly doubt this is the last we see of him. That’s a good thing because Jamie might be the one person in town who can really connect with Eileen, and she needs that sort of relationship.