American Rust: Broken Justice – Season 2 Episode 1 Recap & Review

Homecoming

American Rust: Broken Justice Season 2 Episode 1 begins four months after the shocking events of season 1. A package is dropped off at a man’s house. He opens it and it explodes, killing him instantly. His name is Liam McKenna. 

Elsewhere, Grace and Virgil Poe and a recovering Billy are in a meeting with the District Attorney for Fayette County-Sue Herlitz. There is tension in the room, as Grace delivers a passionate statement about Billy’s suffering during his time in prison, and she demands fair compensation for her son. Herlitz offers to cover Billy’s medical expenses as well as his rehabilitation for the next six months, offering a total of $28,400 in compensation, which irritates Grace and Virgil. Billy accepts the money and receives a cheque immediately. 

Del Harris is working as a detective back in Pittsburgh, and he turns up at the crime scene of the man killed by the exploding package with his new partner – Angela Burgos. 

Grace, Virgil, and Billy leave the building after the meeting, and Isaac turns up to pick Billy up. They discover he’s going to live with him. Billy arrives back at Isaac’s house, where he discovers that Lee English has set up his room specifically for his rehabilitation. 

Harris gets back in with the brotherhood during drinks at a bar to celebrate Angela’s birthday. We meet Vic Walker and Mike Orr, who ask Harris if he wants back in. He says he was just waiting for someone to ask and accepts. 

Steve Park is the new chief of Buell. He’s looking into the triple murders that happened at the end of season 1, and he visits Grace Poe to ask her some questions, which she rebuffs. 

Elsewhere, Harris and Burgos interview the wife of Liam McKenna about his murder, and she claims to not have any information to help with the investigation. 

Grace and Virgil are having dinner at a diner when she hands him divorce papers to sign. He seems to not be forthcoming in signing him, and she leaves them with him.

Later on, Billy meets with Grace and hands over the deed to the property where they used to live. He informs her that he used the settlement money to pay the mortgage on the property, and he is now ready to fully move forward with his life. 

Grace turns up at a bar where Virgil is drinking to get the signed divorce papers. But to her annoyance, Virgil not only hasn’t signed them, he has left them in an unsuitable state and defaced them. Grace has an altercation with the landlord of the bar, Chloe Tatlock, when she gets involved in their business. 

Isaac is out on a date with a boring science guy but ends up meeting a mysterious guy called Russell Wolfe in the bathroom and has sex with him in there. 

Harris passes his initiation back into the brotherhood after turning up at a strange residence. He discovers detectives Ramon Fisher, Vic Walker and Mike Orr, among others, who welcome him back into the fold. 

The episode ends with Harris meeting up with the FBI, and it’s revealed that he is working undercover for them to bring down the brotherhood. He returns home to Buell to be with Grace for the weekend. A delivery man turns up at the bar where Virgil was drinking earlier to find Chloe Tatlock dead on the floor from a gunshot wound.  

The Episode Review

A great episode to get the sophomore season of American Rust up and running. The series manages to balance the aftermath of season 1 with the introduction of a brand new mystery, with Jeff Daniels in fine form as the morally corrupt Del Harris.

He is joined by a new partner, played by Dexter alumni Luna Lauren Velez, and she is an excellent addition to the cast as Detective Angela Burgos, who could potentially become the moral compass of the show. Maura Tierney also continues to sparkle as Del’s feisty girlfriend, Grace Poe. Season 2 has great potential based on the setup in this episode.